The candy industry encapsulates a diverse array of companies, from chocolate manufacturers and confectioners to snack makers

The Hershey Company has been sued by a consumer in the U.S. for allegedly selling dark chocolates containing harmful levels of lead and cadmium. Christopher Lazazzaro, who has filed a class action complaint at a federal court in Central Islip, New York, alleged that Hershey put out “deceptive and misleading” advertising and marketing campaign since it failed to disclose the amounts of lead...

Mondelez second quarter earnings exceeded analysts’ expectations, on the back of strong revenue. Adjusted earnings came in at 67 cents per share, 3 cents above estimates. Net revenue rose about +10% from the year-ago quarter to $7.27 billion, beating estimates of $6.78 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv. The Oreo maker expects 2022 organic net revenue growth of more than 8%,...

Kewpie Corp. shares plunged Friday morning, after the Japanese mayonnaise company posted its first-half net profit’s -7.6% decrease. The revenue decline was partly attributed to higher costs of raw materials. Following Thursday market close, Kewpie's net profit came in at Y8.89 billion ($65.4 million) for the six-month period ending May, compared to Y9.62 billion a year ago. Product-price...

The Hershey Company posted fourth-quarter results, with both earnings and revenue beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate. The chocolate maker’s adjusted earnings for the quarter grew +13.4% from the year-ago quarter to $2.10 a share, surpassing Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.69. Consolidated net sales climbed +6.4% year-over-year to $2,326.1 million, compared to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of...

Mondelez posted its fourth quarter earnings that missed analysts' expectations, even as revenue surpassed forecasts. The confectionary giant’s earnings came in at $0.71 a share, below the $0.7187 expected by analysts polled by Investing.com. Revenue of $7.66 billion was above analysts’ expectations of $7.58 billion. Adjusted operating income of the North America business for the full year...

Hershey’s second quarter earnings beat analysts’ expectations. Hershey forecasts adjusted earnings increase of +6% to +7% for the year. The company now projects full-year sales growth of +2%, compared to a prior guidance for an increase of +1% to +3%.

Snack company Mondelez International Inc MDLZ 1.55% reported Tuesday with first-quarter results that arrived better than expected.On Wednesday, CEO Dirk Van de Put was a guest on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" segment to discuss the company's performance and outlook. Read More...

Mondelez International reported first quarter earnings higher than what analysts’ anticipated. The confectionary company’s earnings of 63 cents a share surpassed analysts’ estimates of 61 cents a share (based on FactSet poll).  The maker of Oreo cookies and Cadbury chocolates reaffirmed its full-year prediction of net revenue growth in the range of 2% and 3%, and adjusted per-share earnings growth range of 3% to 5%.

But the bid was modestly below Campbell’s price expectation of $3 billion, resulting in an impasse. Arnott’s has the interest of some other buyers like KKR, a consortium backed by private equity firm.It is undisclosed what price the private equity firm has offered to buy Arnott, but it is known that they pay less for acquisitions than corporate buyers. The impasse has put Campbell in an awkward situation, as it may either have to sell Arnott’s below its desired price or abandon the sales process altogether.

Confectionery giant Mondelez International, the maker of Oreo cookies and Cadbury chocolates, is reportedly in talks to acquire international brands sold by Campbell Soup Company. Citing people familiar with the matter and who did not want to be named, a Bloomberg article indicates that Mondelez is negotiating the final terms of a potential deal to buy Arnott’s Biscuits, the Australian maker of Tim Tam cookies, and Danish butter-cookie producer Kelsen Group for a combined price tag of around $2.5 billion.A KKR & Co.-led consortium and Ferrero SpA were earlier among other interested buyers, according to the people (as reported by Bloomberg). No official statement has come out yet from any of the parties related to the matter.

Hostess Brands and Nutella-owner Ferrero are competing to buy Kellogg's Keebler, Famous Amos and fruit snacks businesses, in a deal that could value the brands at roughly $1.5 billion. In a recent shakeup across the food industry, big food companies are increasingly shedding smaller brands, as they intensify focus on the profit-makers.Taking advantage of such situations, companies like Hostess and Ferrero are placing a bet on these smaller brands as they believe the right strategy can successfully revive these already established brands. According to sources familiar with the deal, both Hostess and Ferrero have put in their final offers to Kellogg for the cookie and fruit snacks brands.

The Bank’s analysts raised price target to $120 a share, from previous outlook of $92. The stock hit a yearly low of $89.10 on May 3, but bounced back to a year high of $110 on Dec. 13.  On Wednesday, Hershey stock price climbed +3.11% to touch $107.61.While Hershey’s chocolate, candy and gum categories have been struggling with slowing sales, the company has tried to mitigate the impact on overall business by making divestitures(such as selling its two international brands) and new investments - to catch up on growth.

Next year, it might get costlier to taste Hershey’s chocolates. The chocolate maker is planning to raise prices of one-fifth of its products by around 2.5% in 2019.Initially, Hershey had wanted to hike prices by summer. In addition to price hikes, the company is focusing on digital strategies to milk a rapidly growing e-commerce market, while also adding new products and  making acquisitions to boost revenues. Chief executive officer Michele Buck indicated that the company’s association with SkinnyPop popcorn – following Hershey’s last year acquisition of Amplify Snack Brands – has turned out well for the company’s sales growth. Also seeming to target an increasingly health-conscious population, Hershey announced this year that it would buy Pirate Brands from B&G Foods Inc. for $420 million.