Harrah's Announces $600 Million IPO, New Name

Harrah's Entertainment Inc., the world's biggest casino company, announced that its planned initial public offering to as much as $610.9 million and will change its name to Caesars Entertainment Corp. Bloomberg's Beth Jinks is reporting that "The company plans to sell 31.3 million shares this month, priced at $15 to $17 each, according to a regulatory filing today. The offer includes an option to sell another 4.69 million shares. The stock will trade on the Nasdaq under symbol "CZR."" Harrah's was taken private in early 2008, and is hoping to capitalize on a recent pickup in Las Vegas gambling revenue. "Visitation also increased slightly in certain markets, including Las Vegas, and there are signs consumer spending may be stabilizing," Chief Executive Officer Gary Loveman said today in a separate statement. The company is continuing to cut costs, targeting another $129 million in savings in the fourth quarter, he said. Bloomberg's Jinks notes that "The stock being sold by the company is in addition to $710.3 million of shares registered for sale by John Paulson's Paulson & Co. hedge fund. He agreed in June to acquire almost 10 percent of Las Vegas-based Harrah's by swapping bonds bought at a discount. The resort owner said on Oct. 18 its IPO would raise as much as $575 million for projects in Las Vegas and Ohio." Harrah's has cut more than $4 billion in debt in the past two years, in addition to extending maturities on $5.5 billion in other loans. Leon Black's Apollo Management LP and David Bonderman's TPG Inc. took Harrah's private for $30.7 billion, including debt and transaction costs, in January 2008.