AT&T began exploring a sale of its business in Puerto Rico as part of a continuing effort to cut debt, Reuters reported.
The operator hired a financial adviser to help with the sale, which could raise as much as $3 billion, the news agency stated.
While AT&T does not break out unit details in its financial reports, Reuters noted the Puerto Rico business offers TV, internet, landline phone and business services with annual EBITDA of around $300 million.
During the operator’s Q1 earnings call, CEO Randall Stephenson reiterated eliminating debt accrued as part of its $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner in 2018 and $49 billion purchase of DirecTV in 2015 was a top priority for the company. At end-March, it had $163.9 billion in long term debt
It raised $5 billion in February through the sale of unsecured bonds as part of its debt reduction effort.
In April, AT&T batted down [1] reports it was considering a sale of the European arm of HBO, but subsequently sold its minority stake in Hulu [2] for $1.43 billion.
[1] https://www.mobileworldlive.com/featured-content/top-three/att-refutes-report-of-hbo-europe-sale-plans/[2] https://www.mobileworldlive.com/featured-content/top-three/att-offloads-hulu-holding-to-pay-debt/
