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The tower-sale business stays brisk |
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The tower-sale business stays brisk
Multiples are running two to as much as three times what stations themselves are selling for. Broker Mike Bergner announces the sale of two Wilks-owned sticks in Reno to CTI Towers, and says “if you’re a broadcaster and you’ve got a tower to sell, the bell is ringing now,” in terms of pricing. Of course brokers are in the business of engendering thoughts of buying and selling. But it’s hard to ignore the multiples, which in this field are called “Tower cash flow.” (That’s after subtracting costs for items like maintenance, land leases, taxes, lighting, etc. from the gross.) If the stick has a cell-company agreement (very desirable), the multiple could reach 16-times or even higher. It helps that interest rates remain low – and that some very large consolidators are competing for a finite number of built towers. With backing from Comcast, Massachusetts-based CTI Towers owns or manages more than 500 towers in 39 states. In Reno, CTI is purchasing the two towers used by Wilks’ country “92.1 the Wolf” KWFP, rock “100.9 the Point” KURK and alternative “100.1 the X” KTHX. Wilks has been selling off its station assets in Kansas City, Denver and Columbus, and Reno is its last market. You get the feeling that many broadcast towers have quietly been sold without a public announcement, since these deals needn’t be filed at the FCC. (You do need to register the sale with the Commission.) |
