IN&M sells stake in Indian media firm for €32m

INDEPENDENT NEWS and Media (INM) has sold its remaining 5.7 per cent stake in Indian media company Jagran Prakashan Ltd for €32 million. IN&M intends to use the cash to pay down its bank loans as part of its asset disposal programme. The company originally acquired a stake of 26 per cent in Jagran in 2005 for €28.5 million.

Yesterday’s announcement follows the reduction of its stake from 13.5 per cent to 5.7 per cent in March, which netted €42 million for the Dublin-based media group. Chief executive Gavin O’Reilly credited former chiefs Sir Anthony O’Reilly and Liam Healy with the investment, saying it was “a highly profitable one”.

At the request of the Gupta family, the founder and majority shareholder in JPL, Gavin O’Reilly will continue to serve as an independent non-executive director of JPL.

Jagran Pragashan is one of India’s largest media groups with several media brands, including Dainik Jagran, which has the largest readership of any daily newspaper in the world, according to the World Association of Newspapers. Over the last 14 months INM has generated €96 million from selling its stake in the company. A spokeswoman for the firm said the sale was part of an ongoing asset disposal programme, in line with its “stated goal of deleveraging its balance sheet”.

In May 2009 IN&M negotiated a “standstill” agreement with holders of a €200 million bond, the holders of which subsequently took a 46 per cent stake in the company then worth €122 million.

The group also completed a €92 million rights issue. Last year, it sold the loss-making London Independent newspaper to Russian businessman Alexander Lebedev for £1, and agreed to pay £9.7 million (€11.7 million) over 10 months. Last year the company made a pretax loss of €31 million, down from €161 million the previous year.

Denis O’Brien became the largest shareholder in IN&M last April with a purchase that brought his shareholding to 20 per cent, ahead of that of Sir Anthony, whose stake is 14.65 per cent.

Mr O’Brien has been at odds with the O’Reilly family and the board about how the company has been run.