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Vivendi to book 4.2 billion euro pre-tax gain on GVT sale

A woman walks walk past the main entrance of the entertainment-to-telecoms conglomerate Vivendi's headquarters in Paris April 8, 2015. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes

PARIS (Reuters) - French media group Vivendi said on Friday it would book a 4.2 billion euro ($4.6 billion) pre-tax gain from the sale of Brazilian telecommunications company GVT, which would help it pay interim dividends. The company said it had also received a 12 percent stake in Telefonica Brazil's Vivo and would exchange 4.5 percent for 8.3 percent of Telecom Italia's ordinary shares in the coming weeks. "The closing of the sale of GVT and of the 20 percent interest in Numericable-SFR enables the Vivendi management board, in accordance with its commitment, to authorize in principle the payment of two interim ordinary dividends, each in the amount of 1 euro per share, in respect of 2015," Vivendi said in a statement. Vivendi sold its 20 percent stake in Numericable-SFR to billionaire Patrick Drahi earlier this year, via his holding company Altice and Numericable-SFR itself. (Reporting by Leigh Thomas; Editing by James Regan)