Corporate spin-offs, their price reactions and determinants in Malaysia

Spin-off as a form of financial restructuring has been examined in the US and the UK but not in other markets. This is a first study outside those markets. The evidence from a sample of 85 spin-off cases in Malaysia reveals that both the parent and the spin-off company stocks gain significant positive abnormal returns: parent firms earn smaller value while the spin-off firm gains substantially, much greater than is documented in other markets. Examining the factors correlated with the size of the spin-off effect, we find the abnormal returns are positively correlated with market capitalization and negatively correlated with age. The larger is the company or the newer is the company the greater is the magnitude of the positive abnormal returns.