Hershey board unanimously rejects preliminary offer from Mondelez

Hershey's board unanimously rejected a $23 billion offer from its rival Mondelez International. In a statement, the maker of Hershey's Kisses and Reese's Peanut Butter, said it turned down the offer after determining "that it provided no basis for further discussion between Mondelez and the company."  Hershey said Mondelez, the maker of Oreo cookies and Cadbury chocolate, offered it $107 a share in cash and stock. The offer also included other "non-monetary conditions."  Earlier Thursday, people familiar with the matter told CNBC that Mondelez had pledged to protect jobs following any deal and to locate its global chocolate headquarters to Hershey, Pennsylvania, and rename the combined company Hershey.  Those overtures were seen as critical to paving the way to a potential transaction, given past failed attempts to acquire Hershey.  Hershey's shares hit a 52-week high intraday and was recently trading up $17.86, or 17.4 percent at $114.55. With the stock trading higher than the speculated offer price, it is likely investors are betting Mondelez could sweeten its offer, or another suitor could appear.