Harbinger raises Times Co. stake to nearly 10%
NEW YORK - The New York Times Co. shareholder Harbinger Capital Partners raised its stake to almost 10 percent as it seeks to replace four of the newspaper publisher's directors.
Harbinger owns 14.3 million Times Co. shares, or 9.96 percent, according to a regulatory filing yesterday. That makes Harbinger, the hedge fund run by former Barclays Capital trader Philip Falcone, the publisher's second-largest shareholder after T. Rowe Price Group, according to Bloomberg data.
The hedge fund and Firebrand Partners, another investment company, have proposed installing their own slate of directors to change the publisher's strategy. In a letter attached to the filing yesterday, Firebrand thanked Times Co. executives for meeting them last Friday, without disclosing what was discussed.
Firebrand wants the New York-based newspaper company to sell some assets and invest in Internet properties, the firm's founder, Scott Galloway, wrote in a letter to Times Co. chairman Arthur Sulzberger Jr. and chief executive Janet Robinson last month.
The Times Co. includes The New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe, 15 other daily newspapers, WQXR-FM, and more than 50 websites, including NYTimes.com, Boston.com, and About.com.
On Jan. 25, Harbinger and Firebrand nominated Galloway; Allen Morgan, managing director of venture capital firm Mayfield Fund; former AOL executive Gregory Shove; and James Kohlberg, cofounder of private equity firm Kohlberg & Co. In his letter yesterday, Galloway said all four are available to meet with the board's nominating and governance committee.
Times Co. stock rose 38 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $17.16 in New York Stock Exchange trading. The shares have declined 32 percent in the past year.
Robinson said last month that the company is willing to meet with any of its shareholders to discuss strategy. Times Co. spokeswoman Catherine Mathis confirmed yesterday's letter and declined to comment. Tripp Kyle, a spokesman at Finsbury, a public relations firm representing Firebrand, didn't immediately return a call seeking comment.
Last month, Times Co. reported fourth-quarter profit and revenue that missed analysts' estimates after advertising sales plunged in December. The company blamed a slowdown in holiday spending for a 12 percent drop in ad revenue in December.
Harbinger has also proposed replacing directors at Media General Inc., the Richmond-based newspaper and TV company. 