Sprint, T-Mobile Fall Amid Report DoJ May Not Approve Merger

The Justice Department has reportedly told T-Mobile Us Inc TMUS and Sprint Corp S their planned merger likely wouldn’t be approved as currently structured.

What To Know

The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that staff from the DoJ’s antitrust division expressed concerns with the planned all-stock deal that would combine the nation’s third- and fourth-largest mobile carriers at a meeting earlier this month. The DoJ looks at whether mergers would create an anti-competitive marketplace. The Wall Street Journal said officials question whether the merger would produce the efficiencies the companies are promising with the combined company.

The merger has been in the works for nearly a year, and officials at T-Mobile have said they intend to close the deal in July. Several state attorneys general are also looking at the proposed deal, according to WSJ.

The Justice Department, T-Mobile and Sprint didn’t comment on the report.

Price Action

T-Mobile's stock closed at $74.10 per share Tuesday, but was down nearly 4 percent in after-hours trading to $71.15. Sprint shares were hit even harder, dropping nearly 10 percent in after-hours trading to $5.45.

Verizon Communications Inc. VZ's stock also took a bit of a hit, falling 1 percent after hours to $58.20 per share.

Related Links:

Guggenheim: T-Mobile Home Broadband Aimed At Boosting Sprint Merger, Not A Threat To Cable

Sprint, T-Mobile Merger Looks More Likely As DOJ Calls For Just 3 Leading 5G Carriers

Photo credit: Chris Potter, via Wikimedia Commons

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