Is Mandalay Bay for sale?

That's the rumble I hear in the EDR.
Anybody know?

 

I'd be pretty surprised if that were the case. They've sunk a ton of money into the physical plant, getting Light up and running, and the upcoming Delano revamp. Plus, Light Group has always been highly integrated with MGM properties, and not only do they have the nightclub, but they just took over the three restaurants that were formerly China Grill Management spaces (Red Square and Citizen's Kitchen have been open for a while, but Kumi is just opening tomorrow, and that's headed by Akira Back, who's the chef at Bellagio's Yellowtail). And remember that the Delano deal isn't an actual sale, they're just licensing the name and everything will still be owned/operated by MGM. On top of all that, it's physically integrated with Luxor and Excalibur, which I'd think would make it tricky to spin off. I just can't imagine them selling it now, and I also can't imagine who would buy it.

 

THEhotel at Mandalay Bay will become Delano Las Vegas some time this year. It is a partnership with the Morgans Hotel Group. highly unlikely that Mandalay Bay itself will be up for sale. But anything is possible.

http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2012/aug/06/thehotel-mandalay-bay-will-become-delano-las-vegas/

 

I think technically any MGM property is for sale. I would think that Mandalay would be difficult to offload with its partnerships/leases with Delano, Light, and Four Seasons. They sold TI to Ruffin and apparently he tried to buy Monte Carlo for $500M and he made an undisclosed offer for Mirage. Mandelay would be logically the next property he would make an offer for. The property would be attractive to purchase with its convention space, arena, large rooms, pool complex and everything else that make it maybe the most complete resort on the strip. And it would be attractive to sell because of its location and the fact that MGM is building a third arena.

 

It isn't anymore physically integrated with Luxor and Excalibur than Mirage is with TI. They share a parking garage and are connected with a tram.

 

I thought about this when I was writing it, and here's why I disagree. TI and Mirage are connected, but one isn't the entrance for the other. By that I mean, to get to Mandalay Bay, if you're not taking a cab, most people will walk to Excalibur and either take the tram, or just walk through the casinos. And on the way back, same thing, leaving Mandalay Bay the tram kicks you out at Excalibur. I'd argue that the layout of the Strip and the way people physically approach the properties makes the situation a bit different at Mandalay/Luxor/Excalibur than at TI/Mirage. Not to mention, it's not just the tram; Mandalay Place isn't just a walkway, but has some significant restaurants (e.g., Burger Bar, Hussong's, and Ri-Ra) in an area that connects Mandalay and Luxor.

And as far as the Delano thing, as I understand it, the agreement is not for any sort of ownership/equity interest. Delano is assisting on the room design (and considering that Morgans now owns Light Group, part of me says that this may very well be Andrew Sasson trying to make up for the loss of The Harmon) and licensing the name, but MGM will still own and operate the hotel. So it's a "partnership", but not in the sense that makes me think a sale of the underlying property is any more or less likely.

 

I haven't heard anything, but I would be stunned if that happened. I suppose any piece of the MGM empire is available for the right price, but it just doesn't make sense. they have spent a lot of money on recent upgrades and seem determined to cut into some of the Cosmo, younger crowd business segment.

Plus, MGM doesn't need the money (as they did when they sold TI). Their earnings info from just a couple months ago showed a significant improvement in the fundamentals (mainly because of Macau).

Right now, MB is still viewed as a conventioneer hotel. Unless and until the improvements change the resort's profile, I'm not really sure who would want it (bad location), unless they were getting a heck of a deal.

This type of rumor reminds me of a post early this year when someone swore they had inside knowledge that Mirage was being sold (I think it was because a couple execs had just left the property). Shockingly, the Mirage was not sold. Can't imagine that is going to happen with MB anytime soon either (unless MGM needs some immediate capital infusion for a grander plan)

 

I doubt MB would go up for sale. It was their flagship property way before all the Mergers. Circus circus enterprises changed their name to Mandalay Resort Group even. Then six years later they merged with MGM who was a 50% partner in Monte Carlo at the time. The moral of the story I guess is that it probably would not be one of the ones to sell since its so tightly integrated and has a lot of their best assets tied up in it. The convention center alone accounts for a lot of their business.

