Hershey's Ownership Structure and Control - Hershey Trust Company maintains control over Hershey Company, regardless of how many shares an investor buys [2] - Hershey has Class A shares (200 million, publicly traded) and Class B shares (55 million, not publicly traded) [5][6] - Class B shares hold 10 votes each, giving Hershey Trust Company control over the company [6] Mondelez's Takeover Attempt - Mondelez approached Hershey with a takeover offer, causing Hershey's stock to soar on Dec 9 [3] - This was Mondelez's second attempt after a failed 23billionbidin2016[3]−Hersheyrejectedtheofferagain,likelyduetolackofapprovalfromHersheyTrustCompany[4][7]Hershey′sCurrentChallenges−Hersheyfacesanunprecedentedspikeincocoaprices,amajorinputcost[10]−Demandheadwindsincludetheimpactofweight−lossdrugsonconsumerbehaviorandcompetitionfromupstartcandybrands[11]−Despitechallenges,Hersheyremainsastrongbrandwith11 billion in annual sales and 1.8billioninnetincome[11]ShareholderImplications−Mondelezshareholdersmaybenefitfromthedealnotmaterializing,aslargemergersarecomplexandcostly[8]−Hersheyshareholdersbenefitfromthelong−termvisionmaintainedbyHersheyTrustCompany[9][12]−HersheyTrustCompany′suniqueownershipstructureensuresthecompany′scontinuityandlong−termfocus[12]Mondelez′sStrategicShift−Mondelezannounceda9 billion stock buyback plan and a focus on smaller, bolt-on acquisitions on Dec 11 [9]