Directors of West Point-Pepperell Inc. put the...

Directors of West Point-Pepperell Inc. put the textile giant on the auction block while urging stockholders to reject a sweetened $1.54-billion bid from Farley Inc. Farley, which offered $48 a share when it started its hostile takeover bid in October, raised the offer to $52 on Wednesday. But the West Point-Pepperell board said it thinks that stockholders can do better. Trading of Pepperell stock was halted, as is usual when a company has an announcement to make that could affect its stock price. Pepperell’s stock climbed $2 to close at $55.625 in active trading.