The battle for one of the biggest news brands on Earth is over, but the struggles continue courtesy of Wall Street for Comcast Corporation, which on Saturday (9/22) announced that it has prevailed with the highest offer price in the auction to acquire Sky.
Comcast came in at an offer price of £17.28 per Sky share. This implies a value of $40 billion USD (£30.6 billion) for the fully diluted share capital of Sky.
And, it ends the competitive bidding process for Sky.
Commenting on the victory, Comcast Chairman/CEO Brian L. Roberts said, “This is a great day for Comcast. Sky is a wonderful company with a great platform, tremendous brand, and accomplished management team. This acquisition will allow us to quickly, efficiently and meaningfully increase our customer base and expand internationally. We couldn’t be more excited by the opportunities in front of us. We now encourage Sky shareholders to accept our offer, which we look forward to completing before the end of October 2018.”
Comcast directed those who desired more about its purchase to a comprehensive website outlining its deal.
Investors were less than pleased. As of 1:30pm Eastern Monday, CMCSA shares were off 7.2% to $35.19, on massive volume of 46.38 million shares.
At the Closing Bell, Comcast was down 6%, finishing the day at $35.63 on volume of 67.6 million shares. Average volume for Comcast is 19.02 million.
Comcast shares have enjoyed a revival since a $30.59 close on May 8. But, the shares were valued at $42.80 on Jan. 22. That marked a five-year high for Comcast.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times’ Meg Green has confirmed that Bob Greenblatt has departed NBC Entertainment, with George Cheeks and Paul Telegdy named co-chairmen.
