Michelle Farsi/Zuffa LLC
Government Chairman Vince McMahon is planning on promoting a major chunk of his stake in TKO Group Holdings, the father or mother firm of WWE following the merger with the UFC earlier this 12 months.
TKO announced in a release on Thursday that McMahon will promote 8.4 million of his shares, that are price practically $700 million. Per CNBC’s Mike Calia, a current regulatory filing confirmed that he owned over 28 million shares as of August. Calia famous that TKO’s inventory fell 5 % after Thursday’s closing bell.
The transfer might be a sign that McMahon is on his manner out of the wrestling enterprise. He isn’t as concerned within the artistic course of for WWE as he as soon as was after the merger with UFC, as TKO is majority-owned by Endeavor Group. It additionally seems like the brand new firm is not too eager on conserving him round.
An SEC filing made by TKO on Tuesday (h/t Ross W. Berman IV of Wrestling Inc.) acknowledged that McMahon’s board membership might result in “adverse publicity and/or produce other hostile monetary and operational impacts.” It went on so as to add McMahon’s presence might topic the corporate to “extra scrutiny or in any other case exacerbate the opposite dangers described herein.”
The submitting referenced final 12 months’s special committee investigation of McMahon after it was revealed that he used firm funds to make hush cash funds to a number of former staff who made allegations of harassment or sexual misconduct. After the revelation, the 78-year-old left WWE for a time earlier than returning in January to facilitate the merger with the UFC.
In August, McMahon was served with a federal grand jury subpoena stemming from the allegations associated to his hush cash funds. He stated on the time that he “at all times denied any intentional wrongdoing and continues to take action.” WWE additionally introduced at the moment that he can be taking medical go away after present process spinal surgical procedure, however made it clear that he’ll stay Government Chairman.
It now seems that McMahon might be on his manner out sooner moderately than later.
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