Xerox Corp.’s split into two separate entities has been welcomed by investors, with the legacy company’s stock rising more than 10% over the past two days.
The spinoff of Conduent, Xerox’s business services unit, was completed on Tuesday, leaving Xerox free to focus on digital print technology and services.
“Today is an historic day for Xerox. The successful completion of the separation sharpens our market focus and commitment to our customers,” Xerox CEO Jeff Jacobson said in a news release. “I am confident the transformational actions we are implementing position Xerox for long-term success and unlocks shareholder value.”
On the heels of the split, several Wall Street firms upgraded their outlooks on Xerox. Credit Suisse predicted the stock will climb 39% over the next year.
In trading Tuesday, the shares spiked nearly 20%, while, on Wednesday, they closed at $7.16, up 3.7% on the day.
Xerox has seen annual revenue and net income decline every year going back to at least 2011. Revenues have fallen a total of $2.5 billion over that period.
But as the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle reports, Jacobson “has been leading a transformation of that business by shedding jobs and bringing about improved operational efficiencies.” He told The Wall Street Journal that the company will likely eliminate more jobs in the upcoming year with roughly $1.5 billion in cost-cutting yet to occur.
Conduent runs call centers, health-care websites, and electronic toll-booth readers, among other services. CEO Ashok Vemuri told CNBC that the move will allow Conduent to focus on things that are important for “a services company” without having to work within the construct of “a hardware or manufacturing or document technology company.”
In connection with the spinoff, Xerox said it received a cash transfer from Conduent of $1.8 billion, which it intends to use, along with cash on hand, to pay down about $2 billion in debt.