News Corp plans to acquire Investor’s Business Daily, the stock-analysis and investment research publication, for $275 million — which would add another arrow in its financial-media quiver.
IBD, which launched as Investor’s Daily in 1984, is a “high-margin, profitable” business, according to News Corp, the conglomerate controlled by Rupert Murdoch. The 130-employee IBD will be operated by News Corp’s Dow Jones subsidiary and will continue to be based out of Los Angeles.
The deal is subject to regulatory approval and other closing conditions. News Corp expects to close the IBD acquisition by the end of June 2021. The company is buying IBD from O’Neil Capital Management, a private fund management company headed by William J. O’Neil, founder of IBD.
More than 90% of IBD’s revenue is generated from digital, with nearly 100,000 digital subscribers across its platforms, according to the companies. Its investors website reached an audience of 10.8 million average monthly unique visitors in February, according to Adobe Analytics. In addition to its digital operations, IBD publishes a weekly print edition.
News Corp expects to cross-sell and upsell IDB subscriptions with Dow Jones financial products, CEO Robert Thomson said. The Dow Jones portfolio includes The Wall Street Journal, MarketWatch, Barron’s and Mansion Global. Investor’s Business Daily has “minimal overlap” with Dow Jones’ existing subscriber base, according to News Corp.
“This transformative deal obviously comes as investor interest is surging in stock and bond markets and there is a premium for intelligence, insight and integrity,” Thomson said in announcing the deal.
