A “sweet deal”: Candy company Mars Inc. looks to buy Wrigley

Associated Press
Published: April 28, 2008

Click here for video

NEW YORK—Mars Inc. and Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., were close to a deal to acquire the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company for more than $22 billion, a deal that could transform the confectionary industry, people familiar with the agreement told newspapers.

The deal could be announced as early as today, these people told The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.

Wrigley shares soared 21 percent, or $13.55, to $76.00 in premarket trading.

The Times’ sources cautioned that the deal could still fall apart. Neither newspaper identified the people providing the information.

Mars, based in McLean, had no immediate comment. Calls to Wrigley and Berkshire Hathaway were not immediately returned.

The merger of Mars, maker of M&Ms, Snickers bars and other candy, and Wrigley, which produces such gums as Extra, Eclipse, and Orbit, could force other snack companies to merge to compete with the new confectionary giant.

Buffett, already a candy owner in Sees Candies, is helping finance the transaction for Mars, the newspapers said.

Representatives of the companies and Berkshire Hathaway declined to comment.

The sale price would represent a sizable premium above Wrigley’s stock market value, which was about $17.3 billion Friday.

Wrigley, based in Chicago, sells candy in nearly 200 countries. Founded in 1891, the company has been led by four generations of the Wrigley family.

The company is scheduled to release first-quarter earnings results today.

Mars is a family owned company and has global sales of about $22 billion each year. It was founded in 1911.