Bally’s Entertainment, owner of Bally’s Kansas City casino, plans to merge with Standard General L.P.
Standard General, the largest Bally’s shareholder, is buying Bally’s outstanding shares at $18.25 per share. As a result of the merger, Bally’s has been valued at $4.6 billion. Standard General will place Bally’s under its The Queen Casino & Entertainment Inc.
The merger is not expected to alter operations at Bally’s Kansas City.
Queen currently operates 4 casinos in 3 states
There are 13 riverboat casinos in the state. Lawmakers have not legalized Missouri online casinos, but online casino play is available to Missourians through sweepstakes and social casinos.
Standard General’s purchase offer on Bally’s remaining shares represents a 71% premium over Bally’s 30-day volume. That’s the weighted average price per share as of March 8.
Jaymin Patel, chairman of the special committee for Bally’s, said the merger makes sense for Bally’s.
“After a detailed consideration … with the assistance of our outside financial and legal advisors, it was determined that the cash consideration from Standard General delivers a meaningful and immediate value to stockholders. We look forward to working with the team at Standard General and QC&E as we move through the process to complete the merger.”
Bally’s CEO Robeson Reeves said the merger will better position the company moving forward.
“With QC&E’s development pipeline recently completed or already well underway, we see a path toward additional revenue and EBITDAR growth and value accretion as those projects are completed in 2025. We look forward to bringing our ultimate vision to bear and to working closely with the Standard General team to execute on that vision.”
Queen Casino & Entertainment has extensive experience with riverboat casino destinations. It operates four casinos in three states:
- Casino Queen in East St. Louis, IL
- Queen Marquette in Marquette, IA
- Queen Baton Rouge and Belle of Baton Rouge in Louisiana
Penn sale to Boyd could impact Missouri casino industry
While the merger between Bally’s and Standard General should not disrupt operations at Bally’s Kansas City, a rumored sale of Penn Entertainment could impact the casino landscape in the Show Me State.
If Boyd Gaming does buy Penn, it would own five casinos in Missouri. State gaming regulators would almost certainly require Boyd to sell off one or more properties before it would sign off on the sale.
Bally’s Kansas City finished a $40 million renovation last fall. The project added 200 new table games and a plethora of new dining options.
