DirecTV share price down, $48.5bn acquisition by AT&T approved

DirecTV officially announced the voting results of a shareholder meeting in New York, revealing that its investors overwhelmingly approved the sale of the company to AT&T Inc. The purchase will cost AT&T $48.5bn and according to the companys Chief Executive Officer Mike White is about to be finalised in early April 2015.

According to the companys statement, 99% of the votes were in favor of the deal. The votes cast represent 77 percent of shares outstanding. The sale was announced in May 2014, but is still awaiting regulatory approval of the Federal Communications Commission and the US Justice Department.

The agreement between the companies was reached a few months ago as part of AT&Ts strategy to expand its reach into pay television in order to become more competitive to its major rival Verizon Communications.

“Together, DirecTV and AT&T will be a stronger competitive alternative to cable,” DirecTV’s website reads.

The merger is the second largest in the history of AT&T after the 2006 purchase of BellSouth at the price of $85bn. Meanwhile, both DirecTV and AT&T are pursuing an acquisition of Comcasts SportsNet Houston, which currently broadcasts games for NBA team the Houston Rockets and baseballs Houston Astros. AT&T is also heading for a breakthrough in talks with the National Football League over rights to air the Sunday Ticket package.

DirecTV was 0.48% down to close at $86.39 per share yesterday, marking a one-year change of +44.37%. The company is valued at $43.39 billion. According to CNN Money, the 16 analysts offering 12-month price forecasts for DirecTV have a median target of 495.00, with a high estimate of $97.00 and a low estimate of $82.00. The median estimate represents a +9.97% increase from the last price of $86.39.

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