bloggingbuyouts

I've mused on possible acquisitions of U.S. wireless carriers Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) and Alltel Wireless (NYSE: AT) before, and the rumor mill is again heating up on Alltel as of this week. The fifth-largest wireless carrier in the U.S. may be looking for a possible private equity suitor. Buyout candidates include Blackstone Group with Providence Equity Partners, TPG Capital and the private-equity arm of Goldman Sachs Group, and Carlyle and KKR, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal today.

While the unnamed sources for all this acquisition/LBO street blabber still remain at large, it follows in the footsteps of all kinds of buyout rumblings that have involved Alltel Wireless from late 2006 to the present. According to the Journal, all three private equity consortiums have begun meeting with Alltel's management, and we're sure that if that is really happening, something's afoot. As one would expect, representatives from Alltel and all three groups could not be reached for comment. Yet.

Acquisition mania has been fueled by executive comments since February, when a conference call revealed that Alltel was weighing all strategic options. In general, that means that the company is looking to be bought and possibly merged with another like company (namely Verizon Wireless (NYSE: VZ)) or taken private (which I highly doubt). Another possible merger suitor would be Sprint Nextel, which runs a compatible wireless network and would love to fold in Alltel's customers in an effort to catch up to AT&T (NYSE: T) and Verizon. And the rumor mill keeps churning . . .