Tilman Fertitta’s Empire Is Buying Caesars in a Nearly $6 Billion Deal

AP, Bloomberg, CNBC, Forbes, the Financial Times contributed to this report.

Caesars Entertainment, one of the biggest names on the Las Vegas Strip, is being taken private by Tilman Fertitta’s firm in a deal valued at about $17.6 billion, including debt.

The hospitality billionaire – who owns the Golden Nugget, Rainforest Cafe, Morton’s and a sprawling restaurant-and-hotel empire through Fertitta Entertainment – will pay $31 a share in cash for Caesars. That works out to a deal worth roughly $5.7 billion in equity, plus about $11.9 billion in assumed debt.

Caesars shares were up 1.6% in morning trading and have climbed about 16% since word of the deal first surfaced in February.

The move gives Fertitta another giant piece of Las Vegas real estate and deepens his hold on the leisure and casino business. It also comes at a tricky moment for Caesars, which has been feeling the pinch from softer visitor traffic in Las Vegas and tougher competition in online betting, where FanDuel and DraftKings have pulled ahead.

Caesars, formed after Eldorado Resorts bought the original company in 2020 and kept the better-known brand, now runs more than 50 casinos across North America. That includes major Strip properties like Caesars Palace, Harrah’s and Planet Hollywood, along with retail and online sports betting operations.

Fertitta’s company already owns the Golden Nugget casinos, the NBA’s Houston Rockets and hundreds of hospitality properties worldwide. If this deal closes, it would fold Caesars’ casino network into an already sprawling private empire.

There is still a small window for another bidder. The agreement includes a go-shop period through July 11, giving Caesars time to solicit better offers. But analysts think a rival bid is unlikely, given the size of the transaction, the premium Fertitta is offering and the regulatory hurdles ahead.

Caesars’ top executives, including CEO Tom Reeg and CFO Bret Yunker, are expected to stay on after the deal. And if the takeover goes through, it will mark another big bet by Fertitta, who has stayed active in business even after stepping down from some day-to-day roles when he became US ambassador to Italy and San Marino last year.