Shareholders in Thorntons are licking their lips after shares jumped a massive 42 percent following a buyout bid by Italian chocolate maker Ferrero International.<br /><br />Ferrero put a value on Thorntons, established in Sheffield in 1910 by Joseph William Thornton, of €156m.<br /><br />The company urged shareholders to accept the offer.<br /><br />Thorntons have seen profits and sales fall in recent times and have issued a profit warning<br />for December.<br /><br />As Ferrero makes an offer to gobble it up, could Thorntons disappear from the high street? http://t.co/3MNGDId2hr pic.twitter.com/8nxHYhnJfd— Management Today (@MT_editorial) June 22, 2015<br /><br />Thorntons employs 3,500 staff and has 242 shops and cafes in the UK and Ireland.
