The amount and nature of taxation, whether of the income stream generated by a particular investment, or that levied on interimdividends or capital gains realized upon the disposition of an asset, must be among the many complex factors considered by any rational investor in assessing the relative merits of an investment opportunity.
In the interim, Wellpoint and UnitedHealth sell at 10 times earnings, 10 times free cash flow, lift their dividends, buy back stock and do add-on deals.