Bloomberg reports that the private equity owners of Danish operator TDC are considering the sale of part of their stakes in the business, with the possibility of a complete sale of their holdings to “private equity or strategic buyers” also mooted.

Five investment firms – Apax Partners, Blackstone Group, KKR & Co, Permira Advisors and Providence Equity Partners – currently own 59 percent of the business, following what was then Europe’s largest leveraged buyout in 2006. They have previously sold parts of their stakes, with Bloomberg suggesting the new sale will take place when TDC’s share price moves closer to its price at the time of that transaction.

According to Wireless Intelligence figures, TDC is currently the largest mobile operator in Denmark, with 3.81 million subscribers – a market share of 45 percent.

Earlier this month, TDC announced a net profit of DKK2.81 billion (US$501 million) for 2011, down 6.6 percent year-on-year, on revenue of DKK26.3 billion, up 0.5 percent. In a statement, Henrik Poulsen, its CEO, noted: “Measured on profitability and total shareholder return TDC has transformed from being a lowest quartile performer into one of the most profitable and value creating telcos in Europe.”