Part 1: Introduction to The Acquisition of Kellanova by Mars Inc

Before we start analysing, lets begin with introdoucing the case. Mars Inc is a multinational conglomerate that’s based in McLean, Virginia, United States. It is entirely owned by the Mars family. They employ over 135,000 people across 33 factories, 2,000 veterinary hospitals, and 17 offices and retail stores. They are manufacturers of food products, confectionary and pet food. Some of their well-known products include M&M's, Snickers, Milky Way, Skittles, and Twix. 

Meanwhile, Kellanova is another multinational food manufacturing conglomerate specializing on snacks, confectionary, international cereal, noodles and north American frozen food. They have a presence in 180 markets, and they employ 33,000 people. 

On August 14, 2024, Mars Inc has agreed to acquire Kellanova. The deal was unanimously approved by the board of directors of Kellanova and was valued at $35,9 billion. It includes Mars paying $83,50 per share in cash. Which was %33 more than the closing market price of Kellanova of $62,78 on August 2, 2024. The overall cost of the acquisition includes Kellanova’s existing net debt of $6 billion. Approvals are being sought from regulatory authorities worldwide and the deal is expected to be closed by the first half of 2025.

As two of the major players, this acquisition of Mars Inc raises questions about the change it will create on the position of Mars Inc in the global food industry. Within the context of change (any modification or transformation within an organisation, aiming to improve processes, solve problems, or capitalise on opportunities), this series of articles will try to analyse how this acquisition will influence Mars Inc’s position in the global food industry. 

This series of articles will include a balanced mix of qualitative and quantitative tools written jointly by 4 contributors. With the use of efficiency and liquidity ratios, the articles will both assess Mars Inc’s financial capability to sustain such a large-scale acquisition and Kellanova’s financial position to evaluate if this acquisition fits with Mars Inc’s financial objectives. Conversely, by employing qualitative tools such as Ansoff matrix and STEEPLE analysis the potential benefits and strategic risks will be assessed. These articles will utilise a wide range of resources. While internal sources provide detailed and comprehensive information that cannot be acessed externally, external sources help eliminate the possible bias present in internal ones.