/ 03.30.2010 12:00AM
CBS Offers to Buy Back $500 Million
NEW YORK: CBS Corp. offered to buy back up to $500
million of its outstanding debt. The cash tender offer was announced today for
6.625 percent notes due May 15, 2011; 8.625 percent debentures due Aug. 1,
2012; and 5.625 percent notes due Aug. 15, 2012. CBS (NYSE: CBSA) said it would
buy the notes according to priority based on the order of those due dates and
interest rates, the earliest being first. The first round of notes due next
year will be subject to a maximum purchase sublimit of $400 million. An early
tender premium of $30 per $1,000 in principal is being offered.
Standard & Poor’s raised CBS from negative to stable last Friday on the
media company’s efforts to reduce its leverage. The company reported 4Q09
revenues of $3.5 billion, down less than 1 percent from the year earlier. Net
earnings were $58.8 million, compared to $136.1 million the year earlier.
Full-year revenues were $13 billion, compared to nearly $14 billion in 2008.
Net earnings were $226.5 million, compared to a net loss of $11.7 billion for
2008.
The 14 owned-and-operated CBS TV stations took in $358.2 million for the fourth
quarter of 2009, and $1.14 billion for the full year.
A shares of CBS have fluctuated from $12.69 to $14.79 between Jan. 1 and now,
but are about flat year-to-date at around $14.