Liberty Media Exits Radio Selling Entire Stake in iHeartMedia
| RADIO ONLINE | Wednesday, October 20, 2021 |
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According to an iHeartMedia Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Liberty Media has exited the broadcast radio industry, selling its entire stake in iHeartMedia. Liberty offloaded its 5.94 million shares of Class A common stock in an open market block trade in a sale worth upwards of $150 million. Between November 2017 and February 2018, the company had purchased $600 million of iHeartMedia debt for a total of $490 million. After iHeartRadio reduced its debt load through a bankruptcy settlement, the bonds were converted into about 6.9 million shares.
An iHeartMedia spokesperson told Variety magazine, "We appreciate Liberty's support for iHeartMedia, originally as a holder of debt which then converted into a meaningful equity stake, and we are delighted that they received a good return on their investment."
Liberty Media continues to hold 78% of satellite broadcaster SiriusXM and 32% of concert promoter Live Nation. The company grouped its three investments, including its previous stake in iHeartMedia, as Liberty SiriusXM Group, a tracking stock that trades on the Nasdaq.
