Paramount to sell Simon & Schuster to KKR for $1.62 billion
2023.08.07 16:31
© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Toy figures of people are seen in front of the displayed Paramount + logo, in this illustration taken January 20, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/FILE PHOTO
(Reuters) -Paramount Global said on Monday it was selling Simon & Schuster to KKR & Co (NYSE:) for $1.62 billion in an all-cash deal, marking the end of a years-long attempt to sell the book publisher.
Shares of the company rose nearly 7% in trading after the bell after Paramount also beat estimates for quarterly revenue.
The media company has been trying to offload the publisher after a federal judge blocked its $2.2 billion deal to sell it to Penguin Random House last year.
The other bidders for Simon & Schuster included News Corp-owned HarperCollins and investor Richard Hurowitz, Reuters had previously reported.
Paramount reported second-quarter revenue of $7.62 billion, compared with analysts’ average estimate of $7.43 billion, according to Refinitiv data.
