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US: Hillshire looks for Pinnacle purchase exit

By  |  June 16, 2014

Hillshire Brands said Monday that its board of directors is looking for the company to abandon its bid to acquire Pinnacle Foods after Tyson Foods won a bidding war to acquire Hillshire last week.

Tyson offered an $8.55 billion offer for Hillshire, beating out Pilgrim’s Pride after a brief bidding war. The takeover bids emerged after Hillshire announced its own plans to buy Pinnacle.

Hillshire noted, however, that it “does not yet have the right” to terminate the merger deal already made with Pinnacle. The company also can’t finalize a deal with Tyson until that Pinnacle deal is axed.

Reports say Hillshire could be asked to take the Pinnacle takeover to a shareholder vote; if shareholders vote against the deal, the merger could be terminated. Pinnacle could also earn a $43 million termination fee or more, reports say.

Full content: USA Today

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