Ken Griffin’s Citadel boosts stake in James Dolan’s Sphere weeks after Steve Cohen’s investment
Ken Griffin’s Citadel has boosted its stake in James Dolan’s Sphere Entertainment just weeks after another hedge fund titan, Mets owner Steve Cohen, revealed that he invested in the company.
Citadel Advisors upped its stake in the company that owns the revolutionary Las Vegas concert venue to 5.3% from 1.6%, according to SEC filings released on Monday.
Since April 1, Citadel has bought up 900,000 additional shares of the publicly-traded company — bringing its total to around 1.5 million shares.
Sphere shares ticked down less than 1% Thursday, trading at $43.45.
Last month, Cohen’s Point72 Asset Management disclosed a 5.5% stake in Sphere Entertainment.
The Dolan family, which owns 8.5 million shares of Sphere Entertainment, has voting control of the company.
Citadel and Sphere Entertainment both declined to comment.
Earlier this month, The Post revealed that negotiations over a residency agreement between Sphere and pop superstar Beyoncé broke down.
The sticking point turned out to be Beyoncé’s demand for the Sphere to go dark for two weeks so that she can rehearse, sources close to the situation said.
The $2.3 billion venue, which has generated buzz over its immersive shows and concerts, opened a year ago to great fanfare.
U2, the legendary Irish rock band, played 40 shows to christen the venue.
The Sphere currently has Dead & Company booked for the summer before the Eagles begin a residency in September that runs through the end of the year.
During its most recent quarter, Sphere Entertainment generated $321.3 million in total revenue.
Shares of Sphere were trading flat on Thursday — though the stock is up by around 30% since Jan. 1.
Dolan, the son of Cablevision founder Charles Dolan, recently signed three-year contract extensions to continue in his role as executive chairman of Sphere, MSG Sports and MSG Entertainment.
MSG Sports is the holding company whose properties include the NBA’s New York Knicks and the NHL’s New York Rangers.
MSG Entertainment is the subsidiary that oversees the teams’ home arena, Madison Square Garden, as well as Radio City Music Hall and Beacon Theatre.
Additional Reporting by Josh Kosman
