Bravo Tribune
Credit, where credit is due. Tribune is borrowing as much as $2bn to buy back 25% of the firm in reaction to investors who have stood steadfastly critical and cynical of its prospects. A buy back is basically a signal from management that they think shares are undervalued. Borrowing money to buy back shares is a stronger sign.
However, that’s not the jewel of the announcement. This is:
“Tribune said it expects to complete sales of certain noncore broadcasting and publishing assets, as well as real estate and securities in the company, in six to 12 months. Mr. FitzSimons said Tribune expected to increase its 33% stake in CareerBuilder.com, a classified-ad site. He indicated that the stake likely would come from McClatchy, but that McClatchy would continue to be a partner in the site.”
Faithful readers know that I think Careerbuilder is one of the most valuable and fast-growing Internet assets; a kind-of Monster.com on steroids. I haven’t been kind to Tribune but this time they are spot on the money.
