candy maker

The 163-year-old candy company that makes Necco Wafers, the Clark Bar and Sweetheart Conversation Hearts has hired an investment banker to find a strategic partner or explore a possible sale.

The Hershey Co. on Friday conceded the race to acquire British candy maker Cadbury, opting for a slower road to international expansion but also possibly a tougher battle for shelf space in grocery stores.

Hershey, after months of internal debate, is now considering a bid for the British candy maker Cadbury , a move that would challenge Kraft 's existing $16.7 billion hostile offer for the company, according to people briefed on the matter.

A deadline loomed Monday for Kraft Foods Inc. to make a formal offer for British candy maker Cadbury PLC or walk away for six months.

Kraft Foods has six weeks to make a binding offer to buy British candy maker Cadbury or else walk away for at least six months, Britain's mergers and acquisitions regulator said Wednesday.

Kraft Foods Inc. is poised to launch a hostile bid for British candy maker Cadbury PLC, The Observer said Sunday, citing unnamed sources.

The trust that controls Hershey Co. has hired a notable banker and a small banking firm to advise on a possible bid for rival candy maker Cadbury PLC to compete with an offer from Kraft Foods Co., according to a published report.

The chairman of candy maker Cadbury PLC said Saturday that Kraft Foods Inc. undervalued his company in a takeover offer this week, and he dismissed the suitor as a "low growth conglomerate." Roger Carr laid out his opposition to Kraft's $16.7 billion bid in an open letter to Kraft CEO Irene Rosenfeld.

British candy maker Cadbury PLC is awaiting a sweeter offer than Kraft Foods Inc.'s $16.7 billion stock-and-cash proposal.

But it is unclear if Kraft or any other potential suitors will put more cash on the line, which could prove key to a deal.