HOUSTON Tilman Fertitta, chairman, president and chief executive of Landry’s Restaurants Inc., is making another bid to take the restaurant and gaming company private through a share purchase and spin off of its Saltgrass Steak House chain subsidiary.
Landry’s board of directors said Wednesday it received a letter from Fertitta on Sept. 4 that proposed the purchase of Landry’s shares not already owned by Fertitta and then an exchange of shares for holdings in a new, separate and publicly traded Saltgrass Inc. Pricing and terms were not disclosed.
Landry’s Saltgrass chain has about 42 locations and generated about $222.0 million in revenue for fiscal year 2008, according to company filings with regulators.
The proposal further noted that Fertitta would be willing to have approval of the transaction based on the affirmative vote of shareholders of Landry’s common stock not owned by him. Fertitta also proposed that as part of the transaction, Landry’s outstanding debt would be refinanced and Saltgrass would hold stand-alone debt “at an appropriate level.”
Fertitta has increased his holding in Landry’s to about 9.6 million shares, or about 56 percent of the company. Houston-based Landry’s current debt totals $930.9 million, as of its latest quarterly report for the three months ended June 30.
The board at Landry’s already had set up a special committee to review strategic alternatives for the company on Aug. 14, and those options now include the new Fertitta plan, as well as other alternatives. The board hired the firm of Moelis & Co. LLC as its financial adviser.
In June of last year, Fertitta offered to take Landry’s private in a deal valued near $1 billion when including debt, but the company scuttled that plan in January. The deal fell through after the Securities and Exchange Commission required financing information from lenders, which the company considered confidential. Landry’s said disclosure of the lending information would imperil refinancing of what at the time was about $400 million in senior debt.
Landry’s 175 restaurants operate under the Rainforest Cafe, Landry’s Seafood House, Charley’s Crab and The Chart House brands, among others. The company also owns the Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas and Laughlin, Nev.
Contact Ron Ruggless at [email protected].
