SANTA ANA, Calif., Feb. 16, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- ACME Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq:ACME) announced today that it has completed the previously announced sale of WTVK-TV in Fort Myers-Naples, FL, to Sun Broadcasting, Inc. for $45.0 million in cash. ACME will use the majority of the proceeds from the sale of WTVK to repay all of the Company's $37.2 million of debt currently outstanding under its senior credit facility.
The Company also announced that its Board of Directors has declared a special one-time cash dividend of $0.50 per share on its common stock. The special cash dividend is payable on March 12, 2007, to shareholders of record at the close of business on February 26, 2007. The dividend payment will total approximately $8.0 million.
Jamie Kellner, Chairman and CEO of ACME, commented, "Today's announcement is a significant step forward in our plan to strengthen our balance sheet and return value to shareholders. Through the monetization of WTVK we have now paid down the Company's remaining net outstanding debt, and we move forward with significantly enhanced financial flexibility. Furthermore, our Board concluded that a special cash dividend represents the most risk-adverse means to returning value to shareholders. Going forward, we will continue to actively review all strategic options available to the Company."
About ACME Communications, Inc.
ACME Communications, Inc. owns and operates seven television stations serving markets covering 2.6% of the nation's television households. The Company's stations are: KWBQ-TV and KASY-TV, Albuquerque-Santa Fe, NM; WBDT-TV, Dayton, OH; WBXX-TV, Knoxville, TN; WIWB-TV, Green Bay-Appleton, WI; WBUI-TV, Champaign-Springfield-Decatur, IL; and WBUW-TV, Madison, WI. All of the Company's stations, except KASY-TV, a MyNetworkTV affiliate, are affiliates of The CW Network. ACME's shares are traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol: ACME.