Penn Entertainment Counters HG Vora's Alleged Unfounded Assertions
Penn Entertainment and HG Vora Escalate Dispute
Penn Entertainment, the gaming giant, has responded to criticisms from HG Vora, an activist investor, over its management and business practices. In a statement released last week, the company called the allegations made in a recent presentation to shareholders as false and unsubstantiated.
HG Vora, who owns approximately 4.8% of Penn Entertainment's outstanding shares, had accused the company of disregarding gaming regulations and seeking to exercise control and influence while ignoring the gaming regulatory regime.
Penn Entertainment, in their statement, acknowledged that they had attempted to reach a good-faith settlement with the investor. However, they noted that they could not meet all of the investor's demands. A key point of contention was HG Vora's desire to nominate multiple individuals to the Board, two of whom were successfully appointed, while a third nominee was rejected.
Regardless, the company believed the matter closed until HG Vora issued another assault against the company's management and the underperformance of the ESPN Bet brand, which replaced the Barstool Sports brand in one of the industry's most peculiar decision-making processes. In 2020, Penn Entertainment agreed to buy Barstool Sports for $551 million but ended up selling it back to its original owner, David Portnoy, for $1, paving the way for ESPN Bet.
In the same stride, HG Vora criticized Penn Entertainment's stock performance and the lavish packages paid to executives, as well as their use of private jets at a time when financial performance could hardly justify it.
In response, Penn Entertainment has rebuked these claims as spurious. In a statement, the company countered the claims made by HG Vora, stating, "Last week, HG Vora issued a 116-page investor presentation full of false claims and mischaracterizations about the Company. Today, we issued an addendum to our May 15, 2025 Fact Sheet to set the record straight on these false mischaracterizations."
The company also accused HG Vora of disregarding gaming regulations while attempting to exercise control and influence over the company. Penn Entertainment argued that while claims of management enriching themselves unfairly or using corporate jets for private matters were "good headlines," they hardly reflected the facts.
The stipulations made by HG Vora were simply not based on fact, according to Penn Entertainment. The ongoing dispute between the two parties revolves around governance, strategy, and allegations of mismanagement, highlighting the challenges of corporate governance and the role of activist investors in shaping company strategies.
- The dispute between Penn Entertainment and HG Vora, an activist investor, revolves around governance, strategy, and allegations of mismanagement, reflecting the challenges of corporate governance and the role of activist investors in shaping company strategies.
- HG Vora, in their criticisms of Penn Entertainment, accused the company of disregarding gaming regulations and seeking to exercise control and influence while ignoring the gaming regulatory regime.
- Penn Entertainment, in response to HG Vora's claims, countered that the investor has disregarded gaming regulations while attempting to exercise control and influence over the company.
