If at first you don’t succeed, pay off some debt and try again (a few years later). Sure, it doesn’t sound right, but it does seem to accurately describe the situation at AngloGold Ashanti (AU), the #3 gold producer in the world, which according to Reuters, is once again looking to spinoff its South African mining assets into… Read More »
Let’s kickoff the week with a few links: Yet Another Value Blog takes a look at the Liberty Braves Group (BATRA/BATRK) and sees some nice upside potential. Apparently, he also notes, so does Gabelli. It’s a good piece and among other things, includes a long section (which I tend to agree with) on why sports teams are undervalued. In… Read More »
It’s been a rough year for Akzo Nobel(AKZOY). First, Elliott Management got involved. The activist fund was pushing for a breakup of the Dutch chemicals company. However, when US rival PPG(PPG) showed up with an offer to buy the whole company, Elliott began pushing the offer over management’s resistance. AkzoNobel was successfully able to leverage Dutch protectionism to… Read More »
Following the lead of many of its peers, Wyndham Worldwide (WYN) announced that it would spin off its timeshare business into a standalone entity. The new timeshare company will become the largest timeshare company in the world (at least by revenues – $3.4b) and include both Wyndham Vacation Ownership and RCI, a timeshare exchange program. The hotel company generated… Read More »
Shire Pharmaceuticals (SHPG) announced last week that it will be “assessing strategic options” for its Neuroscience franchise. The move would allow the company to focus its efforts on its rare diseases division. From the company’s Q2 statement: With the acquisition and integration of Baxalta, Shire has solidified its leadership position in rare diseases with an unparalleled inline portfolio, innovative… Read More »
We don’t know much about the lithium space, but we know that if you want to understand it and get great analysis of the players involved, there is no better place than The Lithium Spot. So we asked them if they could share some thoughts with our readers about FMC Corporation’s plans to spin off its lithium business.… Read More »
After a long gestational period, MetLife (MET) finally completed the spinoff of its life insurance & annuity business, Brighthouse Financial (BHF) this week. MetLife shareholders as of July 19th should have received 1 share of BHF for every 11 MET shares owned. Brighthouse trades on the NASDAQ and was also added to the S&P 500 Index, replacing auto dealer… Read More »
Four months after its failed sale process, Time Warner(TWX) spinoff Time, Inc.(TIME) is pursuing the part of its strategy described as “selective portfolio rationalization”. Bloomberg reports that CEO Rich Battista stated in an interview that these “wonderful brands” need a new home so that Time can invest elsewhere. In the interview, Battista called the three publications “wonderful brands”… Read More »
Privately held Donuts Inc is acquiring Rightside Group (NAME) for $10.60 per share or approximately $213m in cash. With the deal signed, the company will now control top level domains such as ‘.sale’ and ‘.dance’ in addition to its portfolio of names like ‘.movie’ and ‘.group’. Personally, I am puzzled that a company named Donuts has nothing to do… Read More »
It’s Thursday before Memorial Day Weekend which means it’s a perfect time for some Spinoff Odds & Ends: Thanks to Paul Singer’s Elliott Advisors there is a lot of drama swirling around BHP Billiton (BHP) (we will get to that shortly hopefully), but Bloomberg’s Gadfly checks in South32 (SOUHY), the mining giant’s 2015 spinoff. That mishmash of unloved… Read More »
Even once a spinoff is announced it’s not a given that it will be completed. Things change – the company can change its mind, a buyer could emerge and so on and so forth. It’s really not surprising to see a bunch of sales in an environment of rich valuations. Although we try our best to stay on… Read More »
Although Valvoline’s (VVV) IPO was last September, it was still majority owned by its parent company, Ashland Global Holdings (ASH). Not anymore though. The specialty chemical manufacturer completed Step 2 of its Valvoline spinoff on May 12th by distributing its remaining stake in the company to shareholders. Ashland shareholders as of May 5th, should have received 2.745338 shares of Valvoline… Read More »
TEGNA’s (TGNA) Board of Directors officially approved the spinoff of Cars.com and expects the transaction to be completed on May 31st. TEGNA shareholders as of May 18th should receive 1 share of the new company for every 3 TGNA shares owned. Cars.com is expected to trade on the NYSE under the ticker ‘CARS’, which I think we can… Read More »
In case you haven’t noticed, the automotive space is undergoing a few changes. New players are muscling in and the entire supply chain – from the OEMs all the way down to the Tier 3s – are under siege. As a result, everyone is scrambling to secure their part in the automobile of the future which many expect… Read More »
It looks like Rich Battista will get his chance to dilate Time,Inc.(TIME) after all. After months of speculation and talks, beginning just after he began as CEO last fall, Time announced on Friday that its Board had determined not to sell the company at this time and to instead continue pursuing Battista’s strategic plan. What is the key… Read More »