The casino operator of the Trop in its final days has merged with another company following the acquisition by Standard General LP.
As it prepares to move forward with a new project on the Las Vegas Strip, the operator of the since-imploded Tropicana casino-hotel announced the completion of a $4.6 billion buyout by the company’s largest shareholder.
Rhode Island-based Bally’s Corp., the casino operator of the Trop in its final days, has merged with The Queen Casino & Entertainment Inc., following the former’s acquisition by Standard General LP, a New York-based hedge fund managed by Bally’s Chairman Soo Kim.
The merger adds four domestic casino properties to Bally’s operational footprint. The newly formed company now owns or manages 19 casinos across 11 U.S. states, a golf course in New York and a horse racetrack in Colorado. The company holds sports betting licenses in 13 U.S. jurisdictions and operates online casino in four states.
According to a press release, 22.8 million shares of Bally’s stock was purchased at $18.25 per share, which represented a 71 percent premium over the company’s 30-day average price per share. Queen shareholders received cash consideration of 30.5 million shares.
The cash merger consideration was financed by the issuance of $500 million in senior secured notes due in 2028 provided exclusively by funds managed by Apollo, along with Bally’s available funds on hand and its available funding sources, the release stated.
Bally’s investors owning 17.9 million outstanding shares elected to retain their stock by means of a rollover election in November. They continue as shareholders of the public-traded company, which will change its stock ticker from “BALY.T” to “BALY,” beginning Monday.
The Tropicana closed on April 2 and was imploded on Oct. 9.
Presently, the future of the former Tropicana site remains unclear. Bally’s and land-owner Gaming & Leisure Properties Inc. have stated their intention to construct a new casino-hotel somewhere on the 35-acre site at the corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Tropicana Avenue. The two parties have also agreed to commit up to 9 acres for the construction of a new Major League Baseball stadium for the Athletics, formerly of Oakland.
The Athletics have applied for a land use permit for their proposed Las Vegas ballpark. According to team representatives, construction could begin between April and June on the estimated $1.75 billion, 33,000-fan capacity ballpark.
