Breakups will help unlock their value

Article Excerpt

The three companies below aim to complete corporate breakups in 2012. Breakups generally help unlock hidden value and lead to above-average results in the years after the split. (See two good examples of strong post-split performance — Moody’s and Dun & Bradstreet — also in this issue). Moreover, the new, smaller companies could become attractive takeover candidates. KRAFT FOODS INC. $36 (New York symbol KFT; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 1.8 billion; Market cap: $64.8 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.2; Dividend yield: 3.2%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.kraft.com) plans to break itself into two separate, publicly traded companies by the end of 2012. One company will sell snack foods, such as Oreo cookies, Cadbury chocolates, Trident gum and Tang powdered beverages. This business will have annual sales of $32 billion, with 42% of that coming from developing markets, such as China, Brazil and India. The other company will consist of Kraft’s slower-growing grocery-products business, which mainly sells its foods in North American…