Dow Jones in talks to buy rest of Smart Money from Hearst

Shira Ovide of The Wall Street Journal reports Tuesday that the paper’s parent company, Dow Jones & Co., is in talks to buy the 50 percent of personal finance magazine Smart Money that it doesn’t own.

Ovide writes, “The two sides continue to negotiate purchase terms, people familiar with the matter said, but a deal could be announced within days. A deal price couldn’t immediately be learned.

“‘Hearst Corporation and Dow Jones have been partners since 1991 and have regularly discussed what is best for the SmartMoney brand,’ Dow Jones said in a statement. ‘We are in talks to transition SmartMoney 100% to Dow Jones ownership.’

“SmartMoney includes the flagship monthly magazine, the Web site SmartMoney.com and a custom-publishing division. Hearst oversees business operations such as circulation and marketing, and Dow Jones is responsible for editorial operations. SmartMoney, which was introduced in 1992, has a monthly circulation of more than 800,000 copies, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations.

“Dow Jones, which publishes The Wall Street Journal, plans to integrate SmartMoney editorial employees into its own news staff, according to the people familiar with the matter. The companies expect a small number of layoffs among employees in business operations, these people said.”

Read more here.