Tilman Fertitta buys Caesars Entertainment for stunning $17.6B

The man dubbed the “world’s richest restauranteur” is taking over one of the biggest names on the Las Vegas Strip in a blockbuster $17.6 billion deal.

Caesars Entertainment announced Thursday that it agreed to be acquired by Fertitta Entertainment — the sprawling hospitality empire owned by billionaire Tillman Fertitta — in an all-cash transaction valued at roughly $17.6 billion, including assumed debt.

The deal would take Caesars private and hand Fertitta control of one of the casino industry’s most iconic operators, including Caesars Palace, Harrah’s and Eldorado-branded properties across North America.

Under the agreement, Caesars shareholders will receive $31 per share in cash — nearly 50% above the company’s stock price before reports of the takeover surfaced in February.

Shares of Caesars rose roughly 2.5% in premarket trading Thursday and have climbed about 16% since the deal talks first emerged earlier this year, according to Reuters.

The acquisition would dramatically expand Fertitta’s already massive empire of casinos, restaurants, hotels and entertainment brands.

Fertitta currently serves as the US ambassador to Italy and San Marino and is one of the country’s wealthiest businessmen, with Forbes estimating his net worth at roughly $11 billion.

The Texas billionaire is the sole owner of Fertitta Entertainment, which already controls the Golden Nugget casino brand, Landry’s restaurant empire and the NBA’s Houston Rockets.

Through his hospitality empiure, Fertitta owns more than 600 properties across 15 countries, including upscale restaurant chains like Catch, Mastro’s Morton’s Steakhouse and Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse, as well as casual dining giants like Rainforest Cafe and Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.

He also owns the Forbes Five-Star Montage Laguna Beach resort in California and Houston’s luxury Post Oak Hotel, while holding major stakes in both Wynn Resorts and DraftKings.

Fertitta’s footprint in Las Vegas already stretches far beyond the Caesars acquisition.

The billionaire businessman is currently the largest shareholder in Wynn Resorts, holding roughly 12% of the luxury casino million shares in the luxury casino operator, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Fertitta had also previously planned to build a massive luxury resort on a 6-acre parcel on the Strip, though the project has since been shelved. Fertitta Entertainment executive Steven Scheinthal told the Review-Journal last year that Fertitta views developing a competing high-end Strip casino while holding such a large stake in Wynn as a “conflict of interest.”

Combined, the companies would control roughly 60 casino resorts and gaming facilities, Caesars’ online sports betting and iGaming operations, more than 200 retail sportsbook locations through William Hill and over 600 Fertitta-owned hospitality outlets.

Caesars currently operates more than 50 casinos across the US, including eight properties on the Las Vegas Strip, according to the Nevada Independent.

Analysts have already speculated the merger could face antitrust scrutiny and potentially force the sale of some casino properties in Nevada and other gaming markets, the outlet reported.

Caesars has also faced growing pressure in recent quarters as softer tourism in Las Vegas weighed on casino and hotel revenue while its sports betting business struggled to keep pace with rivals FanDuel and DraftKings, Reuters reported.

Top Caesars executives — including CEO Tom Reeg and CFO Bret Yunker — are expected to remain with the company after the deal closes.

The transaction still requires shareholder and regulatory approval and includes a “go-shop” period through July 11 that allows Caesars to consider alternative bids.

Fertitta previously approached Caesars about a merger in 2018, Reuters reported.

If completed, Caesars shares would no longer trade publicly on the Nasdaq exchange.

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