Tilman Fertitta
Billionaire owner of the Golden Nugget Casinos Tilman Fertitta wants to make a deal with Caesars Entertainment that values the casino at $13 per share, sources told CNBC Wednesday.
The merger, which was proposed about a week ago, would exchange stock in a private company owned by Fertitta for shares in Caesars, at the same multiple that Caesars currently trades, according to sources. There would then be somewhere between a $2 billion and $3 billion dutch tender to give Caesars shareholders an option to sell, according to people familiar with the deal.
Fertitta's hospitality company Landry's includes the Golden Nugget Casinos, Morton's steakhouses, Mastro's, Bubba Gump Shrimp, Rainforest Cafe and a host of restaurants and hotels. If the deal is approved, Fertitta would put many of his existing restaurants and brands into Caesars locations. Sources told CNBC the transaction would not involve Fertitta's Houston Rockets.
Fertitta would be chairman and CEO and the largest shareholder of the combined company, sources said. The merger would create one of the largest gaming and hospitality companies in the world, and launch Fertitta and Landry's back into the markets again as a public enterprise.
Fertitta and Landry's declined to comment on the details of a potential deal.
Fertitta and his advisors sent a proposal to U.S. casino operator Caesars Entertainment about merging last week, source said. Fertitta's proposal has not been responded to yet and no agreement has been made, sources told CNBC.
The arrangement would be a reverse merger where Caesars is the the acquirer, Reuters reported earlier Wednesday. Caesars shareholders, including private equity firms Apollo Global Management and TPG Global, would remain shareholders in the combined company, according to Reuters.
Shares of Caesars Entertainment jumped more than 14 percent to $10.40 Wednesday. The stock is down more than 16 percent year to date.
Caesars is exploring other acquisitions after emerging from bankruptcy last year, Reuters reported. It is simultaneously exploring an offer for casino company Jack Entertainment, owned by Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert.
— CNBC's Kate Rooney contributed to this report.
