Guggenheim Partners and Jimmy Finkelstein’s Pluribus Capital Management are looking to sell the company that publishes The Hollywood Reporter and five other well-known magazine titles, The Post has learned.
The move comes just 15 months after the two investor groups plunked down a reported $70 million for the company, Prometheus Global Media.
According to sources familiar with the talks, Guggenheim Partners is “desperate to merge out of its investment.”
The private-equity company has been holding talks with several medium-sized publishing houses about swapping its asset for a part of a larger publishing company, but the price tag has “everyone’s balking,” said a source.
A spokesman for Guggenheim Partners told The Post, “The Hollywood Reporter is not for sale. We consider the newspaper to be a prized media asset, and we’re looking at ways to build the company and its franchise.”
Nonetheless, sources tell The Post the partners are asking for as much as a 50 percent premium on their original investment.
Through Prometheus Global Media — the joint venture firm owned by Guggenheim Partners and Jimmy Finkelstein — the two paid a reported $70 million for The Hollywood Reporter, Billboard, Adweek, Brandweek, Mediaweek and BackStage, as well as a handful of trade exhibitions.
The titles were acquired from Nielsen Co. in December 2009 in the midst of an advertising recession.
“They overpaid,” said a source. “Their [Guggenheim’s] earnings have been weak and their only way out is to merge into something bigger. It’s difficult to grow into the valuation. It’s about two years too early to be asking for a 50 percent premium.”
When asked if the titles were for sale, Finkelstein told The Post, “No, absolutely not.”
A possible sale could be a big letdown for Richard “Mad Dog” Beckman, who joined the company as CEO from Condé Nast. Prometheus has spent millions luring well-known editors and reporters to cover the media industry.
Former US Weekly Editorial Director Janice Min was drafted in May and turned the tired trade title into a glossy magazine and robust Web site. She promptly hired high-profile Hollywood writer Kim Masters from The Daily Beast, along with a slew of other writers.
Vanity Fair columnist Michael Wolff was also brought in by AdWeek.