After that long and tumultuous journey, it appears that Yahoo has given up on its plans to spin off its stake in Alibaba, CNBC reports.
Instead, the company is now considering the sale of its core business. Yahoo could announce its new plans as soon as Wednesday, Dec. 9, according to CNBC.
Activist investor Starboard began pushing for the sale of Yahoo’s core business in November when it became unclear if the Alibaba spinoff would go through tax free. In September, the US Internal Revenue Service dealt Yahoo a major blow when it declined to rule privately on whether the deal would incur any taxes.
Though the IRS didn’t rule on the matter, Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer and chief financial officer Ken Goldman previously told investors they were “confident” the deal would go through without any taxes, based on the opinion of the company’s counsel. In October, Mayer said Yahoo was aiming to complete the Alibaba spinoff in the fourth quarter and that she was looking forward to a “post-spin 2016.”
Investors have been growing anxious over the future of Yahoo, whose stock is down more than 30% since the beginning of the year. Some have called for Mayer to resign for her inability to turn around its lagging business. But Recode’s Kara Swisher reported Dec. 4 that the board “appears to be sticking by her” in its recent meetings.
A Yahoo representative declined to comment.