Fortress Makes Black Diamond Run

All in all, Thursday turned out a lot better than it might have for listed hedge fund-private equity shop Fortress Investment Group (FIG). It dodged a $1.7 billion debt mogul at its Intrawest “experiential destination resorts” unit which was, by all accounts, headed for a bankruptcy filing before the last recalcitrant creditors were whipped into line.

“We are very pleased to have reached an agreement with our lenders, particularly given the challenges of the global credit markets,” said Bill Jensen, chief executive officer at Intrawest. “The support Fortress and our lenders have shown underscores their confidence in Intrawest...”  blah blah blah.

Despite the ski save, life as a public company continues to be an unhappy experiential destination for Fortress. The stock got clipped for another nickel Thursday, closing at $3.85, near enough to 90 percent off that $37.00 print on its IPO back in the experiential daze of Feb. 2007. Mind you, any company that tosses round phrases like  “experiential destination resorts” and similar faux-English b-school jargonistas is fair valued at about $1.25. 

Intrawest completes refinancing
Intrawest press release Oct. 23 2008

Hedge Hits A Slope Fortress' Last Resort
By Mark DeCambre And Kaja Whitehouse
The New York Post Oct. 23 2008

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