Nexstar has signed a letter of intent to acquire the
Communications Corp. of America (CCA) stations for $275 million, according to
sources with knowledge of the negotiations.
The letter gives Nexstar the exclusive opportunity to
acquire the group in the coming weeks.
Calls to Nexstar were not returned at presstime.
Silver Point Capital is selling CCA. An inquiry to Silver
Point's rep firm was not returned at presstime.
Based in Lafayette, La., CCA owns or operates 25 stations,
in Texas, Louisiana and Evansville, Ind. Those include Fox affiliates in
Shreveport, Waco and Evansville.
Chesapeake TV, the new smaller-market group started by
Sinclair, had made a bid for the CCA stations, according to sources.
CCA hired investment banking firm Houlihan Lokey a few
months ago to assist in the exploration of a potential sale.
TVNewsCheck previously reported Nexstar's intent to buy the
CCA stations.
Nexstar has been an active player in the M&A market,
buying a dozen stations from Newport TV last year for $285.5 million and
grabbing KSEE Fresno earlier this year. Perry Sook, Nexstar president and CEO,
told B&C late last year he
envisions 10-12 substantial station groups remaining amidst the ongoing consolidation,
with Nexstar as one.
