Fidelity cuts Clear Channel stake

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Once the largest institutional shareholder of Clear Channel Communications, FMR Corp., parent of the Fidelity Mutual Funds group, has been selling off most of its shares. Once the owner of 9.8% of Clear Channel, FMR reported to the SEC yesterday that it has cut that to 13.4 million shares, or 2.7%. That puts FMR below the 5% threshold for having to report further Clear Channel stock sales. FMR had been one of the leaders of the resistance to the initial going private offer for Clear Channel, helping push the bid up to the eventual 39.20 per share. The stock has been trading well below that, but with the closing dragging on into 2008, the mutual fund giant has apparently decided to take a lot of cash off the table now and move on.