VIACOM <VIA.N> SAYS IT SETS IPO RANGE FOR BLOCKBUSTER BETWEEN
16-18
NEW YORK, July 19 (Reuters) - Entertainment company Viacom Inc. <VIA.N> on Monday announced the terms under which it plans to offer shares in its Blockbuster Inc. video rental and retailing unit.
Viacom said it plans to offer 31 million shares in Blockbuster, which has more than 6,500 stores worldwide, in a price range between $16 and $18 a share.
The offering, which represents a roughly 17.7 percent stake in Blockbuster, suggests an estimated value of between $2.8 billion and $3.2 billion on the business.
Those figures are a far cry from the $8.4 billion Viacom spent to acquire the Blockbuster business in 1994, when then-Chairman Wayne Huizenga hoped Blockbuster's retail presence and powerful cash generation would play a central role in fueling Viacom's expansion.
After the offering, Viacom, whose other operations include the MTV cable network, Simon & Schuster publishing and Paramount Pictures, will own about 82.3 percent of Blockbuster common stock, or 80.2 percent if the underwriters of the offering exercise over-allotment options.
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