Reckitt Benckiser (RB.) is the latest company to announce plans to float part of its business. The consumer goods group will spin off its pharmaceuticals division - which specialises in addiction control products - via an IPO on the London Stock Exchange before Christmas. Valuations of the soon-to-be-standalone pharma company - to be named Indivior - range from £1bn to £4bn. Consensus forecasts, however, expect a market capitalisation of approximately £2bn. The go-ahead for the float is still subject to a shareholder meeting and vote in early December.
RB is not the only conglomerate looking to divide and conquer. Last month, pharma giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) said it would consider floating a minority stake in HIV business ViiV Healthcare. In similar fashion, cigarette behemoth Imperial Tobacco (IMT) floated a stake in its Logista division on the Spanish stock exchange this year and Procter and Gamble (US:PG) is selling its Duracell battery business to Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway.
RB, P&G and Imperial have all found ways to offload divisions they don't consider 'core' to their business. P&G said it wanted to refocus the company on household products and RB has followed suit. It claims the float of Indivior will allow it to concentrate on core brands such as Dettol disinfectant.
GSK is the notable exception. Analysts were left baffled by the company's decision to offload one of its fastest growing business divisions last month. It was eventually put down to a desperate bid to drum up investor sentiment for GSK - whose shares have suffered a poor run this year.
The resources sector hasn't been left out of the picture either. Mining giant BHP Billiton (BLT) announced plans in August to offload a set of 'non-core assets', although it was unclear which parts of the business would be affected at the time. Eventually it came to light the aluminium and nickel divisions would be up for grabs. Together, these divisions could create their own mid-size metals company, worth roughly $12bn. However, BHP could be in for a tough time: it's already struggling to find a buyer for its Australian Nickel West business, despite hoisting the for sale sign over the division in May.
