UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report: February 21, 2017
(Date of earliest event reported)
VERIZON COMMUNICATIONS INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Delaware | 1-8606 | 23-2259884 | ||
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation) |
(Commission File Number) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) | ||
| 1095 Avenue of the Americas New York, New York |
10036 | |||
| (Address of principal executive offices) |
(Zip Code) | |||
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (212) 395-1000
Not Applicable
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
[ ] Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)
[ X ] Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)
[ ] Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))
[ ] Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))
Item 7.01. Regulation FD Disclosure.
Attached as Exhibit 99.1 and incorporated by reference herein is a press release dated February 21, 2017, issued by Verizon Communications Inc. (“Verizon”) and Yahoo! Inc. (“Yahoo”).
The information provided pursuant to this Item 7.01 is being furnished and shall not be deemed to be “filed” with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) or incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, except to the extent set forth by specific reference in any such filing.
Item 8.01 Other Events.
On February 20, 2017, Verizon and Yahoo entered into an amendment to the previously announced stock purchase agreement, dated as of July 23, 2016, by and between Verizon and Yahoo (the “Purchase Agreement”), pursuant to which the parties agreed that, subject to the terms and conditions thereof, the purchase price to be paid by Verizon in connection with the acquisition of Yahoo’s operating business (the “Transaction”) will be reduced by $350 million to approximately $4.48 billion in cash, subject to certain adjustments. Subject to certain exceptions, the parties also agreed that certain user security and data breaches incurred by Yahoo (and the losses arising therefrom) will be disregarded (1) for purposes of specified conditions to Verizon’s obligations to close the Transaction and (2) in determining whether a “Business Material Adverse Effect” under the Purchase Agreement has occurred.
Concurrently with the amendment of the Purchase Agreement, Yahoo and Yahoo Holdings, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Yahoo that Verizon has agreed to purchase pursuant to the Transaction, also entered into an amendment to a related reorganization agreement, pursuant to which Yahoo (which has announced that it intends to change its name to Altaba Inc. following the closing of the Transaction) will retain 50% of certain post-closing liabilities arising out of governmental or third party investigations, litigations or other claims related to certain user security and data breaches incurred by Yahoo. In accordance with the original Transaction agreements, Yahoo will continue to retain 100% of any liabilities arising out of any shareholder lawsuits (including derivative claims) and investigations and actions by the SEC.
The Transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions, including the approval of Yahoo’s stockholders, and is expected to close in the second quarter of 2017.
Important additional information and where to find it
On September 9, 2016, Yahoo filed with the SEC a preliminary proxy statement regarding the proposed sale of Yahoo’s operating business to Verizon. Yahoo will file with the SEC a definitive version of the proxy statement which will be sent or provided to Yahoo stockholders when available. BEFORE MAKING ANY VOTING DECISION, YAHOO’S STOCKHOLDERS ARE STRONGLY ADVISED TO READ YAHOO’S PRELIMINARY PROXY STATEMENT IN ITS ENTIRETY (INCLUDING ANY AMENDMENTS OR SUPPLEMENTS THERETO) AND, WHEN IT BECOMES AVAILABLE, YAHOO’S DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT IN ITS ENTIRETY(INCLUDING ANY AMENDMENTS OR SUPPLEMENTS THERETO) AND ANY OTHER DOCUMENTS FILED WITH THE SEC IN CONNECTION WITH THE PROPOSED TRANSACTIONS OR INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE THEREIN BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED TRANSACTIONS. Investors and stockholders may obtain a free copy of Yahoo’s preliminary proxy statement and any amendments or supplements to the preliminary proxy statement, Yahoo’s definitive proxy statement (when available) and any amendments or supplements to the definitive proxy statement (when available) and other documents filed by Yahoo with the SEC (when available) in connection with the proposed transactions for no charge at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov, on the Investor Relations page of Yahoo’s website investor.yahoo.net or by writing to Investor Relations, Yahoo! Inc., 701 First Avenue, Sunnyvale, CA 94089.
Yahoo and its directors and executive officers, as well as Verizon and its directors and executive officers, may be deemed participants in the solicitation of proxies from Yahoo’s investors and stockholders in connection with the proposed transactions. Information concerning the ownership of Yahoo securities by Yahoo’s directors and executive officers is included in their SEC filings on Forms 3, 4 and 5, and additional information is also available in Yahoo’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015, as amended, and Yahoo’s proxy statement for its 2016 annual meeting of stockholders filed with the SEC on May 23, 2016. Information about Verizon’s directors and executive officers is set forth in Verizon’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015 and Verizon’s proxy statement for its 2016 annual meeting of stockholders filed with the SEC on March 21, 2016. Information regarding Yahoo’s directors, executive officers and other persons who may, under the rules of the SEC, be considered participants in the solicitation of proxies in connection with the proposed transactions, including their respective interests by security holdings or otherwise, also is set forth in the preliminary proxy statement described
above and will be set forth in the definitive proxy statement relating to the proposed transactions when it is filed with the SEC. These documents may be obtained free of charge from the sources indicated above.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits
| (d) | Exhibits. |
| Exhibit |
Description | |
| 99.1 | Joint Press Release of Verizon Communications Inc. and Yahoo! Inc., dated February 21, 2017. | |
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
| Verizon Communications Inc. | ||||||
| (Registrant) | ||||||
| Date: | February 21, 2017 |
/s/ William L. Horton, Jr. | ||||
| William L. Horton, Jr. Senior Vice President, Deputy General Counsel and Corporate Secretary | ||||||
EXHIBIT INDEX
| Exhibit |
Description | |
| 99.1 | Joint Press Release of Verizon Communications Inc. and Yahoo! Inc., dated February 21, 2017. | |