Stock Sale

Hellman & Friedman, a San Francisco-based investment firm, has agreed to sell 7.4 million shares of Young & Rubicam Inc. stock for $277 million in gross proceeds, the companies said Tuesday. The shares were offered for sale in conjunction with Monday’s announcement of a secondary public stock offering by Y&R; at $37.25 per share. All of the shares in the public offering are being sold by existing shareholders. Hellman & Friedman, which invested $224 million in Y&R; in 1996, retains a “significant ownership position” in the company. Y&R;’s shares closed down $1.13 at $36.13 in New York Stock Exchange trading on Tuesday.