Spinning Off Macy's Online Business Would Be a Huge Mistake

With nothing more than a passing glance, Macy's (NYSE: M) shareholders are thrilled with the idea. "Unlocking value" ultimately means investors' stakes will be worth more after splitting up the retailer's online and offline business, so by all means, move ahead with the idea.

As the old adage goes, though, there's no free lunch on Wall Street. Everything costs something, somehow. In this case, the cost to Macy's and its shareholders would be a reversion solely to a brick-and-mortar business that was struggling before the company brilliantly paired it with an e-commerce operation that's been incredibly impressive. In other words, maybe the department store chain shouldn't be so quick to do what it increasingly looks like it's planning to do.

But, first things first.

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Source Fool.com