Corporate spin-offs, which rose to prominence during the restructuring craze of the 1990s, proved too be one of the most lucrative areas of investing over the past five years – particularly in healthcare. And there are more coming, including Abbott’s spin off of Hospira, its hospital supply unit.
Spin-offs occur when a company distributes shares in a subsidiary to existing stockholders, usually tax free. The anticipation is that the market will value the two companies at a higher price that the parent alone commands…