Whenever a corporate executive has to publicly state that they will not be spinning something off, it’s generally only a matter of time. This is likely the case with GlaxoSmithKline(GSK) and its majority-owned Viiv Healthcare unit. Viiv, of which Glaxo owns 76.5%, recently filed for approval for its anti-HIV drug, dolutegravir. If the drug is approved, it is… Read More »
This has been a month where spinoff news has been dominated by a massive deal, the spin off of AbbVie(ABBV) by Abbott Laboratories(ABT). Yet, the vast majority of spinoffs involve tiny companies. We’ve written about some of the most ridiculous. Today, we have an announcement from one, that, while slightly larger, is still a microcap. Oculus Innovative Sciences(OCLS)… Read More »
Last month, Elan(ELN) spun off Prothena(PRTA). As we wrote at the time, Elan gave Prothena $125 million in cash and a research team with no pipeline. Elan itself now consists mostly of Tysabri, a blockbuster drug on which it is partnered with Biogen Idec(BIIB). We have to admit, we knew very little about Prothena, so we were grateful… Read More »
When writing about a company whose key asset is in Kazakhstan, it is difficult to avoid Borat jokes, but we pledge to try our best. Geo Point Technologies(GNNC) has not traded since July 10, 2012, probably because it has one of the biggest bid/ask spreads we have ever seen(last trade: $1.70, bid, $.022, ask: $8.99). With just over… Read More »
One thing about John Malone- if there’s a way to make a deal more complicated, he’ll find it. We’ve written in the past about the upcoming Starz spin, but now it’s finally here, and the company has issued a press release detailing what will happen. For those arriving late, Liberty Media Corporation(LMCA,LMCB) will be spinning itself off. That… Read More »
After deciding to pursue a spinoff, one of the next big decisions facing a company is figuring out who will lead the new company. After all, one of the ‘value drivers’ of a spin is highly focused management…but that only helps if they know what they are doing. That is why most companies just end up promoting from… Read More »
We wrote yesterday about a flawed article on SeekingAlpha about AbbVie(ABBV) and Abbott Laboratories(ABT) which contained information which was extremely erroneous(off by over $15 billion), and built a thesis based on that false data. The article, which can be found here, has been edited extensively, but something is missing: there is no indication anywhere on the page that… Read More »
Appearing on Fast Money this evening, Doug Kass predicted that another hedge fund manager would join Bill Ackman of Pershing Square Capital by taking a big stake in Procter & Gamble(PG), and that together they would force the company to split into two or three pieces. Kass said the stock price would increase $7-$10on such an announcement. With… Read More »
AbbVie(ABBV) is one of the most massive spinoffs we’ve seen, so every piece of news or analysis is of interest to us. Hence it was with great interest that we noted that Seeking Alpha published “AbbVie’s Shares Are More Appealing Than Abbott’s Following The Spin-Off” this morning. We were pleased to see author Robert Broens put a stake… Read More »
I was first introduced to General Growth Partners (GGP) several years ago at a small alumni gathering featuring Pershing Square’s Bill Ackman as the keynote speaker. Amongst other topics, he spoke about the then bankrupt (trading at <$1) company as his ‘top’ idea at the time. This ‘idea’ turned out to be quite profitable for him as he… Read More »
Not wasting any time, AbbVie(ABBV) declared a $.40 quarterly dividend on Friday, two days after its spin off from Abbott Laboratories(ABT). At Friday’s closing price of $34.39, the stock yields 4.65%. The dividend will be paid on February 15, 2013 to shareholders as of the close of business on January 15, 2013. For former Abbott shareholders continuing to… Read More »
There’s a certain fun in writing about spinoffs of microscopic companies, stocks that aspire to be penny stocks after they increase 10,000%. It’s definitely more fun than being a shareholder in such a company, a fate we would warn all away from. One such company popped up in our radar in October, but we didn’t write about it… Read More »
On Wednesday, Abbott Laboratories(ABT) completed its spinoff of AbbVie(ABBV), and the two firms began their new, independent lives. As is often the case, as their first acts, each company issued a press release noting the occasion. Abbott’s release was relatively brief, wished AbbVie well, and gave a short picture of the new Abbott, focusing on the company’s many… Read More »
Spinoffs take awhile to execute and the world doesn’t just pause for these companies. Murphy Oil USA, the downstream arm of Murphy Oil (MUR) set to be spun out next year, announced that it entered into an agreement with Wal-Mart (WMT) to open up over 200 new locations at existing Walmart stores. The program is expected to be… Read More »
After long preparations, Humira manufacturer AbbVie(ABBV) has been spun off from former parent Abbott Laboratories(ABT). Abbott shareholders will wake up to find one share of AbbVie in their account for every share of Abbott that they own. We have covered the story, but not performed any deep analysis of either company. So let’s hear from you, readers. What… Read More »