2017.11.2022:09:00UTC+00Time Warner Shares Tumble on Deal Doubts

Time Warner shares declined 1.1 percent on Monday due to reports that the U.S. government is setting the stage to make an antitrust announcement regarding its merger deal with AT&T.

Shares of Time Warner, which was trading near the flatline before the news that the U.S. Department of Justice will sue AT&T to stop its takeover of the media group, fell 1.1 percent to $87.71.

Meanwhile, shares of AT&T, which is attempting to complete the acquisition of Time Warner for $85 billion, surged around 1 percent before ending the session 0.4 percent higher.

According to a report by NBC News which cited a source, the announcement will involve AT&T. Reuters made a similar report, citing a source that the Justice Department will sue AT&T to prevent it from acquiring Time Warner.

Earlier this month, there were rumors that the DOJ demanded CNN to be sold before giving the deal a green light. The government rebuffed this notion, with an official telling CNBC that the department just proposed several options to AT&T by which it might be willing to resolve antitrust concerns, but denied that it demanded a sale of CNN.