Potential WWE Sale Has Multiple Parties Interested
An update on the WWE sale process has led to a CNBC commentator saying that “it’s shaping up to be a pretty good sale process.”
Since the start of 2023, WWE’s Executive Chairman Vince McMahon has made it clear that he wants to sell the company if there’s the right buyer for the right price.
While Vince McMahon is no longer running the company creatively since his July 2022 retirement leading to Paul “Triple H” Levesque taking over, Vince is the majority stockholder and the person that will have a big say if WWE is sold.
In mid-February, it was reported that Vince McMahon wanted to sell World Wrestling Entertainment for about $9 billion, which was a figure that some people might feel is too high.
During today’s episode of CNBC Squawk on the Street, financial analyst David Faber shared what he has heard about WWE’s sale process.
“What I’m hearing, at least from people familiar with the situation is, it’s shaping up to be a pretty good sale process. Some people saying, ‘pretty hot and heavy.’ Those who were even somewhat doubtful, in fact, that you’d get to a sale in the end, seem less so. Does that mean something gets done here? Unclear.”
As he continued, Faber mentioned some potential buyers while adding that we could all take guesses.
“Who is participating? We can all take our various guesses. As reported previously, is there interest from Endeavor, for example, in pursuing what would be a complex transaction in terms of reverse Morris trust where they would spin off UFC into [a new company] and control that company, which would be merged with WWE. Sure, they would like to explore that concept.”
“Is there private equity interest in the part of some? Perhaps in partnership with well-known names in the sport. That’s a possibility. Does Liberty (media) have an interest in taking a look? Sure. The Saudis moved heavily into golf, took a look at Formula 1. Would the [Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund] have interest? Yes, that’s a possibility. There may be others.”
Faber continued by noting that Comcast appears to be out of the sale process.
“Something has led, at least to a number of people close to this, to indicate to me that it is not just live, but it’s going quite well. It is expected to conclude in the not too distant future. A key here though, remains McMahon’s real willingness to sell. Comcast, my understanding, not part of this sale process.”
With WrestleMania 39 set to take place this week in Los Angeles, perhaps the potential buyers will be on hand to check out the festivities.