Sunterra Corp., which operates a portfolio
of nearly 100 vacation-ownership resorts around the world, is being
acquired for $700 million by Diamond Resorts, which intends to take
the company private.
Under the
definitive agreement signed with Sunterra, Diamond Resorts will
acquire the company for $16 a share, a 35% premium over the
Sunterra's closing stock price on March 8.
The acquisition
is expected to be completed by the end of the second
quarter.
Diamond Resorts,
which specializes in developing, marketing and managing
vacation-ownership properties, intends to retain Sunterra's staff
and its headquarters in Las Vegas.
Diamond Resorts
plans to renovate many Sunterra resorts and to develop resorts in
several new markets.
"I am very
interested in Mexico, Central America and Asia," said Stephen
Cloobeck, chairman and CEO of Diamond Resorts.
Diamond Resorts
also plans to develop a brand identity for Sunterra.
In terms of
developing brand identities for vacation-ownership resorts,
Cloobeck said, "Hilton has done a nice job. So have Marriott, Four
Seasons, Hyatt and Disney. We believe the time has come for an
entrepreneurially based private company to do the same."
Diamond Resorts'
portfolio of vacation-ownership properties includes the Jockey Club
and the Carriage House, both in Las Vegas.
Sunterra has more
than 326,000 owner families with more than 96 properties controlled
by or affiliated with the company in the U.S., Canada, the
Caribbean and Europe.
The
vacation-ownership segment is one of the fastest-growing in the
lodging industry. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers, sales of
vacation-ownership properties reached $8 billion in 2004, the most
recent figures available, compared with just a little more than $1
billion in 1994.
To contact reporter Michael Milligan, send e-mail to [email protected].