Sara Lee plans to split up firm

NEW YORK: Sara Lee named Marcel Smits as chief executive officer and said it would split itself in two after failing to agree to takeover offers from potential suitors. The board also plans to declare a special dividend of $3 a share alongside the split, according to a statement on Friday from the Downers Grove, Illinois-based company. Smits, 49, has led Sara Lee on an interim basis since May, when predecessor Brenda Barnes suffered a stroke.

Smits will oversee the spinoff of the meat business, which will keep the Sara Lee name, leaving the company’s current beverage and bakery operations. Sara Lee’s international beverage business is its largest, accounting for about one-third of its $10.8 billion in sales in the year ended in June.

Sara Lee fell 42 cents to $17.22 in trading before exchanges opened after closing at $17.64 on Thursday on the NYSE. The shares have gained 45% in the past year.

This week, Brazilian meat processor JBS gave up trying to raise funding for a Sara Lee bid, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Sao Paulo-based JBS, the world’s largest beef producer, had sought to line up financing for an offer of $20 to $21 a share after Sara Lee rejected a lower offer in December , people familiar with the matter said this week.

A group of buyout firms led by Apollo Global Management also failed to raise their offer after a bid of about $19 made last week was snubbed, people said.