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
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires