Axa SA (AXAHY) shares climbed more than 2% in early trading Wednesday after the insurance group announced plans to sell a minority stake in its US operations through an initial public offering, freeing cash for new investment and a possible payment to shareholders.
AXA said the US business was slated to include its US Life & Savings business as well as its 64% stake in fund manager AllianceBernstein (AB) . The announcement comes just over a week after AXA strengthened its grip on New York-based AllianceBernstein by ousting nine directors, including all the independent board members and longtime Chairman and CEO Peter Kraus.
