Hearst to Increase Stake in Ratings Firm Fitch to 80%

Hearst Corp., the media company with stakes in A&E and ESPN, is paying $1.97 billion for an additional 30 percent stake in Fitch Group, the owner of the third-biggest credit ratings firm.

Hearst, which owns 15 daily and 34 weekly newspapers as well as 29 television stations, is increasing its interest to 80 percent after buying its first stake in the company in March 2006, the closely held company said today in a statement. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter.