Posted by Bud on May 28, 2010 at 09:17:01:
Emmis Communications Corp. released a statement announcing that is has officially agreed to be acquired by JS Acquisition LLC, a company formed by Jeffrey H. Smulyan, Emmis' Chairman and CEO. JS Acquisition will be purchasing the majority of Emmis Communications' stock for about $90 million. Emmis Communications' board unanimously approved the transaction.
This comes exactly one month from the day that Jeff Smulyan announced that he was making another attempt at taking the publicly-held company private. His previous attempt at doing so four years ago did not pass board approval. After a lengthy battle, Smulyan withdrew his offer.
There are still a few hurdles to clear with this deal, as a pair of lawsuits have been filed this month by shareholders not wanting to accept the deal. A shareholder majority does still need to approve the transaction. It is expected to pass that vote, though. Smulyan himself is a 20% shareholder and many shareholders have publicly regretted not accepting the 2006 offer.
Acquisition LLC is offering $2.40 a share in cash, an amount slightly higher than the stock's current value. In 2006, the offer was $15.25 per share, which at the time was well higher than the stock's value, but the Emmis board and stock holders felt it was too low and that the stocks would go even higher.
Emmis Communications, based in Indianapolis, IN, owns 23 US radio stations, including WLUP-FM & WKQX-FM in Chicago. The company recently stated that it was open to the possibility of selling their two Chicago stations. Emmis also operates two European radio networks (Slovakia & Bulgaria) and publishes seven regional magazines.