NYT Co. to be bought out?

2muchcoffeeman · Nov 30, 2007

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ep/20071129/en_bpiep/cnbcreportgreenbergintentonbuyingnytimes

NEW YORK Shares in the New York Times Co. rose strongly on Wednesday after a published report in the New York Post indicated that Maurice "Hank" Greenberg, the deposed chairman of American International Group Inc., was buying stock in the newspaper publisher.

This afternoon, on CNBC, Charlie Gasparino, the Newsweek business writer and longtime Wall Street Journal reporter, said that Greenberg was actually quite intent on buying the entire Times Company.

Gasparino said he thinks the Greenberg stock-buying move "goes beyond him trying to be an activist shareholder to get the family to produce more profits for shareholder. From what I understand, Hank Greenberg is actively engaged in trying to buy the entire New York Times Company, that he has approached investment bankers and asked them if they would work for him so they could put together some sort of plan.

Gasparino admitted that investment bankers had told him it would difficult or "next to impossible," due to the family controlling the Times stock, "but Greenberg is intent on pushing the envelope on this."

Asked why, Gasparino replied: "Greenberg believes this is an undervalued asset. Number two, there is a lot of ego here. Jack Welch is out there talking about buying the Boston Globe. Hank Greenberg wants to be in there. He's got money to turn, and I believe there is a little revenge here. Let's face it: The New York Times hasn't been nice to Hank Greenberg over the years, especially as he came under investigation by Eliot Spitzer."

Gasparino added that besides Greenberg "apparently there is another billionaire or near-billionarie investor looking to buy The New York Times. From what I hear, a lot of people speculating, that could be Jack Welch as well ... You get a great platform and you do get an asset that if you can make it work can make a lot of money down the road."

The New York Post reported Wednesday that Greenberg has been acquiring "hundreds of thousands" of shares in the newspaper company. The Post is owned by News Corp.
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trifectarich · Nov 30, 2007

The only thing that makes a sale even remotely plausible is that over the last five years or so, the market value of the company has fallen by about 60 or 70 percent. If they're willing to find a buyer to pay a nice premium, absolutely it deserves to be considered.

fishwrapper · Nov 30, 2007

Until the tier structure of the stock in dismantled, the controlling interest of the company can't be sold. Any discussion otherwise is exercise.

Ben_Hecht · Dec 1, 2007

Mental masturbation.

You wind up not liking your position, Ace-Baby . . . sell it.

Market forces at work.

To watch the Washington Post suits at the mercy of such sharks is sickening.

fishwrapper · Dec 1, 2007

WaPo Co. is a different beast, altogether.
They're a diversifed company with interests in other than media.

Monroe Stahr · Dec 1, 2007

Ever read about how the railroads died in this country because automobile interests bought up all the small lines and basically shut 'em down? I'm beginning to wonder if something like that isn't happening to the newspaper business -- rich guys buying newspapers and systematically rendering them irrelevant through cost-cutting. Or subordinating them to their TV/radio/internet enterprises.

hondo · Dec 1, 2007

Wow. Didn't know Hank Greenberg had been doing so well since his baseball career was over.

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NYT Co. to be bought out?

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NYT Co. to be bought out?

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