Shares in News Corporation rose more than 6 percent in morning trading on Tuesday, on reports of a potential plan to split the media empire in two.
Under the terms of the proposed split, the company would spin off its publishing business from its much larger entertainment unit, according to a person briefed on the matter. That would create two corporate entities: an entertainment giant, driven by a movie studio and powerful television networks, and a much smaller publishing unit containing Dow Jones and HarperCollins.
The move would be intended to appease shareholders unhappy with the general tepidness of News Corporation’s stock performance, which has not kept pace with the likes of the Walt Disney Company. While the company’s shares have risen more than 17 percent this year, that increase has been supported in part by an extensive and expensive stock buyback initiative. On Tuesday, News Corporation’s stock hit $21.50 shortly after the opening bell, its highest level since late 2007.
The potential split comes even as a phone-hacking investigation continues to cloud News Corporation’s newspaper business in Britain.
The plan has the support of several News Corporation executives, notably the chief operating officer, Chase Carey, this person said. Mr. Carey said earlier this year that management had considered a split, though at the time he added that nothing had been decided.
The proposal has not been finalized. And while News Corporation’s patriarch, Rupert Murdoch, has softened his longstanding opposition to the plan, he has not signed off on it, the person said.
A number of factors remain to be resolved, including which operations would go into which entity, and — perhaps more important — which executives would head which businesses.
Still, an announcement about the corporate breakup could come as soon as this week, this person said.
“News Corporation confirmed today that it is considering a restructuring to separate its business into two distinct publicly traded companies,” the company said in a statement on Tuesday.
Article source: http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/06/26/news-corp-shares-leap-on-split-reports/?partner=rss&emc=rss
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