On Wednesday, the New York Times Company (NYSE:NYT) announced that it is seeking a buyer for The Boston Globe.

This marks the second time in four years that the NYT has tried to unload the Boston newspaper that it purchased in 1993 for $1.1 billion. It put the Globe up for sale in 2009, but halted efforts to find a buyer after the newspaper implemented a successful round of cost-cutting, the Associated Press noted.

While the New York Times has positioned itself as a major national and international news outlet, the Globe mostly caters to a New England audience. The Times has amassed more than 640,000 digital subscribers compared to just 28,000 for the Globe. Last fall, the Globe’s weekday circulation was about 230,351, down from 413,000 in 2002.

A UBS (NYSE:UBS) analyst estimated that NYT could receive between $150 million and $175 million from the Globe‘s sale. That estimate did not include the price of the Globe‘s headquarters building. NYT is also planning to shed the Worcester Telegram & Gazette, GlobeDirect, several websites and its 49% stake in Metro Boston.

Last year, NYT sold About.com to Answers.com for about $270 million.

NYT shares slipped fractionally in Thursday morning trading.