TODAY'S CHARTS: Twitter gets an upgrade; Hershey and Campbell bet big on snacks

Justine Underhill
·Reporter

In a surprise move, Procter & Gamble (PG) said it would add activist investor Nelson Peltz to its board. That comes after the most expensive proxy fight ever, in which Peltz lost his battle for a board seat by a narrow vote.

It’s shaping up to be a delicious merger Monday on Wall Street. First, Campbell Soup (CPB) is planning to buy Snyder’s Lance (LNCE), known for its Cape Cod chips and Snyder’s pretzels, in an all-cash deal worth nearly $5 billion. The stocks is up over 6%, right around the $50 per share purchase price.

In another food deal, Hersey (HSY) is buying Amplify Snack Brands (BETR), the owner of SkinnyPop popcorn, in a deal worth $1.6 billion or a 71% premium over Friday’s close. Not surprisingly, Amplify is up about 70% today.

Twitter (TWTR) shares are trading 8% higher after an upgrade to Overweight at JPMorgan. Analysts expect that improved product features and daily active user growth will drive revenue.

McKesson (MCK) is trading slightly lower after a 60 Minutes story alleged the government “went easy” on the pharmaceutical distributor amid a DEA investigation into opioid crisis. McKesson issued a statement defending its conduct and calling the claims unsubstantiated.

Humana (HUM) shares fell 2% on a Wall Street Journal report that the insurance company and PE firms are in talks to buy Kindred Healthcare in a deal valued at about $4 billion.