Yahoo Signals It’s Open To Sale In Final Flip-Flop

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer’s latest flip-flop may be her last.
Mayer long argued that with the right amount of adjustments — product improvements here, cost cuts or acquisitions there — she could put the company back on a path to growth. She unveiled the latest turnaround effort on Tuesday, saying she’ll cut about 15% of the web portal’s staff, shutter some offices and units and exit product lines. Yet by also saying she’ll consider putting the company’s core assets up for sale, Mayer signaled that even she may be out of options for turning around Yahoo on its own.

“We’re right at the beginning of what the board wants to do,” Mayer said late on Tuesday. “It has yet to be seen exactly what types of interest will really transpire, but we’re open to any transactions. We’re open to any proposals that are well qualified.” It was the latest in a flurry of strategy shifts over the past several months, all aimed at jump-starting growth while finding a way to dispose of valuable stakes in Asian internet operations without incurring a heavy tax hit.

As the company’s performance worsened and its stock tumbled, activist shareholders such as Starboard Value have said enough is enough, calling for leadership changes or an outright sale. Officials from telecom giant Verizon have publicly said they’d consider a deal. PE firms TPG and Bain Capital Partners are also weighing bids.