Canadian telecoms group BCE, the owner of telco Bell Canada, has moved a step closer to completing its acquisition of Quebecois media firm Astral Media after its shareholders approved the takeover, according to statements from the companies.
BCE…
Canadian telecoms group BCE, the owner of telco Bell Canada, has moved a step closer to completing its acquisition of Quebecois media firm Astral Media after its shareholders approved the takeover, according to statements from the companies.
BCE announced the C$3.38bn (US$3.41bn) deal in mid March. More than 99% of Astral shareholders approved the sale.
BCE said it expects the deal to close in late 2012, subject to court and regulatory approvals.
The regulator is expected to take a keen interest in the deal as BCE has substantially increased its media holdings in the last year. It acquired a 75% stake in Canadian entertainment company Maple Leaf Sports, with fellow telco Rogers Communications, for US$1.075bn, and bought Canadian broadcaster CTV for US$1.31bn.
BCE said the share price it paid represented a premium of 39% on the volume-weighted average closing share price for Astral on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) for the last five trading days before the deal was agreed.
BCE was advised on the deal by BMO Capital Markets and CIBC World Markets.
Astral’s financial adviser is RBC Capital Markets, while National Bank Financial is acting as the independent financial adviser for a special committee of independent directors.
Astral is based in Montreal, as is BCE, and has a number of French-language channels that would allow BCE to increase its footprint in Quebec.
