FX.co ★ Meredith to buy Time in $1.84 billion deal

US media company Meredith Corp. said it will buy Time Inc., the publisher of People, Sports Illustrated and Fortune magazines, in a $1.84 billion all-cash deal backed by billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch.

Meredith added it would acquire Time shares for $18.50 in cash. Including debt, the deal values Time at $2.8 billion. The deal is expected to be closed in the first quarter of 2018.

The deal will bring Meredith and Time a combined readership of 135 million people and paid circulation of nearly 60 million. It also will expand Meredith’s reach, creating a digital media business with 170 million monthly unique visitors in the US and over 10 billion video views annually.

Koch Equity Development, the private equity fund of the Koch brothers, agreed to provide Meredith with $650 million to fund the acquisition. The companies said the fund will have no influence on the publisher’s operations.

Meredith said it would keep paying its current annual dividend of $2.08 per share, and expects annual dividend to increase.