October 24, 200520 yr Tribune Co. taking hard look at holdings Tribune Co. CEO Dennis J. FitzSimons is considering selling assets to prop up his company's shares, and that's got some wondering if the Chicago Cubs could go on the block. Investors expect Mr. FitzSimons' search for salable assets to focus on holdings not fundamental to the company's primary businesses of publishing and broadcasting. Selling the Cubs "makes more sense now than it has in a while," says John Miller, a vice-president at Chicago-based Ariel Capital Management LLC, Tribune's fifth-largest shareholder. "They're trying to get the stock turned around, so they tried buying back their shares, and that didn't work. Now, they move on to non-core assets, like the Cubs." Ownership stakes in the WB Network, the Food Network and the CareerBuilder.com Web site also could be sold for cash to pay down debt, buy back shares or make acquisitions. In all, Tribune has a portfolio of ancillary assets worth as much as $2 billion, analysts say. Focusing on core businesses may give the stock a boost. The company is struggling with dwindling audiences and lagging advertising. Tribune shares have plunged almost 27% this year, closing Friday at $30.91. "We're looking at the portfolio and looking at everything we can do to improve shareholder value," Mr. FitzSimons said during a third-quarter earnings call Oct. 13. Net income declined 82% to $21.9 million, or 7 cents a share, in the quarter, largely because of a $1-billion judgment in U.S. Tax Court. Mr. FitzSimons also is exploring swaps and sales of TV stations. Cost savings from owning two stations in one market are so attractive that Tribune could swap some for stations in markets where the company already owns one. Or the company could sell stations to other media concerns willing to pay hefty prices to create their own duopolies. A Tribune spokesman declined to elaborate on the strategy, but analysts say Tribune probably isn't eyeing sales of major operations like WGN-TV/Channel 9 or the Los Angeles Times. ©2005 by Crain Communications Inc.
October 24, 200520 yr Author QUOTE(santo=dorf @ Oct 24, 2005 -> 01:50 PM) Bill Wirtz? LMAO! That would be AWESOME!
October 24, 200520 yr All that cash from Wrigley Stadium gates could conceivably build a Stanley Cup contender!
October 24, 200520 yr If the Tribune company were to consider this move...genuinely trying to sell that team, it would tell me 1 thing more than any other; the Tribune Company would feel that the value of the team would have reached a temporary peak, and in the near future it would stand a good chance of dropping. Almost as if they think the team on the other side of the city might suddenly be getting more valuable and have the ability to eat into the Tribune Company's fan base. Remember, aside from the quarter where they had to pay Sosa's contract, the Tribune Company brings in serious revenue dollars due to owning the Cubs, and it probably helps them with circulation of their paper in Chicago. So they'd have to be facing a serious decline in teh value of their product for them to sacrifice a lucrative revenue stream.
October 24, 200520 yr QUOTE(santo=dorf @ Oct 24, 2005 -> 01:50 PM) Bill Wirtz? hahaha, that would be great on another note, i wonder how much the Cubs would sell for?
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