Brooke Sutherland, Columnist

Lots of Industrial Breakup Talk, Little Action

Some have good reasons for keeping their businesses together. Others, not so much.
Photographer: George Marks/Retrofile/Getty Images
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Wall Street has industrial breakup fever and CEOs know it. At some point, something 's got to give.

Top executives from some of the biggest U.S. manufacturers descended on Florida this week for their annual spring confab, and the clear theme that's emerged after two days of presentations and Q&A is this: If you run a conglomerate, you better have a good reason for keeping it that way.