Cable One could be the next, “attractive” M&A candidate:
Another wave of fiber and cable M&A could be coming
New Street Research believes wireless and cable operators have ‘strong incentive’ to pursue more mergers and acquisitions. MoffettNathanson says Cable One is a tempting target, but Charter (who’s busy with the Cox deal) and Comcast aren’t likely suitors.
Jeff Baumgartner, Senior Editor, Light Reading - July 18, 2025
https://www.lightreading.com/broadband/another-wave-of-fiber-and-cable-m-a-could-be-heading-our-way
The cable, fiber and mobile sectors are going through a sizable wave of M&A amid final or pending deals that involve T-Mobile (UScellular, Metronet and Lumos), Verizon (Frontier Communications), AT&T (Lumen’s fiber assets), Charter Communications (Cox Communications) and Ziply Fiber (Canada’s BCE).
More wheelin’ and dealin’ could be ahead as cable operators and wireless operators look to shore up their broadband footprints and feed into their respective convergence strategies.
New Street Research’s analysis of the market “suggests a strong incentive for Mobile and Cable operators to continue to consolidate assets,” given the returns and business growth such consolidation moves could generate, analyst Jonathan Chaplin said in a report issued earlier this week.
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New Street likewise expects AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile to stay on the hunt for fiber assets. There’s no public indicators on which deals might be consummated in the months and years to come, but Chaplin points to some logical, potential ILEC targets such as Brightspeed and Altafiber and overbuilders such as GFiber and Sonic.
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Chaplin speculated that more cable M&A is coming in the wake of the proposed Charter-Cox deal, pointing to Altice USA, Astound Broadband, Mediacom Communications and Cable One among the “the largest among potential targets.” “We suspect the smaller operators would be more valuable in the hands of Charter and Comcast,” Chaplin wrote. ….