Viad Corp to Transform Into Pure-Play Attractions and Hospitality Leader Through Sale of GES Business to Truelink Capital for $535 Million
Upon Close, Viad to Change Corporate Name to Pursuit, Reflecting Singular Focus on Delivering Unforgettable Experiences in Iconic Destinations
Company to Host Conference Call Today at
The transaction separates GES, a global exhibition services and experiential marketing business, from Viad’s Pursuit attractions and hospitality business. GES and Pursuit will continue to operate under Viad until the transaction closes, allowing management and Truelink to deliver a successful transition of GES to a standalone entity within Truelink’s portfolio. Upon completion of the sale of GES, Viad intends to change its corporate name and relaunch as Pursuit and change its NYSE common stock ticker symbol to PRSU.
“After careful evaluation, and with both businesses performing at very high levels, we believe that now is the right time to separate GES and create a standalone publicly traded Pursuit,” said
Pursuit: Maximizing Value as a Pure-Play Leader
Pursuit is an attractions and hospitality company that owns and operates a collection of inspiring and unforgettable experiences in iconic destinations in
During 2023, Pursuit welcomed 3.5 million visitors across its attractions, its lodging guests occupied nearly 420,000 room nights, and the business delivered revenue of
As a standalone publicly traded company, we believe Pursuit will be able to:
- Better allocate resources and capital to pursue a separate and distinct growth model led by a proven team;
- Leverage the Company’s substantially improved balance sheet to fuel high-return growth opportunities through its proven Refresh, Build, Buy strategy;
- Incorporate vertically integrated lodging and hospitality experiences to drive cross selling and upselling opportunities
- Create irreplicable attractions that drive guest experience, economies of scale and enhanced financial performance
- Simplify the Company’s business to better align with investor preferences and overall market trends; and
- Enhance opportunities for employees as the business continues to expand within existing markets and diversify into new markets.
“Pursuit has carefully created a portfolio of world-class, high-return and irreplicable assets and experiences in the world’s most iconic and sought-after locations,” said
Pursuit: a High-Growth Company Focused on Delivering Unforgettable Experiences in Iconic Destinations
Pursuit has a proven Refresh, Build, Buy strategy, which has meaningfully scaled the business over the last nine years. Since 2015, when
Over the last 10 years, Pursuit has completed 13 major Refresh, Build, Buy growth projects that collectively contributed about
Upon closing of the GES transaction, Pursuit will have a strong balance sheet to execute on its growth strategy. Cash proceeds from the transaction will be used to retire Viad’s 2021 Credit Facility, which comprises a Term Loan B (with
The
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Adjusted EBITDA margin is a financial measure that is not calculated in accordance with
U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”). For a discussion and reconciliation to its most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, please see our earnings press release for the fourth quarter and full year endedDecember 31, 2023 .
Advisors
Conference Call Details
Management will host a conference call to discuss this transaction at
The conference call can be accessed with operator assistance by calling (404) 975-4839 or (833) 470-1428 and entering the access code 814985.
To avoid wait time and bypass speaking with an operator to join the call, participants can pre-register using the following registration link: https://www.netroadshow.com/events/login?show=3c35f5df&confId=72480. After registering, a calendar invitation will be sent that includes dial-in information as well as unique codes for entry into the live call. We recommend that you register in advance to ensure access for the full call.
A live audio webcast of the call will also be available in listen-only mode through the “Investors” section of our website. A replay of the webcast will be available on our website shortly after the call and, for a limited time, by calling (929) 458-6194 or (866) 813-9403 and entering the access code 504967.
Additionally, we posted a supplemental presentation on the “Investors” section of our website that we will refer to during the call that includes commentary regarding 2024 outlook.
About Viad
Viad (NYSE: VVI) is a leading global provider of extraordinary experiences, including attractions, hospitality, exhibition services, and experiential marketing through two businesses: Pursuit and GES. Our business strategy focuses on delivering extraordinary experiences for our teams, clients and guests, and significant and sustainable growth and above-market returns for our shareholders. Viad is an S&P SmallCap 600 company.
