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MGM’s Longtime CEO Murren to Step Down; Virus Weighs on Results
MGM Resorts International’s longtime chairman and chief executive officer, Jim Murren, plans to step before his contract expires. He’ll remain on the job until a successor is named, the company said Wednesday in a statement. He’s held the post since 2008 and has been with MGM since 1998.
Separately, MGM withdrew its earnings forecast for 2020, citing fallout from the deadly coronavirus on its casinos in Macau and Las Vegas.
The company, fresh off the sale of some of its last remaining real estate, said Wednesday the virus has made its outlook “unpredictable.” To placate investors, MGM announced a $3 billion share repurchase, including a $1.25 billion tender offer starting Thursday, and raised its dividend 15%. Like other casino owners in the Chinese enclave of Macau, MGM Resorts shut its operations there this month under a government order. That’s led to a loss of business – all while the company has to keep paying staff and maintaining its properties. Last year, MGM got about 27% of its revenue from Macau, the largest gambling market in the world.
Even before the coronavirus hit, business in Macau was already hurting because of the political unrest in Hong Kong and trade tensions between the U.S. and China. Gaming revenue in the region fell 8.4% industrywide in the final three months of 2019.
Las Vegas, where MGM is the biggest operator, is also taking a hit from coronavirus – as fewer Asian baccarat players travel to the U.S., the company said. MGM had previously forecast as much as $3.9 billion in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization for 2020.
The Chinese government closed Macau’s casinos for a 15-day period that began Feb. 5, although Matt Maddox, chief executive officer of rival Wynn Resorts Ltd., told investors last week there’s no certainty as to when they will reopen. Wynn said it is losing about $2.5 million a day in Macau. MGM Resorts has been implementing an “asset light” strategy, by selling its real estate while continuing to operate the resorts. Previously announced transactions are expected to bring in net cash proceeds of $8.2 billion, including the still-to-close sale of the MGM Grand hotel in Las Vegas.
Earnings for the fourth quarter of 2019, excluding some items, totaled 8 cents a share, missing the 25-cent average of analysts’ estimates. The company cited weaker than expected results in Macau and the related softness in Las Vegas. Revenue, at $3.2 billion, met projections.
MGM shares rose 2.9% to $33.66 at the close in New York before the results were announced. They were up 1.2% this year.
https://www.bloomberg.com//news/articles/2020-02-12/mgm-s-longtime-ceo-murren-to-step-down-virus-weighs-on-results
Papa John's former CEO and 10% owner sold: $63.24m-Feb 10
'Papa' John Schnatter speaks out about ousting, taste-tests current Papa John’s pizzas on podcast
Schnatter, the founder and former CEO of Papa John’s, appeared on a recent episode of the H3 Podcast to discuss his ousting from the company, but he also touched on his future plans, and shared his thoughts on the current state of Papa John’s pizza in the wake of his departure. Schnatter resigned as chairman of the company in July 2018, following backlash over his use of a racial slur during a conference call with company executives and a marketing firm known as Laundry Service.
In later interviews, Schnatter claimed he had only used the slur to demonstrate his opposition to racism, a sentiment he reiterated on Monday’s episode of the H3 Podcast. “I was pretty sure of what I said, and I know my heart, I know how I feel about this issue,” Schnatter told H3 hosts Ethan and Hila Klein, explaining that he even felt confident that, when the tapes came out, people would understand the context in which he used the word.
“I said, ‘Colonel Sanders used the N-word, I had never used that word,’” Schnatter claimed. He did, however, clarify that he uttered the actual word when alleging Colonel Sanders’ use of the slur.
“There’s no tolerance for [racism] in my family and my upbringing,” Schnatter added. He also suggested that he was prodded into using the racial slur during the conference call, which had been set up for training purposes following comments he made concerning the NFL’s kneeling controversy. (In Nov. 2017, Schnatter publically blamed Papa John’s struggling third-quarter sales through football season on the NFL’s handling of players' national anthem protests. At the time, the Louisville-based chain was the official pizza sponsor of the football league.)
“I think they were trying to agitate me,” Schnatter said of the Laundry Service executives. “They kept pushing and pushing.”
As for who wanted him gone, Schnatter said he believes the board of Papa John’s may have wanted to assume control to pursue their own self-interests. However, Schnatter stopped just short of calling the alleged machinations a “conspiracy” when asked by the hosts.
In the meantime, he says, no one is benefitting from his ousting.
rest at link
https://www.foxnews.com/food-drink/papa-john-schnatter-speaks-ousting-taste-tests-pizza-podcast
https://www.finviz.com/insidertrading.ashx?oc=909501&tc=7&b=2
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