Breaking News: Miriam Adelson, widow of casino tycoon Sheldon Adelson, is divesting $2 billion of Las Vegas Sands Corp. shares to secure a majority stake in the Dallas Mavericks NBA team, currently owned by Mark Cuban.
Renowned tech billionaire Cuban, 65, will still maintain a stake in the franchise and continue to lead the team, according to the Athletic. The team’s valuation is estimated at $3.5 billion. A formal announcement of the deal is expected soon by insider sources.
The Adelson family has finalized a binding purchase agreement for the basketball team, as per a regulatory filing released on Tuesday. The family plans to utilize the proceeds from the stock sale, along with their existing cash reserves, to complete the acquisition, pending customary league approvals.
Back in 2000, Cuban acquired the Mavericks from H. Ross Perot Jr. for $285 million. Under his guidance, the team has achieved various accolades, including three division titles, two conference championships, and an NBA championship in 2011.
Cuban, familiar to many for his appearance on the ABC show “Shark Tank,” announced his intention to depart after the upcoming 16th season, according to a recent podcast interview.
Representatives for both Sands and the Adelsons, as well as the NBA, declined to comment, while there was no response to requests for comment from Cuban and Mavericks representatives. The sale by Cuban was initially reported by basketball reporter Marc Stein on Substack on Tuesday.
Following her husband’s passing in January 2021, Miriam Adelson, an Israeli-born physician, has taken the helm of the Adelson family. Patrick Dumont, her son-in-law and president of Sands, manages the company’s operations across casinos in Singapore and Macau.
Despite selling the flagship Venetian resort in Las Vegas to Apollo Global Management Inc. last year, the family’s connections to the gambling hub remain strong, being owners of the Las Vegas Review-Journal and maintaining their corporate headquarters there.
As per the most recent proxy statement, Adelson holds over 433 million shares of Sands, representing over 56% of the total outstanding. The shares being sold constitute about 11% of her holdings.
Her net worth is estimated at around $33 billion, as per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
In extended trading, shares of Sands dropped 3.2% to $46.15 initially but were lower as per the term sheet. The shares are being marketed from $43 to $45.25 each, which represents up to a 10% discount to Las Vegas Sands’ share price of $47.66 at Tuesday’s close, as per Bloomberg calculations.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Bank of America Corp. are serving as bookrunners for the stock sale.
–With assistance from Amy Or and Randall Williams.
(Updates with Cuban as seller in first paragraph.)
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