Windstream To Distribute 80.1% Stake In REIT To Shareholders - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Telecommunications services provider Windstream Holdings, Inc. (WIN) said it is refining the transaction structure related to its planned real estate investment trust or REIT spinoff.

The company had said in late July that it plans to spin off certain telecommunications network assets into an independent, publicly traded REIT in order to accelerate network investments and maximize shareholder value.

Windstream now expects to retain 19.9 percent of the shares in the REIT and distribute the remaining 80.1 percent stake to Windstream stockholders. The company will sell the retained shares opportunistically during a 12-month period following the spinoff, subject to market conditions, with the net proceeds used to retire debt.

Windstream will hold a conference call at 7:30 a.m. CST today to review updates to the transaction.

Windstream also said it will hold a special meeting of stockholders on February 20, 2015, in conjunction with the REIT spinoff to approve a 1-for-6 reverse stock split and an amendment to the certificate of incorporation of Windstream Corp., a subsidiary of Windstream Holdings, that will facilitate the conversion of Windstream Corporation into a limited liability company.