Comcast Sells Stake in A&E for $3 Billion

Brent Lang

Comcast is selling its stake in A&E for $3.03 billion to co-owners The Walt Disney Company and Hearst Corporation, according to public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The deal will involve a mixture of cash and a senior unsecured note. Disney and Hearst will each control half of the network.

Comcast picked up the cable network behind the recent ratings smash "Hatfields & McCoys" as part of its 2011 purchase of NBC Universal. It had a 15.8 percent share in the network.

The cable and satellite television network is best known for programs such as "Gene Simmons Family Jewels," "Dog the Bounty Hunter" and "Storage Wars."

More to come...