Byron Allen places broadcast TV stations up on the market

Byron Allen is striking his broadcast TV stations up on the market.

Allen Media Group stated on Monday it has retained funding financial institution Moelis & Co. to promote its staff of 28 owned and operated broadcast TV stations, that are affiliated with ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox in 21 markets around the U.S.

In a information free up, Allen stated the corporate has invested greater than $1 billion into obtaining the stations during the last six years and after receiving “numerous inquiries and written offers” for lots of the stations, has determined to discover a sale.

The Allen Media Group stations sign up for others that experience just lately hit the sale block. Last 12 months, CNBC reported that Sinclair was once exploring the sale of greater than 30% of its stations. Apollo Global Management could also be reportedly exploring a sale of its Cox Media Group portfolio of TV and radio stations.

Allen Media Group stated a sale of the stations would considerably scale back its debt load. Earlier this 12 months, the corporate refinanced a $100 million debt facility. While S&P Global Ratings stated it anticipated the corporate to care for enough liquidity over the following 12 months, it famous that Allen Media Group nonetheless maintained a junk ranking and confronted long term debt dangers.

Last 12 months, CNBC reported that Allen Media Group have been persistently past due in making bills to its community house owners, in some circumstances up to 90 days late, with the bills totaling tens of hundreds of thousands of bucks all through the 12 months. The explanation why for the lateness have been unclear, and representatives for Allen Media Group declined to deal with the main points of CNBC’s reporting.

The stations have additionally reportedly gone through layoffs.

Allen, a former comic, based Entertainment Studios, now referred to as Allen Media Group, within the early 1990s. He later shaped Allen Media Group Broadcasting in 2019 and has constructed up his profile and trade ever since with a string of smaller offers.

He has additionally develop into recognized for expressing pastime in purchasing quite a lot of media property to bulk up his media empire. In fresh years, he has made a $30 billion bid for Paramount Global when it was once up on the market in 2024, in addition to a $10 billion be offering for ABC and different Disney networks, and he reportedly presented $3.5 billion for Paramount’s BET Media Group.

Disclosure: Comcast’s NBCUniversal is the guardian corporate of CNBC and broadcast community NBC.