Thursday May 21, 07:56 PM
Qwest long-haul bids seen below ask price-sources
NEW YORK/PHILADELPHIA, May 21 (Reuters) - Qwest Communications International Inc has asked for bids for its long-distance network to be submitted early next month and is looking for more than $2 billion, but some bankers don't see it fetching this much, people familiar with the matter said.
Operators such as Level 3 Communications Inc and tw telecom inc, are expected to bid for the assets potentially in partnership with private equity investors, according to the sources.
Companies such as Verizon Communications Inc and AT&T Inc have examined the prospects for a deal but would be interested only if they could get the network for a cheap price, said a person who expects Qwest (NYSE: Q - news) to get several bids in the first week in June. Wireless provider Sprint Nextel Corp (NYSE: S - news) is also mulling a bid for the network, according to that person.
But even if Qwest, which has a total market capitalization of about $6.8 billion, did end up attracting multiple bidders, it would likely be offered less than it has hoped, sources said.
'They are going to have to take a lower-than-expected price or end up keeping the network themselves. They aren't going to get the asking price they floated,' said an investment banker who specializes in telecommunications.
Representatives from AT&T, Sprint and tw telecom, formerly known as Time Warner Telecom (NASDAQ: TWTC - news) , declined comment. Officials from Qwest and Level 3 were not immediately available for comment.
(Reporting by Sinead Carew in New York and Jessica Hall in Philadelphia; editing by Gerald E. McCormick)
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