US: Comcast talking To DreamWorks animation about $3B acquisition

Comcast, the cable giant and owner of NBCUniversal, is talking to DreamWorks Animation about an acquisition for “more $3 billion,” the Wall Street Journal reports tonight citing “people familiar with the matter.”

The prospect of an acquisition has sent shares in the animation studio behind “Kung Fu Panda” and “Shrek” soaring to a 52-week high. Shares of DreamWorks were trading at $31.93, up nearly 18%. Comcast’s stock was also up, trading at $62.01, up 1.53%, but that was partly attributable to the cable and media conglomerate’s robust first quarter earnings report.

The deal could help Comcast strengthen the volume of family-friendly content coming from NBCUniversal, making it a more formidable competitor with Disney.

“It makes strategic sense,” said Tuna Amobi, an analyst with S&P Capital IQ. “Comcast is trying to be well diversified and content is where there are still gaps they can feel. Animation is one area where they have under-performed some peers.”

This is not the first time that DreamWorks Animation has been the source of acquisition speculation. Toy company Hasbro had been in talks to acquire the studio in a deal worth at least $2.3 billion, but talks collapsed in November 2014. Japanese conglomerate Softbank also kicked the animation company’s tires in September 2014, but no deal materialized.

Full Content: The Wall Street Journal

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