Category Archives: Uncategorized

Ralcorp Buys Post, 4 Years Later Spins It Off, Forgets To Admit Failure

Our friends over at My Investing Notebook recently dug up Ralcorp’s(RAH) comments from its 2007 acquisition of Post Cereals, and compared them to its comments regarding this month’s spin off of Post(POST) as an independent company. We were salivating to buy the stock based on the mouth-watering descriptions of future profits to be had as a result of… both… Read More »

NovaGold Spinning Off NovaCopper- Perhaps One Of Them Will Actually Open A Mine

NovaGold(NG) has a great story.  It owns a 50% interest in the Donlin Gold project in Alaska,  which a recent feasibility study projects can average 1.5 million ounces of production at $409/oz for the first 5 years, as well as two other major prospects.  It has a market cap of over $2 billion.  It counts George Soros, John… Read More »

Sears Holdings Completes Orchard Supply Hardware Spinoff

Sears Holdings(SHLD) issued a press release this morning announcing the completion of the Orchard Supply Hardware(OSH) spinoff.  Sears Holdings Corporation (“Holdings,” “we” or “our”)  today announced that it has completed its previously announced spin-off of its interest in Orchard Supply Hardware Stores Corporation (“Orchard”).  Orchard is now independent from Holdings and its Class A Common Stock will begin… Read More »

Rouse Moves Down In First Day Of When Issued Trading

Rouse(RSE) began trading on a when issued basis today in anticipation of its spin off next month from General Growth Properties(GGP). The stock, which opened at 14, moved steadily downward and closed the day at 12 on 55,819 shares traded.  This represents a significant discount to book value and is below the $15/share, $200 million post-spin rights offering… Read More »

Tiny Infrax To Spin Off Company It Just Purchased

As the spinoff bubble continues to inflate, we come across deals that are more and more ridiculous.  Today, we bring you Infrax Systems(IFXY), which will soon be spinning off Lockwood Technologies.  This dust mite of a company has a market cap of under $500,000, making ArrayIt, last week’s tiniest find, look like a behemoth. In April 2011, Infrax,… Read More »

WPX Energy To Enter S&P 500

When WPX Energy(WPX)is spun off from The Williams Companies(WMB) on December 31 as we discussed previously, it will immediately join the S&P 500, replacing Compuware(CPWR).  Parent company The Williams Companies will remain in the index as well.  This continues a trend of large companies breaking into pieces large enough to themselves be constituents of the premier large cap… Read More »

Severstal To Spin Off Nord Gold In Convoluted Transaction

Alexei Mordashov, who owns 82% of Severstal, is the second-richest man in Russia, and he still dreams of being the richest.  Towards that end, Severstal announceda convoluted plan to spin off its Nord Gold unit.  Severstal had previously hoped to float the unit in London, but pulled the plan when it became clear that the valuation would be… Read More »

Overseas Shareholders To Receive Cash In Lieu Of Swire Properties Shares

We wrote briefly about Swire Pacific’s upcoming spin off of Swire Properties, but didn’t reference Swire’s comprehensive announcement. The record date for the conditional dividend will be January 6, 2012, with distribution in February. Overseas shareholders(non-Hong Kong) will have their shares in the new firm sold and receive cash instead. The distribution is conditional on receiving listing approval,… Read More »

Ralcorp Announces A Few More Details On Post Spinoff

It’s been nearly 6 months since Ralcorp(RAH) announced plans to spin off Post Holdings and not much has changed.  The interest that had been expressed by Conagra(CAG) never materialized into a transaction as Ralcorp management continued to reject buyout offers. Today, the company took the mildly unusual step of issuing a press release noting that it has amended… Read More »

A Bullish Article On Conoco Phillips Split

We’ve previously discussed the Conoco Phillips(COP) split here and here. James Shell posts at Seeking Alpha his case for buying Conoco Phillips this week. Shell projects that the companies trade at a 5% discount as a result of being combined. Is that enough to justify the split? Does the trend to dismantle vertically integrated oil companies make sense,… Read More »

Orascom Construction Industries To Split Fertilizer And Construction Businesses

The largest public company in Egypt will soon be much smaller.  Orsacom Construction Industries(ORSCY) will spin off its construction business to shareholders, retaining its fertilizer business.Nassaf Sawaris, the company’s chairman and CEO explained It has been apparent to us, that there is absolutely no rationale to justify the relationship between the fertiliser business [which exports to Europe, North… Read More »

Is Orchard Supply Worth $10 per Sears Share? Morningstar Seems To Think So

A recent report on Sears Holdings(SHLD) by Morningstar analyst Paul Swinand lowers their fair value estimate for Sears by $10 per share due to the Orchard Supply(OSH) spinoff. Given the distribution ratio of 1 share of Orchard Supply for approximately every 22 of Sears, and Sears’ 80% ownership in Orchard Supply, this would seem to imply a per… Read More »

ArrayIt Joins The Spinoff Dance

In another sign that spinoffs are the latest corporate fad, Arrayit Corporation(ARYC), a company with a market cap of just $2.4 million, has decided to spin off and distribute to shareholders its 78.18% stake in Arrayit Diagnostics.  The company, which became public through a reverse merger several years ago, apparently feels that its vast and diverse business interests… Read More »

Hong Kong-Listed Swire Pacific To Spin Off Swire Properties

I know little more than nothing about Hong Kong stocks, but wanted to share the announcement that Swire Pacific will distribute 7 shares of Swire Properties for each 10 “A” shares or 50 “B” shares.  The distribution will take place on January 18, to holders as of January 5.  Do any of the more cosmopolitan folk out there… Read More »