Comcast 2007 Annual Report Download - page 31

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In 2007, we sold $603 million of trading securities. Proceeds from
sales of trading securities are presented within cash provided by
operating activities in accordance with generally accepted account-
ing principles. These amounts are not related to operations but re-
sult from the sales of investments.
The increase in interest payments from 2005 to 2007 was primarily
the result of an increase in our average debt outstanding.
The increase in tax payments from 2005 to 2007 was primarily the
result of the effects of increases in income, sales of investments
and the settlement of federal and state tax audits.
Financing Activities
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities consists primar-
ily of our proceeds from borrowings offset by our debt repayments
and our repurchases of our Class A and Class A Special common
stock. We have made, and may from time to time in the future
make, optional repayments on our debt obligations, which may
include repurchases of our outstanding public notes and deben-
tures, depending on various factors, such as market conditions.
See Note 8 to our consolidated financial statements for further
discussion of our financing activities, including details of our debt
repayments and borrowings.
Long-Term Debt Borrowings, Repayments and Redemptions
Proceeds from borrowings fluctuates from year to year based on
the levels of acquisitions and scheduled debt repayments.
The higher level of borrowings in 2006 was primarily a result of
the Houston transaction, the Adelphia and Time Warner trans-
actions, the acquisition of the remaining portion of E! Entertainment
Television that we did not already own and our investment in
SpectrumCo, LLC (“SpectrumCo”).
Available Borrowings Under Credit Facilities
We traditionally maintain significant availability under lines of credit
and our commercial paper program to meet our short-term liquid-
ity requirements. As of December 31, 2007, amounts available
under these facilities totaled approximately $4.370 billion. In Jan-
uary 2008, we entered into an amended and restated revolving
bank credit facility which may be used for general corporate pur-
poses. This amendment increased the size of the credit facility
from $5.0 billion to $7.0 billion and extended the maturity of the
loan commitment from October 2010 to January 2013.
Debt Covenants
We and our cable subsidiaries that have provided guarantees (see
Note 17) are subject to the covenants and restrictions set forth in
the indentures governing our public debt securities and in the
credit agreements governing our bank credit facilities. We and the
guarantors are in compliance with the covenants, and we believe
that neither the covenants nor the restrictions in our indentures or
loan documents will limit our ability to operate our business or raise
additional capital. Our credit facilities’ covenants are tested on an
ongoing basis. The only financial covenant in our $5.0 billion
revolving credit facility and our amended and restated $7.0 billion
revolving credit facility relates to leverage (ratio of debt to operating
income before depreciation and amortization). As of December 31,
2007, we met our financial covenant in our $5 billion revolving
credit facility by a significant margin. Our ability to comply with this
financial covenant in the future does not depend on further debt
reduction or on improved operating results.
Share Repurchase Program and Dividends
In October 2007, our Board of Directors authorized a $7 billion addi-
tion to our existing share repurchase program. As of December 31,
2007, we had approximately $6.9 billion of availability remaining
under the share repurchase authorization, which we intend to fully
utilize by the end of 2009, subject to market conditions. On February
13, 2008 our Board of Directors approved a quarterly dividend of
$0.0625 per share, which will be payable in April 2008. This repre-
sents the first payment of a planned annual dividend of $0.25 per
share.
Share Repurchases
(in billions)
$2.3 $2.3
$3.1
2007
2006
2005
Investing Activities
Net cash used in investing activities consisted primarily of cash paid
for capital expenditures, acquisitions and investments, partially offset
by proceeds from sales and restructurings of investments.
29 Comcast 2007 Annual Report on Form 10-K