Vodafone’s shares leapt as much as 6% earlier today on reported speculation that two US telcos could be planning a US$245bn deal to break-up the British mobile operator.
Barclays is putting together a deal that could see Verizon Communications buy…
Vodafone’s shares leapt as much as 6% earlier today on reported speculation that two US telcos could be planning a US$245bn deal to break-up the British mobile operator.
Barclays is putting together a deal that could see Verizon Communications buy Vodafone’s 45% stake in their US-based Verizon Wireless joint venture, with AT&T snapping up its non-US assets, reported the Financial Times citing “usually reliable people”.
Vodafone, Verizon and AT&T were unable to comment on the speculation.
If it happens, the deal could be pitched at around 260p, giving a premium of roughly 40% on the UK telco’s shares, added the report.
The shares, which were up around 4.61% to 195.20p each as TelecomFinance was going to press, have already been boosted recently on hopes that Verizon could soon buy its share of their JV. However, analysts see the participation of AT&T as a way around the valuation and tax issues that have reportedly been holding Vodafone back from selling the venture.
Merrill Lynch’s David Barden was last month cited saying a three-way transaction could be the way to resolve eight years of stalled talks over the JV.
Still, AT&T has something of a penchant for window shopping when it comes to European assets. Earlier this year it was also reported to have the UK’s EE and KPN of the Netherlands on its radar, with one report suggesting a deal could come before the end of this year. Helping to give such rumours legs are recent comments by AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson, who said looking at acquisitions overseas was “inevitable” for the operator.
The apparent revival of the leveraged buyout will also help stoke speculation for what would be the largest M&A transaction on record. Recent notable LBO examples include the US$28bn Warren Buffett-led buyout of Heinz, Michael Dell’s US$24.4bn plan to take Dell private, and Liberty Global’s US$15.75bn deal for UK cableco Virgin Media.