AT&T to Sell Majority of Yellow Pages Business to Cerberus

AT&T Inc. (T) agreed to sell a majority stake in its Yellow Pages directory division to Cerberus Capital Management LP for about $950 million as part of an effort to dispose of units that are holding back revenue growth.

AT&T will receive $750 million in cash and a $200 million note, according to a statement from the Dallas-based phone carrier today. AT&T will keep a 47 percent stake in the business, which had about $3.3 billion in revenue in 2011.

The sale lets AT&T, which hung on to its Yellow Pages division as competitors fled the business, to reduce its exposure to a unit facing increasing competition from online rivals Google Inc. (GOOG), Groupon Inc. (GRPN) and Yelp Inc. (YELP) To boost sales, AT&T, the biggest U.S. phone company, is focusing on its mobile- phone business, where it trails Verizon Wireless.

“It is a sensible step,” Craig Moffett, a Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. analyst in New York who rates AT&T shares market perform, wrote in a report. “Unfortunately for AT&T, however, the transaction is barely material, either in the proceeds it returns or in the change it portends to AT&T’s overall growth rate.”

Sales at the Yellow Pages business declined 16 percent last year, compared with revenue growth of about 2 percent for AT&T as a whole. Chief Executive Officer Randall Stephenson said in January that the company was looking “to either divest or restructure low-performing and non-strategic assets.”

Shares Fall

AT&T fell 1 percent to $30.64 at the close in New York. The shares have gained 1.3 percent this year.

The company said it won’t change its earnings forecast or dividend plans as a result of the sale.

The advertising unit publishes about 1,200 Yellow Pages directories in 22 states. AT&T recorded fourth-quarter costs of 48 cents a share to reduce the value of assets of its directory operations. The company’s net loss was $1.12 a share in the quarter.

Private-equity companies have made several investments in Yellow Pages businesses since 2000, drawn by the traditionally steady cash flow. KKR & Co. bought France Telecom SA (FTE)’s PagesJaunes SA in 2006, while Hicks Muse Tate & Furst Inc. and Apax Partners LLP bought BT Group Plc (BT/A)’s Yellow Pages unit in 2001.

Cerberus, a New York-based private-equity firm run by Stephen Feinberg, has been raising money, including a $4 billion flagship fund. Recent investments include the $1.02 billion acquisition with Chatham Lodging Trust (CLDT) of 64 hotels from Innkeepers USA Trust in October.

To contact the reporter on this story: Scott Moritz in New York at smoritz6@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Peter Elstrom at pelstrom@bloomberg.net

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AT&T to Sell Majority of Yellow Pages Business to Cerberus

Peter Foley/Bloomberg

AT&T Inc. signage is displayed outside a store in New York. To boost sales, AT&T, the biggest U.S. phone company, is focusing on its mobile phone business, where it trails Verizon Wireless.

AT&T Inc. signage is displayed outside a store in New York. To boost sales, AT&T, the biggest U.S. phone company, is focusing on its mobile phone business, where it trails Verizon Wireless. Photographer: Peter Foley/Bloomberg

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April 9 (Bloomberg) -- AT&T Inc. agreed to sell a majority stake in its Yellow Pages directory division to Cerberus Capital Management LP for about $950 million as part of an effort to dispose of units that are holding back revenue growth. Bloomberg’s Cristina Alesci reports on Bloomberg Television’s “Bloomberg West.” (Source: Bloomberg)

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April 9 (Bloomberg) -- AT&T Inc. agreed to sell a majority stake in its Yellow Pages directory division to Cerberus Capital Management LP for about $950 million as part of an effort to dispose of units that are holding back revenue growth. Cristina Alesci reports on Bloomberg Television's "In the Loop." (Source: Bloomberg)