Blackwells Pressures SVC Board to Run Open Sale Process, Engage TKO
SVC is trading near its 52-week low of $5.2 (0.5% above the low).
Summary
Blackwells Capital sent a letter Friday demanding the Service Properties board engage immediately and in good faith with TKO and any other credible bidder, starting by countersigning the nondisclosure agreement and running a transparent, competitive sale process. TKO's $2.0 billion offer for the entire hospitality portfolio landed last month and is the backdrop here. Blackwells wants the process overseen only by trustees with no prior RMR- or Portnoy-affiliated board service, advised by independent financial and legal advisers reporting solely to them. The pressure lands right after a rough Q3: SVC beat on normalized FFO at $0.34 a share but cut full-year 2026 FFO guidance by $0.13 at the midpoint, and the 10-Q showed a $463 million nine-month loss with cash down to $40 million. Shares fell 4.6% Friday and sit near the 52-week low. The board has already said the hotels alone are worth significantly more than $2.0 billion, so the fight is over whether it proves that through a real process or keeps stalling.
At the time of this announcement, SVC was trading at $5.23 on NASDAQ in the Real Estate & Construction sector, with a market capitalization of approximately $676.7M. The 52-week trading range was $5.20 to $12.15. This news item was assessed with positive market sentiment and an importance score of 7 out of 10. Source: Seeking Alpha.