WSJ: Classified Ventures Seeks To Sell Cars.com For $3 Bln

(RTTNews) - Classified Ventures LLC, a joint venture of five media companies, has put its auto-sales website Cars.com for sale at a price of up to $3 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the plans. Through a sale of Cars.com, Classified Ventures hopes to cash in on the booming value for e-commerce sites.

Classified Ventures' adviser Moelis & Co. is already said to have commenced talks with potential bidders that are expected to include private equity firms and strategic investors. However, it was also possible that one of the publishers could raise its stake in Cars.com or buy out the others.

According to the WSJ report, media holding company Gannett Co. (GCI), which owns around 27 percent of Classified Ventures, has hinted that it could raise or sell its stake in Cars.com, depending on the price.

Besides Gannett, the publisher of USA Today, Classified Ventures is owned by Tribune Co. (TRBAA) , A.H. Belo Corp. (AHC), McClatchy Co. (MNI) and Graham Holdings Co. (GHC).

Classified Ventures was set up in 1997 to help these media companies to capitalize on the growth of online classified advertisements in the automotive, real estate and rentals sectors. However, a sale of Cars.com could mark the unwinding of the joint venture.

Cars.com was launched in June 1998 by its five owners. The site allows users to check car prices, compare models and read reviews of auto dealers. According to Cars.com, its website is visited by more than 11 million car shoppers each month. Other Cars.com properties include NewCars.com and PickupTrucks.com.

A sale of Cars.com would enable its owners to raise money for investment in areas that offer better growth prospects or enable them to return money to shareholders.

In early March, Classified Ventures said it agreed to sell its Apartments.com business to CoStar Group Inc. (CSGP), a provider of commercial real estate information, analytics and marketplaces, for $585 million in cash.

Apartments.com is an online resource for individuals who are seeking apartments. The business also operates ApartmentHomeLiving.com and RentalHomesPlus.com. These three sites had 114 million visits and an average of 7 million unique monthly visitors in 2013.