Nestle to Sell U.S. Candy Business For $2.8B

Nestle, the Swiss food and drink giant, is going to be selling its U.S. candy business that makes up such brands as Butterfinger, Crunch bars, Nerds, SweeTarts and FunDip.

The company will be selling the business to Ferrero, an Italian manufacturer of branded chocolate and confectionery products for around $2.8 billion in cash.

The company’s candy business accounts for about 3% of Nestle’s U.S. division sales.

The sale is expected to close at the end of the first quarter.

It was also this month that Nestle said it would be selling Australian chocolate bar Violet Crumble.
Nestle agreed in 2017 to buy Atrium Innovations, a vitamin maker that makes about $700 million in annual sales. Nestle paid $2.3 billion for the company.

According to Vontobel analyst Jean-Philippe Bertschy, “The switch of assets makes a lot of sense. You’re going out of a weak business in terms of financials and … entering a market with strong growth and higher margins.”