Fox Corp. debuted on the Nasdaq on Tuesday, marking a new phase for billionaire Rupert Murdoch's media business after the $71 billion sale of Twenty-First Century Fox Inc.'s film and television assets to Walt Disney Co.
The company also appointed former U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan, Chief Executive Officer of Formula One Group Chase Carey and two others to its board. Carey was president and chief operating officer at Twenty-First Century Fox from 2009 to 2015.
The newly spun-off media company, which will house assets including Fox News Channel and Fox Broadcast Network, is expected to bring in around $10 billion in annual revenue.
Brokerage MoffettNathanson had started covering Fox with "buy" rating last week ahead of the debut, saying Fox Broadcasting Network and Fox News are "an unrivaled pair of must-have" content that will drive strong, industry-leading revenue growth for years.
Meanwhile, Disney's deal got the last approval from Mexico's telecoms regulator last week, subject to conditions including the sale of Fox Sports channels.
The U.S. Justice Department too has asked Disney, which owns cable sports network ESPN, to divest Fox's 22 networks that provide sports programming for regional and local markets.
Disney won a bidding war last year against cable company Comcast Corp to acquire Twenty-First Century's film and TV assets.
Share of the company was trading marginally down 0.9 percent at $41.29 on Tuesday.
© 2023 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.