MGM Resorts International Chairman and CEO Jim Murren sold more than $22 million shares of the company’s stock over two days last week, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The transactions came a little more than a week after Murren, 58, announced he would depart from the positions he held since 2008 before his employment agreement expired at the end of next year. MGM’s board is conducting a search for a replacement.
According to the SEC filing, the eight stock sales between Feb. 19 and Feb. 20 covered 689,000 shares at a price between $32.15 and $32.17. The total value was more than $22.154 million.
A spokeswoman for MGM said the company declined comment. Several gaming analysts also declined comment.
Two days after Murren announced his departure, MGM Resorts, in an SEC filing, said the outgoing CEO would collect $31.9 million in salary, bonuses, stock, severance and monthly consulting fees through the end of 2021.
Murren, who will continue in his positions with MGM Resorts until the casino giant’s board appoints a replacement, will become a “senior advisor” to the company, after Dec. 31, suggesting the company will have a new CEO by the end of the year.
Shares of MGM Resorts, traded on the New York Stock Exchange, closed at $29.69 Monday, down $1.70 or 5.42% on the same day the Dow fell more than 1,000 points.
According to MGM Resorts’ 2019 proxy statement Murren – in salary, bonus and other compensation – earned $12.8 million in 2018, $14.6 million in 2017 and $16.6 million in 2016.
Murren announced his departure prior to the release of MGM Resorts’ fourth quarter earnings. On a conference call with analysts that day, Murren said the dynamics of company had changed greatly and that he would assist in the transition to a new CEO.
“The company has never been in a better position,” Murren said. “When I thought (it) through, how I could best serve MGM going forward, I thought it was pretty clear that a (new) leader should help lead a company into the next decade or two.”
#exclusive – SEC filing: Murren sells 689K shares of MGM Resorts stock for more than $22 million. –@howardstutz, CDC Gaming Reports. https://t.co/byHgpc5VrX @MGMResortsIntl #CDCgaming Check back for updates!
— CDC Gaming Reports (@CDCNewswire) February 24, 2020
A committee of independent MGM board members and an executive search agency will be tasked with selecting Murren’s replacement.
Murren joined MGM in 1998 as chief financial officer and president. He became chief operating officer in 2007. He moved into his current roles following the retirement of the late Terri Lanni.
Murren is credited with spearheading MGM’s growth through construction and acquisition. The company built the $1.2 billion MGM National Harbor in Maryland in 2016 and the $960 million MGM Springfield in Massachusetts in 2018 and acquired casinos in Ohio and New York last year. He also solidified the company’s leadership on the Las Vegas Strip and was “deeply involved” in bringing professional sports teams to the city, as well as building T-Mobile Arena.
“This was not a decision that I made lightly,” Murren said on the conference call. “However, I know the company is well-positioned. Our balance sheet is strong. We have an efficient operating model and a powerful strategic plan.”
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming Reports. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgaming.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
