Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Star Tribune to Be Sold to Private Group
By Joshua Freed
The Associated Press
Published: 12/26/2006
Excerpt:
Newspaper publisher The McClatchy Co. said on Tuesday that it will sell its flagship Star Tribune to the private equity firm Avista Capital Partners for $530 million, a sharp drop from the $1.2 billion it paid to acquire the newspaper just eight years ago.
McClatchy sold its largest newspaper in part because it can take a tax loss, and because the newspaper's growth had tapered off, said Chairman and CEO Gary Pruitt.
McClatchy spent $4.5 billion earlier this year to buy the Knight Ridder newspaper chain. As part of that deal it immediately sold off 12 newspapers for a profit, generating a tax bill that will be offset by the loss on the Star Tribune. That tax benefit is worth $160 million, raising the total value of the deal to $690 million, the company said. McClatchy plans to use the money to pay down its Knight Ridder debt.
Pruitt said McClatchy has no plans to sell any other newspapers. ...
E-mail this item |
Add Your Comments |
QuickLink this item: A115784
Poynter on the Record Archive
MAIN
|
Back to Top
