R.R. Donnelly & Sons Co. said Tuesday that it plans to split
itself into three publicly traded companies, joining the recent
wave of companies looking to spur growth by breaking up.
The Chicago-based company said it would separate into a
financial communications and data services business with about $1
billion in sales; a publishing and print services business with
$3.5 billion in annual sales; and a communications management
business with about $7 billion in sales.
Chief Executive Thomas J. Quinlan III said the move will give
each business more flexibility to focus on strategic
priorities.
"We recognize that parts of the current portfolio will be more
successful pursuing different strategies, and that these particular
businesses offer the scale, expertise, product and service mix and
other resources to excel as stand-alone companies," he said in a
release.
R.R. Donnelly said it expects the move to be a tax-free
distribution, with the spinoffs completed by the end of 2016.
Existing shareholders will own shares in all three companies.
Companies from industrial conglomerate Danaher Corp. to
Hewlett-Packard Co. have announced plans to break up their
businesses recently. The trend has been fueled by the idea that
companies with a narrower focus perform better. The moves in many
cases have been well received by shareholders—and sometimes
actively sought by them.
Write to Chelsey Dulaney at Chelsey.Dulaney@wsj.com
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