TO SELLOUT or not to sellout or better still SWAP

So what is Acquisitor up to at Baltimore, a company which is in the processes of selling off its various software businesses and either going into voluntary liquidation or becoming a cash shell? Well from a distance, Baltimore looks undervalued. If the exit from all its various businesses goes to plan, the group should boast net assets of £26m, which compares with a stock market value of just £21m at yesterday's close. And that excludes the massive tax losses the company must have accumulated over the years. One thing that Baltimore's various software businesses were very good at was losing money. In 2001 the group posted a pre-tax loss of £659m while in 2002 it lost £65m. The resulting tax losses would certainly be very attractive to a private company looking for a stock market listing. Maybe that is exactly what Acquisitor has in mind.