FIREFLY AUTOMATIX INC. has filed paperwork with U.S. regulators for an initial public offering (IPO) of 4.5 million common shares between $4.50 and $6.50 a share. The shares will trade on Nasdaq under the symbol “FFLY.”


Based in Utah, FireFly makes battery-powered robotic lawn mowers, turf harvesters, and related equipment for golf courses, sports facilities and agricultural companies. Equipment sales supply 90% of its revenue. The remaining 10% comes from maintenance services and software subscriptions. The company sells its products in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Australia, Brazil, South Africa and Mexico.

ENGHOUSE SYSTEMS LTD. $20 is a hold. The software maker (Toronto symbol ENGH; Manufacturing sector; Shares outstanding: 55.1 million; Market cap: $1.1 billion; Dividend yield: 6.0%; Takeover Target Rating: Medium; www.enghouse.com) operates through two business groups: Interactive Management (55% of total revenue) sells software for managing customer interactions; and Asset Management (45% of revenue) offers technological solutions for network operators as well as software solutions for transit and transportation operators.


Enghouse tends to use acquisitions to fuel its growth. For example, it recently paid an undisclosed amount for the telecommunications division of Chile-based Sixbell. The purchase will expand the company’s Latin American business, which is seeing strong demand for its next-generation telecom technology.

In July 2015, Energizer Holdings Inc. (New York symbol ENR) broke itself into two separate firms—personal-care products maker Edgewell and battery-manufacturer Energizer.

Edgewell has struggled since the split—the stock is now down nearly 80%.

However, the company is selling some of its less-important operations to strengthen its balance sheet. A lower debt load, combined with its well-known brands, could make the company an appealing takeover target.

FEDEX CORP. $284 is a buy. The company (New York symbol FDX, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 236.0 million; Market cap: $67.0 billion; Dividend yield: 2.1%; Takeover Target Rating: Medium; www.fedex.com) delivers packages and documents in the U.S. and 220 other countries.


The company still plans to spin off its FedEx Freight division as a separate company. This business is a leading provider of less-than-truckload (LTL) services, which combines freight from multiple customers into a single vehicle. The new shares will trade on the New York exchange under the “FDXF” symbol when FedEx completes the transaction in June 2026.

On October 16, 2023, the old NCR Corp. (New York symbol NCR) split itself into two separate firms. Investors received one share of NCR Atleos (which makes ATMs) for every two NCR shares they held. The remaining firm changed its name to NCR Voyix.


The split has produced mixed results for investors—NCR Atleos is up about 80%, while NCR Voyix is down over 60%. Both firms are cutting costs, which should spur their earnings growth. However, we see better opportunities for your new buying.

COTERRA ENERGY INC. $27 is a buy for aggressive investors. The company (New York symbol CTRA; Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 764.4 million; Market cap: $20.6 billion; Dividend yield: 3.3%; Takeover Target Rating: Medium; www.coterra.com) produces and explores for natural gas and oil in the Permian (Texas), Marcellus Shale (Pennsylvania) and Anadarko (Oklahoma) Basins.


Activist investment firm Kimmeridge, which holds an undisclosed stake in the company, recently sent a letter to Coterra’s board of directors outlining several proposals to improve investor value and governance. Those include selling or spinning off the Marcellus and Anadarko assets and focusing solely on the Permian properties.

Activist investors are now pushing these two resource-focused firms to spin off some their operations. While that would help boost shareholder value, we feel a spinoff by Barrick is the more likely outcome.

Thanks to pressure from an activist investor, the shares of Calian Group have gained 35% in the past six months.


It seems likely that Calian will sell or spin off some of its businesses. That should spur the stock even higher as investors prefer pure-play companies that are easier to evaluate and compare to other firms.



Even without a spinoff, Calian will continue to benefit from its steady stream of government contracts. The company also has no controlling shareholder, which could make it an attractive takeover target.

WARNER BROS. DISCOVERY INC. $30 remains a hold. The company (Nasdaq symbol WBD; Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 2.5 billion; Market cap: $75.0 billion; No dividend paid; Takeover Target Rating: Highest; www.wbd.com) recently announced that it would split into two new firms: Global Networks will hold its cable TV channels (including CNN, HBO, TNT, TBS, Cartoon Network, Discovery, HGTV, Food Network, TLC and Animal Planet) while Streaming & Studios will own the Warner Bros. entertainment production studios and its streaming services. As well, the Global Networks business will retain a 20% equity stake in the Streaming unit.

In November 2014, Agilent spun off its electronic testing equipment business as Keysight Technologies. Agilent shareholders received one Keysight share for every two shares they held.


Since the split, Agilent is up over 240% while Keysight has jumped about 600%. In fact, both stocks are close to all-time highs.



Even after those impressive gains, we feel both stocks can keep moving higher. Agilent is in a strong position to profit from rising demand from companies developing new GLP-1 weight loss drugs. Chipmakers also need Keysight’s equipment to test their new artificial intelligence (AI) processors.