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Sard Verbinnen & Co. handles Lee Enterprises as it rejects a $141M takeover bid from Alden Global Capital, which has earned a reputation for squeezing its newspaper holdings.
Lee's board has determined that Alden's $24-per-share cash offering "grossly undervalues" the company.
Shares of the Davenport, IA-based owner of The Buffalo News, St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Omaha World-Herald have traded in a $36.51-$10.20 range during the past 52 weeks.
CEO Mary Junck said Alden's proposal "fails to recognize the strength of our business today as the fastest-growing digital subscription platform in local media and our compelling future prospects."
Lee's revenues grew 28.6 percent to $794.6M during fiscal 2021 ended Sept. 26. It earned $24.3M vs. a $1.3M year-ago loss.
Lee's newspapers, weekly and specialty publications serve 77 markets in 26 states and reach more than 47M unique visitors each month.
Alden Capital, the No. 2 newspaper company in the US, owns the Chicago Tribune, Denver Post, Boston Herald and Mercury News.
Sard Verbinnen & Co.'s Jamie Tully and Jenny Gore represent Lee Enterprises.
As capital concentrates among established firms, emerging managers must find new ways to earn investor confidence.
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