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| "We are exceptionally pleased with the competitive divestiture process Beanstalk Management ran for us. They successfully captured the essence of our proposition, negotiated a compelling deal and drove the entire process with tenacity. It would have been impossible to achieve the same result without them" Netcallidus - May 2010 |
Back in early November, Cadbury rejected a hostile takeover bid to the
tune of £9.8bn from US-based Kraft. At the time Cadbury referred to the
acquisition offer as “derisory”. Now, reports suggest that Ferrero and
Hershey could be gearing up to make a joint bid for the Birmingham-based
confectionery brand. Ferrero, based in Italy, confirmed that such plans
were only at “preliminary stages” while Hershey refused to confirm
reports, stating that bidding for Cadbury was merely a possibility.
Analysts have suggested that these two confectionery brands would join forces
to make a acquisition bid as neither are in a financial position to bid
for Cadbury without further financial backing. It has still been
suggested that Kraft would be the frontrunner for any takeover.
Charles Stanley analyst, Jeremy Batstone-Carr, commented: “Significant
questions remain regarding how any deal (from Ferrero and Hershey) might
be put together, not least in terms of product and/or geographical
segmentation.”
He continued: “The likely complexities
associated with a rival approach for Cadbury in purely practical terms
leaves us strongly of the view that Kraft remains the strongest rival,
but that it will need to increase its offer in order to win control.”
Cadbury is the second largest confectionery company in the world. Last year
alone it produced revenues of £5.4bn. Shares in Cadbury also continue to
rise amidst the takeover speculation. Ferrero, makers of Ferrero Rocher
and Nutella, had revenues of 6bn Euros in 2008 while Hershey made $1.5bn
(equivalent to £3bn). However, frontrunners Kraft own several food
brands, including Maxwell House coffee and Philadelphia produced total
revenues of $42.2bn last year alone.