Sprint Says Adios to 3,300 Towers

We’re all tired of describing Sprint Nextel Corp. (S) as “struggling.” Of course, Sprint is struggling, but today it made a move that might help erase that descriptor. The wireless carrier said it’s selling 3,300 towers – about half the number it owns – to TowerCo for $670 million in cash. That kind of money could bail out an ailing mortgage lender. Almost. Anyway, the key question here is, aren’t the towers kinda sorta integral to Sprint’s operations? Yes. And never fear. Sprint will lease its soon-to-be former towers, long-term, from TowerCo, which specializes in buying and selling cell towers. The deal applies to Sprint’s CDMA, iDEN and WiMAX networks. How’s that for future-proofing? Incidentally, Sprint was advised, in part, by investment bank Wachovia Capital Markets, the firm that just reported the biggest quarterly loss in its history. Maybe this transaction will mark the start of a turnaround for both companies.

MarketWatch: Sprint to sell about 3,300 towers for $670 mln in cash