‘Grand Ole Opry’ Owner Sells Minority Stake to Atairos and NBCUniversal for Nearly $300 Million
05.04.2022 - 01:27
/ variety.com
Cynthia Littleton Business EditorRyman Hospitality Properties, the Nashville-based parent company of the Grand Ole Opry, has struck a deal to sell a 30% stake in its entertainment operations to investment firm Atairos and NBCUniversal.The transaction values Ryman Hospitality’s Opry Entertainment Group unit at about $1.4 billion in total. Atairos and NBCUniversal will invest approximately $293 million in Opry Entertainment Group (OEG), which consists of the weekly “Grand Ole Opry” stage show and media rights, Nashville’s famed Ryman Auditorium, the legendary Nashville radio station WSM-AM and a 50% stake in TV channel Circle, the streaming home of “Grand Ole Opry.” The pact calls for Atairos to invest another $30 million in OEG down the road if certain performance targets are met.
The deal amounts to a sky-high valuation of 17 to 18 times OEG’s projected 2022 adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, appreciation and amortization of $80 million-$88 million. And that is a sign of the feverish M&A marketplace for sui generis IP assets.
From its debut in 1925 on WSM, “Grand Ole Opry’s” role in establishing country music as an American art form cannot be overstated. OEG’s vault includes 11,000 hours of “Grand Ole Opry” content, among other shows that adhere to what Ryman executives call the “country lifestyle” audience.Circle launched in 2020 as a joint venture with Atlanta-based Gray Television.
The channel has broad national distribution as a digital multicast network and as an ad-supporting streaming channel carried by Peacock, Roku and Samsung TV Plus, among others. It’s also carried as a traditional cable channel carried by select MVPDs.The agreement with Atairos, which is headed by former Comcast chief financial
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