Pearson sells stake in The Economist for $730 million

Pearson  agreed on Wednesday to sell its 50 percent stake in the Economist Group, the publisher of The Economist, to its other existing shareholders for $730 million, reports Mark Scott of The New York Times.

Scott writes, “The move comes as Pearson, which sold The Financial Times last month, is trying to streamline its operations to focus primarily on its core education and assessment businesses.

“The biggest participant in the Economist Group transaction will be Exor, the Agnelli family’s Italian holding company and a major shareholder in Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.

“Exor, which already holds a stake of almost 5 percent in the Economist Group, will pay 286.5 million pounds, or about $446 million, for a combination of 27.8 percent of the Economist Group’s so-called ordinary shares and all of the company’s ‘B’ shares.

“The Economist Group will buy the remainder of Pearson’s ordinary shares for £182 million. The ordinary shares can be owned by employees, past employees and founding members of the company.”

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