NYT Co.: The Future’s So Bright?

Either someone at Harbinger Capital Partners knows something the rest of us don’t, or they’re just hoping that saying so will make something true. Despite months of reports about the NYT Co. declining stocks and calls for it to cut its dividends Harbinger, which holds a 20% stake in the company, has reportedly been shelling out cash in the belief that the Times stock will be heading “north” in the near-ish future.

According to recent documents filed with Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday, Harbinger is putting on the table roughly 1.7 million “notional” Class A New York Times shares in a series of equity swaps. The reference prices range from $12.75 to $13.90.

The hedge fund has engaged an unnamed counterparty, which has agreed to pay Harbinger if stock in the New York Times rises over an unspecified time period. Harbinger would collect the difference between the reference prices and the future prices. If Harbinger’s hunch turns out to be incorrect and the shares do indeed fall below the reference prices, then the hedge fund has to pay the difference to the counterparty.

Should anybody feel the need to parse that blockquote in the comments section for us, any and all help with numbers is much appreciated.

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