The stock is +7.3% in early trading following reports that Comcast and Charter Communications are seriously considering possible bids for the No. 2 cable operator. CNBC reports that Comcast shareholders want it to go after Time Warner Cable, and while the companies aren’t in active discussions, the owner of NBCUniversal is looking at the obstacles a deal might face at the FCC and the Justice Department. Comcast has 21.6M video subscribers while TWC has 11.6M. If they combined, Comcast would have about 35% of all multichannel video subscribers. That story follows a Wall Street Journal report this morning that Charter — galvanized by its top shareholder, Liberty Media’s John Malone — is close to landing the funds it would need to make an offer for TWC. Charter, with 4.3M video subscribers, has been talking to Bank of America, Barclays, and Deutsche Bank about potential debt a rrangements. TWC has a market value of $ 37B, and a buyer likely would have to pay a premium over that.
Deadline.com
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