Events swirling around Teledyne intrigue analysts: stock splits 5-1; Curtis-Wright deaths; Unitrin spin-off.

Events swirling around Teledyne intrigue analysts

With all the things currently happening in and around Teledyne Inc., the Century City-based multi-industry company is an incipient playhouse.

* Earlier this month the company effected a five-for-one stock split.

* Next month Teledyne plans to spin off to shareholders its insurance operations, which will be called Unitrin Inc.

* The latter event could put Litton Industries Inc. "in play" then because of Unitrin's ownership of 26 percent of the Beverly Hills-based aerospace company's common stock.

* The death last week of the chairman-president of Curtis-Wright Corp., T. Roland Berner, may have put in play already that Lyndhurst, N.J., aerospace company, which is another significant Unitrin holding. Indeed, in the first day of trading, Tuesday, after Berner's death was announced, Curtis-Wright was the fourth biggest gainer on the New York Stock Exchange as the common leaped 14.4 percent to $59.50.

Besides Berner another octogenarian director, William F. Rayborn Jr., died this month to leave Curtis-Wright with only five board members - all outside directors - four of them in their 70s. The board's remaining composition has added fuel to speculation Curtis-Wright is an attractive break-up candidate with $152 million, 43 percent of the $352.5 million assets, in cash and marketable securities.

But any decision on such a break-up would have to be approved by Henry E. Singleton, who controls 52 percent of Curtis-Wright, remarked Lawrence M. Harris.

The senior aerospace analyst at Los Angeles-based Bateman Eichler, Hill Richards Inc. explained Singleton is founder-chairman of Teledyne. And just as Singleton also will be chairman of Unitrin, which owns 44 percent of Curtis-Wright, he has remained chairman of Argonaut Group Inc., which owns another 8 percent of Curtis-Wright, Harris said.

Argonaut, engaged in workers compensation insurance, was spun off with a stated value of $20 a share in 1986 by Teledyne, he recalled, but the price of Argonaut has appreciated about 240 percent since then. Harris hopes Unitrin also will experience substantial price appreciation.

Two other things could help that hope besides, of course, any windfall Unitrin could get from a Curtis-Wright break-up, analysts said:

For one, said Carol P. Neves, a Merrill Lynch analyst who covers Teledyne, Unitrin probably will trade at a premium of 1.25 to 1.5 times book value of $33.04 because the company is overcapitalized. That is, Unitrin could write perhaps three times as many policies as currently because the company's revenues in recent years have averaged only about 59 percent of equity.

Also, Merrill's Neves believes, Unitrin may put Litton in play because Litton common pays no cash dividend. Two possible Litton scenarios are envisioned by Bateman's Harris:

Unitrin could sell its 26 percent interest, carried on the books at $318 million or $50 a share, back to Litton at a price of $100 a share to generate proceeds of $630 million for Unitrin. Or the company conceivably could sell its interest in a takeover by somebody else for $120 a share.

As for Teledyne, itself, the five-for-one split effective March 2 was designed to make the stock more interesting to individual investors, Merrill's Neves said, but nothing has happened yet. She projects Teledyne's earnings in the $3 a share range this year without Unitrin, and Teledyne's stock to sell at 11 to 12 times those projected earnings.

That is in line with the post-Unitrin market price estimated for Teledyne by Bateman's Harris - about $35 a share. However, Harris believes, Teledyne, too, could be put in play for a break-up, which could result in a price of $43 a share for the diversified manufacturing company.

Noting the balance sheet lists land on a company-wide basis at $29 million, Harris said he values Teledyne's California land alone at $175 million, "with the buildings worth an additional $80 million." Moreover, high cash flow and return on investment suggest several Teledyne businesses would make "excellent leveraged buy-out candidates," he said, while consumer businesses could make an "interesting initial public offering."

As ever, though, the enigmatic Singleton remains the big question mark about when, indeed whether, Teledyne, Unitrin, Litton or Curtis-Wright will be put in play.

In recent years Singleton, now 73, has delegated increasing responsibility to subordinates, Harris said: President George A. Roberts, now 71, became chief executive officer in 1986.