Primedia to shed information division

Magazine publisher Primedia Inc. said Monday it had agreed to sell its business information division to a buyout firm for $385 million.

PBI Holdings Inc., a subsidiary of buyout specialist Wasserstein & Co., will buy the division in a cash deal expected to close in the fourth quarter, pending regulatory approval.

The business information division, whose offices are in suburban Kansas City, focuses on industry-specific services and employs about 320 people.