At Wrestlemania 40 this past weekend, WWE chief content officer Paul Triple H Levesque announced the dawn of a new era for the company at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. This marked the first Wrestlemania held under the ownership of TKO Group Holdings, a result of Endeavor's merger of its UFC business with WWE last year. Notably, this event was the first in WWE history without Vince McMahon overseeing operations, as he departed the company in January amidst legal challenges.
Following McMahon's exit, TKO and Endeavor revealed that McMahon is divesting $311.2 million worth of stock in the company. This includes selling $165 million of stock to TKO in a repurchase plan and $146.2 million to WME IMG Inc., Endeavor's subsidiary holding a majority stake in TKO. The transactions, priced at $89.01 per share, are set to conclude this week, resulting in a slight increase in Endeavor's ownership.
McMahon had previously initiated stock sales, with a filing last year indicating his intent to sell $700 million in shares. In that instance, TKO repurchased approximately $100 million of the stock. Other key figures within TKO, such as CEO Ari Emanuel and president/COO Mark Shapiro, also acquired shares during this period.
Under TKO's leadership, Triple H has assumed creative control, and the company has welcomed Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson as a board member. The Rock notably participated in the main event of night one at Wrestlemania 40, teaming with Roman Reigns to defeat Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins.
