Brookfield Infrastructure (NYSE: BIP; TSX: BIP.UN) and its institutional partners have agreed to acquire Cincinnati Bell Inc. (NYSE: CBB) in a transaction valued at approximately US $2.6 billion, including debt.
Pursuant to the agreement, each issued and outstanding share of Cincinnati Bell common stock will be converted into the right to receive $10.50 in cash at closing of the Transaction. The transaction price of $10.50 per share of Cincinnati Bell common stock represents a 36% premium to the closing per share price of $7.72 on December 20, 2019 and an 84% premium to the 60-day volume weighted average price.
The transaction has received unanimous approval of Cincinnati Bell’s Board of Directors and is subject to customary closing conditions, including Cincinnati Bell shareholder approval and regulatory approval.
The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2020.
Cincinnati Bell owns and operates the leading data transmission and distribution network in Cincinnati, Ohio and Hawaii, with a footprint of over 1.3 million homes, delivering core fiber broadband, video and voice services to residential and enterprise customers.
photo credit: Cincinnati Bell
News Release
Cincinnati Bell Inc. To Be Acquired By Brookfield Infrastructure In $2.6 Billion Transaction
CINCINNATI, Dec. 23, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Cincinnati Bell Inc. (NYSE:CBB), together with Brookfield Infrastructure (NYSE: BIP; TSX: BIP.UN), today announced an agreement through which Brookfield Infrastructure and its institutional partners will acquire Cincinnati Bell in a transaction valued at approximately $2.6 billion, including debt (the “Transaction”).
Pursuant to the agreement, each issued and outstanding share of Cincinnati Bell common stock will be converted into the right to receive $10.50 in cash at closing of the Transaction. The Transaction price of $10.50 per share of Cincinnati Bell common stock represents a 36% premium to the closing per share price of $7.72 on December 20, 2019 and an 84% premium to the 60-day volume weighted average price. The Transaction has received unanimous approval of Cincinnati Bell’s Board of Directors and is subject to customary closing conditions, including Cincinnati Bell shareholder approval and regulatory approval.
Lynn A. Wentworth, Chairman of the Cincinnati Bell Board of Directors, said, “After thoroughly reviewing a range of strategic alternatives and possible business opportunities for maximizing value, the Board determined this transaction was in the best interest of the company, its shareholders, and its customers. The transaction provides clear and immediate value at an attractive premium and represents an exciting new chapter for Cincinnati Bell.”
Leigh Fox, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cincinnati Bell, continued, “The transaction strengthens our financial position, enabling accelerated investment in our strategic products that is not presently available to Cincinnati Bell as a standalone company. This will allow us to drive growth and maximize value over the long term to the benefit of all our stakeholders. With Brookfield Infrastructure’s support, we will be better positioned to deliver next generation, integrated communications for our customers through an expanded fiber network. Brookfield Infrastructure provides strong industry expertise with a proven track record of investment in critical data service and infrastructure. The financial, management, and other resources made available to Cincinnati Bell through the acquisition will enhance our networks and services to the benefit of our customers in Hawaii, Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana, and across the nation.”
“This investment represents an opportunity for Brookfield Infrastructure to acquire a great franchise and leading fiber network operator in North America,” said Sam Pollock, Chief Executive Officer of Brookfield Infrastructure. “We are excited to leverage our operating expertise to work with the company’s management team as it completes its industry-leading fiber optic rollout plan. Cincinnati Bell is a great addition to our data infrastructure portfolio and we expect it will contribute strong utility-like cash flows with predictable growth.”
Cincinnati Bell owns and operates the leading data transmission and distribution network in Cincinnati, Ohio and Hawaii, with a footprint of over 1.3 million homes, delivering core fiber broadband, video and voice services to residential and enterprise customers. The business is undergoing an industry-leading transformation to upgrade its network to next generation fiber, which will be critical to support the growing demand for data and the advent of 5G. Thus far, Cincinnati Bell has future-proofed 50% of its network, representing more than 17,000 miles of dense metro and last-mile fiber and has plans to further upgrade its network over the next few years. The ongoing fiber upgrade allows Cincinnati Bell to provide utility-like services for broadband and data, generating stable and growing cash flows.
