Nine shuts down claims it’s being shopped to private equity

Nine Entertainment Co. has shut down claims that it is being shopped to private equity firms to gauge their interest in the company, according to reporting by The Australian, which linked the move to the company's weak share price. In a statement to Mediaweek, a Nine spokesperson said the chair had addressed the matter at the company's AGM just over a week earlier and that the company has "no intent, at this stage, of not owning that asset." The spokesperson said Nine believes the asset forms a critical part of its portfolio and that it benefits from having multiple assets working across its different businesses.

According to the report, the proposal centred on selling The Australian Financial Review, Nine's business masthead, while a private equity buyer would retain QMS, the outdoor advertising business Nine acquired from Quadrant Private Equity for $850 million. Private equity firms were understood to have given the idea a cool reception. Industry sources said Nine is under pressure to show the market it did not overpay for QMS, noting that rival outdoor company oOh!media sold to I Squared Capital earlier this year for $898 million.

Nine's shares started the year above $1 before sliding to 63c in October, valuing the free-to-air broadcaster, publisher, streamer and outdoor advertiser at just under $1 billion. The stock has since recovered, closing at 85.5c on Friday, 13 November.

The share price was in focus at Nine's annual general meeting on 6 November, where 34.40% of votes lodged opposed the remuneration report, a first strike under the Corporations Act. Chair Peter Tonagh acknowledged the "significant decline" in the share price and said the board believes the company is undervalued. CEO Matt Stanton told shareholders that investors were overlooking opportunities inside Nine, singling out the AFR, whose earnings have grown about 18% a year over five years and which generated more than half of Nine's publishing earnings in FY26.