London - Promotora de Informaciones SA is working with
Banco Santander SA on a potential capital increase to bolster its balance sheet
after talks to sell an educational book publishing unit stalled on price,
according to people familiar with the matter.
The company, known as Prisa,
is considering raising about 400 million euros ($468 million) or more in a
share sale, the people said, asking not to be identified because the
deliberations are private. Talks to sell its educational books publisher
business Santillana to private equity firms including Rhone Capital LLC stalled
on valuation, the people said.
Read Also:
No final decision has been
made and Prisa may still decide against a share sale and resume talks to sell
Santillana or explore other options, the people said. The Madrid-based company
said last month it is considering various options to cut leverage and is
holding talks with several parties.
Representatives for Prisa
and Santander declined to comment. Shares of Prisa declined 1% to 3.17
euros at 9:01 a.m. in Madrid.
The stock has lost 40% this year.
In previous attempts to sell
Santillana, Prisa was seeking a price of as much as 2 billion euros, people
familiar with the matter said at the time. The firm’s efforts to raise cash led
to the sale of Prisa’s Portuguese unit Media Capital in July for 440 million
euros, including debt.