Shareholders of DallasNews Corp. voted Tuesday to approve a merger with Hearst, the privately held media company that already owns the San Antonio Express-News, Houston Chronicle, and Austin American-Statesman. Shareholders will receive $16.50 per share, with the deal expected to close as soon as Wednesday. The acquisition gives Hearst daily newspapers in four of Texas’s largest cities. The approval came roughly two months after shareholders rejected a rival bid from an Alden Global Capital affiliate. Founded in 1885, the Dallas Morning News has won nine Pulitzer Prizes and is among Texas’s largest daily newspapers.
In-Depth:
Shareholders of DallasNews Corp., the parent company of the Dallas Morning News, have approved a merger with Hearst, a privately held information and media company that owns the San Antonio Express-News, Austin American-Statesman, Houston Chronicle and other papers in Texas.
Approval of the deal, which was announced in July, came at a special meeting Tuesday. It’s expected to close as soon as Wednesday.
“With the agreement now approved, we’re excited to work with our new colleagues at the Dallas Morning News and Medium Giant,” stated Jeff Johnson, president of Hearst Newspapers, referring to the newspaper and its marketing agency. “Bringing these respected organizations into Hearst fully aligns with our commitment to strengthening trusted, high-impact local media in growing markets, and we see forward to building the future toreceiveher.”
DallasNews shareholders will receive $16.50 per share of common stock and the company will cease trading as a public company. Its shares rose about 4.5% Tuesday to close at $16.50.
The acquisition means Hearst Newspapers, which publishes 28 daily and 50 weekly newspapers across the U.S., will publish daily papers in four of the largest cities in Texas. Hearst purchased the Austin American-Statesman from Gannett Co. earlier this year. Last year, it also acquired magazines in San Antonio and Austin.
Hearst’s portfolio in Texas also includes the Beaumont Enterprise, Laredo Morning Times, Midland Reporter-Telegram, Plainview Herald and a number of community newspapers.
The approval comes about two months after DallasNews shareholders rejected an unsolicited offer from an affiliate of Alden Global Capital that aimed to derail the deal. In addition to rejecting that bid, the board voted to adopt a shareholder rights plan — commonly known as a poison pill — to limit Alden’s Media News Group from increasing its 9.9% stake in DallasNews Corp. — and its influence on the board.
Though the DallasNews board rejected the bid, it still had to approve the Hearst offer.
“We would like to thank DallasNews shareholders for voting to approve this important and value creating merger with Hearst, and for securing the future of DallasNews,” Chairman John A. Beckert stated Tuesday in a statement. “We are proud to have delivered this compelling and certain premium for shareholders, and are confident that The Dallas Morning News and Medium Giant have a bright future ahead as members of the Hearst family.”
The Dallas Morning News, which was founded in 1885 as an expansion of the Galveston Daily News, has grown into one of the largest daily papers in Texas, with a storied history and nine Pulitzer Prizes.
