Nestle Buys Majority Stake in Turkish Confectioners

Nestle (NASDAQ:NSRGY) celebrated Christmas by scooping up a majority stake in Turkish confectionery brands Dogan and Balaban.

The deal, which was announced Monday, is aimed at giving the Swiss food maker a greater presence in the lower-priced candy market.

Dogan and Balaban Gida produce popular biscuit, chocolate and wafer brands. Nestle said the low-tier candy business caters to about half of Turkey's total confectionery sector.

“We aim to offer consumers great taste and Nestlé quality through popular price points," Devrim Cobek, an exec from Nestle's Turkey confectionery unit, said in a statement. "Our objective is to gain new production capabilities, and the collaboration with Dogan and Balaban Gida will make an important contribution to this.”

Shares of Kraft (NYSE:KFT), a rival of Nestle's, slipped 0.31% to $31.78 ahead of Monday's opening bell.