Optimum Communications, Inc. (OPTU) presents deeply negative liquidation recovery at March 31, 2026. Total assets are $27.87B against total liabilities of $33.04B, producing a GAAP stockholders' deficiency of approximately -$5.17B (including noncontrolling interest). Under liquidation haircuts, the recovery gap widens materially. The dominant asset classes are: goodwill ($8.04B, zero recovery), indefinite-lived cable franchise rights ($8.90B, zero recovery under the lens), finite-lived intangibles net ($641M, zero recovery), and PP&E net ($8.27B, recoverable at 50-70% or approximately $4.1-$5.8B). Cash and restricted cash of approximately $1.11B recovers at 100%. AR net of allowance ($301M) recovers at 90-95% or approximately $271-$286M. Against this, the liability stack sits at face value: long-term debt face amount $26.64B, current portion $55M, operating lease liabilities $244M noncurrent, deferred tax liabilities $4.12B, and other long-term liabilities $316M. Total face-value liabilities of approximately $33.0B versus estimated liquidation asset recovery of approximately $5.5-$7.5B (predominantly PP&E, cash, and AR) implies equity recovery deeply negative, consistent with the MFFAIS CLV/LLV/OLV of approximately -$27.3 to -$27.6B. The going concern qualification is explicit: $4.13B matures April 2027 and $2.13B matures July 2027, and management acknowledges it does not have committed financing to satisfy these near-term maturities. This quarter introduced a $2.70B impairment of indefinite-lived cable franchise rights (Note 8), eliminating goodwill of that component on a book basis but having no effect on liquidation value since franchise rights carry zero liquidation recovery in any scenario. The impairment does, however, further deepen the already negative GAAP equity and accelerates the going concern timeline narrative. From the prior filing (10-K, December 31, 2025), long-term debt noncurrent was $24.87B for CSC Holdings consolidated; the current filing shows $26.39B noncurrent plus $55M current, reflecting the January 2026 UnSub incremental draw of $1.10B and the March 2026 Lightpath ABS refinancing ($1.657B face, replacing pre-existing Lightpath debt). The Lightpath ABS is structured as non-recourse to the parent outside the securitization vehicle but remains consolidated debt. Programming commitments off-balance-sheet are disclosed at approximately $4.0B as of March 31, 2026 (down from $4.1B at December 31, 2025), which at face value in wind-down would represent additional claims against the estate. The filing does not separately tag programming commitments in XBRL.
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