until September at the earliest, giving it time to close a $700 million acquisition and post second-quarter results, according to a person familiar with the situation.
The company had previously estimated the offering would happen in the second half of 2019, though some recent press reports indicated a goal of going public in the summer. August, however, is not historically an ideal month to galvanize investor interest, so thus the updated forecast., Professional Bull Riders and streaming technology company NeuLion in recent years, Endeavor is closing in on the pickup of On Location Experiences.
While the company has not yet priced the offering, it is likely to seek to raise $500 million, with a valuation of $7 billion to $8 billion, the source indicated.Waiting to stage an IPO is not a risk-free move. For now, the markets have presented favorable conditions, but the climate can certainly change, especially with many macroeconomic factors in flux, among them U.S.-China trade relations and Federal Reserve interest rate policy.
Endeavor has faced criticism by the Writers Guild and other Hollywood factions for its intended effort to exploit investor interest in its business, which the WGA and other critics say is increasingly founded on conflict of interest. At issue is the company’s increasing production capacity, which can mean Endeavor could in some cases be negotiating against itself, in effect.