Golden Nugget Owner Tilman Fertitta Reportedly Trying To Buy Caesars
Takeover talk causes Caesars shares to soar
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Golden Nugget Casino owner Tilman Fertitta is considering buying Caesars Entertainment in what would be one of the biggest casino buyouts in years, according to a report in the Financial Times.
Fertitta, who owns the Houston Rockets and is currently the U.S. ambassador to Italy, is one of multiple parties who expressed “takeover interest,” the Financial Times reported Thursday. A management buyout was also one of the possible offers.
The talks were described as ongoing, and “far from a foregone conclusion.”
The report dramatically lifted Caesars’ share price. Shares jumped by 19.1% to close at $24.74 Thursday, valuing the business at just over $5 billion and erasing the last month of losses.
Both Caesars and Fertitta declined to comment on the potential deal to the Financial Times.
Caesars made almost $12 billion in revenue in 2025, but also has more than $20 billion in debt, including lease payments.
Caesars reported its fourth-quarter results last week. Revenue edged up to $2.9 billion, with the rise driven by regional casinos, while revenue in Las Vegas declined.
However, CEO Tom Reeg downplayed the idea that there were serious problems with the Las Vegas casino economy.
“If you look back over the history of Caesars in Vegas, this was probably the third or fourth best fourth quarter of all time,” Reeg said. “There’s really no crisis happening in Vegas. It’s normal cyclicality that will play itself out.”
Caesars management had long discussed the possibility of splitting its digital business from its casinos, but during the earnings call, Reeg said that this was no longer a near-term priority, as the plunges in the share prices of FanDuel owner Flutter and DraftKings suggest the Caesars Digital business would trade at a lower valuation than initially hoped.
The Caesars business has had many lives. The current iteration came out of a merger between regional casino operator Eldorado Resorts and the previous Las Vegas-focused Caesars business.
