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To: Eric L who wrote (17)	10/4/1999 3:51:00 PM
From: Anthony Wong	Respond to of 60

Nextel, VoiceStream Rise on Bids for Wireless Competitor Sprint quote.bloomberg.com Reston, Virginia, Oct. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Nextel Communications Inc. and VoiceStream Wireless Corp. rose as much as 9.3 percent and 7.5 percent, as investors, spurred on by a bidding war over Sprint Corp., bet the two wireless operators could be acquired next. Reston, Virginia-based Nextel rose 4 7/8, or 6.9 percent, to 75 3/4 in midafternoon trading, rising as high as 76 3/4 earlier. Bellevue, Washington-based VoiceStream rose 3 3/4, or 6.4 percent, to 62 13/16 and earlier reached 63 1/2. BellSouth Corp. and MCI WorldCom Inc. have made rival offers for No. 3 U.S. long-distance company Sprint, which also owns the nationwide wireless network MCI WorldCom says it needs. After Sprint is acquired, Nextel and VoiceStream are the only independent companies left with nationwide wireless networks, said Christopher Larson, an analyst with Prudential Securities. ''Once we figure out who's buying Sprint, the next move is to see who buys Nextel and VoiceStream,'' he said. ''BellSouth showed its hand -- it wants to be a much bigger company. If they win Sprint, that leaves MCI WorldCom with no wireless network and they have to go after one of the other companies.'' He added that if WorldCom acquires Sprint, Bell South may still decide it wants to acquire a nationwide wireless network. Nextel, which is partly owned by cellular pioneer Craig McCaw, had revenue of 1.85 billion last year. VoiceStream had revenue of $168 million last year.

To: Eric L who wrote (17)	10/4/1999 4:46:00 PM
From: Anthony Wong	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 60

This Lehman report on Wireless Data mentions VSTR and OMPT lehman.com

To: Eric L who wrote (17)	10/5/1999 1:16:00 PM
From: Anthony Wong	Respond to of 60

Briefing.com: 2:47 ET Nextel (NXTL) 77 3/16 +1 13/16: PaineWebber ups price target to $100 from $85, noting that the Sprint PCS acquisition price implies a NXTL valuation of $100-160. Research report also notes that VoiceStream (VSTR +4 15/16) benefits, as NXTL and VSTR have the only remaining national wireless assets. And from Bloomberg: VoiceStream Wireless Corp. (VSTR) and Nextel Communications Inc. (NXTL) both rose for a second day amid optimism that they could be takeover targets. VoiceStream rose 3 1/16, or 4.9 percent, to 65 3/4 and traded as high as 66 3/4. Nextel rose 2 1/4, or 3 percent, to 77 5/8 and traded as high as 78 3/4.

To: Eric L who wrote (17)	10/5/1999 2:13:00 PM
From: Anthony Wong	Respond to of 60

In Wake Of Failed Bid, BellSouth Will Have To Win Back Wall Street October 05, 1999 1:16 PM NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- BellSouth Corp., the conservative Baby Bell phone company that until this week had avoided consideration of any big mergers during the consolidation wave in the telecom industry, faces the task of winning back nervous shareholders. As expected, BellSouth Tuesday morning confirmed it was outbid in its last-minute pursuit of Sprint Corp., which accepted a $115 billion takeover offer from MCI WorldCom Inc. BellSouth was persuaded to bid for Sprint by the argument that Sprint is the last independent long-distance phone company with a premier wireless business. But Clinton, Miss.-based MCI WorldCom trumped BellSouth's sweetened offer for Westwood, Kansas-based Sprint. MCI WorldCom's offer was less than BellSouth's but MCI WorldCom was seen as the preferred buyer because of the synergies and expectations of quicker regulatory approval. Analysts agreed that BellSouth came away wounded from the failed bid. Some say that BellSouth should have used its considerable resources to come out with a bid that soundly beat WorldCom's. Market watchers believe if BellSouth doesn't make a significant acquisition soon, it risks being swallowed itself. Now that a bid for Sprint is out, some analysts say BellSouth will probably look for another company with a wireless reach across the U.S., such as Nextel Communications Inc. or VoiceStream Wireless Corp. The bid showed that BellSouth executives are concerned about the company's prospects in a rapidly consolidating world. In public, BellSouth Chairman Duane Ackerman doggedly sticks to the Bell's longtime position that the company has the size and scope it needs to compete in the new world of telecom giants. But in private, he has conceded that the company, in hindsight, should have pushed earlier to buy or merge with another big telecom player. One factor that has kept BellSouth from jumping into the battles for other telecom companies is that a big deal would hurt earnings. Analysts expect BellSouth to achieve double-digit growth in earnings for 1999 and 2000. BellSouth's bid for Sprint reminds some market watchers of GTE Corp.'s failed bid for MCI Communications Corp. in 1997. In both cases, the opponent was Worldcom. Like GTE, BellSouth tried to break up a deal between Worldcom and a long-distance carrier. GTE announced a bid for MCI in October 1997 that was higher than the offer Worldcom had on the table. Worldcom succeeded in outmaneuvering GTE by quickly raising its bid and then giving MCI limited time to consider it. MCI accepted Worldcom's offer before GTE was able to respond. Now, some investors appear BellSouth may fallow GTE's course. Like BellSouth, GTE had said it could survive on its own. GTE later found itself pressured in to make a deal to compensate for the loss of MCI. GTE last year had agreed to be acquired by Bell Atlantic Corp. Eric Strumingher, a telecom analyst for Paine Webber, told the New York Times that many investors are upset because they had assumed that BellSouth was a seller, not a buyer. Strumingher told the paper that he thinks the multiple at which BellSouth;s stock will trade in the aftermath of the bid will be less than that at which it traded beforehand. Copyright (c) 1999 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. smartmoney.com