AOL Shares Plunge As Time Warner’s Rise (AOL, TWX, YHOO)
December 11, 2009 9:20 AM
The shares of AOL Inc (NYSE: AOL) fell about 2 percent on their return to trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday following the Internet company's spin-off from Time Warner Inc (NYSE: TWX) while the shares of AOL's former parent rose.
The stock was expected to come under pressure as the holders who were the former TWX investors might have large-cap or dividend-yield requirements that force them to unload AOL shares. AOL chief executive, Tim Armstrong, was at the opening bell ceremony on the NYSE and said that he had tried to position the company as an online content and advertising investment.
However, Wall Street and the investors have been concerned about AOL's ability to turn around in the face of an advertising slump and competition from other Internet companies like Yahoo Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO). Meanwhile, TWX shares was up 4.4 percent reflecting the benefit from the end of its failed nine-year experiment to integrate traditional media with Internet distribution.
