A newspaper vendor falls asleep while waiting for customers in Hong Kong. (PHOTO / AFP)

The share price of Hong Kong-listed media conglomerate Sing Tao News Corp soared on Wednesday as a mainland property billionaire’s proposed takeover of the media group at a premium price injected fresh optimism into the company’s business prospects.

Sing Tao’s share price jumped 12 percent to close at HK$1.02 (US$13 cents) per share on Wednesday after spiking as high as 54 percent to HK$1.4 when trading resumed after a three-day suspension preceding the acquisition announcement. The transactions included 45.36 million shares, involving a value of HK$48.78 million.

Sing Tao’s share price jumped 12 percent to close at HK$1.02 (US$13 cents) per share on Wednesday after spiking as high as 54 percent to HK$1.4 when trading resumed after a three-day suspension preceding the acquisition announcement

On Wednesday, Sing Tao issued an announcement stating that Luckman Trading, a company wholly controlled by Sing Tao Chairman Charles Ho Tsu-kwok, entered an agreement to sell Ho’s 28 percent stake in the media group to Vast Resources International, a company owned by Kwok Hiu-ting, the daughter of Kaisa Holdings Chairman Kwok Ying-shing. The sale is subject to Hong Kong regulatory approval.

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“The acquisition of the stake in Sing Tao is my personal investment,” Kwok Hiu-ting said. “I invest in the group mainly because of Sing Tao’s diversified media platform, strong brand, influence in the community, and its high-quality news coverage.”

According to the statement, Ho will sell about 247 million shares of Sing Tao to Kwok Hiut-ting for HK$370 million at a price of HK$1.5 per share, representing a premium of about 65 percent over the closing price of Jan 28. The share disposal represented approximately 28 percent of the entire company shares as of the date of this announcement.

After the transaction, Ho’s share in Sing Tao will drop from 31.37 percent to 3.37 percent. When Ho completes the sale of the remaining 3.37 percent stake to third parties, public shareholders will own a combined 68.49 percent stake in the company.

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Ho, a tobacco tycoon, took over the company in 2001 from the family of the late Sally Aw, the heiress of the Tiger Palm business empire.

Sing Tao has been publishing the Sing Tao Daily, the city’s oldest hometown Chinese-language newspaper, since 1938. The media group also publishes two free newspapers: Chinese Headline Daily, and the English-language The Standard.