Vivendi May Decide in Oct. to Sell NBC Stake
PARIS (
) --
Vivendi
may decide at its board meeting next month to sell its stake in
NBC Universal
, a report says.
The French media company, owner of
Universal Music Group
, may decide Oct. 14 sell its 20% stake because NBC, 80%-owned by
General Electric
(GE) - Get Report
, isn't performing as well as the company's majority-owned operations,
Bloomberg
reports, citing a person with knowledge of the situation.
NBC's total enterprise value may be $21 billion to $23 billion, including an estimated $5.1 billion in debt, according to Sanford C. Bernstein, reports
Bloomberg
.
General Electric, under terms of a deal dating back to 2004, would have the right of first refusal to pick up the 20% of NBC it doesn't own should Vivendi exercise its annual option to sell,
Reuters
reports.
-- Reported by Joseph Woelfel in New York
.
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