DuPont officially sets free Conoco

DuPont Co. might have decided to get out of the oil and gas business, but many of its shareholders have opted to remain. DuPont announced that it had accepted about 148 mm shares tendered in exchange for 436.5 mm Conoco Inc. Class B shares, or 2.95 Conoco shares for each DuPont share.
Because its shareholders oversubscribed to the exchange, Wilmington, Del.-based DuPont expects to accept only about 41 % of the approximately 355.1 mm shares offered, the company said. The tender offer closed. After the exchange, DuPont said it will have about 982 mm shares of common stock outstanding.

The exchange of 70 % of Houston-based Conoco marks the final chapter in DuPont's 18-year ownership of the sixth-largest oil company. DuPont spun off the other 30 % last October in the largest-ever initial public offering.
"This is the most important day in Conoco's 124-year history. We are now a large independent, global energy company and a formidable competitor around the world," Conoco president Archie Dunham said.