Liberty Media’s CEO Greg Maffei will be stepping down from his position by the end of the year. Chairman John Malone will then assume the role of interim CEO as Maffei will serve as senior advisor starting Jan. 1 in an effort to support the management transition.
In related news about the company, Charter Communications reached an agreement to acquire Liberty Broadband in an all-stock transaction. Under the terms of the agreement, each holder of Liberty Broadband Series A, Series B and Series C common stock will receive 0.236 of a share of Charter stock per share of Liberty Broadband stock. Cash will be issued instead of fractional shares. Charter expects to retire roughly 45.6 million shares currently owned by Liberty Broadband and to issue roughly 34.0 million shares to holders of Liberty Broadband stock.
Liberty Broadband’s existing debt of $2.6 billion will either be repaid before the deal closes or assumed by Charter. Additionally, $180 million of preferred equity will become Charter’s at the close of the transaction. The Boards of Directors of both Charter and Liberty Broadband approved the deal.
“On behalf of the Liberty Media board, I’d like to thank Greg for his leadership, creativity and dedication,” said Malone in a statement to press. “Especially following today’s transaction announcements, our company is simpler and more focused than ever before, which is a perfect capstone for Greg’s accomplished career at Liberty. I wish Greg continued success as he embarks on his next chapter and appreciate his continued support as an advisor.”
“The almost 20 years I have spent at the helm of Liberty Media have been incredibly rewarding, stimulating and endlessly eventful. Following today’s announcements at Liberty Media and Liberty Broadband, all the Liberty acquisitions completed during my tenure are now in structures where shareholders can have more direct ownership in their upside,” Maffei said. “While it’s never easy to leave an organization as dynamic as Liberty, I am confident that this is the right time.”
Maffei first joined the company in 2005. Under his leadership, Liberty has made several acquisitions and investments when it comes to the Atlanta Braves, DirecTV, SiriusXM, Live Nation Entertainment, Charter Communications and Formula 1. During the 19 years he’s been at the company, Liberty Media’s composite value increased at a compounded annual growth rate of 17%, a larger growth rate than the the S&P 500’s 11%.
As CEO of Liberty Media, Maffei served as the the chairman of SiriusXM, Live Nation Entertainment, Liberty TripAdvisor, Tripadvisor, Starz, Atlanta Braves Holdings and Qurate Retail and previously served as a director of Liberty Media, Liberty Broadband, Charter Communications, DirecTV and Barnes & Noble. Looking ahead, he will continue to serve as chairman of Qurate Retail, Liberty TripAdvisor, Tripadvisor and SiriusXM as well as as a director of Charter Communications, Live Nation Entertainment and Zillow.
