Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Investments In Available-For-Sale Securities And Other Cost Investments

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Investments In Available-For-Sale Securities And Other Cost Investments
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2015
Investments in Available-for-Sale Securities and Other Cost Investments [Abstract]  
Investments in Available-for-Sale Securities and Other Cost Investments

(5)   Investments in Available-for-Sale Securities and Other Cost Investments

All marketable equity and debt securities held by the Company are classified as available-for-sale ("AFS") and are carried at fair value generally based on quoted market prices. GAAP permits entities to choose to measure many financial instruments, such as AFS securities, and certain other items at fair value and to recognize the changes in fair value of such instruments in the entity's statement of operations (the "fair value option"). The Company previously entered into economic hedges for certain of its non-strategic AFS securities (although such instruments were not accounted for as fair value hedges by the Company). Changes in the fair value of these economic hedges were reflected in the Company's statement of operations as unrealized gains (losses). In order to better match the changes in fair value of the subject AFS securities and the changes in fair value of the corresponding economic hedges in the Company's financial statements, the Company elected the fair value option for those of its AFS securities which it considers to be non-strategic ("Fair Value Option Securities"). Accordingly, changes in the fair value of Fair Value Option Securities, as determined by quoted market prices, are reported in realized and unrealized gains (losses) on financial instruments in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of operations.

Investments in AFS securities, including Fair Value Option Securities separately aggregated, and other cost investments are summarized as follows:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

March 31,

    

December 31,

 

 

 

2015

 

2014

 

 

 

amounts in millions

 

Fair Value Option Securities

 

 

 

 

 

 

Time Warner, Inc. (a)

 

$

359 

 

363 

 

Viacom, Inc. (b)

 

 

162 

 

273 

 

Barnes & Noble, Inc. (c)

 

 

 —

 

27 

 

Other equity securities (a)

 

 

54 

 

55 

 

Other debt securities

 

 

25 

 

27 

 

Total Fair Value Option Securities

 

 

600 

 

745 

 

AFS and cost investments

 

 

 

 

 

 

Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. ("Live Nation") debt securities

 

 

24 

 

24 

 

Other AFS and cost investments

 

 

47 

 

47 

 

Total AFS and cost investments

 

 

71 

 

71 

 

 

 

$

671 

 

816 

 


(a)

See note 8 for details regarding the number and fair value of shares pledged as collateral pursuant to certain margin loan agreements as of March 31, 2015.

(b)

During the three months ended March 31, 2015, Liberty sold 1.3 million shares of Viacom common stock for approximately $86 million in proceeds.

(c)

During the three months ended March 31, 2015, the Company sold its remaining shares of Barnes & Noble, Inc. preferred stock for approximately $27 million in proceeds.

Unrealized Holding Gains and Losses

There were no  unrealized holding gains and losses related to investments in AFS securities as of March 31, 2015 or December 31, 2014.