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Shares of sports event marketing company Wanda Sports Group Co Ltd (NASDAQ:WSG) are advancing strongly Thursday after the company announced an agreement to divest its IRONMAN Group.
The Beijing-based company, which IPOed in July, has entered into a stock purchase agreement with privately-owned Advance to sell its IRONMAN Group for an enterprise value of $730 million in cash.
The IRONMAN Group comprises of a portfolio of mass participation sports events, across triathlon, running, trail running, cycling and mountain biking.
Wanda will continue to operate IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 triathlon series, Rock ‘n' Roll Marathon Series and Epic Series off-road mountain bike series races in China under an exclusive license.
Following the sale, Wanda will operate three business segments: Mass Participation, Spectator Sports, and Digital, Production, Sports Solutions. The company expects the net proceeds from the sale to repay debt and to fund dividends or share buy-backs, subject to shareholder approval.
Wanda expects the sale to close in the second quarter of 2020.
"Looking ahead, we will continue to leverage the strengths of our Infront and Wanda Sports China businesses to expand our global sports, media and marketing platform," said CEO Hengming Yang. "We will also benefit from a stronger balance sheet as we execute our strategy and create shareholder value."
Wanda shares were surging up 42.93% to $2.83.
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