Pursuit is an attractions and hospitality company that owns and operates a collection of inspiring and unforgettable experiences in iconic destinations in
GES is a global exhibition services and experiential marketing company offering a comprehensive range of services to the world’s leading event organizers and brands through two reportable segments, GES Exhibitions and Spiro. GES Exhibitions is a global exhibition and trade show management business that partners with leading exhibition and conference organizers as a full-service provider of strategic and logistics solutions to manage the complexity of their shows with teams throughout
For more information, visit www.viad.com.
About
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains a number of forward-looking statements. Words, and variations of words, such as “will,” “can,” “may,” “expect,” “would,” “could,” “might,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “deliver,” “seek,” “aim,” “potential,” “target,” “outlook,” and similar expressions are intended to identify our forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements include those that address activities, events or developments that Viad or its management believes or anticipates may occur in the future, including all statements regarding the expected timing of the closing of the GES transaction, the use of proceeds of the transaction, potential benefits of the transaction, expectations concerning Pursuit’s opportunities and performance as a standalone public company, and the expected Chief Executive Officer transition in connection with the closing of the GES transaction. Similarly, statements that describe our go-forward business strategy, objectives, plans, intentions, or goals also are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts and are subject to a host of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in our forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the following:
- the GES transaction may not be completed on anticipated terms and timing (or at all);
- a condition to closing of the GES transaction may not be satisfied, including the failure to receive any required regulatory approvals from any applicable governmental entities (or any conditions, limitations or restrictions placed on such approvals);
- the anticipated tax treatment of the GES transaction may not be obtained;
- the potential impact of unforeseen liabilities, future capital expenditures, revenues, costs, expenses, earnings, economic performance, indebtedness, financial condition and losses on the future prospects, business and management strategies for the management, expansion and growth of the Company after the consummation of the GES transaction;
- potential litigation relating to the GES transaction that could be instituted against the Company or its directors
- potential adverse reactions or changes to business relationships resulting from the announcement or completion of the GES transaction
- any negative effects of the announcement, pendency or consummation of the GES transaction on the market price of the Company’s common stock and on the Company’s operating results;
- risks associated with third party contracts containing consent and/or other provisions that may be triggered by the GES transaction;
- the risk that disruptions from the GES transaction will harm the Company’s business, including current plans and operations or by diverting management’s attention the Company’s ongoing business operations
- the ability of the Company to retain and hire key personnel and uncertainties arising from leadership changes,
- general economic uncertainty in key global markets and a worsening of global economic conditions;
- travel industry disruptions;
- the impact of our overall level of indebtedness, as well as our financial covenants, on our operational and financial flexibility;
- seasonality of our businesses;
- unanticipated delays and cost overruns of our capital projects, and our ability to achieve established financial and strategic goals for such projects;
- the importance of key members of our account teams to our business relationships;
- our ability to manage our business and continue our growth if we lose any of our key personnel;
- the competitive nature of the industries in which we operate;
- transportation disruptions and increases in transportation costs;
- natural disasters, weather conditions, accidents, and other catastrophic events;
- our exposure to labor cost increases and work stoppages related to unionized employees;
- our ability to successfully integrate and achieve established financial and strategic goals from acquisitions;
- our exposure to cybersecurity attacks and threats;
- our exposure to currency exchange rate fluctuations;
- liabilities relating to prior and discontinued operations;
- sufficiency and cost of insurance coverage; and
- compliance with laws governing the storage, collection, handling, and transfer of personal data and our exposure to legal claims and fines for data breaches or improper handling of such data.
For a more complete discussion of the risks and uncertainties that may affect our business or financial results, please see Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” of our most recent annual report on Form 10-K and our most recent Current Report on Form 10-Q filed with the
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241021630555/en/
Investor Relations
(602) 207-2681
ir@viad.com
Media Relations
Pursuit-CS@collectedstrategies.com
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