Ariel Emanuel: Celebs Rumors

Endeavor Group said today it has initiated a formal review to evaluate strategic alternatives for the company.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Endeavor, three years after the sports and entertainment company went public, announced that it has entered into an agreement to be acquired by private-equity firm Silver Lake. The deal gives Endeavor an equity value of $13 billion, the companies said.

Endeavor’s publicly traded TKO Group has named Dwayne Johnson to its board of directors, effective today. The WWE superstar has also secured full ownership of the trademarked name The Rock.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Vince McMahon is cashing out. McMahon, the former CEO of WWE, intends to offer 8.4 million shares of Class A common stock in TKO Group, the company formed by the merger of WWE and UFC, which was engineered by Endeavor. Those shares are currently worth about $713 million at TKO’s most recently closing share price.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Endeavor Group, the parent of the WME talent agency and a significant shareholder in the new TKO combat-sports business, said it would launch a “strategic review” of its assets in a bid to find new ways to boost shareholder value. “Given the continued dislocation between Endeavor’s public market value and the intrinsic value of Endeavor’s underlying assets, we believe an evaluation of strategic alternatives is a prudent approach to ensure we are maximizing value for our shareholders,” said Ariel Emanuel, CEO of Endeavor, in a prepared statement.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor Endeavor has big financial plans for the rest of the year as the company announced Tuesday it will declare its first dividend and begin its first stock buyback program as it awaits its acquisition of WWE and sale of IMG Academy. Endeavor delivered solid first quarter results on Tuesday, powered by growth in its owned sports properties unit which is about to grow substantially as Endeavor closes its $21 billion takeover of WWE later this year. Endeavor’s events and experiences unit also was in positive territory for the quarter. But the hangover of the January 2022 sale of the Endeavor Content production unit put a dent in the representation unit’s quarterly numbers.

Two of the world’s biggest fighting organizations are coming together.

Endeavor rode the wave of demand for live sports and entertainment experiences to deliver solid revenue and adjusted earnings gains for the fourth quarter and full-year 2022. The company also made progress on shaving down its debt load, which has been a millstone for the parent of UFC, WME and other major industry players ever since Endeavor went public in 2021. Over the course of 2022, the company made about $500 million in debt payments, most of which were made in Q4, to bring its total long-term debt to just over $5 billion, from $5.63 billion as of the end of 2021. For the fourth quarter, Endeavor generated revenue of $1.26 billion, down 16% year over year, a decline largely due to the sale of its content production business to Korea-based CJ ENM in January 2022. The company’s adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization came in at $239.6 million (compared with EBITDA of $229.5 million in Q4 2021). On a net income basis, the company posted a loss of $225.7 million (versus a net loss of $19.5 million in the year-earlier period).

Endeavor sales dipped 16% to $1.26 billion last quarter from the year before due mostly to the absence of its divested Endeavor Content business as it posted an upbeat fourth quarter. A diversified biz and focus on sports and live events limit the ad hit faced by other media companies, and it has yet to feel much of a pinch from any slowdown in content spending by the majors.

Cynthia Littleton Business EditorEndeavor delivered strong second quarter earnings on Thursday with wind at the back of its sports, live events and talent representation operations.The company that is home to UFC, WME and IMG saw year-over year revenue gains at its key units for the quarter as sports and entertainment activity continues to adjust to the post-pandemic new normal. Strong demand especially for sports and events pushed Endeavor to post net income of $42.2 million on revenue of $1.3 billion, which was up about 18% from the year-ago mark.The upswing prompted Endeavor to slightly adjust its full-year forecast for adjusted earnings before interest taxes, depreciation and amortization to a range of $1.13 billion to $1.17 billion, which is up from the estimate of $1.1 billion to $1.15 billion offered in May with Q1 results.

Endeavor Group said revenue rose 18% to $1.3 billion last quarter led by higher media rights fees and live event, partnership, consumer product and licensing revenues at UFC as well as the return of live events.

