TC Energy’s spinoff will pay off

Article Excerpt

Pipeline giant TC Energy (formerly called TransCanada Pipelines) recently announced a new plan to unlock value for its investors. The strategy includes spinning off the company’s oil pipelines business and selling some of its other assets to pay down debt. The stock dropped on the announcement. However, numerous academic studies show that spun-off stocks, and the companies that spin them off, ultimately tend to do better on average than comparable firms not involved in spinoffs. This TC split will let the gas pipeline and power business better focus on serving liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminals in Canada and the U.S. As for the spinoff company, it will get 88% of its earnings from long-term shipping contracts, which cuts your risk. TC ENERGY CORP. $48 is a buy. The company (Toronto symbol TRP; Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 1.03 billion; Market cap: $49.4 billion; Dividend yield: 7.8%; Takeover Target Rating: Medium; www.tcenergy.com) operates a 93,700-kilometre pipeline network that pumps natural gas from Alberta to eastern Canada and the…