AT&T’s WarnerMedia, Discovery to merge in $130-bn blockbuster deal

AT&T agreed to spin off its media operations in a deal with Discovery that will create a new entertainment company, merging assets ranging from CNN and HBO to HGTV and the Food Network.

The transaction values the combined entity at about $130 billion including debt, based on WarnerMedia’s estimated enterprise value of more than $90 billion.

AT&T will receive $43 billion in cash, debt securities and debt retention, with its shareholders getting stock representing 71 per cent of the new company, the companies said in a statement Monday. The deal is structured as a tax-advantaged Reverse Morris Trust.