Charter won’t get GCI with its Liberty acquisition. Here’s why

Charter Communications is making the latest move on the telecommunications mergers and acquisitions front, announcing it will acquire Liberty Broadband. But it won’t be getting Alaskan operator GCI as part of the deal. Liberty Broadband, which owns shares in a broad range of communications businesses, acquired GCI in 2020. It also has a 26 percent ownership of Charter, or around 45.6 million shares of Charter’s common stock. The Liberty buy “is a very straightforward transaction in which Charter is effectively repurchasing their own shares at a discount,” said New Street Research’s Jonathan Chaplin. GCI will spin off into an independent public company prior to the transaction’s close, which is currently estimated to occur on June 30, 2027. Liberty Broadband will distribute the GCI business among its stockholders.