Snack giant makes bid to buy Hershey Company

Updated
Mondelez makes bid for Hershey: Dow Jones
Mondelez makes bid for Hershey: Dow Jones

The same people that make your Oreos and Cadbury Creme Eggs could also start making your Hershey bar.

Mondelez International (ticker: MDLZ), the maker of America's Favorite Cookie, has put out a takeover offer for Hershey Co. (HSY), CNBC reports, citing sources with knowledge of the offer.

Hershey is managed by a trust, and such a takeover would require a special class of stock.

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The confectioner's stock price jumped more than 15 percent to $113 early Thursday before pulling back. Hershey's market value Thursday morning was $21 billion, while Mondelez's was $69 billion, The Wall Street Journal reports.

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If the deal gets approved, it would be one of the more noteworthy food industry mergers of the year as the consolidation trend continues. Last year's Kraft Heinz Co. (KHC) merger made for the talk of the industry.

Mondelez said it would keep jobs safe after the merger, in addition to moving its headquarters to Hershey, Pennsylvania, The Wall Street Journal reports. Also, the company would reportedly change its name to the much more recognizable Hershey.

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There had been rumors of Nestle buying Hershey just this month, though analysts quieted that speculation.

Meanwhile, Mondelez has been the subject of takeover talk itself. 3G Capital had been a suspected potential buyer.

Copyright 2016 U.S. News & World Report

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