Shareholders Plan Proxy Fight at NYT (Sulzberger Blues)

AP ^ | January 28. 2007 | Seth Sutel

[Anti-Bubba182]

Investors Plan to Name Their Own Slate of 4 Directors at N.Y. Times Co.

NEW YORK (AP) -- A pair of investors disclosed plans Monday to name their own slate of four directors at The New York Times Co., saying the current board hasn't acted aggressively enough to meet the demands of the rapidly changing media industry.

The investors, Firebrand Partners and Harbinger Capital Partners, laid out their position in a letter to Times' Chairman Arthur Sulzberger Jr. and CEO Janet Robinson. The letter, dated Sunday, was disclosed in a regulatory filing Monday.

The Times said Friday that Harbinger had notified the company of its intention to name four directors for election at its next annual meeting on April 22. Firebrand indicated that it was working together with Harbinger and that together the two companies owned 4.9 percent of Times stock.

Investors pushed the Times' shares up $1.41, or 9.6 percent, to $16.07 on Monday on optimism about possible changes there. However, Goldman Sachs publishing analyst Peter Appert, in a note to investors, said he was maintaining his longstanding "sell" rating on the stock as advertising moves to the Internet and other media.

"We do not see an easy or quick fix to what ails the company (and industry), other than continued investment to drive a migration of revenues and earnings to Internet-based operations," Appert said. "It is not clear to us what Harbinger and Firebrand bring to the table to address this challenge."........."

[Anti-Bubba182]

"The Sulzberger family holds supervoting stock allowing them to elect nine of the company's thirteen directors. Galloway and his partners are seeking to name nominees for the other four directors, which are elected by holders of the company's publicly traded shares."

I don't know why anyone bought NYT stock with those banjo pickers in charge and a system stacked to keep it that way.

Pinch Sulzberger has got to notice the finacial world considers him a joke.

[Yehuda]

“The investors, Firebrand Partners and Harbinger Capital Partners,... “

First harbinger to Firebrand!

,( : >)

[Parley Baer]

McQueeg should have an interest in this. Seeing as Pinch Sulzberger his big supporter is involved.

[okie01]

Pinch Sulzberger has got to notice the finacial world considers him a joke.

Pinch, however, shares one key trait with his leaders, Hillary and McCain: Ego.

One of these days, Pinch is going to look across the conference table at the family's other eight directors...and he'll never know what hit him.

[Anti-Bubba182]

The sooner the better.

[firebrand]

This is a joke, right?

[Brilliant]

Sulzberger is not as stupid as he appears. He had the foresight to sell a large chunk of the firm’s equity to outsiders before he flushed the toilet.

[proxy_user]

Yes, so they have no reason to yield to any pressure, even if the stock price of the NYT goes to 0. They have hundreds of millions in their personal portfolios - presumably invested in non-media companies.

[Yehuda]

I guess I don’t win the humor award!