Brookfield Infrastructure is a leading global company with a long-standing history as an owner and operator of high-quality infrastructure assets. It has a global portfolio of assets in the utilities, transport, energy and data infrastructure sectors across North and South America, Asia Pacific and Europe.
The Transaction is expected to close by the end of 2020. It is subject to certain customary closing conditions, including the approval by Cincinnati Bell’s shareholders, expiration or termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 and certain regulatory approvals. Cincinnati Bell will file a current report on Form 8-K with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission containing a summary of the terms and conditions of the proposed acquisition as well as a copy of the merger agreement.
Advisors
White & Case LLP is serving as lead legal advisor to Brookfield Infrastructure on this Transaction. Financing will be led by a syndicate of banks including Bank of America, BMO Capital Markets Corp., Citigroup Global Markets Inc., TD Securities and Wells Fargo Securities, LLC.
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and Moelis & Company LLC are acting as financial advisors and Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP, Morgan, Lewis & Blockius LLP, and BosseLaw PLLC are acting as legal advisors to Cincinnati Bell.
Cincinnati Bell Inc. has headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio. Cincinnati Bell delivers integrated communications solutions to residential and business customers over its fiber-optic and copper networks including high-speed internet, video, voice and data. The Company provides service in areas of Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana and Hawaii. In addition, enterprise customers across the United States and Canada rely on CBTS and OnX, wholly-owned subsidiaries, for efficient, scalable office communications systems and end-to-end IT solutions. For more information, please visit www.cincinnatibell.com. The information on the Company’s website is not incorporated by reference in this press release.
Brookfield Infrastructure Partners is a leading global infrastructure company that owns and operates high-quality, long-life assets in the utilities, transport, energy and data infrastructure sectors across North and South America, Asia Pacific and Europe. We are focused on assets that generate stable cash flows and require minimal maintenance capital expenditures. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners is listed on the New York and Toronto stock exchanges. Further information is available at www.brookfield.com/infrastructure.
Brookfield Infrastructure is the flagship listed infrastructure company of Brookfield Asset Management, a global alternative asset manager with over $500 billion of assets under management. For more information, go to www.brookfield.com.
Additional Information and Where to Find It
This communication may be deemed to be solicitation material in respect of the proposed acquisition of Cincinnati Bell by Brookfield Infrastructure. In connection with the proposed acquisition, Cincinnati Bell intends to file relevant materials with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including Cincinnati Bell’s proxy statement in preliminary and definitive form. Shareholders of Cincinnati Bell are urged to read all relevant documents filed with the SEC, including Cincinnati Bell’s proxy statement when it becomes available, because they will contain important information about the proposed transaction and the parties to the proposed transaction. Investors and shareholders are able to obtain the documents (once available) free of charge at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov, or free of charge from Cincinnati Bell at investor.cincinnatibell.com or by directing a request to Cincinnati Bell’s Investor Relations Department at 1-800-345-6301 or investorrelations@cinbell.com, and Brookfield Infrastructure’s annual reports on Form 20-F, reports on Form 6-K and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 are available free of charge through Brookfield Infrastructure’s website at https://bip.brookfield.com/, in each case, as soon as reasonably practicable after they are electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC.
Participants in the Solicitation
Cincinnati Bell and its directors, executive officers and other members of management and employees, under SEC rules, may be deemed to be “participants” in the solicitation of proxies from shareholders of Cincinnati Bell in favor of the proposed transaction. Information about Cincinnati Bell’s directors and executive officers is set forth in Cincinnati Bell’s Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A for its 2019 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, which was filed with the SEC on March 19, 2019, and its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2018, which was filed with the SEC on February 22, 2019. These documents may be obtained free of charge from the sources indicated above. Additional information regarding the interests of these participants which may, in some cases, be different than those of Cincinnati Bell’s shareholders generally, will also be included in Cincinnati Bell’s proxy statement relating to the proposed transaction, when it becomes available.
SOURCE Cincinnati Bell Inc.