News Corp (NWSA) shares powered higher Monday following an update from billionaire Rupert Murdoch that suggested he could re-combine his print media division with Fox Corp (FOXA) nearly a decade after he chose to separate them.
Murdoch, 91, who along with his son Lachlan has effective control over Fox, said via a company statement that the two media group have formed 'special committees' to "thoroughly evaluate a potential combination", but said no deal could be assumed and provided no time frame for a decision.
The all-stock deal would require a majority vote of the minority shareholders of both News Corp and Fox, with the Murdoch family controlling around 39% of the former and 42% of the latter.
Murdoch split Fox from the print-focused News Corp. in 2013, ostensibly to streamline his global media empire but also to potentially protect the print division from the financial and legal risks linked to a phone-hacking scandal in the United Kingdom that ultimately lead to the demise of his beloved Sunday tabloid, the News of the World.
He later orchestrated the sale of its film and television assets to Disney (DIS) in 2019 for around $71 billion but lost out in a $40 billion bidding war for Britain's Sky television to rival Comcast CMCSA in 2018.
Fox now focuses primarily on news and live sports rights, which are becoming increasingly expensive as big tech companies such as Apple (AAPL) and Amazon (AMZN) continue to expand their media portfolios. The Fox News, however, faces an advancing $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit brought by Dominion Voting Systems Inc., which has argued that its reputation was damaged by allegations made by the network during the 2020 Presidential election.
News Corp., meanwhile, owns both the Wall Street Journal and the New York Post, as well as Britain's tabloid newspaper, The Sun and the Times of London.
News Corp shares were marked 7.8% higher in early Monday trading to change hands at $16.66 each while Fox Corp shares fell 6.6% to $29.49 each.
