Business
Dave & Buster’s Announces Acquisition of Main Event for $835 Million; Chris Morris to become CEO of Combined Entity Upon Closing
DALLAS, April 06, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc., (NASDAQ:PLAY), ("Dave & Buster's" or "the Company"), an owner and operator of
About this update from Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"DALLAS, April 06, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc., (NASDAQ:PLAY), (\"Dave & Buster's\" or \"the Company\"), an owner and operator of entertainment and dining venues, today announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Main Event from Ardent Leisure Group Limited (ASX:ALG) (“Ardent Leisure”) and RedBird Capital Partners (“RedBird”). Upon closing, Chris Morris, the current CEO of Main Event will be named CEO of Dave & Buster’s. Main Event is a family entertainment concept with 50 locations in the U.S, including three recently acquired The Summit locations in Colorado. The all-cash transaction, which was unanimously approved by both Boards of Directors, represents a total enterprise value of $835 million. The transaction is expected to close later this year, but specific timing for closing is subject to customary closing conditions, including approval by Ardent Leisure stockholders and regulatory review. The purchase price represents an unsynergized valuation multiple of approximately 9x Main Event’s 12-month Adjusted EBITDA as of December 31, 2021 and the Company expects that upon the closing of the transaction there will be approximately $20 million of synergies to be achieved within the first two years from store support center consolidation and supply-chain efficiencies. The Company expects the acquisition to be accretive both from an earnings and growth perspective. Dave & Buster’s expects to utilize cash on hand and proceeds from committed bank financing to fund the acquisition. Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. and BMO Capital Markets Corp. are the joint lead arrangers and joint bookrunners for the committed financing. “We are thrilled to welcome Main Event to the Dave & Buster’s family,” said Kevin Sheehan, Board Chair and Interim Chief Executive Officer. “This is a transformational combination for both brands. From a strategic fit perspective, Main Event’s business model, footprint and asset quality aligns well with Dave & Buster’s. Main Event targets a different demographic, families with younger children, while Dave & Buster’s has primarily targeted young adults. While each brand will continue to operate independently, ownership of both brands enables us to expand the breadth of customers we serve together, while also enabling each brand to better different...