Gina Rinehart sells entire Fairfax stake

Gina Rinehart sells entire Fairfax stake

PUBLISHED: 1 HOUR 15 MINUTES AGO | UPDATE: 0 HOUR 0 MINUTES AGO
SARAH THOMPSON, ANTHONY MACDONALD AND JAKE MITCHELL
Billionaire Gina Rinehart is selling her $306 million stake in Fairfax Media at 86.75¢ a share.
As revealed by The Australian Financial Review, the trade was executed by Morgan Stanley and Bell Potter, which were sounding out interest from institutional investors on Friday night, sources said. Mrs Rinehart’s iron ore company Hancock Prospecting was Fairfax’s largest shareholder with a 14.99 per cent stake before the sell down.
Mrs Rinehart, who is Australia’s richest person, began amassing shares in Fairfax, publisher of The Australian Financial Review in late 2010.

In February 2012 she became Fairfax’s biggest shareholder, purchasing a 14 per cent stake in the company. She later increased her stake and was believed to be planning a takeover before being forced to sell down to 15 per cent.
Fairfax chairman Roger Corbett’s battle with Mrs Rinehart will be remembered as one of the defining periods of his tenure.

Mr Corbett and the Fairfax board declined to give Mrs Rinehart a place on the Fairfax board after she refused to sign Fairfax’s charter of editorial independence.

However, he allowed her to have a representative director, her long-time friend and Hungry Jack’s founder Jack Cowin, who acts independently and has not reported to Mrs Rinehart.
Fairfax shares closed up 4¢ at 96¢ on Friday afternoon.

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