Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) shares dipped on Friday after the company said that it sold its equity interest in the YES Network to a newly formed investor group that includes the Yankees and Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. (NASDAQ: SBGI), among others.
The group acquired the 80% of the YES Network not already held by the Yankees at a total enterprise value of $3.47 billion.
The YES Network is one of the country’s most-watched regional sports networks, broadcasting games, programs and specialty content for the New York Yankees, the Brooklyn Nets, Major League Soccer’s New York City FC and the WNBA’s New York Liberty.
Since its launch in 2002, the YES Network has earned 118 Emmy Awards and consistently has been ranked as one of the most valuable sports business brands in the world. In addition to televising 128 regular season Yankees games per season, the YES Network also airs pre-and postgame shows, among other Yankee’s programs.
Chris Ripley, president and CEO of Sinclair, commented:
We are excited about partnering with such a renowned franchise as the New York Yankees. With this investment, we will have 23 RSN brands, including Marquee with the iconic Chicago Cubs, and 21 RSN brands acquired from the Walt Disney Company last week.
Shares of Disney traded down less than 1% to $136.99 on Friday, in a 52-week range of $100.35 to $147.15. The consensus price target is $152.78.
Sinclair shares were up less than 1%, at $44.54 in a 52-week range of $25.14 to $66.57.
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