Disney set to sell 50% stake in A+E Global Media to JV partner Hearst – reports

The Walt Disney Company is set to sell its 50% ownership stake in A+E Global Media, the cable-focused company it has co-owned with Hearst for over a decade, according to US reports.

Paul Buccieri

Disney will reportedly sell its 50% stake in the outfit, which was known as A+E Networks until last year, to Hearst in a transaction valued at more than US$1bn. The sale will be announced next week during Disney’s quarterly earnings on August 5, the reports say.

The source of the news is media analyst Rich Greenfield of LightShed Partners, who posted on Thursday: “We believe Disney will announce the sale of its 50% stake in A&E Networks to its joint venture partner, Hearst, in an all-cash transaction at a low single-digit EBITDA multiple.”

It comes after the US-based studio and channels group, whose stable of cablenets includes A&E, History and Lifetime, was put up for sale by Disney and Hearst last year.

In addition to A&E, History, Lifetime and FYI, the A+E Global Media group includes production entities A+E Studios and A+E Factual Studios, around 60 FAST channels, a digital arm (consisting of YouTube channels and streaming platforms A&E Crime Central, History Vault and Lifetime Movie Club) and minority stakes in Range Media Partners and Propagate Content.

A+E Global Media is led by president and chairman Paul Buccieri, who has been with the company for over a decade. Buccieri is expected to continue in the role following Hearst taking full ownership of the company, reporting to Hearst CEO Steven R. Swartz, according to the reports. Disney and A+E are yet to comment on the news.

It will make Disney the latest US media giant to change its approach to some of its cable assets, after NBCUniversal spun off seven of its cablenets, as well as digital assets Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes, GolfNow and SportsEngine, into Versant.