N.Y. Times Becomes Activist Target as ValueAct Amasses Stake (3)

Activist investor ValueAct Capital Management has built a new position in the New York Times Co., contending the iconic newspaper company could improve digital sales and margins through an aggressive rollout of its subscriber-only bundles.

San Francisco-based ValueAct said in a letter to investors Thursday that it now owns a 7% stake in the Times. It said it believed the current valuation doesn’t reflect the company’s long-term growth prospects in almost any potential economic environment and that management has several opportunities to offset the macroeconomic headwinds that face the industry.

Key to this growth will be a more aggressive ...