By Anshuman Tripathy
May 28 (Reuters) – Tilman Fertitta-owned firm will buy Caesars Entertainment in a $17.6 billion deal, the companies said on Thursday, as the hospitality billionaire seeks to expand his leisure empire.
The deal, which will take one of the Las Vegas Strip’s most prized casino operators private, includes about $11.9 billion in assumed debt, the companies said.
Shares of the casino operator rose 2.5% in premarket trading and have gained about 16% since the deal was first reported in February.
Caesars faces mounting pressure as fewer visitors to Las Vegas — its core market — dent revenue at resorts, hotels and casinos, while its online betting arm trails larger rivals like FanDuel and DraftKings and faces growing competition from prediction markets.
Fertitta, the U.S. ambassador to Italy and San Marino and owner of Fertitta Entertainment, offered $31 per share — a nearly 50% premium to the stock’s closing price before the deal was first reported and about 8% to its last close on Wednesday.
Fertitta Entertainment, owner of Golden Nugget Hotel and Casinos and the basketball team Houston Rockets, had approached Caesars in 2018 about a merger with its gaming empire, Reuters had reported.
Through his restaurant and hospitality company, Fertitta owns more than 600 properties across 15 countries, including casual dining brands such as Rainforest Café and Bubba Gump Shrimp.
Top executives, including CEO Tom Reeg and CFO Bret Yunker, are expected to stay on. The deal includes a “go-shop” period through July 11, allowing Caesars to weigh alternative proposals.
Caesars combined with smaller rival Eldorado Resorts in 2020 to form one of the biggest casino and entertainment companies in the United States — a deal set in motion after activist billionaire Carl Icahn built a stake a year before and pushed for a sale.
The company now controls more than 50 casinos across North America, including Caesars Palace, Harrah’s and Eldorado, and also runs a retail and online sports-betting app.
If completed, the acquisition would add Caesars’ vast footprint to Fertitta’s entertainment and hospitality empire, potentially drawing regulatory scrutiny.
Fertitta donated actively to President Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign.
(Reporting by Anshuman Tripathy in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Vijay Kishore)
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