UK Engineering Firm Smiths Plans Breakup as Activist Circles

Smiths Group Plc announced plans to carve up the UK engineering company after coming under pressure from an activist shareholder to unlock more value. The shares surged to a record in London trading.

Smiths, which makes baggage-screening equipment, plans to demerge or sell that business and divest its Interconnect unit, which supplies cable and wiring as well as connectors and antennae systems. It also intends to bump up share buybacks to £500 million ($622 million), it said in a statement on Friday.