UK's Virgin Media O2 sells $437 mln mobile-towers stake to GLIL (updated)

Liberty Global

31/10/2023 18:05

(Adds details on payment in paragraph 2, quotes in paragraphs 4
and 5)
    By Paul Sandle
       LONDON, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Britain's Virgin Media O2 on
Tuesday said it had sold a 16.67% stake in its mobile towers
joint venture Cornerstone to GLIL Infrastructure, a partnership
of UK pension funds, for about 360 million pounds ($437 million)
in cash.
    VM O2, jointly owned by Telefonica  TEF.MC  and Liberty
Global  LBTYA.O , said the value represented a multiple of 18.7x
of Cornerstone's adjusted core earnings for the year ended in
March 2023.
        The mobile and broadband company will retain a 33.33%
stake in Cornerstone, Britain's largest tower sharing company,
which is half owned by Vodafone  VOD.L  via its Vantage Towers
 VTWRn.H  subsidiary.
        The sale confirmed a 
    Reuters report
     on Saturday.
  
        VM O2's Chief Executive Lutz Schüler said selling a
minority stake in Cornerstone was a logical move that partly
monetised its towers infrastructure, while retaining operational
and strategic co-control.
  
        GLIL investment director Simon Davy said stake fitted
well into its existing portfolio of high quality, core
infrastructure assets.
  
        VM O2 will publish third-quarter results on Wednesday.
  

($1 = 0.8234 pounds)

 (Reporting by Paul Sandle, writing by William James)
 ((william.james@thomsonreuters.com; @wjames_reuters; +44 20
7513 4401;))