Billionaire Ron Burkle, who owns the debt and preferred shares of the Ian Schrager-founded Morgans Hotel Group, is battling it out with interim Morgans CEO Jason Taubman Kalisman after having an $870 million offer for his stake in the company rejected.
Last week it was reported that Kalisman wants to quietly refinance the Hudson Hotel in the Columbus Circle area and push Burkle out of the group. Kalisman also intends to sell off the Delano South Beach hotel in Miami and use the sale proceeds to pay off Burkle. Burkle bid $8 a share — roughly $870 million — but Kalisman rejected the offer, sources told the New York Post.
According to the Post, investors are beginning to grumble that Morgans’ new board isn’t serious about selling the company, although it is likely that the firm’s 12 hotels are more valuable than its $766 million enterprise value. [NYP] – Christopher Cameron