DALLAS & SANTA ANA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 10, 2013--
A. H. Belo Corporation (NYSE: AHC) and Freedom Communications Holdings,
Inc. jointly announced today they have entered into a definitive asset
purchase agreement under which Freedom Communications Holdings, Inc.
will acquire substantially all of the assets which comprise the
newspaper operations of The Press-Enterprise located in
Riverside, CA (including the production facility and related land) for
$27.25 million. The transaction is expected to close in mid-October
subject to customary closing conditions. Upon closing, A. H. Belo will
continue to own and market for sale the land and buildings associated
with a discontinued commercial printing operation in Riverside, CA. The
Press-Enterprise will maintain its primary business offices in
Riverside.
Jim Moroney, chairman, president and Chief Executive Officer of A. H.
Belo, said, “We are pleased to have found a partner in Freedom
Communications to purchase The Press-Enterprise assets who we
know will continue to support journalism as we have in the critical
Inland Southern California region. We thank our colleagues in Riverside
for their hard work and support as we have been privileged to own and
operate The Press-Enterprise for the past sixteen years. The
proceeds received in this transaction will provide funds for A. H. Belo
to continue to diversify its revenue streams and increase shareholder
returns in the future.”
Aaron Kushner, co-owner and Chief Executive Officer of Freedom
Communications, said, “The Press-Enterprise is a Pulitzer
Prize-winning institution with a rich history in serving and connecting
the community. We are most appreciative of the stewardship provided to
this important institution by A. H. Belo and we look forward to
continuing to build upon that foundation and expand the ways The
Press-Enterprise helps its subscribers, advertisers and community
grow and thrive.”
About A. H. Belo Corporation
A. H. Belo Corporation (NYSE: AHC), headquartered in Dallas, Texas, is a
distinguished newspaper publishing and local news and information
company that owns and operates four daily newspapers and related
websites. A. H. Belo publishes The Dallas Morning News,
Texas' leading newspaper and winner of nine Pulitzer Prizes; The
Providence Journal, the oldest continuously-published daily
newspaper in the United States and winner of four Pulitzer Prizes; The Press-Enterprise
(Riverside, CA), serving the Inland Southern California region and
winner of one Pulitzer Prize; and the Denton Record-Chronicle.
The Company publishes various niche publications targeting specific
audiences, and its investments include Classified Ventures, owner of
Cars.com, and Wanderful Media, owner of Find&Save. A. H. Belo offers
digital marketing solutions through 508 Digital and Speakeasy and
also owns and operates commercial printing, distribution and direct mail
service businesses. Additional information is available at www.ahbelo.com or
by contacting Alison K. Engel, Senior Vice President/Chief Financial
Officer, at 214-977-2248.
About Freedom Communications Holdings, Inc.
Freedom Communications, headquartered in Santa Ana, Calif., is a
privately-owned company that publishes four daily newspapers – Daily
Press in Victorville, Calif., Desert Dispatch in Barstow, Calif., the
Long Beach Register in Long Beach, Calif. and the Orange County Register
in Santa Ana, Calif. Freedom also publishes more than 30 community
newspapers that serve specific cities, audiences and geographic areas,
including Spanish-language Excelsior. Freedom publishes highly designed
glossy magazines and operates a custom publishing unit. The company's
portfolio also includes news and entertainment websites and mobile
applications. For more information, visit freedom.com or contact Eric
Morgan at 714-796-2460 or emorgan@freedom.com.
Statements in this communication concerning A. H. Belo Corporation's
(the “Company's”) business outlook or future economic performance,
anticipated profitability, revenues, expenses, dividends, capital
expenditures, investments, impairments, business initiatives, pension
plan contributions and obligations, real estate sales, future
financings, and other financial and non-financial items that are not
historical facts, are “forward-looking statements” as the term is
defined under applicable federal securities laws. Forward-looking
statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those statements.
Such risks, uncertainties and factors include, but are not limited
to, changes in capital market conditions and prospects, and other
factors such as changes in advertising demand and newsprint prices;
newspaper circulation trends and other circulation matters, including
changes in readership methods, patterns and demography; and audits and
related actions by the Alliance for Audited Media; challenges
implementing increased subscription pricing and new pricing structures;
challenges in achieving expense reduction goals in a timely manner, and
the resulting potential effects on operations; technological changes;
development of Internet commerce; industry cycles; changes in pricing or
other actions by existing and new competitors and suppliers; consumer
acceptance of new products and business initiatives; labor relations;
regulatory, tax and legal changes; adoption of new accounting standards
or changes in existing accounting standards by the Financial Accounting
Standards Board or other accounting standard-setting bodies or
authorities; the effects of Company acquisitions, dispositions, co-owned
ventures, and investments; pension plan matters; general economic
conditions and changes in interest rates; significant armed conflict;
acts of terrorism; and other factors beyond our control, as well as
other risks described in the Company's Annual Report on Form
10-K, and in the Company's other public disclosures and filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.
Source: A. H. Belo Corporation and Freedom Communications Holdings, Inc.
A. H. Belo Corporation
Alison K. Engel, 214-977-2248
Senior
Vice President/Chief Financial Officer
or
Freedom
Communications Holdings, Inc.
Eric Morgan, 714-796-2460
emorgan@freedom.com
