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DAYTONA BEACH – The family of NASCAR's late founder, Bill France Sr., plans to take the public company that owns Daytona International Speedway and several other motor sports tracks privately.
NASCAR, the private stock-car racing control company owned by the France family, announced Friday night its offer to acquire all the outstanding shares that the family does not already own in the International stock. Speedway Corp. (NASDAQ: NYSE).
The ISC acquisition offer is estimated at $ 1.9 billion, 7.5% higher than the closing stock price on Friday, according to a Bloomberg report News.
The intention is to combine ISC and NASCAR into a group of private companies led by the France family, NASCAR said in a statement posted on the investor relations page of the ISC website on Friday afternoon.
"In a very competitive sports and entertainment landscape, a more unified strategic approach is important for our future growth," said Jim France, chairman and chief executive officer of NASCAR, in the press release.
"We believe that the sector needs structural changes to position the sport in such a way that it is a long-term success and this offer represents a positive step in this direction," said France.
Until the ISC acquisition is finalized, "Meanwhile, NASCAR and ISC will continue to operate separately as independent entities working to provide excellent results. racing experiences to our fans all over the world, "says the press release.
"The results of this forward-looking offer will have no impact on the long-term commitment of the French family to the sport, nor on its interest in maintaining its current stake in ISC, since the France family "We are not interested in selling ISC shares for the moment," said the president. press release furthermore stated.
Jimmie Johnson, seven-time winner of the NASCAR Cup Series, told ESPN that the NASCAR reunion, which oversees the sport of stock-car racing, and ISC, which owns and operates the Speedway and 12 other centers car racing in the country, could be a good thing. .
"My initial reaction is that this could eventually lead to flexibility (in the) calendar, event dates," Johnson said. "We've all been debating so many ideas, are you cutting back on schedule, do you have weekday shopping?
"This unity and the collaboration of these two entities combined would be a step in that direction, in my opinion," added the veteran driver. "Hopefully this would open these doors to let these conversations really happen and for progress to be made. (This) is pure speculation on my part."
Bloomberg News reported that "NASCAR was looking for minority investors, and a merger (of NASCAR and ISC) could help resolve these efforts." He also faced the collapse of ratings (for NASCAR TV shows) and the loss of big sponsors, such as Lowe's Co. "
NASCAR has retained Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC as a financial advisor and Baker Botts as legal counsel for the proposed acquisition of ISC, according to the press release.
In addition, BDT & Co. has been retained as financial advisor to the France family.
The NASCAR Offer will be reviewed by a special committee of independent SAI Board members, advised by independent legal and financial advisors, according to the press release.
The members of the France family on the ISC board include Jim France and his niece Lesa France Kennedy, CEO of ISC.
Mori Hosseini, President and CEO of ICI Homes, based in Daytona Beach, the largest home builder in the Volusia-Flagler area, J. Hyatt Brown, President of the National Insurance Agency Brown, based at Daytona Beach & Brown Inc., which is also a public company, and Christy F. Harris, associate attorney at Kinsey, Vincent, Pyle, LC law firm at Daytona Beach.
ESPN announced Friday that Brown would chair the committee overseeing the sale of SAIs.
NASCAR is proposing to pay $ 42 per share in cash for all outstanding shares of ISC, according to reports from Bloomberg News and ESPN.
On Friday, on Wall Street, ISC stocks fell 44 cents a share to close at 39.06 dollars a share.
As a result of the NASCAR announcement, the price of the SAI stock has risen from $ 2.74 per share, to $ 41.80 after 7:00 pm. Friday.
"I can not comment," Hosseini told television news on Friday night.
The newspaper could not reach Brown for comment.
NASCAR spokesman Jon Schwartz declined to answer questions for more information.
"Unfortunately, we can not say more about what was announced," he wrote in a text message in response to the newspaper's inquiries.
SAI spokeswoman Gentry Baumline-Robinson on Friday night also referred all the issues to the press release.
France is the son of the late Bill France father, founder of NASCAR, and the brother of the late Bill France Jr., who succeeded their father as president and chief executive officer of NASCAR.
NASCAR and ISC are both based in Daytona Beach, where their respective offices are located in the eight-storey International Motorsport Center of the new One Daytona Entertainment / Dining / Dining Complex located across from the Speedway.
Both companies employ several hundred people at Daytona Beach. ISC is also the owner and developer of One Daytona.
ISC was formed in 1953, five years after the formation of NASCAR.
Originally known as Bill France Racing Inc., the company signed the initial contract to secure the land for the construction of the Daytona International Speedway, inaugurated in 1959.
ISC became a public company through an initial public offering of common shares on November 15, 1996.
Jim France, 73, who served as vice president of NASCAR, assumed the role of Acting President and Chief Executive Officer in August, taking over from his nephew Brian France, who took a leave after a DUI arrest. .
Friday's press release did not include the word "interim" in the titles of President and CEO Jim France.
Many news reports in the national media in early May also suggested that the French family could explore the sale of a majority stake in NASCAR.
Lesa France Kennedy two days later, at the 26th annual Herbert M. Davidson Awards Dinner at the Volusia & Flagler Community Foundation in Daytona Beach, she reaffirmed the commitment of her family and the family. from his country of origin.
"We have so much reason to be proud of our joint work for the future of Daytona Beach and Volusia County," she said in a written statement to the News-Journal following the dinner of the Community Foundation, where she received the Outstanding Community Service Award.
In October, SAI recorded a sharp rise in net income and revenues for the third quarter of its fiscal year, but this gain was largely driven by the benefits of the Tax Reduction Act. employment that lowered the corporate tax rate.
At a conference call with stock analysts on Oct. 4, SAI President John Saunders acknowledged that the number of NASCAR event attendees during the quarter had dropped by an average of 14 percent and that the average ticket price was down 2.5%.
When an analyst asked him to comment on the decline as well as the additional hardships caused by the recent retirement of several popular NASCAR stars, including Dale Earnhardt Jr., Saunders spoke of the need for "high-level alignment". intensity on NASCAR and all the others ". race tracks, not just ISC races, and redirect all NASCAR assets and track assets "to better respond to the" culture change of our sport ".
ISC also strives to "increase the use of its facilities throughout the year" by organizing non-sporting events such as concerts and festivals. The development of One Daytona on ISC-owned property across from the Speedway is another example of the company's efforts to create new revenue streams, Saunders said. "We expect One Daytona to be a destination of choice for retail, dining and entertainment in the Daytona Beach area."
Greg Motto, Chief Financial Officer of ISC, also told stock market analysts: "Wherever we experienced headwinds and drops in admissions, we worked with caution in terms of costs to manage margins . "
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