The board of Lee Enterprises said Thursday that it had unanimously rejected hedge fund Alden Global Capital’s unsolicited offer to purchase the company, saying the proposal lowballs Lee’s true value “and is not in the best interests of the company and its shareholders.” (WaPo)
Alden Global on Nov. 22 offered to purchase Lee Enterprises, which has news operations in 77 U.S. markets, for $24 a share in cash, in a deal that would value the Davenport, Iowa-based newspaper company at around $141 million. (WSJ)
Alden attempted to nominate three directors to Lee’s board at the end of November. Lee’s board reviewed the bid, but denied the request on Monday, saying Alden failed to comply with the requirements in Lee’s bylaws. (Axios)
Lee had earlier instituted a so-called “poison pill” takeover defense, which aims to block Alden over the next year from acquiring more than 10 percent of the company’s stock on the open market. (Its current stake is just over 6 percent.) (Poynter)
Also Thursday, Lee reported a $5.3 million fiscal fourth-quarter profit this year, rebounding from a $1.3 million loss a year ago, as the number of digital-only subscribers at the company grew 65 percent to 402,000. (ABC News / AP)