LOS ANGELES — The multimedia company led by Byron Allen has reportedly engaged both Moelis & Co. and Kirkland & Ellis as part of a plan to address its debt maturities amid cost cutting that a source says includes permanent work-from-home arrangements for staff in New York and in Southern California.
Allen Media Group, which has a collection of broadcast TV stations including KITV-4 in Honolulu, the home for ABC programming and “Island News” across Hawaii; The Weather Channel; and the Local Now “FAST” channel hub; is holding private discussions after several creditors in July obtained their own counsel to address their concerns regarding loan repayments.
That’s according to Bloomberg, which addresses a $840 million term loan with a February 2027 maturity date.
With 17 months until that due date, a company representative responded to Bloomberg’s request for comment by noting AMG is “100% in compliance with all of our lenders. We’re highly confident that we will successfully refinance at that time or before.”
An AMG spokesperson declined to comment on the report when contacted on Thursday morning (9/19) by RBR+TVBR.
Bloomberg also notes that AMG has a $100 million revolver coming due in February, and that facility “is nearly tapped out,” according to S&P Global Ratings data released in July. At that time, the firm lowered AMG’s credit rating to “CCC+” from “B-.”
For AMG, year-over-year gains are being seen, while political advertising is expected to be robust.
The AMG broadcast group includes 25 broadcast stations in markets including Montgomery, Ala.; Flint, Mich.; Waterloo, Iowa; Rockford, Ill.; Tucson; Paducah, Ky.; La Crosse, Wisc.; Eau Claire, Wisc.; Madison, Wisc.; Wausau, Wisc.; Lafayette, La.; Evansville, Ind.; Huntsville, Ala.; Fort Wayne, Ind.; Lafayette, Ind.; Terre Haute, Ind.; Chico-Redding, Calif.; Medford, Ore.; Eugene, Ore.; Rochester, Minn.; and Tupelo, Miss.
