The J.M. Smucker Company (Smucker) has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Hostess Brands, Inc. for approximately $5.6 billion. Against this backdrop, there was a spike in social media discussions around “Smucker” during the second week of September, reveals the Social Media Analytics Platform of GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

Smitarani Tripathy, Social Media Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “The deal’s announcement has sparked diverse reactions from Twitter influencers, making it a hot topic in both the food industry and financial markets. Some influencers are intrigued by the potential synergies between the two companies, which could enhance Smucker’s margins and broaden its product range. However, the market’s pessimistic response, leading to a decline in Smucker’s market capitalization, indicates a sense of caution regarding the deal’s execution and its immediate effects on Smucker’s financial performance.”

Below are a few of the popular influencer opinions captured by GlobalData’s Social Media Analytics Platform:

  1. Jonah Lupton, Trader and Investor:

“Wow, $SJM is looking to acquire $TWNK for $34.25 per share which implies an $5.6B enterprise value including debt. I’m going to assume there’s lots of synergies between these companies with overlapping costs that can be stripped out to improve margins. Curious if the FTC tries to block it since they love to block everything that’s good for shareholders.

  1. David Merkel, Induvial Analyst:

“JM Smucker agreed to acquire Hostess Brands, the maker of Twinkies snack cakes, for about $5.6 billion, including $900 million in debt … Expensive deal, but $SJM is pretty good at brand management”

  1. Julianna Tatelbaum, CNBC Anchor:

“BREAKING: Jelly giant J.M. Smucker agrees to buy Twinkie maker Hostess Brands for $5.6 billion. Amazing with so much anti-sugar sentiment the Hostess brand is worth over $5bn!!!”

  1. Sylvain Charlebois, Professor at Agri-Food Analytics Lab:

“JM Smucker has some explaining to do; its stocks dropped nearly 10% today after announcing the purchase of Hostess Brands. The move has wiped out almost $13B in market capitalization. In the food industry, companies are typically expected to invest in growth, but the market isn’t reacting positively to this move.”