Liberty Global said it has agreed to purchase Multimedia Polska, the third largest cable operator in Poland, in an all-cash deal valued at $760 million.
Liberty said the purchase price could change subject to downward adjustments for operational and financial performance prior to closing. At $760 million, the deal is valued at about 6.2 times Multimedia Polska’s 2015 cash flow.
Multimedia passes about 1.6 million homes, serving about 643,000 video, 491,000 broadband and 241,000 telephony customers. In addition, Multimedia has about 54,000 mobile subscribers. Liberty’s UPC Poland is the largest cable operator in the country, passing 3.1 million homes, or about 20% of the total households in Poland. The deal will increase Liberty’s homes passed in Poland to more than 4 million.
“This acquisition will significantly increase our scale in Poland, where we are already the largest cable operator,” Liberty Global CEO Mike Fries said in a statement. “It will also enhance our ability to invest in cutting-edge products and services for Polish consumers and businesses that will help drive organic growth across our enlarged footprint of over four million premises. Upon closing of the transaction, we will begin upgrading the Multimedia network, after which Multimedia’s customers will be able to enjoy superfast broadband speeds and our next-generation video service Horizon TV.”
The acquisition of Multimedia will be financed through a combination of incremental debt borrowings and cash on hand. The transaction excludes Multimedia’s existing insurance, gas and energy operations, which will be retained by the shareholders of Multimedia. The transaction is expected to close within the next 12 months.
Credit Suisse International acted as financial advisor to Liberty Global in the transaction.
