Clear Channel Communications Inc. on Friday said it would spin off its entertainment unit, which produces live entertainment shows, and set an initial public offering of about 10 percent of its $2.5 billion outdoor advertising unit.
Clear Channel also set a special dividend of $3 a share and raised its quarterly dividend by 50 percent. The company said the IPO of the outdoor advertising unit and spinoff of the entertainment unit will result in greater financial muscle for future acquisitions, because the separately listed stocks will provide clear valuations of the two businesses. The company also said that the spinoff of the entertainment unit will allow it to operate as a largely unregulated public company.
