Oaktree Capital Management, the third-largest shareholder in Los Angeles Times’ parent tronc Inc., is selling its holdings back to tronc in a $56 million deal, according to documents filed Thursday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Tronc said it entered a purchase agreement to buy Oaktree’s 3.7 million shares for $15 each. By the close of trading on Thursday, tronc shares were at $13.16 a share, down 1.7 percent for the day.

Oaktree’s move comes a few days after the downtown L.A. investment firm sold nearly a million shares to biotech billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong, tronc’s second-largest shareholder. The move helped bump Soon-Shiong’s holdings in tronc up to 24 percent, just a hair below tronc chairman Michael Ferro, who owns 24.83 percent.

Tronc holds about $198 million in cash, according to recent public filings. A company representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Oaktree declined to comment.

Staff Reporter Henry Meier contributed to this report.