LAS VEGAS (AP) — The president and CEO of Caesars Entertainment Corp. will step down next year, the casino giant said Thursday.
The announcement came just before Caesars reported third-quarter net income of $110 million, after posting a loss in the same period a year earlier.
The Las Vegas-based company said Mark Frissora, who joined the company in 2015 and guided it through bankruptcy reorganization, will remain on the job until Feb. 8.
"I'm very grateful to the entire team for their efforts and proud of what we've accomplished together and very optimistic about our company's future," Frissora said during the company's earnings call with investors. He said his "plan is to remain focused on operating discipline and maintaining stability during the transition."
The company said a search firm will be enlisted to find a replacement for Frissora, 62, who previously served as CEO of car rental company Hertz.
On a per-share basis, the Las Vegas-based company said it had net income of 14 cents. Losses, adjusted for non-recurring gains and pretax gains, were 3 cents per share. That matched Wall Street expectations, according to Zacks Investment Research.
The casino operator posted revenue of $2.19 billion in the third period, also meeting Street forecasts.
The company also confirmed Thursday that it had received a proposal from casino operator Golden Nugget LLC, owned by Houston billionaire Tilman Fertitta. The proposal called for Caesars to "acquire substantially all of Golden Nugget's restaurant, hospitality, entertainment and gaming businesses in exchange for a significant minority of Caesars' common shares."
Caesars said its board rejected the proposal, but "continues to be open to reasonable alternatives to enhance long-term shareholder value."
Caesars's stock was up about 9 percent in after-hours trading following the earnings report. It closed regular trading down 30 percent since the beginning of the year.
