S&P 500 stock shares of Dean Foods spiked 34% on August 8^th, when the company announced it would put forth an IPO for 20% of its WhiteWave Foods division, which houses the Horizon Organic milk and Silk Soy brands.

The company valued the offering at $300 million. WhiteWave will be traded under the ticker symbol WWAV on the New York Stock Exchange, though there was no word on the number of shares to be sold or what the price will be.

The move is a bid by Dean Foods to pay down some of its debt. The Dallas-based company has announced that the remaining 80% interest in WhiteWave which it will retain will be dispersed to Dean Foods stockholders beginning six months after the IPO. Net sales for the company climbed 12 percent last year to $1.92 billion, according to Bloomberg.

Current Dean Foods CEO Gregg Engles will become chairman and CEO of Broomfield, CO-based WhiteWave, while remaining chairman of Dean Foods.

Published by WholeFoods Magazine Online (online 8/10/12)