HG Vora confirms asking Penn Entertainment for seats on board

In a regulatory filing, HG Vora Capital Management disclosed that they hold the economic equivalent of an 18.5% position in Penn Entertainment’s common stock, consisting of beneficial ownership of 14.5M shares of the company’s outstanding common stock and a cash-settled swap agreement representing economic exposure to an additional 13.5M shares of common stock, plus other cash-settled options. “The Reporting Persons have deep experience investing in the casino and online gaming sectors, are long-term shareholders of the Issuer, and believe the Issuer’s Common Stock is significantly undervalued. The Reporting Persons have discussed with the Issuer’s management and its board of directors a range of topics focused on enhancing shareholder value. Given the persistent underperformance of the Common Stock and the Issuer’s capital allocation track record, amongst other areas of concern, the Reporting Persons have requested that the Issuer afford them the right to designate highly qualified directors who would be committed to working with the Issuer’s management and fellow Board members to help the Issuer realize its full potential,” the firm stated in its filing. In pre-market trading, Penn shares are up 52c, or 2%, to $25.53.