Tag Archives: cvc

Cablevision-Altice, Charter-TWC Mergers Seen Advancing

Cablevision Systems ( CVC ) stock jumped Friday on a report that New York City will not block its acquisition by Europe’s Altice Group. In New York, Altice would compete against  Verizon Communications ( VZ ) and its FiOS services. Verizon said earlier this week it plans to expand FiOS services to Boston. Cablevision stock was up more than 2%, near 33.70, in morning trading in the stock market today , breaking out of a flat base at 33.45 buy point. Altice had been under scrutiny because of its debt. New York City, however, determined that former Mayor Michael Bloomberg gave away its authority in cable mergers to the state, the New York Post said in a report. Meanwhile, Charter Communications ( CHTR ) is awaiting the Federal Communications Commission’s approval for its acquisition of Time Warner Cable ( TWC ). An administrative law judge in California on Tuesday recommended that the Charter-TWC deal be approved with conditions, clearing a hurdle. The FCC thwarted Comcast ’s ( CMCSA ) proposed purchase of TWC in early 2015. If both the Charter-TWC and Altice-Cablevision deals go through, cable TV firms are likely to explore asset swaps of cable systems in different markets, a Barclays analyst has speculated. Comcast could be involved, says Barclays. Charter also plans to buy privately held Bright House Networks. Altice in May acquired a 70% stake in Midwest-based Suddenlink Communications. Altice agreed to pay about $10 billion, or $34.90 per share, for Cablevision, including $3 billion in cash.

Comcast, Charter, Altice Cable Swaps Eyed After Deal Approvals

Charter Communications ( CHTR ) is moving closer to gaining federal regulators’ approval for acquiring Time Warner Cable ( TWC ) — a deal that could set the stage for assets swaps among cable TV firms, including  Comcast ( CMCSA ), analysts say. The Federal Communications Commission reportedly is set to greenlight the Charter-TWC merger, with conditions, though the deal is still being studied by California’s state regulators. Charter stock rose to just shy of a record high on the report. Regulators thwarted Comcast’s proposed purchase of TWC in early 2015. Europe-based Altice Group , however, expects to gain approval for its purchase of Cablevision Systems ( CVC ) in May, the company said. Altice earlier acquired Suddenlink Communications. If both the Charter-TWC and Altice-Cablevision deals sail through, cable TV firms are likely to explore asset swaps of cable systems in different markets, says a Barclays research report. “Post the completion of pending cable deals, there is some likelihood of potential asset swaps between the remaining distributors to align footprints more closely and extract more in synergies,” said Barclays. “While the regulatory push-back is fair to consider in this instance, we note that the FCC has concluded in the past that pro-competitive effects of clustering of cable systems tend to outweigh the negatives.” Even if the FCC approves the Charter-TWC merger, California’s OK might not come until late May, analysts say. Charter also plans to buy privately held Bright House Networks. Netflix ‘s ( NFLX ) support has smoothed the path for Charter’s deals, analysts say. Both TWC and Cablevision offer services in the New York City area, a big market. RBC Capital says the FCC might still be opposed to any sizable acquisitions by Comcast, the nation’s No. 1 cable TV firm. Comcast also owns NBCUniversal. “Comcast would be unlikely to be allowed to acquire a major cable firm or programmer, but could acquire long-distance assets, a wireless operator, or could engage in clustering and swaps with other cable operators,” RBC analyst Jonathan Atkin wrote in a recent research report. Charter stock rose 6% in the stock market today , to 198.16. Charter peaked at 199 last March. Time Warner Cable stock rose 3.3% Wednesday.

Comcast, Dish, AT&T Pay-TV Hikes Coming In 2016

Cable TV, of course, did not predate Benjamin Franklin. But had technology evolved faster, the American statesman and scientist could have said only three things are for certain: death, taxes and rising monthly cable TV bills. That’s right, cable TV bills are going up again, says a Bloomberg report, which surveyed Comcast (CMCSA), Time Warner Cable (TWC) and Cablevision Systems (CVC), as well as satellite TV broadcaster Dish Network (DISH) and