Cumulus Media, the second-largest radio group based on station count at 339 stations, is not going private.
The broadcaster this week terminated its $1.3 billion merger agreement with the investor group led by Cumulus Chairman, President and CEO Lew Dickey and an affiliate of Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity.
The investor group told the company that, after exploring alternatives, it couldn’t agree on terms on which they could proceed with the deal, which had been announced last July.
“Our business remains fundamentally sound and we intend to continue to operate it aggressively and explore opportunities to create and deliver value for our shareholders,” Dickey stated.
The investor group agreed to pay Cumulus a termination fee of $15 million.
Cumulus said its board will explore the possible implementation of a new stock repurchase plan for stockholders.
