Embarq Sale Deadline Passes Amidst Credit Crunch

(financialwire.net via COMTEX) -- S | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- October 2, 2008 (FinancialWire) -- The recent financial market turmoil may have made it more difficult for telecommunications provider Embarq (NYSE: EQ | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) (Current Market Cap: US$5.73 Bil.) to be sold to bidders such as Windstream or Qwest (NYSE: Q).

Embarq, the fourth-largest US phone company by customers, put itself up for sale in recent weeks, but its plans were thwarted when the credit crunch made it difficult for potential acquirers to raise capital. The company, which is a spin-off of Sprint (NYSE: S), hired investment bank JP Morgan to explore a sale of the company, but the deadline for bids expired recently.

Smaller phone companies, which often lose business as a result of the declining number of landlines in use nationwide, appear ripe for consolidation, which could help them cut costs and become more competitive.

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