Torstar’s new owners are selling off parts of the company—for more than they paid for the whole thing.
The new owners of the Toronto Star have already more than recouped their investment in the newspaper chain, after the IPO of one of Torstar’s digital publishing subsidiaries values the company at almost $400 million.
Investment company NordStar Capital bought out Torstar last year for $60 million, but in addition to the newspaper the company is named after, NordStar also picked up a number of other assets.
One of them is a digital publishing company called VerticalScope which operates more than 1,200 websites on a wide variety of topics. The company maintains digital communities for fans of everything from cars and photography to parenting and outdoor activities.
The company had more than $60 million in revenue in its last fiscal year, according to regulatory filings.
“Completing this IPO is an exciting milestone for VerticalScope,” CEO Rob Laidlaw, who founded the company more than two decades ago, told CBC. “With the proceeds raised, we are in a strong position to accelerate our accretive acquisitions while continuing to invest in our software platform.”
