Crown Resorts Ltd under speculation of buyout
Its majority owner says although he may talk with third parties occasionally, this does not mean he plans to take the company private in the near future
Australia.- Billionaire James Packer, the majority owner of Crown Resorts, has been closely watched lately. On Dec 16th Crown Resorts Ltd’s shares experienced a spike of 14 percent after Bloomberg and The Australian newspaper reported that CPH, Packer’s company, was talking with private equity firms and pension funds about taking Crown private. James Packer owns 53 percent of the gambling firm.
In a statement published by the Australian Securities Exchange, James Packer’s company says that “CPH has not put forward any proposal of the nature speculated in the media to Crown Resorts Ltd independent directors. The fact that CPH has discussions with third parties about its investments should not be taken as any indication that any proposal, of the nature that has been subject of the media speculation, will be made by CPH in the future.”
Still, such claim does not discard the possibility of a buyout entirely, leaving the door open to further speculation. No statement on Crown Resorts has been yet released.