WWE Buries Vince McMahon After Selling $311 Million More In Stock
TKO Group bought WWE from Vince McMahon in 2023. Following the purchase, they named Vince to the TKO Board and he handed control of the company over to the group. However, following a civil lawsuit that alleges sexual assault and sex trafficking, Vince left the board and gave up all power with the company he helped build to stardom.
Since he left, Vince has been selling his stock and over WrestleMania weekend, he sold more. This time around, he made $311 million in stock sales.
Vince McMahon Sells $311 Million In Stock
Vince McMahon has sold more stock since leaving WWE. This time, he sold 1.85 million of his shares in TKO at a per-share price of $89.01 for a total of $165 million, per an SEC filing Monday (via Variety). He then also sold 1.64 million shares of Class A common stock of TKO (also for $89.01 per share) for $146.2 million. He gets $311.2 million from the sales.
This follows Vince selling stock last month (for $408 million) and again last November ($670 million). In total, Vince has made $1.389 billion in stock sales since he left the board last year. He still owns 8 million shares, but over 7 million are held as collateral “to secure his obligations under loans” from Morgan Stanley Private Bank, National Association.
Vince McMahon remains involved in a lawsuit with a former employee who claims he forced her into sexual acts with himself and his other executives. One name mentioned was John Laurenitis, the stepfather of Brie and Nikki Bella who served as head of talent relations in WWE. Other names in the lawsuit included TKO head Nick Kahn, who wasn’t with the company when it happened. However, the defendant claims TKO tried to help cover it up.
She also had a non-disclosure when McMahon agreed to pay a settlement for her silence. When Vince allegedly stopped paying the settlement payments, she brought the claims public and filed her civil suit.
WWE Buries Vince McMahon During WrestleMania Weekend
Vince McMahon sold his stock shares during WrestleMania weekend. This is a huge moment every year for WWE. McMahon created WrestleMania in 1985 after buying the company for his dad. Vince needed it to succeed or he would have lost the business. However, it was a huge success and helped Vince build WWE into a worldwide success story.
This also brings a lot of eyes to the product while WWE distances itself from Vince. The weekend starts with the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony. Since Vince McMahon left, Paul “Triple H” Levesque took over the booking of the shows and creating storylines. This led to WrestleMania, reportedly the first completely built and set up by Triple H.
Paul Heyman was the big name to get inducted the night before WrestleMania. For years, wrestlers have called themselves “Paul Heyman guys” to show they support him. Heyman gave his induction speech and said Triple H did the impossible by helping drive WWE out of “chaos.” He then said he was forever a “Paul Levesque Guy.”
Then, on Sunday night at WrestleMania, Vince McMahon’s daughter Stephanie McMahon-Levesque opened the show. She said she was at WrestleMania when she was eight. However, she said she is most proud of this year’s show because it is the start of the Paul Levesque Era. She chose her husband over her dad in this situation. Stephanie had previously quit the company when her father returned in 2023, despite the lawsuit allegations.
To add to the feeling of WWE moving away from Vince McMahon, the commentators kept calling it “professional wrestling” during WrestleMania, a term Vince banned, preferring “sports entertainment.” It is a new era in WWE.
What are your thoughts about Vince McMahon selling most of his WWE stock and stepping away completely? What are your thoughts about WWE burying McMahon now that he is gone? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
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