Cynthia Littleton Business EditorEndeavor swung wide to a profit in Q1, fueled by the sale of Endeavor Content and big year-over-year gains for its events and talent representation units.Endeavor posted net income of $517 million on revenue of $1.47 billion. The black ink was driven by a $463.6 million one-time gain stemming from the sale last year of the Endeavor Content division, which was acquired by South Korea’s CJ ENM for $775 million.Excluding the Endeavor Content gain, Endeavor’s adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization came in it about $129.2 million.The company raised its full-year 2022 revenue guidance slighty, predicting it will come in between $5.235 billion and $5.47 billion, up from the $5.2 billion to $5.45 billion forecast from last quarter, and adjusted EBITDA guidance of $1.1 billion to $1.15 billion.

Cynthia Littleton Business EditorEndeavor closed out the final quarter of 2021 with a net loss of $16.7 million on revenue of $1.5 billion as the company’s sports, media and talent representation operations continue to adjust to a post-pandemic environment.Endeavor posted a $467.5 million loss for the full year, on revenue of $5.1 billion.The company noted that its talent representation unit, largely comprised of WME, saw double-digit revenue growth in the quarter, which is no surprise given the surge in demand and production in recent months. The return of major sports to regular and predictable schedules has also been good for Endeavor’s media rights, sponsorship and sports betting activities.“In our first year as a public company, we saw significant outperformance across our portfolio as the world began to emerge from the pandemic, with increased attendance at live events and continued heightened demand for premium content,” said Endeavor chief Ariel Emanuel.

following the stock had expected $1.32 billion and 15 cents EPS. The company reported $63.6 million in net income for the quarter, after taking a $319 million loss during the second quarter.

Cynthia Littleton Business EditorEndeavor delivered solid third quarter results powered by the recovery of attendance and demand in the company’s key markets including UFC, its talent representation units and content production.“We continue to capitalize on the elevated demand for premium content and live events coming out of the pandemic,” remarked Ariel Emanuel, CEO, Endeavor.

Endeavor swung to a profit last quarter on sales up more than 60% to nearly $1.4 billion last quarter as business surged in the wake of Covid. The company, which went public in April, posted a net profit of $63.6 million from a $21.8 million loss the year before.

Endeavor has reached a deal to acquire OpenBet, a sports betting platform from Scientific Games, for $1.2 billion.The deal is made up of $1 billion in cash and $200,000 in stock. OpenBet is a content, platform and service provider to the sports betting industry.

Endeavor said Monday it’s struck a deal to acquire OpenBet — a content, platform and service provider to the sports betting industry — from Scientic Games Corp. for $1.2 billion in cash and stock.

in large part to our global portfolio of premium assets and the creativity of our employees and partners,” remarked Ariel Emanuel, CEO, Endeavor. “As you look at the secular trends defining our industries — marked by the growing demand for content, the increased value of the talent and brands behind that content and the desire of people to come together around live events and experiences — Endeavor remains firmly and uniquely positioned for a strong second half of 2021.” Owned Sports Properties revenue increased $106.6 million, or 70.0%, to $258.9 million, compared to the second quarter of 2020.

in large part to our global portfolio of premium assets and the creativity of our employees and partners,” remarked Ariel Emanuel, CEO, Endeavor. “As you look at the secular trends defining our industries — marked by he growing demand for content, the increased value of the talent and brands behind that content and the desire of people to come together around live events and experiences — Endeavor remains firmly and uniquely positioned for a strong second half of 2021.” Owned Sports Properties revenue increased $106.6 million, or 70.0%, to $258.9 million, compared to the second quarter of 2020.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorMore than two weeks after Ariel Emanuel stepped down as a Live Nation board member after 14 years, the Department of Justice announced that he and fellow top Endeavor officer Mark Shapiro resigned their board positions after the DOJ expressed antitrust concerns, according to a DOJ statement Monday (June 21). The DOJ’s concern was that Emanuel’s and Shapiro’s “positions on the Live Nation Board created an illegal interlocking directorate,” i.e.

Cynthia Littleton Business EditorEndeavor posted a small profit in its first quarterly earnings release since its April 29 initial public offering thanks to momentum for UFC and other sports properties.Endeavor posted net income of $2.4 million in the quarter ended March 31, compared to a loss of $51.4 million for the comparable year-ago quarter. Total revenue came in at $1.07 billion, which was in line with analysts’ expectations.

Pandemic-induced layoffs have begun at Endeavor, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. The initial round impacts about 250 staffers employed in capacities in which they cannot work remotely, such as ground