Meister Buys 1,504,076 MGM Shares at an Average Price of $29.75
Key Facts
A filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission showed that Keith A. Meister, a director of MGM Resorts International and a 10% owner, reported three purchases of the company’s shares. The largest transaction involved 1,504,076 shares on October 30 at a weighted average price of $29.75 per share. On the same day, he bought 233,998 shares at an average of $28.92, then bought 7,518 shares on November 2 at an average of $30.24. The filing classified all three transactions as open-market purchases. The company filed the form on November 3, for a reporting period beginning October 30.
Actual execution prices for the first transaction ranged from $28.41 to $29.40 per share, according to a footnote attached to the filing. The 1,504,076-share purchase was priced between $29.41 and $29.96. The third transaction was executed at prices ranging from $30.23 to $30.25 per share. These ranges show that the average prices reported for each transaction summarize multiple executions at different price levels. On November 10, MGM shares closed at $33.06, according to EL7 daily data.
The footnotes show that the shares are held for the accounts of private investment funds managed by Corvex Management. Meister acts through the structure as the controlling person of the managing company’s general partner, according to the filing. He disclaimed beneficial ownership of the shares except to the extent of his economic interest in them. After the reported transactions, the form showed indirect beneficial ownership of 7,093,570 shares. The filing therefore describes the ownership structure and Meister’s economic interest, and does not attribute direct ownership of all the shares purchased to him.
The purchases followed MGM’s announcement of third-quarter results on October 28. The company said consolidated revenue was $4.2 billion, down 1% from the same period a year earlier, while adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization fell to $403 million from $506 million. In the Las Vegas segment, revenue was $2 billion, down 2% year over year, and adjusted segment operating income before rent and depreciation fell 12% to $531 million from $601 million. By contrast, MGM China posted record revenue of $1.1 billion, up 5%, and a record quarterly market share of 17.1%.
Chief Executive Bill Hornbuckle said lower room rates affected third-quarter results, but added that October saw “positive improvement,” also citing 5% growth in MGM China revenue. In the same earnings announcement, the chief financial officer said the amended voting agreement established a framework that allows the company to pursue share repurchases. He added that MGM had repurchased nearly half of its outstanding shares over the previous five years. This context provides a view of the company’s results and the repurchase policy announced by management, alongside details of Meister’s purchases. The filing did not specify a date for any subsequent purchases.