Investor group ready for New York Times proxy fight

By Kenneth Li and Michele Gershberg

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A dissident investor group that is now the largest shareholder in The New York Times Co (NYT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said on Thursday it was disappointed in a board slate recommended by the publisher and was preparing a proxy battle.

The group, comprised of hedge fund Harbinger Capital Partners and investment firm Firebrand Partners, disclosed in regulatory filings on Thursday that it had increased its stake in the Times to 15.6 percent from about 12 percent.

The Times said it was still reviewing the investor group's four board nominees, but in a preliminary proxy filed with the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission, it recommended that shareholders vote for its own slate of directors.

Times Chairman Arthur Sulzberger Jr said in the filing that the board "urges you not to sign or return any proxy card that you may receive from Harbinger."

Firebrand and Harbinger's increased holding makes it the largest public shareholder of the New York Times and International Herald Tribune publisher. The company is controlled by the Ochs-Sulzberger family through a dual-class share structure.

"Today's preliminary proxy filing by the New York Times Company is disappointing," a spokesman for Firebrand/Harbinger said in a statement.

"As the company's largest shareholder, with over 15 percent of the Class A shares, we are particularly concerned that the company refused to interview any of our nominees despite our repeated offers to meet at their convenience," he said.

The group has hired proxy solicitor DF King and plans to file its preliminary proxy next week. The company's annual shareholder meeting is set for April 22.