Icahn Is Now CET's Largest Shareholder

Carl went shopping on Thursday.

https://www.cdcgamingreports.com/sec-filing-icahn-ups-his-ownership-stake-in-caesars-entertainment-to-15-53-percent/

MODS: I felt this was significant enough news to warrant its own thread so people would see it.

 

Canyon Capital the previous largest shareholder said it would side with Icahn to sell.

 

I hate Icahn, he always ruins companies

 

Not being ornery but what casinos has he wrecked? Just trying to be informed.

 

He won’t ruin Caesars, but it could have an impact on the players club (which can be a huge concern for many)

 

^ this is what worries me. Not that CET is perfect, far from it, but any more changes to the players club Caesars Rewards likely won't be for the better.

 

What companies has he ruined? Please google TWA. Second he has never kept a company intact so why would he do so with Caesar’s? This is too well planned out and put together to be a whim. He likely has some idea who would be interested in what. Last the same company who was the largest shareholder who sided with Icahn Canyon Capital also owns nearly ten percent of MGM shares.

 

ahh I just meant companies in general, he always buys a stake and then forces the company to do stuff. But I believe he owned a stake in the big unfinished casino in vegas and also the casinos owned by Trump in AC. But also a lot of other non-casino companies. But at the end of the day I'm worried about the jobs of the employees and also how the rewards program will react to this

 

If sold I hope the strip holdings get spread out to about 4 different companies. Imagine actually having competition there that would lower table limits and improve paytables and force MGM to follow suit. Wishful thinking I know.

 

If Uncle Carl is targeting your company for a battle chances are its bloated and poorly run. This describes MGM perfectly imo.

Always exceptions of course like Netflix and Apple where he invested with no activism

 

And news this morning is Icahn has increased his stake in CET to 17.75%

https://www.casino.org/news/icahn-increases-grip-on-caesars-to-17-75-percent-sale-or-merger-now-likely

 

Breaking up CET may not be a bad thing if it brings more competition to Vegas. I was hoping that was going to happen when they took it through Chapter 11.

 

I doubt he will break up CET. Increased competition on the strip and in AC is the opposite of what he wants. My fear is that if Icahn can't find a good buyer for CET, he will force management to perform an MGM style PGP on it. Slash player rewards, slash staff and cut their salaries and degrade consumer experience. Like most corporate raiders, Icahn's priority is simply about getting enough of a short term bump in share price so he can dump his position for a profit, not about long term viability of CET as a company or about the viability of the city of Las Vegas.

Also, considering how poorly he ran Taj Mahal in AC (right into shuttering it and selling it off), I am not sure he will be 'good influence' for CET.

 

That's why it's a good idea for some companies to not go public at all. I know some companies do it to raise money, but in most cases customer service always suffers as a result. For example, when Uber and Lyft go public watch how fast prices rise and customer service will drop when you email them with an issue. On one hand I love it when a company goes public because it's another stock for me to trade. On the other hand it opens the door for clowns like Icahn to come in and destroy jobs and experience for his own pocket.

 

I’m not sure that’s a fair assessment of his ownership of the Taj. By the time he took it over, the market was halved from its peak and the place was in need of improvements. He was unable to negotiate a contract with the union so he closed the place. (I’m not anti union either, what Icahn wanted was a lower pay scale than the other casinos plus reduced health benefits).

He bought Tropicana in AC when it was on the balls of its ass and ran it for about 10 years. When he sold it to Eldorado and Gaming and Leisure Properties it was the #2 casino in town.

Icahn still owns the Plaza in AC and recently purchased the land underneath, so he is in a much better position to flip what may be arguably one of the best locations on the boardwalk.

Because of his ownership stake in CET, he just put three of his folks on the board of directors and will have a say regarding who will replace Frissora as CEO (who previously worked for Hertz).

 

This x100000!!! Shareholder value is the enemy here. Then again, it does help our IRAs...so tah-mato, tuh-mato I suppose. But still, a lot of the shitty decision companies make are in the interest of the board and shareholders. That's why the share buy-backs, the massive debt, the layoffs, the risk-averse behavior...the list goes on. Also, funny how board members weigh in on how to run a company when a lot of board members have wealth amassed from other industries.

 

I mean, shareholder value is the purpose of every single business. It's not the enemy.

 

Yeah, I mean more in terms of short term shareholder value

 

I can agree with that. There is certainly some cutting off of nose to spite face that goes on.

 

Icahn was quoted as saying by David McKee of Stiffs and George’s today that he has a list of buyers in mind for the properties. I don’t think he has in my opinion any desire to keep them as one unit. With Adelson in dire heath as his corporate spokesman put it and with Canyon Capital llc who was the largest shareholder of Caesar’s before Icahn also holding ten percent of MGM and rumors flowing about what will happen with Wynn as far as keep,or sell there could be in the next years significant change on the strip. It could be really good for it though making over aging properties but likely will end some things as well IMO.