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Nestle rules out bid for Cadbury | Nestle rules out bid for Cadbury |
(10 minutes later) | |
Food giant Nestle says it does not intend to table a takeover bid for Cadbury, despite recent speculation. | |
Nestle had been linked to a possible offer following Kraft Food's hostile bid for Cadbury, announced in December. | Nestle had been linked to a possible offer following Kraft Food's hostile bid for Cadbury, announced in December. |
Separately, Kraft has announced it will increase the proportion of cash in its offer to Cadbury shareholders in order to make its bid more attractive. | |
Kraft will use cash made from the sale of its north American pizza business - sold to Nestle for $3.7bn (£2.3bn). | |
More cash | More cash |
The sale means Kraft will be able to offer an extra 60p per share in cash, though the overall value of the offer is not being increased. | |
The company will announce full details of its new offer before 16 January. | The company will announce full details of its new offer before 16 January. |
Kraft's original bid was £3 plus 0.26 new Kraft shares for each Cadbury share - a deal that analysts said would be unlikely to tempt shareholders. | Kraft's original bid was £3 plus 0.26 new Kraft shares for each Cadbury share - a deal that analysts said would be unlikely to tempt shareholders. |
The Cadbury board has launched a fierce defence against the Kraft bid, calling it "derisory" and arguing it undervalues the business. | |
Nestle was among the possible rival bidders expected to enter the fray. | Nestle was among the possible rival bidders expected to enter the fray. |
On Monday, that speculation was fuelled when Nestle sold its remaining stake in eye-care group Alcon to Novartis for $28.1bn (£17.5bn) - a deal perceived as freeing up cash for a Cadbury bid. | |
However, on Tuesday it instead spent some of that money buying Kraft's frozen pizza business, which sells brands including DiGiorno and California Pizza Kitchen in the US and Canada. | However, on Tuesday it instead spent some of that money buying Kraft's frozen pizza business, which sells brands including DiGiorno and California Pizza Kitchen in the US and Canada. |
In a statement, Nestle said its decision not to make, or participate in, a formal offer for Cadbury followed discussions with the UK Takeover Panel - the body in charge of regulating takeovers. | In a statement, Nestle said its decision not to make, or participate in, a formal offer for Cadbury followed discussions with the UK Takeover Panel - the body in charge of regulating takeovers. |
That leaves Kraft as the only current bidder for Cadbury, although the UK confectioner says it has been in talks with US company Hershey about a possible deal. |