Three years ago, Pinnacle Foods agreed to a takeover of $4.3 billion by Hillshire Brands. That deal was canceled after Hillshire agreed to sell itself to Tyson Foods.
Hillshire was led at the time by Sean Connolly, who is now chief executive of Conagra.
Reuters reports that ConAgra Brands (CAG) has approached Pinnacle Foods (PF) for a takeover.
Conagra’s approach to Pinnacle Foods took place in the last few weeks. There is no assurance that Pinnacle Foods will choose to walk down the alter, or that Conagra will pursue a potential deal further, the report said.
Pinnacle Foods operates through four segments: Frozen, Grocery, Boulder, and Specialty. The Frozen segment offers brands such as the Bird’s Eye, Van de Kamp’s, Mrs. Paul’s, Lender’s, Celeste, Hungry-Man, and Aunt Jemima names. The Grocery segment brands include the Duncan Hines, Vlasic, Wish-Bone, and Mrs. Butterworth’s.
Conagra Brands, Inc. (CAG) operates as a food company in North America. It operates through five segments: Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, Foodservice, and Commercial. The company markets its products primarily under the Healthy Choice, Hunt’s, Slim Jim, Reddi-wip, Alexia, Blake’s, Frontera, Bertolli, P.F. Chang’s, and Marie Callender’s brands.
What Goes Around, Comes Around
Three years ago, Pinnacle Foods agreed to a takeover of $4.3 billion by Hillshire Brands. That deal was canceled after Hillshire agreed to sell itself to Tyson Foods Inc for $7.7 billion. Hillshire was led at the time by Sean #Connolly, who is now chief executive of Conagra.
Connolly’s second attempt at an acquisition of Pinnacle Foods underscores the need for further consolidation in the frozen food and condiments sectors, as sales continue to decline with consumers opting for healthier choices.
Conagra has been seeking to reinvent itself since selling its private label unit for $2.7 billion in 2016 to focus on its branded food business. Last year it spun off its $6.9 billion frozen potato business, Lamb Weston Holdings Inc. This week it agreed to sell its Wesson oil brand to Folgers coffee maker J.M. Smucker for $285 million.
Conagra has a market cap of $17 billion while Pinnacle has a market cap of less than $8 billion.
Price Action
PF shares last traded at $62.31. It has a 52-week trading range of $42.09 – $66.50
CAG last traded at $39.78. CAG has a 52-week trading range of $33.08 – $41.68.
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