Altice France - comment

Although potentially positive for Altice International, the failed sale of Altice Portugal will be viewed as negative for Altice France.  This further reduces the possibility of fresh equity from Drahi into the Altice France entity, although we had always regarded that scenario as a low probability.  In our opinion, the chances of Drahi/Altice Lux injecting fresh equity into Altice France were low, and we gave credence to the management rhetoric that Altice France would have to find the solution to its high leverage internally.   The timeframe for any potential deal on Altice France is still a couple of months away, at least, with advisers only now preparing to sign NDA agreements. Creditors appear ready, with pencils sharpened, with the non-binding cooperation agreement reportedly having 90% of loans and 70% of the bonds signed up.