This week’s additions and highlights
1. SPIN-OFFS
- Corteva (CTVA US). Good time to take a look at the upcoming Cortiva of Seeds (Vylor) and Crop Protection (New Corteva), with the shares down recently on poor results. Dis‑synergies were recently cut to $50m. The case is worth a look given the different business dynamics; seed volumes were boosted by timing shifts and strong North American demand, and Crop Protection outperformed on new products and tighter global supply. Corteva also recently raised 2026 royalty guidance, which is quite positive. There’s going to be an investor day on Sept 15. Oct 1 spin date confirmed.UPDATE (September 22, 2026) Corteva is close to completing the required documentation for the upcoming Oct 1 spin of its Vylor seed business. Meanwhile California is trying to block the spin or freeze $22bn of assets, saying that the move would leave too few assets to cover massive PFAS liabilities. But it seems the state is facing a tough hurdle here: the MDL court already rejected its attempt to file in the PFAS litigation, and injunctions require irreparable harm (and money damages don’t qualify). California can still sue Corteva and Vylor post‑spin for ‘fraudulent conveyance’, we understand. Anyways, the most likely outcome is that the spin proceeds without being halted. Whatever pressure arises might be an interesting opportunity for those willing to dive into the weeds (sorry).
- MiniMed (MMED US). MiniMed recently started trading independently after spinning from Medtronic (MDT). As previously mentioned, this is an interesting spin to keep an eye on, as the unit is ~10% of total revenue but is one of the key growth drivers of the group, and also just a fraction of MDT’s market cap.UPDATE (September 22, 2026) Just flagging the odd-lot beer money. Medtronic is offloading its remaining ~90% stake in MiniMed, offering $100 of MMED for every $93 of MDT tendered, with the offer expiring October 9. The trade is about $700 for odd-lotters…