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Gannett turns down hedge fund-backed Digital First Media

Specialist Michael Cacace, foreground right, works at the post that handles Gannett on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, on Aug. 5, 2014. (Associated Press)
By Tali Arbel Associated Press

NEW YORK – The publisher of USA Today and dozens of other newspapers said no to a hedge-fund backed media group with a reputation for slashing jobs, but the buyout fight may not be over.

Gannett on Monday said its board has unanimously rejected an unsolicited $1.36 billion buyout from MNG Enterprises, better known as Digital First Media. Digital First then said it might nominate new Gannett board directors to consider its offer.

The board decided the $12 per share offer was too low and wasn’t in the interest of the company or its shareholders, according to Gannett Co. Gannett also cast doubt on Digital First’s ability to complete the deal after it said the company refused to answer questions about its ability to fund the acquisition without a nondisclosure agreement.

“It appears that MNG does not have a realistic plan to acquire Gannett,” Gannett said in a prepared statement.

While the newspaper industry has shrunk and consolidated as readers ditch print papers and go online, leading to dramatic job losses at papers across the U.S., Digital First has a reputation for particularly stringent, painful cost-cutting.

It has become one of the biggest U.S. newspaper chains, with about 200 papers and other publications, including The Denver Post and the Boston Herald. Its biggest shareholder is Alden Global Capital LLC, a New York hedge fund that invests in distressed companies.

Digital First said Gannett was not interested in seriously considering its proposal, and it may take the fight to the board with new director nominations. It has a 7.5 percent stake in Gannett.

Digital First said it has retained a financial adviser for the deal, Moelis & Co.

A big question is whether Digital First could get significant votes from other shareholders, said Rick Edmonds, media business analyst at the Poynter Institute. And there may be other twists and turns to come. There is industry speculation that Gannett, which also owns the Arizona Republic, Detroit Free Press and Indianapolis Star, may try to combine with another newspaper publisher or turn around and try to buy parts of Digital First.

Newspaper industry consolidation has followed circulation and advertising declines. Newsroom employment fell by nearly a quarter between 2008 and 2017, according to Pew Research, and layoffs have continued this year. In recent weeks there have been job cuts and buyout offers at old-school newspaper publishers like Gannett and McClatchy as well as at digital outlets like Vice, Huffington Post and BuzzFeed.

Gannett’s shares opened trading Monday at $10.98 and were trading at $10.90 at noon. The deadline for shareholders to nominate new Gannett board members is Thursday.