Allen Media Group founder Byron Allen has acquired a ten.7% stake in Starz via a $25 million cope with former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s funding agency.
Per an SEC submittingMnuchin’s Liberty Funds entered into an settlement on Wednesday to promote all shares owned by them in a personal transaction for $25 million, which is anticipated to shut no later than March 13.
On Thursday, Allen Household Capital mentioned it acquired 1,803,786 shares of Starz at a purchase order worth of $13.86 per share for $25 million. Previous to the deal, Allen didn’t beneficially personal or train management over any shares of Starz. The agency acquired the shares for “funding functions” and will improve or lower its place relying on Starz’s efficiency and different market situations.
Shares of Starz jumped 5.8% on Friday following the announcement.
Allen Household Capital famous that it might make further purchases on the open market or in privately negotiated transactions, together with straight with Starz. It might additionally resolve to “maintain or eliminate all or a part of the investments within the Frequent Shares or different securities of Starz and/or enter into by-product transactions with institutional counterparties with respect to Starz’s securities, together with the Frequent Shares.”
“Any actions Allen would possibly undertake could also be made at any time, and infrequently, with out prior discover, and shall be dependent upon its overview of quite a few components, together with however not restricted to, an ongoing analysis of Starz’s enterprise, monetary situation, operations and prospects; worth ranges of Starz’s securities; normal market, trade and financial situations; the relative attractiveness of different enterprise and funding alternatives; and different future developments,” the agency mentioned.
Allen Household Capital added that it might interact in communications, with out limitation, with a number of shareholders of Starz or the corporate’s administration and board of administrators and “could make solutions or proposals regarding Starz’s operations, prospects, enterprise and monetary methods, strategic transactions, belongings and liabilities, enterprise and financing options, the composition of the board of administrators and such different issues as Allen could deem related to the funding in Starz.”
The transfer comes after Starz was spun out right into a separate firm from Lionsgate final 12 months. Mnuchin has amassed a significant stake of about 13% in Lionsgate Studios Corp. and would find yourself becoming a member of the corporate’s board in January.
Starz ended 2025 with a complete of 17.6 million subscribers, pushed by curiosity in scripted originals together with “Energy Guide IV: Drive” Season 3 and “Spartacus: Home of Ashur.” That determine contains 12.7 million streaming subscribers and 5 million pay TV subscribers. Beginning subsequent quarter, Starz will not disclose their subscriber figures on a quarterly foundation.
It additionally posted $204 million of adjusted EBITDA for 2025, exceeding its $200 million outlook, and ended the fourth quarter with $589 million in internet debt and $625 million in gross debt.
Trying forward at full 12 months 2026, Starz expects OTT income development in 2026, single-digit adjusted working revenue development and $80 million to $120 million in constructive free money move. It additionally will cease disclosing subscribers beginning with its subsequent quarter and anticipates content material spend will are available at round $650 million.
Longer-term, Starz continues to purpose for 20% margins popping out of calendar 12 months 2028, changing 70% of adjusted OIBDA into unlevered free money move and delevering to 2.5 instances as rapidly as attainable.
Allen’s new stake in Starz additionally comes after he offered AMG’s native TV stations in ten markets to Grey Media in a $117 million deal in August.
Over the past six years, Allen Media Group has invested over $1 billion in buying tv stations and has turn into one of many largest unbiased, privately held house owners of Huge 4 network-affiliated stations.
The corporate employed Moelis in June to discover monetary and strategic options, together with a possible sale of its 28 owned and operated ABC-NBC-CBS-Fox affiliate tv stations in 21 U.S. markets.
On the time, Allen mentioned that the corporate had obtained “quite a few inquiries and written gives for many of our tv stations” and that they’d use any sale proceeds to considerably scale back the corporate’s debt load of round $1.5 billion. A person acquainted with the matter beforehand advised TheWrap that Allen Media Group’s portfolio of TV stations make up about 35% to 40% of its income.
Along with the stations, AMG has 10 24-hour HD cable tv networks serving almost 300 million subscribers, broadcast syndication, HBCU GO Sports activities, 5 digital streaming platforms and the free-streaming AVOD service, Native Now.
