By: (AP) The board of directors of Freedom Communications Inc., publisher of
The Orange County Register, voted to support plans to transfer ownership to the youngest generation of the controlling Hoiles family.
Forty-three adult descendants of company founder R.C. Hoiles voted over the weekend not to support an outright sale of the company, but instead to explore other options to satisfy unhappy shareholders who have complained about their inability to cash out their holdings.
The full board, consisting of six family members, six independent directors and Freedom chief executive Samuel Wolgemuth, voted Tuesday to direct the younger members of the family to devise a stock transfer plan.
To raise the money needed to buy out older shareholders, Freedom could sell shares to the public, raise capital through private equity markets, or sell parts of the company.
Dissident board member Tim Hoiles, the founder's grandson, agreed over the weekend to consider the new plan after having favored selling the company. He also agreed not to pursue a threatened lawsuit pending implementation of the new approach, his attorney, San Francisco antitrust lawyer Joseph M. Alioto, said over the weekend.
Hoiles and Alioto did not immediately return calls Wednesday.
Hoiles, who owns 8.6% of Freedom, contends mismanagement has driven down the value of his shares.
Tom Bassett, a fourth-generation Hoiles who proposed the stock transfer plan, said over the weekend that it would be six to 18 months before any transaction took place.
Freedom is the nation's fourth-biggest family owned newspaper company, according to analyst John Morton, ranking behind Advance Publications Inc. (Newhouse), Hearst Corp., and Cox Newspapers Inc.
It owns 28 daily newspapers, 37 weeklies, and eight television stations.
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here