Liberty Media Backs Away from Barnes & Noble

Publishers Lunch

One-time Barnes & Noble financial savior (and potential acquirer) Liberty Media is moving on, announcing Thursday morning that it is selling the bulk of its preferred shares in the bookseller. Liberty says it "has sold the majority of its shares to qualified institutional buyers" with the sales expected to settle on April 8, while retaining "approximately 10 percent of its initial investment."

The announcement implies that Liberty's reduced stake may allow for new strategic investors or even another run at the taking the company private or splitting it into separate parts. Chairman Len Riggio is attributed in the press release with indicating that "Liberty's reduced ownership also gives the Company greater flexibility to pursue various strategic options." (Liberty had consent rights and pre-emptive rights as part of their investment that will no longer apply now.)


In 2011, Liberty first offered to buy a controlling 70 percent stake in Barnes & Noble (intending to take the company private with chairman Len Riggio as their partner), and then wound up investing $204 million in the company instead after public stockholders held out for a higher price. At the time, Liberty acquired preferred shares convertible to 12 million shares of common stock, equal to a 16.6 percent stake in BN, and those preferred shares have paid a nice 7.75 percent dividend along the way. The investment helped to fund the Nook initiatives, and also helped BN fend off investor Ron Burkle.