Blackstone to sell Cosmopolitan hotel, casino for $5.65B (updated)

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• Blackstone (NYSE:BX) confirms an agreement to sell the Cosmopolitan casino and hotel on the Las Vegas Strip for $5.65B, a deal that makes it the firm's most profitable single asset ever, according to the Wall Street Journal that reported the deal earlier this morning.
• The private equity firm bought the property for ~$1.8B seven years ago and paid an additional $500M on upgrades, renovating the almost 3,000 guest rooms and adding new restaurants and bars.
• Its total profits after the sale come to ~$4.1B, including cash flow from the casino and hotel's operations, Blackstone (BX) told investors in a letter reviewed by the WSJ.
• Under the transaction, Blackstone (BX) is selling the hotel and casino operations to MGM Resorts International (NYSE:MGM) for ~$1.6B. A partnership, including a Blackstone real estate investment trust, will acquire the underlying real estate for ~$4B, the letter said.
• The property acquisition group also includes Stonepeak Partners, an infrastructure-focused investment firm, and the Cherng Family Trust, a Las Vegas-based family office for the founders of the Panda Restaurant Group.
• The transaction is expected to close in early 2022.
• The hotel was almost 87% occupied for the month of September through Friday, the WSJ reported, with average daily room rates at $448, according to Blackstone.
• MGM shares slip 0.3% in premarket trading.
• Blackstone (BX) bought the Cosmopolitan from Deutsche Bank in 2014.
• Early this month, the private equity firm was said to be exploring the sale of the hotel and casino for more than $5B.