| Title: | All about Scandinavia |
| Moderator: | TLE::SAVAGE |
| Created: | Wed Dec 11 1985 |
| Last Modified: | Tue Jun 03 1997 |
| Last Successful Update: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
| Number of topics: | 603 |
| Total number of notes: | 4325 |
From: [email protected] (VIRGINIA MAIDA RANDALL, UPI Business Writer) Newsgroups: clari.biz.products,clari.news.europe,clari.biz.mergers, clari.biz.top Subject: Kraft agrees to buy stake in Scandinavia's largest chocolate company Date: Mon, 28 Sep 92 15:47:05 PDT NEW YORK (UPI) -- Kraft General Foods International, a division of Philip Morris Cos., said Monday it has agreed to purchase all the outstanding shares of Freia Marabou A.S., Scandinavia's leading chocolate company, for $1.5 billion. The agreement between Kraft General Foods' Zurich-based subsidiary, Jacob Suchard AG, and Freia superceded a bid from Hershey Foods Corp., headquartered in Hershey, Pa. Hershey now holds 18.6 percent in Freia, based in Oslo. Kraft's offer included the purchase of 19 million of Freia's outstanding shares for $74 a share, said George Knox, a Kraft spokesman in New York. Kraft General Foods International is based in Rye Brook, N.Y. The company did not disclose what percentage of Freia it will hold through the proposed deal, but analysts said it will give Kraft the largest minority stake. Hershey said in a statement its bid for the chocolate giant's stock was more than $66 a shares. Kraft said Freia's single-largest shareholder, Norsk Hydro, approved the bid. Norsk, an energy company based in Norway, rejected an offer for its 44.1 percent stake from Hershey. Knox said the deal was part of "a growth strategy for both companies," and the combination would allow Jacobs Suchard to expand its reach into Scandinavia. He said the deal would allow Freia to increase its presence throughout Europe. Ken Shea, an analyst for Standard & Poor's Corp., said, "On the surface it seems that Kraft wants to expand their international presence in high margin candies, to Hershey's chagrin." The deal would make Kraft the biggest minority shareholder in Freia, Shea said. "It doesn't take much for Phillip Morris, which owns Kraft, to get a bigger stake," he said. "Phillip Morris will want to buy Hershey's share." Hershey's said it was reviewing its options concerning its stake in Freia. Freia is a leader in candy manufacturing, with 1991 sales of $900 million. It also produces breakfast cereals, ketchup, and chocolate powdered-drink mixes. At the close of trading on the New York Stock Exchange, Phillip Morris stock gained 12.5 cents a share to end at $85.375. Hershey's stock, also traded on the Big Board, rose $1.125 to $45.50 a share.
| T.R | Title | User | Personal Name | Date | Lines |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 520.1 | Hershey sells | TLE::SAVAGE | Thu Oct 29 1992 10:36 | 50 | |
From: [email protected] (VIRGINIA MAIDA RANDALL, UPI Business Writer) Newsgroups: clari.biz.products,clari.news.europe,clari.biz.mergers, clari.biz.invest,clari.biz.top Subject: Hershey sells stake in Freia Marabou Date: Tue, 27 Oct 92 16:24:30 PST NEW YORK (UPI) -- Hershey Foods Corp. said Tuesday it has withdrawn its offer to acquire Freia Marabou, Scandinavia's largest candy maker, and will tender its 18.6 percent interest to a subsidiary of Philip Morris Cos., the winning bidder. Freia Marabou, a Norwegian company with sales of $900 million in 1991, was courted in September by both Hershey and General Foods, a Philip Morris subsidiary. A bidding war ensured for Freia Marabou, which is based in Oslo, and Philip Morris beat out Hershey's $1.3 billion bid. Philip Morris's successful agreement, negotiated through Jacob Suchard AG, a Zurich-based subsidiary of General Foods, gave it 19 million outstanding shares of Freia Marabou for about $1.5 billion. "We are obviously disappointed that our bid to acquire the remaining shares of Freia Marabou was not successful," Hershey Chairman Richard A. Zimmerman said in a statement from the company's headquarters in Hershey, Pa. "We explored all available options in our attempt to acquire the company," he said. "In the best interests of our shareholders and the Freia Marabou employees, we believe our best course of action is to tender our shares." The transaction would give Hershey a one-time, after-tax gain of about $40 million at current exchange rates. The deal is conditioned on Norwegian government approval of the Philip Morris takeover, which is not expected for several months. In the interim, Hershey's proceeds from the sale of its Freia Marabou shares to Philip Morris will earn interest. At the end of trading on the New York Stock Exchange, Hershey stock fell 50 cents to $45.25 a share. Philip Morris rose 75 cents to $76.375 a share. Hershey's relationship with Freia Marabou began when it took a majority stake in the mid-1980s in Marabou, a Norwegian candy company. Since 1983, Hershey has held the license to sell its Dime candy bar in the United States under the brand name Skor. In January 1990, Freia, a major shareholder in Marabou, announced it planned to take over the company. Hershey divested its Marabou shares rather than be a minority shareholder in the new company, which was called Freia Marabou. In spring of 1992, Hershey bought back its shares, which represented an 18.6 stake in Freia Marabou. In late September Hershey was outbid by Philip Morris for the shares of Norse Hydro, a Norwegian public utility, which owned 44.1 percent of Freia Marabou. ... | |||||