Monsanto Company MON has again approached Swiss-based Syngenta AG (ADR) SYT about a takeover, according to a Bloomberg report. Syngenta is reportedly reluctant to accept a deal, given the antitrust and regulatory hurdles the combined company may face.
Shares of Syngenta nonetheless gained 16.7 percent in pre-market trading, last at $78.20 – near a 52-week high.
Syngenta is the largest global maker of crop chemicals, while Monsanto is the largest maker of seeds.
Last year, the companies held talks on a deal, but were unable to come to agreement when Syngenta walked away. Monsanto has since warmed to the idea of selling parts of the combined business, which most commonly overlaps in North America and Latin America.
Shares of Monsanto were also indicated as much as 3 percent higher in pre-market trading.
Since early January 2014, shares of Syngenta have slumped 16 percent as of Thursday's closing price. Analysts from Morgan Stanley pointed to this poor performance generally, as well as the company's underperformance to peers, as reasons that Syngenta may have warmed to a deal.
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