Business/Finance

Scripps ‘ board has approved the plan to separate the company into 2 public entities, effective Jul 1. The separation will encompass a tax-free distribution of stock to existing shareholders in Scripps Networks Interactive, which will house Scripps’ cable nets. The transaction still must receive approval from the SEC and Scripps’ controlling class of shareholders, who will vote on the issue at the company’s annual shareholders meeting Jun 13. — Pali‘s Richard Greenfield has upgraded Cablevision shares to ‘neutral’ from ‘sell,’ citing the "power of [the MSO’s] incredibly high video, data and voice penetration levels to reduce churn, and mitigate marketing cost increases, despite rising competition." 1 reason the rating wasn’t bumped to ‘buy,’ wrote Greenfield, is because of CVC’s expected lower FCF over the next few years. — In spite of potential challenges to AT&T from the Sprint / Clearwire WiMax venture, S&P has maintained its ‘strong buy’ rating on the telco’s shares, citing cost-cutting efforts and Sprint’s struggles to retain customers using 3G tech.