Endeavor, the entertainment conglomerate helmed by Hollywood super-agent Ari Emanuel, filed again to go public on Wednesday.
The move is a reprise of the company's plan to IPO in 2019, which it abandoned at the last minute, citing poor performance of other recently-IPO'd firms like Uber, Lyft and Peloton.
This time, the company is entering a market that has reached record highs and seen a flurry of new members to the ranks of public ownership.
Also different this time around is one of the company's managers: Elon Musk, who is listed on the filing as a "Director Nominee."
Endeavor owns just over half of UFC, but it's putting together a $1.8 billion package of private equity funding to purchase the remainder, according to its filing, which is conditional on the IPO coming to fruition.
The company's vast portfolio also includes the talent agency William Morris Endeavor and IMG, which produces and manages sports and live events around the globe.
According to the filing, Endeavor made $3.5 billion in 2020, resulting in a net loss of $625.3 million. That followed a better pre-pandemic 2019, which brought in $4.6 billion in revenue and a net loss of $530.7 million. Twenty percent of Endeavor's 2019 revenue came from its sports holdings (UFC, Professional Bull Riding and Euroleague Basketball); 43% from its events business and 36% from its talent agency.
Endeavor was founded in 1995 exclusively as a talent agency, and then merged with William Morris Agency in 2009. The company acquired IMG in 2014 and its UFC stake in 2016.
The 2019 offering was slated to issue 15 million shares at $27 each for an initial take of about $400 million. For this offering, which is expected to occur later this year, Endeavor still has not priced the IPO.
- Coronavirus Updates: Endeavor May Cut Epic Games; Tinder's New ... ›
- Mega talent agency Endeavor seeks sale of Epic games in bid to ... ›
Here are the latest headlines regarding how the novel coronavirus is impacting the Los Angeles startup and tech communities. Sign up for our newsletter and follow dot.LA on Twitter for the latest updates.
- Mega talent agency Endeavor seeks sale of Epic games in bid to restructure amid COVID-19
- Forget swiping left and right on Tinder to meet a match. The app now wants to take you on a virtual date
Mega talent agency Endeavor seeks sale of Epic games in bid to restructure amid COVID-19
Hollywood appears to be poised for dealmaking as COVID-19 rearranges priorities and business models. Endeavor Group Holdings Inc., the Tinseltown talent agency and owner of Ultimate Fighting Championships, is said to be close to sell off investments as a way to streamline their overall business. Bloomberg News reported that Endeavor, led by Chief Executive Ari Emanuel, is looking into selling part of its stake of Epic Games. The North Carolina-based video game maker is known for its popular Fortnite franchise, and was once valued at about $15 billion.
Endeavor built a sprawling empire of media, sports and entertainment assets predicated on the growing value of live events, according to Bloomberg. It operates the mixed martial arts league UFC and stages hundreds of live events all over the world. The temporary pause on such events in most parts of the world has forced Endeavor to lay off, furlough or cut salary for about one-third of its workforce, and prompted credit ratings to downgrade its debt.
Forget swiping left and right on Tinder to meet a match. The app now wants to take you on a virtual date
Love in the age of pandemic: Tinder wants to match you to your perfect mate, but also facilitate the first date. The West Hollywood-based dating app told shareholders Wednesday it will launch a video chat function later this year to virtually allow users to meet. The app has an estimated 57 million people who log on to the service globally, all of them swiping left and right before being allowed to contact matches.
Match group also owns a number of other dating apps including Hinge and OkCupid. Though, the new video function will only be rolled out on Tinder in late summer. Match reported Tuesday that it saw usage growth spike across all its dating brands during the first quarter, and generated more than $544 million in revenue — a 17% increase year-over-year.