Sara Lee Corp.’s  managers passed up three chances to sell itself in the last year, Bloomberg reported Monday, citing people with knowledge of the negotiations.

Led by then-Chairman James Crown, the board rejected approaches from JBS SA, KKR & Co.  and Apollo Global Management LLC that valued Sara Lee at as much as $18.50 a share, said sources who declined to be identified because the discussions were private.

According to two people, Sara Lee pushed for a sale at about $20 a share but decided to break itself up after JBS and Apollo dropped out without boosting their informal offers.

On Jan. 28, Sara Lee confirmed its board agreed in principle to split the company’s North American retail and food service unit and its international beverage and bakery unit into two public companies. Sara Lee opted for the move after rejecting JBS SA’s $17.50-a-share offer as too low.