Disney rejects Comcast takeover offer

The board of directors for The Walt Disney Company rejected a takeover bid by cable television giant Comcast Corporation, officials said.

The board noted that the current offer to acquire Disney by swapping shares of both companies would undervalue Disney’s holdings.

“We are committed to creating shareholder value now and in the future and will carefully consider any legitimate proposal that would accomplish that objective,” the Disney board said in a statement released yesterday.

“In any proposal by Comcast, or any other company, the board will consider and assess the value to be received in exchange for the shares of Disney, and also the appropriate premium to reflect the full value of Disney.”

Comcast made the surprise bid for Disney on Wednesday hours before the entertainment company was set to announce strong first quarter earnings.

The bid was initially valued at $54bn (€42bn), but investors jacked up the price of Disney stock beyond the Comcast offer.

Comcast also said it would assume $11.9bn (€9.3bn) in debt from Disney, which owns the ABC television network, the ESPN cable television sports station, movie studios and theme parks.

If a deal had been reached to combine the companies, it would have created the world’s biggest media company, edging out Time Warner.