St. Louis Post-Dispatch

With no explanation, Lee Enterprises, Inc. canceled a special shareholders meeting seeking approval of a "rights offering" intended to raise $50 million for working capital and company operations.

In a three-sentence filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) posted Thursday, Dec. 18, the company stated it "decided to cancel the special meeting" set for the next day, Dec. 19, and had "withdrawn from consideration the proposal set forth in the Proxy Statement."

The company – owner of some 70 print and online publications including the Quad City Times and Dispatch/Argus – announced Nov. 13 it was planning to seek approval of the unusual "rights offering" as a way to pay for its "digital transformation" and lower the interest rate on its $450 million debt.