Tribune Publishing adopts poison pill to stop Gannett bid
Editor and Publisher
Newspaper publisher Tribune Publishing Co (TPUB.N)
said its board had adopted a shareholder rights plan - popularly known
as a "poison pill" - in a bid to thwart Gannett Co Inc's (GCI.N) unsolicited takeover offer.
Tribune shares fell nearly 6 percent in morning trading on Monday, while Gannett shares were little changed.
The rights will become exercisable after a group buys more than 20 percent of Tribune Publishing's shares.
If
the rights plan is triggered, Tribune shareholders will get the number
of shares having a market value of two times the exercise price of the
right, the company said.
Gannett,
the owner of USA Today, made a takeover bid for Tribune last month at
$12.25 per share in cash, valuing the publisher of the Chicago Tribune
and the Los Angeles Times at about $815 million. Tribune rejected the
offer last week.
"Our board is
unanimous that Gannett will not succeed with its current tactics and low
ball price," Tribune Chief Executive Justin Dearborn said in a
statement on Monday.
Instead of
negotiating a mutually agreeable deal, Tribune is "putting up another
roadblock to prevent its stockholders from realizing compelling,
immediate and certain cash value for their investment," Gannett said in
an emailed statement.
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