Irving, Texas–based Nexstar Broadcasting Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: NXST) plans to acquire television stations serving the Syracuse, Binghamton, Elmira, and Watertown markets as part of a transaction set to close in the fourth quarter of this year.
The acquisition is part of a $285.5 million deal between Nexstar Broadcasting Group, Mission Broadcasting, Inc. of Ohio, and Kansas City, Mo.–based Newport Television, LLC. That agreement calls for Newport to sell a total of 12 stations it owns across the country.
Nexstar Broadcasting Group will ultimately acquire 10 of the stations, including five in upstate New York. Mission Broadcasting, which is privately held, will pick up two stations in Arkansas.
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The upstate New York stations Nexstar Broadcasting Group will acquire are the Syracuse ABC affiliate WSYR, the Binghamton NBC affiliate WBGH, the Binghamton ABC affiliate WIVT, the Elmira NBC affiliate WETM, and the Watertown ABC affiliate WWTI. The company will also add a total of five more stations Newport owns in Utah and Tennessee.
“The Newport stations represent an ideal complement to our existing station portfolio in terms of geographic fit, market size, and duopoly presence,” Nexstar Broadcasting Group Chairman, President, and CEO Perry Sook said in a news release. “Under Nexstar’s ownership, the stations’ financial results will benefit from additional retransmission revenues as well as synergistic operating improvements.”
Nexstar Broadcasting Group and Mission expect to finance the station acquisitions using $645 million in new senior secured credit facilities. Bank of America Merrill Lynch, UBS Investment Bank, and RBC Capital Markets are the joint lead arrangers and joint book runners for those facilities.
Currently, Nexstar Broadcasting Group owns, operates, programs, or provides sales and services for 55 television stations and 11 related digital multicast signals covering 32 markets. Once its acquisition of the Newport stations closes, it anticipates its holdings will reach 40 markets.
Contact Seltzer at rseltzer@cnybj.com
