Why NY Times’ $550 Million Deal for The Athletic May Work Despite Today’s Stock Plummet | Analysis

The newspaper giant’s stock price dropped nearly 11% on Friday after the acquisition of the sports-news site was announced

The New York Times’ $550 million purchase of The Athletic is a gamble for the old-school media giant, dwarfing other recent acquisitions like the $30 million deal for the product-review site The Wirecutter in 2016 and the $25 million buy of podcast producer Serial Productions two years ago.

Wall Street’s reaction was initially negative: The Times’ stock price dropped nearly 11% on Friday, the steepest drop in nearly two years, with fears that the company’s profits may take a hit in the short term.

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Antoinette Siu

Media and Tech Reporter • antoinette.siu@thewrap.com • Twitter: @antoinettesiu

Lindsey Ellefson

Media reporter • lindsey.ellefson@thewrap.com • Twitter: @ellefs0n