One of the top gainers in Monday intraday trading is Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc (NYSE:PNK). The stock of the casino operator spiked by 20% at the beginning of the day and is currently trading about 14% in the green. The jump of the price comes on the back of an announcement made by the Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc (NASDAQ:GLPI) real estate income trust (REIT), according to which, it offered to acquire the real estate assets owned by Pinnacle Entertainment in a deal worth $4.1 billion. The deal will most benefit one particular investor, Parag Vora of HG Vora Capital Management. Mr. Vora has been bullish on Pinnacle for quite some time, being the largest shareholder among institutional investors at the end of 2014. Moreover, his stake is the largest position in the fund’s equity portfolio as of the end of 2014.
In November 2014, Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc (NYSE:PNK), after pressure from some investors, agreed to pursue a tax-free spin-off of its real estate into a separate publicly traded REIT. In the event the transaction with Gaming and Leisure Properties passes through, it would lead to the creation of the third-largest triple-net REIT by enterprise value. The shareholders of Pinnacle would receive $36 per share, which represents a 30% premium over Pinnacle’s closing price last Friday. At the end of December, Mr. Vora held 5.50 million shares of the company, valued at around $122.38 million. At the price offered by Gaming and Leisure Properties, the investor’s position is valued at $198 million, which represents an impressive return on his investment, especially if we take into account that this value involves only the real estate assets of Pinnacle.
However, it is important to mention that Mr. Vora was not betting on Pinnacle as a future M&A target. In an interview around a month ago, Mr. Vora said that he liked Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc (NYSE:PNK) because it could reach a free cash flow of $5.00 per share in the next five years and because the company made a successful acquisition of Ameristar Casinos in 2013, paying $2.8 billion financed with low-cost debt. In addition, the investor said that he expected the stock to reach $50 per share within the next four years. If Mr. Vora has not changed his mind about the company since the interview in late January, the big question is whether he would be satisfied with a smaller payoff that involves a lower risk and a shorter period of time, or he would like to stick with Pinnacle for the long-term.
Another investor that would probably support the deal is Daniel Lewis of Orange Capital. Orange owned 2.58 million shares of Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc (NYSE:PNK) as of the end of 2014 and last April, Mr. Lewis urged the company to consider a spin-off of its real estate into an independent publicly traded real estate investment trust. In addition, Joshua Friedman and Mitchell Julis’ Canyon Capital Advisors upped its stake by 32% during the fourth quarter to 2.77 million shares.
