© Reuters. Small toy figures with laptops and smartphones are seen in front of displayed Frontier Communications logo, in this illustration taken December 5, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
By Svea Herbst-Bayliss
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Alternative investment firm Cerberus Capital Management is now Frontier Communications (OTC:) Parent Inc’s second-largest stakeholder, with 10% in the telecommunications provider, and has held talks with management to boost the share price, it said in a filing.
Cerberus switched to a 13D filing from a 13G late on Monday, signaling plans to seek change or influence control at Frontier, including through possible transactions.
Activist investor Jana Partners said on Oct. 17 it had built a position in Frontier and urged the third-largest U.S. fiber broadband provider to sell itself.
Another investor, a large unidentified communications company, has partnered with Jana in investing in Frontier, Jana said.
Cerberus did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Ares Management (NYSE:), Frontier’s biggest investor with a 16% stake, also updated its regulatory filing earlier in the year, saying it plans to seek change or influence control at Frontier.
Frontier’s stock price has climbed 25% in the last month as speculation about the company’s future increased. Since January, the share price has dropped 21% on concerns about its debt-funded fiber build-out strategy.
Fiber providers have been popular targets of private equity firms and infrastructure investors, including aggressive buyers like KKR, Apollo Global, Searchlight Capital Partners, Macquarie Infrastructure Partners, EQT (ST:), Oak Hill and Ares Capital.
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