Big Media Stock Slide Renews Talk of M&A Deals

Wall Street Journal: Talk of media deal making, which died down after Comcast abandoned its bid for Time Warner Cable, could start up again, aided by what looks like a wake-up call on valuations after last week’s stock slide. For some Big Media players, getting even bigger could help. Time Warner shares now trade at roughly $80, down from more than $91 last month and below the $85-a-share takeover offer made by Fox about a year ago. Meanwhile, Viacom now trades at about seven times Ebitda. Back before it split from CBS in early 2006, the combined company traded at 9.2 times. That could prompt renewed discussion of the firms recombining.