The company didn’t reveal how many shares it intends to sell, but in the document registered with U.S. Securities and Trade Commission, Univision states it hopes to raise $100 million.
The final amount could be higher, since the $100 million figure is traditionally used in registration statements to calculate registration fees.
Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank will lead the IPO.
Talks of an IPO or possible sale have surfaced multiple times in the past 3 years, as Univision’s owners, comprised of several private equity firms led by Saban Capital Group, have been trying to recoup their $13.7 billion investment – the price they paid to buy the company in 2007, just before the recession hit.
Also today, Univision announced it’s strengthening its “strategic relationship” with Televisa. Both companies signed a memorandum of understanding that extends the programming licensing deal until at least 2030, revises how it calculates royalties due to Televisa and increases the Mexican media company’s voting rights in Univision, as the U.S. company prepares to go public.
The changes will give Televisa about 22% of Univision’s common stock. The extension deal is subject to Univision completing the IPO.
In 2010, Grupo Televisa paid $1.2 billion for a 5% equity stake in Univision and convertible debt that would give it another 30% in the company.
In preparation for the IPO, Univision has been restructuring, shedding staff and cutting costs throughout the company.
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