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BERLIN – Private Equity firms KKR and Permira are selling an 11 percent stake in German free-to-air broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1 for around $1 billion, the companies said in a joint statement Tuesday.
The move will see KKR and Permira immediately begin to sell a total of 25 million ProSieben shares to institutional investors. Following the sale, KKR and Permira will continue to hold around 33 percent of ProSieben, one of Europe’s largest commercial broadcasters.
The investors said earlier this year that they planned to reduce their holding in ProSieben through share placements. That sparked rumors that big media suitors such as Time Warner, News Corp. (now 21st Century Fox) and Comcast might make a bid for the group.
KKR and Permira, through holding firm Lavena, paid $4.2 billion for a majority stake in ProSiebenSat.1 in 2006.
The timing for the sale could hardly be better. ProSieben shares have soared in the past year, climbing more than 70 percent.
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