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Entertainment Conglomerate Announces That It Will Go Private In New Deal
Ari Emanuel and Sarah Staudinger attend An Evening with Endeavor x Route in Los Angeles at Harriet's Rooftop on April 20, 2022, in West Hollywood.
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Tiffany Rose
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Topline:
Nearly three years after its initial public offering and stock market debut, Endeavor Group Holdings, the talent agency turned sports and entertainment conglomerate, will again become a privately-held company, in a deal valued at $13 billion.
Why it matters: On Tuesday morning, the private equity firm Silver Lake, which has long been a backer of Endeavor, announced that it is acquiring the company’s outstanding shares for $27.50 and will take it private. The entertainment conglomerate is valued at about $8.2 billion ($13 billion if you include its debt) and consists of businesses such as OpenBet, IMG, OnLocation and talent agency WME. With CAA having been acquired last year by Francois Pinault and now Endeavor going private, the 2010s dream of Hollywood’s representation businesses being publicly traded companies appears to be dead for the foreseeable future.
Ari’s art of the deal: Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel, one of the most famous business executives in the entertainment business, had been frustrated that investors did not understand the value of the assets he’s accrued over the years. Without having to explain himself to Wall Street, he may be more active in buying and selling assets.
Something to watch: The deal includes an investment of $250 million “into a new business to be founded, managed and controlled” by WME’s executive chairman Patrick Whitesell. No further specific details were provided, but it will invest in the entertainment, media, and sports industries.
Silver lining: Silver Lake has been a long-time backer of Emanuel and have proven to be patient investors. When the firm took the computer maker Dell private in 2013, it ultimately quadrupled the company’s worth in about seven years. The Endeavor deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2025.
For more . . . read the full story on The Ankler.
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