Hershey’s main owner rejects Mondelez’s offer as too low, reports Bloomberg News

(Reuters) – Hershey’s main controlling owner rejected Mondelez’s (NASDAQ: ) International takeover bid as too low, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Bloomberg reported earlier this week that Mondelez was exploring an acquisition of chocolate maker Hershey, in what could have created one of the world’s largest confectionery companies.

Hershey Trust Company’s approval is critical to any takeover deal, given that it has voting control over the chocolate maker.

Hershey and Mondelez did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

Earlier in the day, Mondelez said it would focus on “locked-in” businesses similar to its recent acquisitions of Chipito, Clif and Rizzolin. He also announced a share buyback program of up to $9 billion.

Mondelez’s deals with Chipita, Cliff and Ricolin in 2022 were under $3 billion. By contrast, Hershey has a market capitalization of about $38 billion, according to LSEG data.

The Oreo maker tried to buy Hershey in a $23 billion deal in 2016, but the trust rejected the overture.

Reuters reported at the time that Hershey was unwilling to enter into negotiations for an offer of less than $125 per share.

The Hershey Trust, established by the company’s founder more than a century ago, is a charitable organization that has the Milton Hershey School as its sole beneficiary.

Hershey shares, which rose as much as 19% on Monday after reports of Mondelez’s bid, fell 3.3% on Wednesday. Mondelez shares rose 3.5%.