Hostess Brands, maker of popular snack cakes including Twinkies and Zingers, may be about to change hands again.
Reuters reports The company has become a takeover target, with General Mills, Mondelez, PepsiCo and Hershey all showing interest. The company’s shares have soared more than 20% since Friday as investors digested the rumors.
hostess told wealth It does not comment on rumor or speculation.
Founded in 1930, Hostess has created some of the most familiar names in snack food, but 21Yingshi The century of the brand has been full of ups and downs.
It filed for bankruptcy twice, in 2004 and 2012, the so-called “Chapter 22,” after its debt levels soared and sales slumped. It was at one point owned by the same company that owns Pabst Blue Ribbon beer.
Things looked particularly dire in 2016, when the company closed its bakery operations and began liquidating assets after failing to negotiate labor contracts with workers in bakeries, confectioners, tobacco workers and the International Union of Grain Mills.
At the last minute, the company sold a majority stake to an investment firm, rescuing it and making it publicly traded again.
The company has experimented with several new products, including frozen deep-fried layer cakes and healthier mini muffins, but those haven’t quite taken the market by storm. Still, the brand has turned a profit, with more than $1 billion in revenue last year.
This success may in part attract the interest of potential acquirers. The fact that shares are flat may also have spurred interest as the Nasdaq has risen sharply overall this year.
Hostess has hired Morgan Stanley to advise it as it considers the takeover bid, Reuters reported.
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