Tribune Publishing Co.\u2019s largest shareholder, Alden Capital, announced today that it has offered to buy the 68 percent of the newspaper publisher that it doesn\u2019t own for approximately $520 million, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.<\/b>
\nTribune Publishing Co TPCO.\u2019s largest shareholder, Alden Capital, announced today that it has offered to buy the 68 percent of the newspaper publisher that it doesn\u2019t own for approximately $520 million, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The offer made earlier this month values the corporate owner of The Baltimore Sun, Chicago Tribune, and the New York Daily News at $14.25 per share, a premium of more than 11 percent over its most recent closing price. Alden didn\u2019t disclose in the filing whether the deal was cash or stock or if Tribune responded. A spokesman for Tribune didn\u2019t respond to a request for comment for this story. Someone who answered the phone at Alden Capital\u2019s New York headquarters said the company wasn\u2019t taking reporters\u2019 phone calls. Alden acquired a 32% stake in Chicago – based Tribune, which it acquired last year. It also controls Media News Group, the closely held owner of 60 newspapers, including the Denver Post, The Orange County Register, and the New York Daily News. Journalism groups have long argued that Alden and other hedge funds are only interested in making a quick buck on papers at the expense of their products\u2019 quality. Alden had telegraphed its intentions regarding Tribune for months. Under the terms of a standstill agreement with Tribune, Alden agreed not to increase its stake in the publisher nor make a hostile bid. In exchange, Alden joined Tribune\u2019s board.]It wasn\u2019t immediately clear why Alden decided that the standstill agreement no longer applies. Like other newspaper publishers, Tribune is reeling from the coronavirus pandemic and is cutting costs by closing newsrooms and laying off dozens of reporters. According to a memo sent earlier this year from the Chicago Tribune Guild Executive Committee obtained by Chicago media writer Robert Feder, the company wanted to furlough half of the sports and features department. \u201cWe are fighting Alden now,\u201d the board said.\u201cThe economic downturn opened the door for them to try to gut us.\u201d Indeed, there is plenty of bad news for publishers. Earlier this year, S&P Market Intelligence found that the newspaper publishing sector faces elevated odds of a default because of the economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The McClatchy family had to sell the family\u2019s bankrupt 163-year-0ld publishing business McClatchy Co. to the New Jersey hedge fund Chatham Asset Management for $312 million. Warren Buffett unloaded his newspapers in January 2020 for $140 million to Lee Enterprises LEE after determining the sector was \u201ctoast. Media Investment Group acquired Gannett GCI. I for $1.2 billion in November 2019 and combined it with its affiliate, GateHouse Media. New Media got a five-year, senior secured facility from private equity giant Apollo Capital Management at a nosebleed rate of 11.5 percent.<\/p>\n