Pilot’s parent company set for spinoff
CHICAGO — Tribune Publishing, which owns the Daily Pilot, will spin off from Tribune Co. on Aug. 4, the new publishing company confirmed Tuesday.
Tribune Publishing has applied to have its common stock listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “TPUB” and expects to begin regular trading on Aug. 5.
The Tribune Co. board finalized on Monday the distribution details, which will separate the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times and six other daily newspapers into a stand-alone, publicly traded publishing company. Tribune Co. will continue to hold 1.5% of the outstanding shares of Tribune Publishing stock after the spinoff.
The Daily Pilot is owned and operated by Times Community News, a division of the Los Angeles Times that also publishes the Laguna Beach Coastline Pilot, Huntington Beach Independent and three titles in Los Angeles County.
Tribune Publishing plans to issue 25.4 million shares of common stock, according to a filing last week with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Tribune Co. stakeholders will receive a tax-free distribution of shares in the new company, getting a quarter of a share of TPUB for every share of Tribune Co. stock owned.
The Aug. 4 spinoff date was included in a lender presentation last month but had not previously been confirmed by the company. Tribune Publishing is seeking to raise $350 million in conjunction with its spinoff from Tribune Co.
The spinoff was announced last summer as a way to offload the publishing assets while avoiding the large capital gains taxes associated with an outright sale. Chicago-based Tribune Co. is retaining its higher-growth broadcasting and entertainment assets, as well as real estate holdings and equity investments.
In an amendment filed with the SEC last week, Tribune Publishing said that subsequent to the closing date, the company has the capacity to add to the $350 million senior term loan by up to $100 million, subject to certain conditions.
The debt includes a $275 million cash dividend that Tribune Publishing will pay to Tribune Co. immediately before the spinoff.
Channick writes for the Chicago Tribune.