 

Mandalay Bay being up for sale was a rumor from Robin Leach, either a few months ago or maybe late last year.

He didn't actually name Mandalay Bay as being up for sale, he was more just saying that MGM was in talks to sell one of its resorts to a night club company that was renovating and opening some new spots within that specific hotel... that with a few other hints would lead one to believe it was Light Group as the buyers and Mandalay Bay as the property for sale.

But of course it is a Robin Leach rumor... the guy puts a lot of them out there, more just to see what sticks and what doesn't. Kind of like a psychic might put out 1000 predictions for the next year and then 20 of them actually happen... so when the psychic does their recap at the end of the year they don't reference the 980 that didn't come true, instead its "Last year I made these 20 predictions... AND THEY ALL CAME TRUE!" and then they ask you to buy their book or use their phone in service.

 

Now that I'm inclined to believe lol.

 

Mbay

As like most thing's in Vegas, Mbay and MGM Mirage Resort's do have a price. Im really amazed anyone would really want to buy Mbay cause of the structure issues. There were some talks about another company wanting to buy because of the convention side of thing's, that is true, but not much further than talk's. The thing with Morgan group is that hope this will boost their name a little in the industry as well as get brownie points with MGM Mirage Group.

 

"Is Mandalay Bay for sale?"

Why, do you want to buy it?

 

There are so many rumors in Vegas, I am surprised they do not show up in the books so you can bet on them.

Believe about 1 tenth of 1 percent of what you hear, and that is still a 50/50 bet.

 

MB is NOT their flagshit property. Bellagio is.

Lastly they weren't even the original owners, and it wasn't a merger, it was a takeover by MGM.

 

His point is that before the MGM-MRG merger (and I believe that it was indeed structured as a merger, though it did primarily involve a buyout of MRG by MGM), Mandalay Bay was the flagship of Mandalay Resort Group (née Circus Circus Enterprises).

 

Just waxing nostalgic here . . . remember when MB was being built, it kept sinking? It's a wonder the place is still standing upright!

 

Yes I remember. It's still sinking actually just at a much slower pace.

 

It was a buyout. And if we are talking prior to that then yes MB was flagship. I'd hope so when comparing it to EXCAL, LUXOR AND CC which is all they owned.

http://www.8newsnow.com/story/1947961/mandalay-resort-agrees-to-mgm-mirage-buyout

From the article:

MGM Mirage signed a deal to buy out Mandalay Resort Group creating the largest gaming company in the world. The deal won't change what you see on The Strip now, but it could dramatically change the future of our city.

 

Well, if we're making KLAS the authority...

http://www.8newsnow.com/story/2959309/ftc-approves-mgm-mirage-mandalay-merger

"The merger between gaming giant MGM-Mirage rival Mandalay Resort Group will go ahead."

"The Federal Trade Commission then conducted an investigation to look at the inner workings of the deal, and today the FTC voted across the board to approve the merger."

"The merger gives MGM-Mirage control of 28 properties in Nevada, New Jersey, Michigan and Mississippi."

"The map, which breaks down the ownership of the Las Vegas Strip resorts by color, shows how it looked before the merger and how it will look after."

Local media aside, the point I was making, and which you seem to be missing out on, is that even when the practical effect of a transaction is that one company ends up buying the shares of another, this is often structured as a "merger" because there are various legal and financial consequences (such as the powers of minority shareholders, and potential tax benefits) of making it a merger rather than a straight share purchase. So, more importantly, there's no point in being a jerk by calling people out here for describing it as a "merger" when that's exactly what the companies called it when filing with the SEC: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/789570/000095015304001440/p69268exv99w1.htm

 

I think this most recent rumor has been squashed. Since that is the case and because the thread is starting to veer off course, I think it's time to close it down.