Kerry Stokes thought to be behind raid on Consolidated Media

Media mogul Kerry Stokes, executive chairman and major shareholder of Seven Network, is thought to be behind a share raid on Consolidated Media, owner of Nine Network, ACP Magazines and a 25% stake in pay television company Foxtel.

Stokes, who has purchased stakes in West Australian Newspapers and Telstra through Seven Network in the last 18 months, is believed to have spent about $180 million to increase his stake in Consolidated Media. The deal is yet to be officially confirmed.

Consolidated Media shares rose 14.5% yesterday, but the company informed the ASX that it did not know of any reason for the rise.

Exactly why Stokes, who is valued at $1.9 billion, has bought into Consolidated Media is unclear, but there are number of theories:

– Stokes wants a seat at the table if ownership of Foxtel changes hands.
– Stokes wants to be well placed if Consolidated Media’s private media owners decide to try and break the company off and sell it piece by piece.
– Shares in Consolidated Media, which have fallen from a peak of around $3.40 to a low of $1.90 over the last 12 months, were just too cheap not to buy.

Whatever the case, Stokes has now established a series of investments in some of Australia’s biggest media companies and almost any possible consolidation deal will need to go through him.