AMC's Former Owner Wanda Group Trims Stake In Theater Chain To 6.8%

AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc AMC shares are moving lower Friday, extending its losses for a fourth straight session.

What Happened: AMC disclosed in an amendment to the 13D filing with the SEC that Wanda America Entertainment now beneficially owns 30,455,290 Class A shares in the company, representing a 6.8% stake.

This represents a further reduction from the 44,042,724 shares Wanda held in February.

In the latest filing, AMC revealed that Wanda sold 1,582,996 shares at a price of $14.43 per share on March 19. The minority owner sold an incremental 12,004.438 shares on March 20 at a price of $13.98 per share.

Related Link: How to Buy AMC (AMC) Stock

Why It's Important: Real estate and entertainment conglomerate Wanda acquired AMC in 2012 for $2.6 billion. It offloaded a 20% stake in the theater chain in an IPO in 2013. Subsequently, Wanda divested a $600 million worth stake to Silver Lake Partners in late 2018 and trimmed its stake further after AMC repurchased some of its shares.

Wanda had cut its stake to less than 30% in the fourth quarter of 2020. The divestment came amid a trying time for AMC, when its revenues fell sharply amid the pandemic, which forced theatre closures.

In March, AMC revealed Wanda's stake had fallen below 10%.

AMC, however, could be on the road to recovery amid theater openings with restrictions.

"AMC is well-positioned to benefit from the industry's projected resurgence and return to pre-pandemic attendance levels by 2023, given that it is the largest exhibitor in North America and the operator of the highest number of premium IMAX screens," B. Riley Securities analyst Eric Wold said in a recent note.

AMC Price Action: At last check on Friday afternoon, AMC shares were down 4.45% at $9.35.

Related Link: GameStop, AMC Selling Shares Is A Good Long-Term Move, Says Cramer

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