Rupert Murdoch Mulls Reuniting Fox And News Corp, Including WSJ

Topline

Billionaire media mogul Rupert Murdoch is considering reuniting News Corporation and Fox Corporation into a single company, which would put the Wall Street Journal newspaper and other print products under the same umbrella as Fox News.

In this October 14, 2011 file photo, News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch delivers a keynote address at the … [+] National Summit on Education Reform in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)

Key Facts

News Corp. said in a news release it has formed a special committee to evaluate a potential deal to unite them in response to letters from Rupert Murdoch and the Murdoch Family Trust.

Discussions are in early stages and no decision has been reached, according to News Corp.

Fox Corp. is the larger of the two companies and the broadcasting arm of the Murdoch media empire, owning products like the Fox network suite, TMZ and the Tubi streaming service, while News Corp. owns the Journal, New York Post and the HarperCollins publishing company, among others.

News Corp.’s stock spiked following the report Friday, rising around 4.5% in after-hours trading to $16.30 a share, while Fox Corp.’s Class A stock rose briefly before dropping nearly 0.5% from its closing price to $31.40.

Fox Corp. did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Forbes.

Key Background

Ruper Murdoch, 91, moved to split an earlier version of News Corp. into two companies in 2013, contending to shareholders that separate print and broadcast companies would “enable us to respond more rapidly to fast-evolving markets.” The broadcast company was originally called 21st Century Fox, before reforming as Fox Corp. in 2019 after Disney purchased the company’s entertainment assets. The Murdoch family is the primary shareholder of both Fox Corp. and News Corp., and maintains a firm grip on the operation of both companies—Rupert Murdoch is CEO of News Corp. and chairman of both companies, while his son, Lachlan Murdoch, is CEO of Fox Corp.

Contra

People familiar with the discussions told the Wall Street Journal that a reunion is no guarantee and alternative strategies may also be studied.

Big Number

Nearly $26 billion. That’s the combined market cap of the two companies. Fox Corp. is worth about $16.7 billion and News Corp. has a value of almost $9.1 billion.

Forbes Valuation

We estimate Rupert Murdoch and his family to be worth around $16.9 billion, almost solely thanks to the media empire.