By John Kell 
 

James Murdoch, 21st Century Fox Inc.'s (FOX, FOXA, FOX.AU) deputy chief operating officer, has sold about 18.5% of his stake in the media company in a transaction valued at $15 million.

Mr. Murdoch, son of 21st Century Fox Chairman and Chief Executive Rupert Murdoch, disclosed he sold 455,000 Class A shares at an average price of $32.97. James Murdoch still owns nearly two million Class A shares of 21st Century Fox.

21st Century Fox spokeswoman Julie Henderson said Mr. Murdoch's stock sale was for "financial planning purposes."

The stock sale disclosure comes ten days after 21st Century Fox reported its fiscal first-quarter profit slid 44%, hurt in part by startup costs for two cable-television channels. Also, the year-ago results included one-time gains tied to an asset sale.

21st Century Fox and News Corp (NWS, NWSA, NWS.AU), which is the parent of this newswire and The Wall Street Journal, are controlled by Rupert Murdoch. James and his father are also both board members at News Corp. 21st Century Fox until June was part of the same company as News Corp.

21st Century Fox's shares closed Friday at $34.19, up six cents on the day. The stock has risen 52% in 2013, exceeding the broader market's gain.

Write to John Kell at john.kell@wsj.com

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