The pending merger of Embarq Corp. and CenturyTel is on track to close in the second quarter.
The $11.6 billion, all-stock deal, announced last October, on Tuesday received almost unanimous shareholder approval. Approximately 99 percent of Embarq investors gave their thumbs-up; a little more than 96 percent of CenturyTel’s stockholders did the same.
The Federal Trade Commission already has given its blessing to the combination.
CenturyTel and Embarq both serve rural markets. Each provider is losing landline share; together, they hope to strengthen their broadband and video services and adoption.
