Fox shareholder asks Murdoch to give Comcast time to beat Disney auction

(Reuters) – TCI Fund Management Ltd, a major shareholder in Twenty-First Century Fox (1945-8004) FOXA.O urged Fox Executive Chairman Rupert Murdoch to give Comcast Corp ( CMCSA, O ), a chance to exceed the $ 71 billion Walt Disney Co (19459006) DIS.N bid to purchase most of Fox's assets, according to a revised letter by Reuters.

The hedge fund, headed by Sir Christopher Hohn, owns 7.4% of Fox's stock and disagrees with Fox's view that the bid Comcast would be associated with a higher regulatory risk. TCI is "highly motivated" to support any agreement at a higher price.

The letter highlights the shareholders' appetite for a continuous auction war between Disney and Comcast on Fox, whose shares rose 1.7% Thursday to $ 49.62, or more than 10 $ compared to Disney's revised offer.

Disney, Fox and TCI declined to comment. Comcast could not be reached immediately for comment.

The $ 17.5 billion Hohn hedge fund holds stakes in the German car manufacturer Porsche ( PSHG_p.DE ), Airbus Group ( AIR.PA ) and the Safran aircraft engine manufacturer ( SAF .PA ), and called for changes to increase their stock prices.

Hohn stated that the recent agreement of AT & T Inc. ( TN ) to acquire Time Warner Inc. is "unequivocally positive" for similar transactions, as the company's Comcast's offer on Fox.

He also stated that the US Department of Justice's settlement with Disney earlier this week, which paved the way for Fox's planned acquisition by this company, further reduced the regulatory risk of taxpayers. a possible Comcast agreement.

million. Hohn said that the timing of a Comcast deal would be roughly similar to that of Disney, given the need for one or the other transaction to get regulatory approvals at the same time. international scale.

Disney agreed to buy Fox for $ 71 billion in shares on June 20, supplanting a $ 65 billion public offering from Comcast. Disney had originally agreed to buy Fox for about $ 52 billion by the end of last year.

Fox delayed the planned shareholder meeting scheduled for next month to give Comcast time to come back with a higher bid.

Fox's assets at stake include a cable group that includes FX Networks, National Geographic and more than 300 international channels as well as Fox's participation in Hulu.

Disney owns ABC, ESPN, Pixar, Marvel Studios and the producer of "Star Wars" Lucasfilm, as well as a range of theme parks.

An agreement for Fox would allow Comcast to better adapt to new trends in the pay-TV industry, as consumers abandon traditional cable bundles to the benefit of Web offers such as Netflix Inc. ( NFLX.O ).

The Financial Times first reported the letter.