World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. Chairman Vince McMahon appears in the ring during the WWE Monday Night Raw show at the Thomas & Mack Center August 24, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Vince McMahon plans to sell a substantial chunk of his stake in TKO, the parent company of WWE, the wrestling empire founded by his father, TKO said in a release Thursday
TKO’s stock fell 5% after the closing bell Thursday. The stock closed at $84.90 during regular trading.
McMahon intends to sell 8.4 million of his shares, worth about $700 million. He owned more than 28 million shares as of August, according to a regulatory filing. The company said it and several executives are looking to buy shares from McMahon. The longtime wrestling honcho has a net worth of $2.8 billion, according to Forbes.
The move could be an indication that McMahon, 78, plans to get out of his family business, which has been the dominant player in professional wrestling for about four decades, launching the careers of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, John Cena and many other crossover stars.
Earlier this year, WWE merged with UFC to form TKO, which is majority owned by Endeavor Group, the talent agency and media company run by Ari Emanuel.
McMahon is executive chairman of TKO. In August, WWE said he was served with a federal grand jury subpoena related to allegations that he paid millions of dollars in hush money to women who accused him of sexual misconduct. He said at the time he has “always denied any intentional wrongdoing and continue to do so.”
He also went on medical leave in July after he had spinal surgery.
Endeavor, meanwhile, is exploring strategic alternatives as its market value hasn’t lived up to expectations since it went public in 2021. Endeavor’s biggest shareholder, investment firm Silver Lake, said it could take the company private.
