Belo Corp announced an offering of between $250-275 million of senior notes due in 2016. The notes were issued under a shelf registration filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in September 2009, authorizing up to $600 million in debt.
Belo Corp said that prior to the deal closing, which is expected at the end of November 2009, the company must obtain a waiver from its lenders on its leverage and interest coverage covenants. The company had total debt of $1.042 billion, as of September 30, 2009. Belo Corp plans to use the funds to reduce the amount outstanding on its credit facility.
Belo Corp reported a net loss per share in the third quarter of 2009 of $150 million, due mostly to a non-cash impairment charge. The charge was due to a reduction in the fair value of Belo Corp’s FCC licenses.
Belo Corp (BLC) owns 20 television stations in 15 different markets, including Dallas, Seattle, Phoenix and New Orleans. Belo Corp’s programming reaches 14% of the U.S. population.
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