Pearson sells stake in The Economist Group for £469m August 12, 2015 Pearson has agreed to sell its 50 per cent stake in The Economist Group for £469m just weeks after offloading the Financial Times. Italian investment group Exor take on 27.8 per cent of The Economist's ordinary shares for £227.5m and all of the B special shares for £59.5m. Pearson's remaining ordinary shares will be [...]
Pearson in talks to sell Economist Group stake after FT Group sale July 29, 2015 Publisher Pearson is said to be in talks to sell off its 50 per cent stake worth about £400m in the Economist Group to other shareholders. A source told the Financial Times that a deal should be wrapped up at some point this summer and potential buyers include families such as Schroders, the Cadburys and the [...]
The Financial Times’ Britishness has made it global, and despite being bought by Japan’s Nikkei that’s not going anywhere July 24, 2015 Some will share the unease voiced by Will Hutton on BBC Newsnight that the Financial Times has passed into overseas ownership, especially in the scenario he painted where other media assets such as ITV and Channel 4 are targets for global players such as Comcast of the US. Having worked at the FT for [...]
Pearson posts £115m loss a day after sale of FT to Nikkei July 24, 2015 A day after it sold the FT to Japanese rival Nikkei for £884m, publishing giant Pearson has posted a loss of £115m in the six months to the end of June. The figures Pearson, which after yesterday's sell-off of its flagship newspaper title will focus largely on educational publishing, said losses before tax hit £115m [...]
Nikkei swoops for Financial Times as outbound Japanese M&A hits all-time record in 2015 and analysts cite Abenomics July 23, 2015 Japanese firms are casting their nets far and wide as deals activity heats up, with media giant Nikkei’s £844m swoop for the Financial Times yesterday taking the country’s outbound M&A to an all-time high in 2015. Companies from Japan have splashed nearly $53bn (£34bn) on foreign takeovers so far this year, putting them on [...]
Nikkei buys Financial Times from Pearson for £884m July 23, 2015 Japanese media company Nikkei is the triumphant bidder for the FT, picking up the newspaper and other publications from Pearson for £884m in an all-cash deal. The sale includes the famous pink paper and website FT.com, a web design business FT Labs, FT Chinese and Financial Publishing which includes publications such as The Banker and [...]
Pearson share price jumps after confirming Financial Times sale talks with Axel Springer in the spotlight July 23, 2015 Shares in the publisher of the Financial Times, Pearson, have jumped more than two per cent following reports that it will announce the newspaper group's sale "imminently". Pearson confirmed that it is in "advanced discussions" to sell off the FT Group. Latest: Nikkei buys Financial Times from Pearson for £884m In a market update, the company [...]
City headhunters appointed with FT-owner Pearson chair Glen Moreno set to step down January 27, 2015 Financial Times-owner Pearson has appointed a City headhunting firm to begin the groundwork in lining up a successor for chairman Glen Moreno who is expected to step down this year. While headhunter JCA Group has not yet begun approaching suitable candidates, City A.M. understands they will begin doing so in the coming months. “There is [...]
Positive Pearson picture sends share price up leading FTSE higher January 21, 2015 Shares in Pearson were up as much as five per cent this morning leading the FTSE 100 higher as the education business and publisher of the Financial Times said it expects earnings at the top end of forecasts. Investors were cheered to learn that earnings for 2014 are expected to come in at 66 pence [...]
Pearson share price drops as finance chief Robin Freestone exits while full year guidance remains on track says John Fallon October 24, 2014 Pearson's share price dropped two per cent this morning after it said it's losing its long-serving finance man, Robin Freestone, who is departing the publisher after 10 years. The Pearson board has already begun the search for a replacement for Freestone when he departs before the end of 2015, and is looking both internally and [...]