Tronc Holder Ferro Selling Shares to McCormick Media

• April 13 2018
• Rob Golum

Michael Ferro’s Merrick Media is selling all of its stock in Tronc Inc., parent of the Chicago Tribune, to McCormick Media for $208.6 million, handing control of the major midwest newspaper and other publications to a new ownership group.

Michael Ferro’s Merrick Media is selling all of its stock in Tronc Inc., parent of the Chicago Tribune, to McCormick Media for $208.6 million, handing control of the major midwest newspaper and other publications to a new ownership group.

Ferro’s company is selling 9.07 million shares of Tronc, formerly Tribune Publishing, for $23 each, according to a regulatory filing Friday. He was the company’s largest shareholder, with a 26 percent stake, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The sale brings to a close a tumultuous stretch for the newspaper company. Ferro became chairman in 2016 after it was split from the broadcast business that was once part of Tribune Co. He forced out Chief Executive Officer Jack Griffin and installed new management.

Later, he brought in Los Angeles billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong as an investor, only to end up in a legal fight with him. Soon-Shiong has agreed to buy the Los Angeles Times, Tronc’s biggest paper, for $500 million, and continues to own large chunk of the company.

Ferro stepped down as chairman of Tronc last month, just hours before Fortune magazine detailed sexual-harassment accusations against him by two women.