Chapter 374 Acquisition of Hilton Hotels Shares

Nick Hilton was found hanging out with friends in a bar. When he heard his father's urgent call, he immediately drove back.

Nick felt uneasy seeing his father Conrad Hilton's expression, as he didn't seem to have gotten into any trouble recently.

"Why the hell did you mess with Elizabeth Taylor?" Conrad Hilton yelled at his son.

"I, that Elizabeth Taylor is just a small actress. Besides, I didn't do anything." Nick Hilton said in confusion.

"Little actor, you know whose woman she is, so you just flirt with her. She is Jon Hardy's woman. You must know Jon Hardy."

Nick was surprised when he heard Hardy's name.

He naturally knew who Jon Hardy was. In their second-generation circle, Hardy's name was often mentioned.

Moreover, as people with backgrounds, they know more than ordinary people. They know that Hardy comes from the underworld and even now, he controls the largest gang in Los Angeles. The American Mafia is rampant in the United States and no one dares to provoke it, but they dare not provoke Hardy.

The incident of HD security using fighter jets to shoot down gangsters some time ago is still one of the topics they talk about.

Who in America dares to do this?

Hardy dared to do it, and nothing happened afterwards. The gang had already been destroyed and became history.

Elizabeth Taylor is Jon Hardy's woman.

Mom, I didn’t hear that.

Nick Hilton's face turned pale, and his voice trembled as he said, "Father, I really didn't know that Taylor was Jon Hardy's woman. I was just pursuing her and gave her flowers a few times, but I didn't do anything else."

Conrad Hilton gave his son a cold look and said, "Fortunately you didn't do anything else, otherwise it would not be a warning, but a corpse on the street."

"I just received a call from Andy, the president of the Hardy Group, who warned me that if I dare to provoke Taylor again, the Hardy Group will go to war with the Hilton family. Do you understand what a full-scale war means? With the connections between the Hardy Group and Hardy, as well as the power that can be mobilized, the only outcome for the Hilton family is destruction."

Conrad Hilton Sr. roared at his son.

Nick Hilton lowered his head, knowing that he was in real trouble this time.

"You bastard, I really want to deprive you of your status as heir and tell you to get as far away from me as possible." Old Conrad Hilton cursed angrily.

Nick Hilton was terrified when he heard this. His only support and greatest hope in life was the Hilton family's property. If his inheritance rights were deprived, he would immediately become a pauper. What would be the meaning of life?

"Father, please don't. I know I was wrong. I will never cause trouble again." Nick Hilton begged.

Old Conrad Hilton waved his hands, "Fortunately, it's not the worst yet. The other party is just warning you. From now on, you must never appear in front of Elizabeth Taylor. Even if you see her by accident, you must stay away from her."

Conrad Hilton Sr. said sternly.

"Okay, I promise."

Nick thought to himself, if I had known that she was Hardy's woman, I would not have dared to offend her.

"Also, you've caused trouble this time. The Hilton family must do something to ease the relationship. I'll talk to Hardy later."

"As for you, you must leave the United States. Hilton Hotels is planning to build a new hotel in Milan, Italy. You go to Milan. Don't let me see you before the hotel opens. This is also a test for you. If you don't do well, I will still consider your status as heir." said old Conrad Hilton.

"Okay, father." Nick Hilton responded quickly.

the next day.

Nick Hilton boarded the plane to Milan.

After Nick Hilton left, old Conrad Hilton contacted Andy: "Mr. Andy, I apologize for what happened before. I have strictly ordered Nick not to mess with Miss Taylor in the future and sent him to a construction site in Italy."

"Mr. Andy, I hope to meet Mr. Hardy and explain this matter to him in person and apologize. Also, maybe there is room for cooperation between our two companies, such as in the hotel industry."

Andy conveyed Conrad Hilton's intention to Hardy, who said, "Then arrange a meeting for him."

The two met in Las Vegas, where the opening times of the two major casinos were very close. Hardy had been staying here these days, and Monroe, Taylor, Ava and other women were also there, rehearsing for the performance.

Now they all live in Hardy's estate in Las Vegas.

When old Conrad Hilton came to visit Hardy Manor, he saw three women accompanying Hardy. The old man recognized them at a glance: Ava Gardner, the most famous movie star and singer in Hollywood, known as the sex goddess of the generation; Marilyn Monroe, the new sex goddess in Hollywood, whose sexiness is unmatched; and Elizabeth Taylor, a well-known Hollywood actress.

These three women are obviously all Hardy's women.

This time, the person his son provoked was one of Hardy's women. It must be said that Hardy was really a romantic man.

I own three of them, and anyone who wants to get their hands on one of them will be beaten or killed.

Too domineering.

Hardy came over and shook hands with Conrad Hilton Sr., smiling. "Andy said Hilton asked me if there was any area where we could cooperate?"

Hardy didn't talk about his son.

Because he was just an insignificant person, Hardy just wanted him to stay away from Taylor. He just gave Taylor a few bouquets of flowers and didn't kill him directly.

