Dueling Conference Calls: Fox, Time Warner Both Slated Wednesday

Twenty-First Century Fox FOXA will make another vigorous pitch this week favoring its $85 a share bid for Time Warner TWX according to a report Monday. Rupert Murdoch badly wants to acquire Time Warner and his executives -- and perhaps Murdoch himself -- will expand on the rational at Fox's quarterly conference call Wednesday, unnamed sources cited by Reuters news agency said. It may be a case of dueling conference calls: Time Warner is slated to results the same day, and has already sharply rejected Murdoch's July 16 offer. Time Warner has said remaining independent "is superior to any proposal" from Fox, Reuters noted. Although Fox is widely expected to eventually raise its bid, Reuters' sources said that's not on the table for Wednesday. Time Warner closed Monday up two percent at $85.53; Fox fell more than one percent to $31.52.