Stonepeak Infrastructure to Buy Cable Provider Astound Broadband

Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners said it is buying Astound Broadband, the sixth-largest US cable-TV provider, for $3.6 billion, in one of the biggest leveraged buyouts of 2020. Astound, owned by private-equity firm TPG and cable-management company Patriot Media Management, is the operator of RCN Telecom Services LLC, Grande Communications, Wave Broadband, and enTouch Systems. Based in Princeton (NJ), it provides high-speed-internet, broadband, digital-TV, and phone services to more than one million customers in markets around the country including New York City, Chicago, Northern California, Texas, and Washington (DC). Including its $4.5 billion of debt, the deal values Astound at $8.1 billion. Patriot, which manages Astound, will partner with Stonepeak and continue to run the company.