Spinoffs from our Conservative Portfolio

Article Excerpt

On June 28, 2012, Sara Lee investors received one D.E. Master share and five Hillshire shares for each common share they held. They also received a special cash dividend of $3.00 a share. HILLSHIRE BRANDS CO. $26 (www.hillshirebrands.com) makes packaged meat products. Its main brands include Ball Park hot dogs, Jimmy Dean sausages and Hillshire Farm deli meats. Hold. D.E. MASTER BLENDERS 1753 N.V. 9.36 euros (www.demasterblenders1753.com) is based in Holland, and its shares trade in Amsterdam. It makes coffee and tea. Hold. On October 1, 2012, Kraft investors will receive one share of Mondelez International Inc. (Nasdaq symbol MDLZ), which makes snack foods, plus one-third of a share of Kraft Foods Group Inc. (Nasdaq symbol KRFT), which makes grocery products, for each share they hold. Break-ups like this tend to work out well for investors, as the value of the new companies usually exceeds the value of the former parent over time. Kraft is still a Best Buy. Buy…