A hotel magnate from Maryland and a Swiss billionaire made a bid for Tribune Publishing Co. that the newspaper chain is expected to give preference to a takeover agreement it has already entered into with the hedge fund Alden Global Capital LLC.
A special committee of Tribune’s board has determined that a bid of approximately $ 680 million and $ 18.50 per share submitted last week by Choice Hotels International Inc, chairman Stewart Bainum and Hansjörg Wyss, is likely to lead to a proposal better than Alden’s $ 635 million deal, people familiar with the matter said. This is a legal agreement indicating that Alden is likely to have to increase its bid or lose the risk.
The decision comes after the two men indicated that they intend to personally carry more than $ 600 million, compared to a previous amount of $ 200 million.
Now that the group has submitted a fully funded bid, it’s gaining access to private financial data to exercise due diligence and to negotiate other terms, a major step towards the completion of an agreement that Alden’s n can replace, they said. There is no guarantee that the group will succeed, and it is still possible that he may change his offer or walk away after examining the company’s finances.
If Alden lost the deal, it would mean an incredible 11-hour turnaround for the contemporary fund in New York, and a big win for critics who say the model of aggressive cost-cutting is hurting the local news industry. Alden devoted nearly a year and a half to taking over Tribune, publisher of nine major dailies, including the Chicago Tribune, New York Daily News and the Baltimore Sun.