Deal of the week: Alltel Corp.

Verizon Wireless last week agreed to acquire Alltel Corp., the U.S. rural mobile service provider that was taken private just seven months ago by TPG Capital and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners. The acquisition is valued at $28.1 billion, including $22.2 billion in debt.

The transaction will vault Alltel to the top of mobile service provider in U.S. market ahead of AT&T Inc. Naturally, shares of Verizon Wireless owners Verizon Communications and Vodafone both jumped on the announcement.

The $28.1 billion acquisition price is of particular note because it only represents a slight premium on the $27.85 billion that TPG and Goldman paid for Alltel last year.

However, that fact masks their profit. The two firms will make a combined $1.3 billion from the deal, receiving $5.9 billion in cash compared to their $4.6 billion equity investment. Not a bad return for a seven-month investment that was both overpriced and over-leveraged. —Dan Primack