Hmm can't wait to see her working the check out lines at Wal-Mart
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Blackstone buys Hilton for $26bn
US private equity group Blackstone is buying the global Hilton Hotels chain for $26bn (£13bn) in an all-cash deal. Under the deal, Blackstone is paying $47.50 for each Hilton Hotels Corporation share, a 32% premium over their closing price on Tuesday. [/p] Blackstone said the deal had been approved by Hilton's board, and was due to be completed by the end of 2007. [/p] The surprise announcement comes two weeks after Blackstone raised $4.13bn through floating a 13.2% stake. [!-- E SF --] [/p] Numerous hotel brands [/p] Blackstone said it intends to grow the Hilton business. [/p] The private equity firm already has a number of hotel investments, including La Quinta Inns and Luxury Resorts and Hotels. [/p] US-based Hilton's other brands include Conrad Hotels, and the Waldorf-Astoria Collection. [/p] Blackstone's co-founders, Stephen Schwarzman, 60, and Peter Peterson, 81, earned more than $2.4bn between them from last month's share sale. [/p] The global network of Hilton hotels were reunited as one company in 2006 after a 42-year split. [/p] The reunion happened after Hilton Hotels Corporation (HHC) paid $3.3bn to buy the 400 international Hilton hotels owned by UK-based Hilton Group. [/p] The division took place in 1964, when HHC sold off all its overseas hotels to concentrate on the US market. [/p][a href="vny!://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6267856.stm"]vny!://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6267856.stm[/a]
