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The Fox News Channel has been part of Fox since 2019, when it was spun off into a new company formed after the sale of 21st Century Fox to Walt Disney (DIS +1.96%). The initial public offering (IPO) was the largest ever for a U.S. media company.
Institutional investors own a little more than 54% of Fox shares, with 10 accounting for almost one-third of the outstanding total. They include:
The following seven individuals serve on the board of directors for Fox.
Name | Title | Year elected to board |
|---|---|---|
Lachlan Murdoch | Executive Chair and CEO of Fox News | 2002 |
Tony Abbot | Former Prime Minister of Australia | 2023 |
William Burck | Global Co-Managing Partner of the law firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP | 2021 |
Chase Carey | Former CEO of Formula 1 Racing | 2019 |
Roland Hernandez | CEO of Hernandez Media Ventures | 2019 |
Margaret "Peggy" Johnson | Former CEO of Magic Leap, Inc | 2023 |
Paul Ryan | Former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives | 2019 |
To buy shares of Fox, you'll need a brokerage account. If you still need to open one, these are some of the best-rated brokers and trading platforms. Here's a step-by-step guide to buying Fox stock:
Before you hit the "Place Order" button, figure out your budget. Are you in a position to invest in the market? Have you paid down high-interest credit card balances and created an emergency fund? How much can you spend? Do you want to buy all your Fox shares at once or periodically through dollar-cost averaging? These are all very good questions for any investor to ask -- and answer.
Next, do your homework. You may want to skip Fox stock if:
On the other hand, you may want to go ahead and buy Fox stock if:
As with any other investment, there's a short answer to why you might consider investing in Fox: It depends. Factors that might affect your decision include the level of your portfolio diversification, personal risk tolerance, company and industry knowledge, and assessment of Fox's competitive position.
The media landscape has been extremely unsettled for more than two decades; witness the chaos sparked by mergers and acquisitions such as the AOL-Time Warner merger (2000), News Corp's acquisition of Dow Jones (2007), Comcast's (CMCSA +0.00%) purchase of NBC Universal (2009), Jeff Bezos' purchase of The Washington Post (2013), the CBS Corp.-Viacom merger (2019), or the New Media Investment Group's acquisition of Gannett (NYSE:GCI) (2019).
Unlike many media companies, Fox News' ownership is relatively stable, and the division of media into print properties owned by News Corp and broadcast holdings managed by Fox may insulate investors from downturns in either segment.
The media industry has been changing rapidly, though, and even stable ownership is unlikely to insulate a company from the ups and downs of a changing landscape. Investors would be wise to prepare for continued volatility, even in a family-controlled business like Fox.
The Fox News Channel is the most-watched television news and opinion network in the United States. Founded in 1996 by media mogul Rupert Murdoch, the conservative-leaning channel has led cable news ratings every year since 2002 and generates roughly 70% of its parent company’s pre-tax profits.
Fox News operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of Fox (FOXA +5.49%)(FOX +5.70%). While the channel itself isn’t publicly traded, investors can gain exposure through Fox Corp., which also owns FOX Sports, FOX Entertainment, FOX Television Stations, and the Tubi streaming platform.
Fox Corp.’s ownership structure is unusually concentrated for a public company. The Murdoch family controls about 40% of the company’s voting power through a dual-class share system, giving it effective control despite Fox’s public listing. That structure plays a central role in how the company is governed and how strategic decisions are made.
Through a family trust and insider holdings, the Murdochs control roughly 40% of Fox Corp.’s shares. The company’s dual-class structure includes Class A shares with limited voting rights and Class B shares with enhanced voting power, allowing the family to maintain control while outside investors own a significant portion of the economic interest.
Individual family members with shares in the network include:
