Topline
Billionaire online media mogul Barry Diller is reportedly set to make a $48.30-per-share cash offer for MGM resorts through his company People Inc. in a deal that would value MGM at $18 million.
The MGM Grand Hotel and Casino on Feb. 20, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Key Facts
Shares Of MGM Resorts International spiked 15% in premarket Monday on the news, which broke in The New York Times.
People, formerly IAC, already owns a 26.1% stake in the casino giant and holds two board seats, one of which is occupied by Diller, and the billionaire described MGM as an “extraordinary operation” in a letter to People shareholders in April.
Diller, who has been building his stake in MGM since 2020, said the resort company represents a “perfect hedge in a world that is changing so unpredictively fast.”
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Forbes Valuation
Diller, senior executive and chairman of the internet and media conglomerate he founded in 1995, is worth an estimated $5.2 billion as of Monday. He has been chair of online travel giant Expedia since his company acquired Liberty Expedia in a $2.6 billion deal in 2019 and he built Pier 55 named—a park and performance venue named “Little Island”—in the Hudson River in 2021. He is married to designer Diane Von Furstenberg and owns an estimated one third of her fashion company.
Key Background
MGM Resorts International is a holding company that owns roughly 40% of the Las Vegas Strip, including the Bellagio, MGM Grand Las Vegas, Mandalay Bay, The Mirage, Luxor and Circus Las Vegas. Its regional operations segment has resorts in several states, including Mississippi, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Michigan, and it also owns casinos in China. The company is the largest casino company in the world with $42.2 billion in assets. In his April letter, Diller said MGM is “powered by a compelling mix of iconic resort destinations, scalable digital platforms, premium brands, an expanding global presence, and… an outstanding management team.”