Unilever is preparing a 6 billion pound ($7.44 billion) sale of some of its food brands, British newspapers reported on Saturday.
The Anglo-Dutch company is planning to sell Flora margarine and Stork butter brands, the Sunday Times said.
The Sunday Telegraph, which also cited a figure of 6 billion pounds, quoted sources as saying private equity firms Bain Capital, CVC and Clayton Dubilier and Rice have started working on offers for these businesses. Unilever did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
The maker of Knorr soups, Dove soap and Ben & Jerry's ice cream rebuffed a surprise $143 billion takeover offer from Kraft Heinz last month, stating that the group "sees no merit, either financial or strategic, for Unilever's shareholders."
The company has launched a business review to consider returning cash to shareholders, making medium-sized acquisitions and more aggressive cost cuts, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday. In a report released in January, Unilever stated that its food business sector sustained its return to growth, driven by the packs with easy-out technology and organic variants.
