US billionaire Carl Icahn has become the single largest stakeholder in Caesars Entertainment after increasing his stake from 9.8% to 15.53%.
The renowned businessman, who only revealed in February his acquisition of an initial interest in Caesars, issued an SEC filing on Friday which disclosed that he had acquired an additional 38.9 million shares for almost US$331 million.
Private equity firms TPG Capital and Apollo Global Management later filed SEC statements showing they had offloaded a combined 36.7 million shares to Icahn.
Icahn has made no secret of his desire to either sell or merge Caesars in what he has described as a “great opportunity for certain investors.”
Earlier this month the company agreed to replace three board members with Icahn selections, with The Icahn Group’s Keith Cozza, Courtney Mather and James Nelson quickly taking up those positions. A fourth seat on the board is on offer to Icahn should Caesars fail to find a replacement for departing CEO Mark Fissora within 45 days.
Caesars operates 55 IRs, casinos and hotels globally and is owner of the prestigious World Series of Poker brand, which celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2019. The company is also currently developing its first integrated resort in Asia, Caesars Korea in Incheon. The US$700 million project is due for completion in 2021.
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