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 Media mogul Sumner Redstone tried Thursday to assuage concerns about
the "extraordinary circumstances" and "clearly atypical" actions taken
by his privately held theater chain National Amusements Inc.
NAI
holds Redstone's controlling interest in media companies CBS Corp. and
Viacom Inc. The entity created a stir when it made what Redstone called
"the highly unusual sale" of more than $230 million of the two
companies' stock, after declines in share prices triggered covenants in
NAI's debt agreements.
During CBS's third-quarter earnings call Thursday morning, Redstone, the CBS executive chairman, said the sales do reflect a diminished view of CBS and Viacom, but that they had stopped. "Now let me emphasize that this was not something NAI wanted to do nor is it something NAI intends to do again," Redstone said. "Let me make it sure, clear, certain. NAI has no intention of selling a single share of Viacom or CBS." The mogul described "extremely constructive talks" with its lenders and his expectation for "a fair and workable deal" on "highly reasonable time frame." Richard Greenfield of Pali Capital Inc. parses Redstone's diction and expresses some doubts in a Thursday blog posting. "While Mr. Redstone was exceedingly clear that he had no intention of selling more Viacom or CBS shares, he was forced to sell $233 [million] worth a few weeks ago and may not have a choice going forward if debt renegotiations do not pan out in time," Greenfield wrote. - Chris Nolter See Pali analyst Greenfield's blog See transcript of Redstone's conference call at Seeking Alpha Categories Deal Video
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