Altice Responds to Recent Market Speculation and Misinformation
November 20, 2017 - Altice N.V. (Euronext: ATC, ATCB) today responds to recent market speculation and misinformation.
- Altice is not in preparation of a cash raising by means of an equity- or equity-linked issuance and has no intention to pursue such action
Altice confirms that it is not in preparation of a cash raising by means of an equity- or equity-linked issuance and has no intention to pursue such action within the group including Altice USA.
Altice confirms it had 1,205.3 million shares outstanding excluding any treasury shares as of the end of Q3 2017.
- Next Alt S.à.r.l. ("Next") does not have any margin loan exposure to Altice and has not sold any material number of shares since the IPO
Altice confirms that its majority shareholder Next does not hold any margin loan exposure related to Altice.
Altice further confirms that Next has not sold any shares since the Altice IPO except approximately 0.3 million shares sold to group managers as disclosed in 2016.
Information service provider Bloomberg L.P. issued on November 12, 2017 an information update, correcting its total free float shares count for Altice by an additional approximately 81 million. The impression in the market that 81 million shares were sold by Next related to the correction by Bloomberg L.P. is factually incorrect.
- Management has not taken any active decision to sell Altice shares
The sale of shares attributed to Altice's Chief Financial Officer in September 2017 was executed by a financial institution on maturity of a funded collar originally entered into in March 2015.
Altice's General Secretary reported the sale of shares between September and November 2017. The sale of these shares occurred due to unforeseen life circumstances.
- Altice plans to de-lever its balance sheet and does not have margin loan exposure within the group
Clear de-leveraging plan
Altice confirms its plans to de-lever its balance sheet and bring leverage in line with or below its stated targets over time. Altice reiterates that it will not pursue any new meaningful M&A opportunities.
In addition to the operational turnaround in France, the disposal of non-core assets within Altice Europe is central to Altice's de-leveraging plan. Certain non-core assets have already been identified including Altice's tower portfolio. Altice has initiated processes to effect disposals as early as the first half of 2018 and will update investors in due course on its progress.
Absence of any corporate margin loans
Altice confirms that the Altice Corporate Financing facility with relationship banks at group level is guaranteed by Altice and does not have maintenance covenants or share price triggers.
Altice confirms that it has no margin loan exposure with respect to its ownership in Altice USA.
Altice has a robust, diversified and long-term capital structure with a strong liquidity position and no recourse or cross-default clauses between debt silos
- Group weighted average debt maturity of 6.3 years:
- No major maturities at Altice France (SFR) until 2022;
- No major maturities at Altice International until 2023;
- No maturities at Altice Luxembourg until 2022;
- No maturities at Suddenlink until 2020;
- Near-term maturities at Optimum covered by $2.3 billion revolving facility, cash on balance sheet and cash flow generation.
- Altice further confirms that liquidity of the group is strong with approximately €1.66 billion of cash on balance sheet (including €0.4 billion at corporate level) as of the end of Q3 2017 and approximately €3.5 billion of undrawn and available revolving facilities with an average maturity of 3.9 years.
Regulated Information
This press release contains inside information within the meaning of Article 7(1) of the EU Market Abuse Regulation.
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Contacts Head of Investor Relations Altice N.V. Nick Brown: +41 79 720 15 03 / nick.brown@altice.net
Head of Communications Altice N.V. Arthur Dreyfuss: +41 79 946 49 31 / arthur.dreyfuss@altice.net
About Altice N.V.
Founded in 2001 by entrepreneur Patrick Drahi, Altice is a convergent global leader in telecom, content, media, entertainment and advertising. Altice delivers innovative, customer-centric products and solutions that connect and unlock the limitless potential of its over 50 million customers over fiber networks and mobile broadband. The company enables millions of people to live out their passions by providing original content, high-quality and compelling TV shows, and international, national and local news channels. Altice delivers live broadcast premium sports events and enables millions of customers to enjoy the most well-known media and entertainment. Altice innovates with technology in its Altice Labs across the world. Altice links leading brands to audiences through premium advertising solutions. Altice is also a global provider of enterprise digital solutions to millions of business customers. Altice is present in 10 territories from New York to Paris, from Tel Aviv to Lisbon, from Santo Domingo to Geneva, from Amsterdam to Dallas. Altice (ATC & ATCB) is listed on Euronext Amsterdam.
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