Categories: OLD Media Moves

Financial Times parent seeks partners to make Dow Jones bid

The parent company of The Financial Times is looking for partners to make a bid for Dow Jones & Co., the parent of The Wall Street Journal, according to a story by Dennis Berman and Sarah Ellison on The Journal’s web site.

They wrote, “On paper, at least, Pearson and Dow Jones appear a viable combination, with the two complementing each other geographically. The Financial Times is strong in Europe and less so in the U.S.; The Wall Street Journal, meanwhile, is America’s leading business publication by circulation, with a smaller presence overseas. One advantage of a Pearson-Dow Jones combination could be substantial cost-savings for the two companies.

“Indeed, about three years ago, Dow Jones and Pearson had extensive discussions about a joint-operating agreement to combine the two publications’ operations in Europe and Asia, according to two people familiar with the matter. These talks eventually broke down.

“The question for Pearson is just how to fund a deal to rival News Corp.’s $60-a-share proposal. While the London-based Pearson sits on a $13.6 billion market capitalization, News Corp.’s offer values Dow Jones at about 40 times the company’s 2007 earnings. Anticipated earnings at Pearson, which also publishes educational textbooks, and the Penguin book imprint, are valued at less than half that figure. That suggests a highly-dilutive acquisition that would weigh on Pearson’s shares.”

Read more here.

Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.

View Comments

  • I am not sure Pearson could really rival the News Corp bid. I also have doubt if they would seriously enter the ring. It might just be a corporate ploy to judge how determined Mr Murdoch is on his bid.
    At least -it seems so at this stage.

Recent Posts

Dynamo hires former Business Insider executive editor Harrington

Former Business Insider executive editor Rebecca Harrington has been hired by Dynamo to be its…

23 hours ago

Bloomberg TV hires Kerubo as desk producer

Bloomberg Television has hired Brenda Kerubo as a desk producer in London. She will be covering Europe's…

23 hours ago

Jittery CNBC staff reassured by new boss

In a meeting at CNBC headquarters Thursday afternoon, incoming boss Mark Lazarus presented a bullish…

24 hours ago

Making business news accessible to a wider audience

Ritika Gupta, the BBC's North American business correspondent, was interviewed by Global Woman magazine about…

24 hours ago

Rest of World hires Lo as China reporter

Rest of World has hired Kinling Lo as a China reporter. Lo was previously a…

1 day ago

Bloomberg rises to No. 7 biz news website

Bloomberg News saw strong unique visitor growth to its website in October, passing Fox Business…

1 day ago