It was announced late last week that Diamond Resorts — which owns four properties in the Sedona area — was sold for $2.2 billion cash to Apollo Global Management LLC.
On Friday, July 29, officials from both companies released a joint press release expressing their satisfaction that a purchase agreement could be met.
“We have built a solid business focused on operational excellence, hospitality and customer satisfaction, the result of which has been stellar financial results and strong cash generation,” Diamond Resorts CEO David Palmer said. “This transaction is an excellent outcome for our shareholders.
“Apollo values the culture of hospitality and customer service that is the legacy of our founder and Chairman Stephen J. Cloobeck and instilled in our organization. We are confident that Diamond Resorts will continue to be a vibrant company for our employees, partners and customers, and I am excited about the future of Diamond Resorts.”
In the Sedona area, Diamond Resorts owns Los Abrigados, The Ridge at Sedona Golf Resort, Sedona Summit and Bell Rock Inn. In all, Diamond Resorts owns 420 properties around the world.
“We are tremendously excited about the opportunity for our funds to acquire Diamond Resorts,” said David Sambur, a partner of the New York-based Apollo. “Stephen, David, the management team and Diamond’s more than 8,000 team members have built an amazing customer-centric business with a great reputation that delivers award-winning hospitality experiences at great value. We look forward to bringing Apollo’s resources to bear and working with the Diamond Resorts team to continue to grow and enhance their business.”
The all-cash offer represents a premium of approximately 26 percent over Diamond Resorts’ closing share price on June 28 and a premium of approximately 58 percent over the closing share price on Feb. 24, the day of Diamond Resorts’ announcement that it was exploring strategic alternatives.
The transaction is expected to close over the next few months, the release said. If completed, the transaction will result in Apollo becoming a privately-held company, and Diamond Resorts’ common shares will no longer be listed on any public market.
It was a busy week for Apollo. On June 25, the company announced its purchase of the DVD kiosk rental chain Redbox for $1.6 billion.
