Pearson has confirmed it is in talks to sell its 50% stake in the Economist two days after it sold the Financial Times to a Japanese media company.
The education conglomerate on Saturday confirmed speculation it was looking for a buyer. However, the company said a sale would only go ahead at the right price.
Pearson on Thursday revealed it was selling the 127-year-old FT to Nikkei, Japan’s biggest financial news company, for £844m.
The sale of its frequently coveted Economist stake was widely expected to follow, with one media executive telling the Guardian that the publisher was “the real prize”.
A spokesman said: “Pearson confirms it is in discussions with the Economist Group board and trustees regarding the potential sale of our 50% share in the group. There is no certainty that this process will lead to a transaction.”
The announcement came after reports on Friday that Pearson could sell its stake in the business, which is co-owned by a series of wealthy families and its staff and former staff. The sale would transform Pearson into a business focused solely on education.
Two sources close to the situation told the FT that Pearson’s stake would be worth about £400m, valuing the company at a similar price to the FT Group.
Potential buyers could include wealthy families such as the Cadburys, the Schroders and the Rothschilds, the paper reported.
Bloomberg, Thomson Reuters and Axel Springer were also approached, but turned down the opportunity, the FT’s source said.
Axel Springer, the German media group that owns the Bild tabloid, was willing to pay about £750m but was outbid by its Japanese rival.
Pearson acquired its stake in the Economist in 1957 as part of its purchase of the FT. Any sale of its stake would have to be approved by the Economist Group trustees, including former cabinet secretary Gus O’Donnell and former Tory minister Virginia Bottomley.
The magazine, founded in 1843 to support the cause of free trade, prefers to call itself a newspaper and jealously guards its editorial independence.
The constitution of the company does not permit any individual or organisation to gain a majority shareholding, while its editor is appointed by its four trustees rather than the owners.
The Economist Group includes the Economist magazine, the Economist Intelligence Unit research company and the US legislative information provider CQ Roll Call.