Hardy is a very reasonable man.

"Mr. Hardy, I think Las Vegas will have a bright future. Hilton Hotels plans to build a hotel here. Of course, it would be even better if a casino could be opened here." Old Conrad Hilton said with a smile.

Hardy smiled faintly, "There are many people who want to open casinos in Las Vegas, but it's not enough to just have money."

Old Conrad Hilton naturally knew that Hardy would never let anyone get involved in such a lucrative business.

"My idea is to work with Mr. Hardy, with Mr. Hardy as the leader," said Conrad Hilton Sr.

Hardy paused.

“Hadi Group had thought about entering the hotel industry before, but due to busy other businesses, it has not yet involved in this area.”

"I think it's okay for you to seek cooperation, but it's not just hotels in Las Vegas. Hardy Group hopes to acquire shares in Hilton Hotels, so that we can become true partners," Hardy said.

"How many shares does Mr. Hardy want?" asked old Conrad Hilton hesitantly.

It's not that he can't sell the shares, but he hopes to remain a major shareholder. If the Hardy Group becomes dominant, the Hilton family will become just wage earners.

"30%. Any less would be meaningless," said Hardy.

This number still shocked Conrad Hilton Sr., "Mr. Hardy, even the Hilton family only holds 42% of the shares now."

"Then go back and discuss with other shareholders and sell them to me in proportion. With sufficient funds, Hilton Hotels can acquire more hotels and develop faster. What do you think?" Hardy said to the old man.

Funding is always the biggest temptation for entrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurs' ambitions will grow bigger and bigger, and they always want to develop their own companies into the first and the best in the industry.

My development step by step is too slow.

The fastest way is naturally mergers and acquisitions, and mergers and acquisitions require sufficient funds.

Hardy has Wells Fargo, Bank of America and HSBC in Hong Kong, so he has sufficient funds.

The money that Hardy used to buy shares was only part of the money. The more important point was that he could become a partner with the Hardy Group, which would make borrowing money much easier in the future.

But he did the math.

If Hadi gets 30% of the shares, his shares will be diluted to only 29.4% in proportion, which is less than Hadi Group's 30%. Hadi Group will become the largest shareholder.

"Mr. Hardy, I need to go back and think about the shares." said old Conrad Hilton.

"No problem." Hardy took a puff of his cigar.

"By the way, how many Hilton hotels are there now?" Hardy asked casually.

"We already have 28 hotels in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas... In addition, there are also hotels in London, England, Paris, France, Rome, Italy, and we are planning to build a new hotel in Milan."

Conrad Hilton Sr. said somewhat proudly that this was a business he had developed over the past 30 years, with a new hotel being built almost every year.

Hardy nodded and said with a faint smile: "I have friends in these cities and countries. If Hilton Group needs any help, please let me know."

Old Conrad Hilton said goodbye and left. Sitting in the car, he felt more and more that something was wrong. The last sentence Hardy said was not to help but a warning.

Warning of what.

He has friends in those cities, and it would be easy for him to cause trouble for Hilton Hotels. Who are his friends? Congressmen or gangsters, or both? If those people really do something against Hilton, it would be a disaster.

After returning, Conrad Hilton Sr. discussed with the shareholders. In fact, introducing Hardy as a major shareholder would be of great benefit to Hilton Hotels. It was impossible for Conrad Hilton Sr. to sell his shares directly because Hardy wanted too much. Finally, it was decided to issue additional shares to dilute everyone's shares.

Just one day before the opening of Hardy's Hotel, Hardy Group and Hilton Hotel Group reached an acquisition intention. Hardy Group acquired Hilton Hotel Group's additional shares for US$48 million. Now Hardy Group's share in Hilton Group has reached 30%.

After the completion of this transaction, the Hardy Group became the largest shareholder of Hilton Hotels, and the Hilton family could only rank second.

At the same time,

Hilton Hotels announced that it will build a Hilton hotel in Las Vegas in the future.

At the same time, it is preparing to acquire the American 'Statera Hotels', which is known as the "World Hotel King" and owns a total of 10 first-class hotels. This acquisition will become the largest real estate transaction in the history of the United States.

Of course,

Even with Hardy's investment of 48 million, Hilton Hotels still did not have enough funds, but they were ready to apply for a loan from Wells Fargo, and Hardy had agreed.

This is the advantage of having big capital behind you, it makes using funds more convenient.

Hardy's acquisition of Hilton Hotels was definitely not a rip-off.

It was just normal business. Sometimes, confrontations in the business world are more intense than on the battlefield. Hardy was already very warm to Hilton.

Another benefit that Hilton Hotels received from this acquisition was stock appreciation. With Hardy as a strong shareholder, investors had more confidence in Hilton Hotels. After the acquisition was announced, Hilton Hotels' stock price increased significantly.

Stock price increases,

The net worth of shareholders also increases, which is also a good thing for shareholders.

......