William Hill outlines Caesars takeover timetable
London-listed operator confirms intended completion date of H2 2021 ahead of November shareholder vote
William Hill has said the intended completion of its $3.7bn mega-merger with Caesars Entertainment will take place no later than the second half of 2021.
A timetable for completion of the multi-billion-pound deal was released October 26, despite it still being subject to approval from Hills shareholders.
“The scheme is expected to become effective in the second half of 2021 and an update to the expected timetable will be announced following receipt of relevant antitrust and regulatory approvals,” Hills stated.
However, shareholders will vote on whether to accept the Caesars deal at an AGM at the operator’s London headquarters on 19 November.
As a gesture of endorsement of the Caesars bid, Hills directors have already committed to irrevocably voting in favour of the deal, despite it not yet being accepted at wider shareholder level.
However, some analysts have suggested shareholders could be reluctant to accept the offer – tabled at 272p ($3.45) per share – because it undervalues the business.
“The William Hill directors consider that the terms of the acquisition are in the best interests of the William Hill shareholders as a whole,” Hills said.
Under the terms of the scheme document, a scheme court hearing will take place no later than 14 days after regulatory approvals are received.
Given the size of the merger, it is likely that the CMA (Competitions and Markets Authority) will launch an investigation into the deal under UK competition law, with a similar anti-trust investigation likely to be undertaken by the US-based Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as required by US law.
Dealing in William Hill shares will be allowed until one day after the scheme court hearing date, with Hills shares being disabled from the CREST dealing system at 6pm of the same day.
The scheme itself will become effective two days after the scheme court hearing takes place, with Hills shares being delisted from the London Stock Exchange a day later.
The intended long-stop date, or the date by which the scheme must become effective has been confirmed as 31 December 2021. However this can be extended should both parties agree.
In its Q3 financial results, William Hill reported a 9% year-on-year decline in net group revenue, despite single-digit growth (4%) in its online segment.
However, revenue from the group’s US operations – the key area of interest for Caesars – rose 10% during Q3.
Elsewhere, the two parties have signed the first NFL sponsorship deal of their partnership, securing a contract with the Indianapolis Colts.
As part of the deal, Caesars will offer members of its loyalty programme and exclusive free-to-play predictor game called “Pick 6 Predictor.”
The offering will generate a series of prediction questions ahead of upcoming games. Users will have the chance to win a trip to Las Vegas and stay at Caesars Entertainment.