Media General Plans to Acquire Spartan

Media General Inc., the company that publishes the Richmond Times-Dispatch, said it’s buying closely held Spartan Communications for $605 million to add to its 13 television stations.

Spartan, based in Spartanburg, S.C., owns and operates 10 CBS Corp.-affiliated stations, two ABC Inc. affiliates and one UPN-affiliated station. The stations are in South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Iowa and Kansas.

The agreement increases Media General’s presence in the U.S. Southeast and makes Media General the second-largest owner of CBS-affiliated stations after the network itself. Media General will reach 30% of households in the southeastern U.S., up from 22%, once the acquisition closes.

Media General also said it plans to buy back as much as $250 million of its stock, which has dropped 9.4% this year. Companies generally repurchase stock when they believe it’s undervalued or to boost per-share earnings by reducing the number of shares in circulation.