By Dawn Chmielewski
(Reuters) -Private equity firm Silver Lake said on Wednesday it was working on a proposal to take talent and media company Endeavor Group Holdings private, after Endeavor announced it had begun a review to explore alternatives that better value the company.
Endeavor said it was evaluating strategic options, but would not consider a sale or disposition of its majority interest in TKO Group Holdings, which includes a stake in Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Silver Lake, which holds about 71% of the voting power of Endeavor, issued a statement saying it was not interested in selling its shares to a third party, or entertaining bids for assets that are part of the media group.
“Silver Lake is currently working toward making a proposal to take Endeavor private,” it said.
Shares of Endeavor were up 24% in extended trading.
In September, French luxury goods billionaire Francois-Henri Pinault acquired a majority stake in rival Creative Artists Agency, a deal reportedly valuing the talent agency at $7 billion.
Endeavor Group, which has diversified holdings in talent-management, live sports and festivals, is valued at around $8.4 billion. Chief Executive Ari Emanuel has long said Wall Street undervalues the company.
“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,” Emanuel said in a statement.
Endeavor Group and Boston Red Sox owner Fenway Sports Group had earlier expressed interest in investing in the PGA Tour, according to a source familiar with the negotiations, Reuters reported in late September.
The private equity firm acquired a minority stake in the William Morris Endeavor talent agency in 2012, and Silver Lake Co-CEO Egon Durban and managing partner Stephen Evans serve on Endeavor’s board of directors.
(Reporting by Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru, Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles; Editing by Devika Syamnath, Shailesh Kuber, Rod Nickel, Tom Hogue and David Gregorio)
