Endeavor pushes back timeline to go public pending $700 million acquisition

Endeavor — the parent company of the UFC — is going public but plans for an initial public offering (IPO) will be pushed back until at least September if not later.

According to a new report from Deadline, Endeavor has opted to push back plans for the IPO until after acquiring another company to add to their portfolio.

Endeavor is looking to add On Location, a live events and hospitality company, to its growing list of businesses before officially launching the IPO later this year. The move will further diversify Endeavor’s holdings, which in turn should make the IPO more enticing to potential investors.

The acquisition will reportedly cost around $700 million but the time to add the company to Endeavor’s holdings, along with a second quarter earnings report, could boost the upcoming IPO.

As of now, Endeavor isn’t expected to officially go public with the IPO until at least September if not a later date during the latter part of 2019. Initially it was reported that Endeavor would go public this summer.

In addition to serving as the primary shareholders of the UFC, Endeavor also owns the Professional Bull Riders, the Miss America pageant and one of the largest talent agencies in Hollywood representing actors, writers, musicians and authors.

The upcoming IPO is expected to pull in hundreds of millions of dollars for Endeavor with a large chunk off that funding going to pay down a current debt sheet that exceeds $3.1 billion.

The expectations of Endeavor’s evaluation with the upcoming IPO has been questioned in part because of an ongoing battle between Hollywood agencies at the Writers Guild of America that has resulted in numerous lawsuits being filed.

There have also been questions about the volatility of the UFC due to the ebb and flow of superstars who draw in the biggest money for the company. That said, the UFC inking a multi-year broadcast deal with ESPN including pay-per-views moving over to the Disney owned company only helps the mixed martial arts promotion’s bottom line while serving as a key asset in Endeavor’s portfolio.