The Crown Resorts Ltd (ASX: CWN) share price is everywhere today. The wild movement comes as the casino operator provided an update on the Blackstone takeover bid.
At the time of writing, shares in the company are trading at $12.10 – up 0.08%. However, Crown shares opened 0.74% lower at $12.00, before briefly rising to $12.13. The Crown share price closed yesterday at $12.09.
By comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is up 0.09% so far today.
Let's take a closer look at today's announcement.
What's going on with the Crown share price?
The Crown share price is all over the show during Tuesday's session. In a statement to the ASX, Crown says Blackstone has updated the conditions under which it will buy 100% of Crown Resorts.
On top of the already stated conditions, Blackstone now wishes for the following to occur:
- Blackstone to receive approval from all relevant state and territory governments to takeover Crown.
- Crown's Victorian or West Australian gaming licenses to still be valid, and not under threat of being cancelled. As well, New South Wales must grant Crown a gaming licence or not threaten to withhold it.
- Any of the mentioned licenses not having, or soon to have, terms or conditions that will have a material impact on the financial position of operations.
- That the Royal Commissions into Crown, which are occurring in Victoria or WA, do not recommend either of points 2 or 3.
Additionally, Crown says Blackstone will not be relying on debt financing to complete the takeover.
Background to Crown's woes
The NSW Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority (ILGA) found Crown unsuitable to hold a gaming license in the state earlier this year. This was swiftly followed by a slew of resignations, including the CEO and several directors, and then the aforementioned Royal Commissions into Crown's operations in two states.
According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), the WA royal commission will examine gaming regulations in the state – not just Crown's operations on the west coast.
Crown share price snapshot
The Crown share price is up by more than 45% over the past 12 months. However, the company's value has been aided by two important factors. First, one year ago was the midst of the COVID-19 financial collapse, which hit hospitality especially hard. Second, the crown share price shot up 18% when Blackstone submitted its bid to buy out shareholders.
Crown has a market capitalisation of around $8.2 billion.
