{"id":304082,"date":"2023-12-19T17:16:59","date_gmt":"2023-12-19T23:16:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=304082"},"modified":"2023-12-20T11:31:02","modified_gmt":"2023-12-20T17:31:02","slug":"entain-could-be-ready-for-sale-or-betmgm-divestment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/entain-could-be-ready-for-sale-or-betmgm-divestment\/","title":{"rendered":"Entain Could Sell BetMGM Stake or Itself to MGM, Says Jefferies Analyst"},"content":{"rendered":"

Amid the recent departure of CEO Jette Nygaard-Andersen and increased action in the stock by activist investors, the time could be appropriate for Entain Plc (OTC: GMVHF) to consider dramatic action.<\/p>\n

\"BetMGM\"
The BetMGM logo. An analyst said MGM Resorts International could make a move to acquire Entain or buy its BetMGM stake. (Image: NY Sports Day<\/em>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

That\u2019s the take of Jefferies analyst James Wheatcroft. In a new report to clients, he rated the downtrodden shares of the Ladbrokes parent \u201cbuy\u201d up from \u201chold,\u201d noting that a variety of options could be on the table for the gaming company.<\/p>\n

We would expect other options to include the sale of Entain to MGM, the sale of the BetMGM stake, the sale of other assets, in addition to finding a suitable CEO … Several factors now imply an opportune moment for MGM to re-evaluate an approach to Entain,\u201d<\/strong> wrote Wheatcroft.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Talk of MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) bidding anew for its BetMGM partner arrived nearly three years after the Bellagio operator bid $11.06 billion in cash and stock<\/a> for Entain. The British bookmaker said the offer wasn\u2019t adequate<\/a>. In the nearly three years since that offer was made, MGM hasn\u2019t publicly floated another bid and Entain\u2019s market capitalization has slumped to $7.89 billion.<\/p>\n

Why Jefferies Analyst is Bullish on Entain<\/h2>\n

Wheatcroft acknowledged that the specter of transformative transactions — be it the divestment of Entain\u2019s 50% BetMGM interest, or an outright sale of the entire company — could hinder the search for a new chief executive officer. He still sees short odds \u201cfor a highly credible CEO to land at Entain.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

That quest could be aided by the expected, upcoming appointment<\/a> of Eminence Capital founder Ricky Sandler to the gaming company\u2019s board of directors. Other activist investors pushed Entain to add Sandler to the board and give him a prominent role in filling other director vacancies. It\u2019s possible he\u2019ll have a prominent say in the CEO selection process.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Wheatcroft also highlighted Keith Meister\u2019s Corvex Management<\/a> recently announcing a 4.4% stake in Entain as a possible catalyst for dealmaking. Due to potential conflicts of interest, Meister isn\u2019t a candidate for an Entain board seat.<\/p>\n

Still, Wheatcroft\u2019s line of thinking is valid, because Meister is a director at MGM and his hedge fund owns 2% of the casino giant\u2019s shares outstanding. That means he\u2019d likely come out ahead if MGM buys Entain outright or acquires full control of BetMGM.<\/p>\n

Believe it When it Happens<\/h2>\n

Given the executive upheaval and increased interest in Entain by activist investors, now would appear to be a reasonable time for MGM to pounce. But speculation to this effect is now ancient by the standards of financial markets.<\/p>\n

\n

Conversely, MGM executives have been steadfast about two topics. First, they\u2019d love to have full control of BetMGM. Second, another outright takeover bid for Entain isn\u2019t likely in the near term. At least, that’s what\u2019s being said in public.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Still, as Wheatcroft pointed out, Entain shares are currently inexpensive, and that\u2019s even when accounting for the recent slew of headlines indicating the company could be a takeover target.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Amid the recent departure of CEO Jette Nygaard-Andersen and increased action in the stock by activist investors, the time could be appropriate for Entain Plc (OTC: GMVHF) to consider dramatic action. That\u2019s the take of Jefferies analyst James Wheatcroft. In a new report to clients, he rated the downtrodden shares of the Ladbrokes parent \u201cbuy\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46,"featured_media":262076,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,32093,1,1074],"tags":[81903,81966,81967,80968],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nEntain Could Be Ready For Sale Or BetMGM Divestment<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Entain Could Sell BetMGM Stake or Itself to MGM, Says Jefferies Analyst.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/entain-could-be-ready-for-sale-or-betmgm-divestment\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Entain Could Be Ready For Sale Or BetMGM Divestment\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Entain Could Sell BetMGM Stake or Itself to MGM, Says Jefferies Analyst.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/entain-could-be-ready-for-sale-or-betmgm-divestment\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Casino.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Casino.OrgNews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-12-19T23:16:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-12-20T17:31:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/mgm2.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"816\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Todd Shriber\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@etfgodfather\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Todd Shriber\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/entain-could-be-ready-for-sale-or-betmgm-divestment\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/entain-could-be-ready-for-sale-or-betmgm-divestment\/\",\"name\":\"Entain Could Be Ready For Sale Or BetMGM Divestment\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/entain-could-be-ready-for-sale-or-betmgm-divestment\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/entain-could-be-ready-for-sale-or-betmgm-divestment\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/mgm2.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-12-19T23:16:59+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-12-20T17:31:02+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/f4cecf70a5032bc4e60eb73fc86d4a85\"},\"description\":\"Entain Could Sell BetMGM Stake or Itself to MGM, Says Jefferies Analyst.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/entain-could-be-ready-for-sale-or-betmgm-divestment\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/entain-could-be-ready-for-sale-or-betmgm-divestment\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/entain-could-be-ready-for-sale-or-betmgm-divestment\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/mgm2.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/mgm2.jpg\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":816,\"caption\":\"The BetMGM logo. 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