Uh oh. Cosmo looking for a buyer?

I for one would love for MGM to buy it - easy peasy to go back and forth between the 2 properties - and then Kevin can upgrade the slot floor at Aria - too many old stinking machines - especially around the middle section

 

MGM would destroy Cosmo.....NO THANK YOU !!

 

Agreed.

 

Chad Beynon, an analyst with Macquarie Research, told the Review-Journal The Cosmopolitan could sell for as high as 13 times its cash flow — which is more than $300 million — implying a price tag of $4 billion.

The property would be the first major operating casino on the Strip to go on the market in more than a decade.

Representatives of Blackstone and Wynn Resorts Ltd. — identified as a potential suitor for the property — declined comment on the reports.

Others identified MGM Resorts International as a potential buyer because the property lies between two MGM developments, Bellagio and CityCenter.

A spokesman for MGM Resorts could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Limited buyers

Las Vegas real estate expert John Knott, executive vice president and the head of the Global Gaming Group at CBRE, but not a party to the sale, said there’s not a broad list of companies that could qualify for such a purchase. “You have to have the financial qualifications to perform before they even let you enter the process,” Knott said. “There probably will be a lot of wannabes that reach out to them that could create some noise. But there are others that want to be on the Strip, like Penn National or Boyd (Gaming Corp.), and MGM could have a strategic interest in it because it’s between their properties.”

John DeCree, an analyst at Las Vegas-based Union Gaming, said MGM Resorts, Wynn Resorts and Penn National could be potential buyers.

A spokesman for for Penn National could not be reached for comment. A spokesman for Boyd Gaming declined to comment.

MGM could team up with MGP, its real estate investment trust, while Penn could partner with Gaming and Leisure Properties, its REIT partner, to buy the property, DeCree said.

The Cosmopolitan sits betweenMGM Resorts luxury properties Bellagio and Aria, so it makes sense that MGM would look at it, Beynon said.

However, MGM has promised investors it would reduce leverage in the coming years. MGM could sell a property like The Mirage or Mandalay Bay to help finance the purchase of The Cosmopolitan, Beynon said.

Another potential buyer with financial wherewithal could be the Genting Group of Malaysia, which is building Resorts World Las Vegas about a mile north on the Strip.

Genting Group could not be reached for comment.

Private equity firms as well as foreign operators, including Australia’s Crown Resorts and Asia-based Galaxy Entertainment and Melco Resorts could be potential buyers, the analysts said.

A flurry of potential Strip property transactions have had the gaming industry buzzing for days.

Las Vegas-based Caesars Entertainment Corp., in the midst of a corporate takeover by billionaire financier Carl Icahn, has been the subject of sales speculation with potential buyers Eldorado Resorts of Reno and Houston-based Landry’s Inc. waiting in the wings.

Icahn leveraged the hiring of a new CEO, Anthony Rodio, on Monday, fueling speculation that Icahn is calling the shots for the company. It’s unclear whether he wants to broker a sale or reform the company’s operation.

Blackstone acquired The Cosmopolitan in 2014 for $1.73 billion and invested $500 million to finish 21 large suites on the top four floors of one tower targeted for high rollers. It also renovated other rooms enabling the resort to command among the highest average daily room rates on the Strip, exceeding $300 a night. The company also added 18 new bars and restaurants in an effort to appeal to a younger crowd.

 

I've been following this for awhile. Blackstone always intended to flip the Cosmo. It was just a matter of time.

The shift in comps (from another thread) was just the first of many corrections to show a better cash flow I assume. Gotta get those books cooked!

I heard everything from the Seminoles buying it, and rebrand it as a Hard Rock, now that the old Hard Rock is going "Virgin". That kills any non-competes from using the brand in Nevada, after the original sales of Hard Rock included most everything, but the LV outlet.

I know he is not popular these days. But Wynn resorts did pay the $20MIL fine by the Nevada gaming commission to settle their end of the Steve Perv thing. I'm not sure if he still has, or can get, a gaming license in Nevada or not. It was not like he sexual persuasions were gaming related.

What if, MGM sells Mirage, to focus on their core (Treasure Island was the 1st purging they had) and frees up cash flow to buy Cosmo. A settlement would need to be reached on the stupid REIT to MGM Growth, But what if Steve buys back the Mirage?. How Vegas would that be!?

With Ichan pushing to sell off CET joints in the Strip, this might be a buyers market more than a sellers one for poor Cosmo. Only so many firms have the money to play in this sandbox, and if Paris is on the market for half what Cosmo is asking, it would certainly draw buyers and money away.

 

Hmmm announcement on a weekend interesting

 

Ugh. I have 1700 in points. Hopefully nothing changes

 

I would think that many things would change if they're sold. I would of course be hoping for MGM, due to Aria being my 'loca' --- ahaha

 

I am not sure if this is actually true. Staff rarely find out about corporate buyouts before they become public. Unless the 'staff' in question was a senior VP or something, I would be hesitant to trust Vital Vegas on news like this.

 

I'm torn on this. Roeben is often incredibly reliable, and is very dialed-in to the Vegas scene. On the other hand, I agree completely that "staff" wouldn't know about this, certainly not anyone in a guest-facing position on the floor. And while SVPs might have insight into the situation, they'd have to be an idiot to tell a random guest.

If I had to guess, I'd say that he found out about this from someone senior and is couching this as an "I heard from a guest who was told by a staff member" to insulate everyone.

 

I agree, Vital has been on this story for quite some time and don't think he'd send that tweet unless he was pretty confident. Nothing in the LVRJ yet.

If I had to guess it's the Florida Seminole tribe. Serious Rumors have been floating around that they were close to a deal a few weeks ago.

PS The more interesting thing right now is if Eldorado can takeover CET LOL

 

Well, if that is what Vital Vegas did (i.e. get information from an SVP and posted it as a staffmember), then we should have firm news from regular news outlets within a few days.

That would be one of the few buyers that I would be ok with. Seminole does a good job running casinos and since they sold hard rock, Cosmo makes strategic sense for them if they want to stay in the las vegas market.

Vital Vegas just did a follow up that it is, in fact, Hard Rock (Seminole) that is buying Cosmo.

https://vitalvegas.com/cosmopolitan-sale-to-hard-rock-international/

The EL Dorado buyout of CET is looking more and more likely by the day. They made an offer for $10.50 that was rejected by CET for being too low. If they make an offer at the $11 to $13 range, CET and Carl will jump on it, I think. Unfortunately, I am afraid that it is going to be bad for CET customers

 

Yes, an El Dorado buyout of CET would be not the best of developments. The Hard Rock purchase of Cosmo seems to be an OK deal to me though.

 

That article appears to be from last year?

 

I thought there was a report hard rock was out of running too a while back

 

Oops, my bad. You're right, this is an old article.

 

There was a post today on VV that Alex Merulo bought another casino in Las Vegas today but didn't say which one. He's the owner of Grand Sierra in Reno and bought the SLS. Only news today I could find on him was he was buying an NHL team- the Coyotes. He's got the ability to buy Cosmo. Based on my experiences at Grand Sierra if he does buy Cosmo this is a very good thing for us players.

 

This is purely an unfounded speculation on my part but for some reason what if the Wynn bought out the Cosmo. I say this only because when I was at the Wynn recently they had the identity symbol “keys” (very similar or near identical to the Cosmo) on their room keys and along the elevator banks in the hotel. I know there are many reasons why this wouldn’t make much sense but I thought it would be interesting...

 

110%!! GSR is definitely the biggest and best casino in Reno, with extremely liberal comps...if they integrated with Cosmo, I’d 100% be a fan.