HSN, Inc. (NDAQ: HSNIV) complted its spin-off from IAC Interactive (NDAQ: IACI) today as a part of Barry Dillar's move to unlock value for shareholders. HSN is a leading multi-channel interactive retailer with some of the most dynamic brands and experiences in the retailing industry. As an independent company, investors are hoping that shares will be valued much higher than it was as a part of IACI. However, some experts aren't so sure that value will be unlocked...

Traditionally, spin-offs have outperformed the S&P 500 by a wide margin during their first three years as a public company. The reason is simply because parent company shareholders often have little appetite for the new spin-offs while they are also loaded with debt and have no fall-back. This combination of factors often lead to a sell-off during the first year that leaves room for enterprising investors to jump in and realize substantial gains as the stock returns to a fair value.

Chief Financial Officer Tom McInerney said in an interview that the value of the new companies should be much more than it is now and he hopes that it will be very obvious in a year. However, some analysts aren't so confident in additional value being unlocked. HSN was considered the division that was most undervalued, but analysts insist that HSN's problems are significantly worse than expected. Other businesses under the IACI umbrella are also continuing their decline early on.

In the end, these spin-offs may present opportunities to shareholders, but not in the obvious way. Many believe that the shares of these new companies, like HSNi, will fall substantially early on. Only after this initial fall will investors have a good entry point to get in and profit. The reason? Parent company shareholders will likely sell the new spin-offs while the performance of the companies continues to deteriorate in these tough markets.

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