Liberty Still Seeking A Chunk Of iHeart?

• Earlier this week iHeartMedia, Inc. announced overwhelming shareholder support for the Company’s Fifth Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization, which will reduce iHeartMedia’s funded debt by approximately $10.3 billion — to $5.75 billion — and result in the separation of iHeartMedia’s radio and outdoor advertising businesses. iHeartMedia expects to complete its restructuring process and exit Chapter 11 in early 2019 — possibly setting the stage for Liberty Media to make another run at acquiring a sizeable slab of iHeartMedia’s radio business.

That’s the word from The New York Post, which reports that Liberty principal John Malone “is angling to take control of the broadcasting behemoth as soon as it gets out of bankruptcy early next year.” The Post says Liberty Media “is gearing up for a flurry of negotiations with iHeart’s creditors to assemble a stake of roughly 35 percent in iHeart.” Gaining control of iHeart would give Liberty Media “a music four-pack” — Liberty currently owns 71 percent of SiriusXM, which in September agreed to buy streaming service Pandora. Liberty also owns 33 percent of Live Nation Entertainment, which owns Ticketmaster.

Sources tell The Post iHeart’s lenders would own almost all of the company’s post-bankruptcy shares and many of them would like to exit at a reasonable price. Combined, leading creditors Pimco and Franklin Resources will own about 25 percent of the business, while Liberty, which owns $660 million of iHeart debt, will end up with between 4 and 5 percent of iHeart, post-bankruptcy. Back in June Liberty tried — unsuccessfully — to buy 40 percent of iHeart at a $2.9 billion valuation.

Apple, which had been rumored to be interested in iHeart, only wants a small equity stake, possibly in exchange for trading services, a leading creditor said. Liberty is expected to want only a minority iHeart stake so it does not have to consolidate financials and hurt Liberty’s trading multiple, the source told The Post.