Good morning. This is Leadoff, the early buzz in Atlanta sports.
Stock in the Braves has gone up 10.3 percent over the past three trading days, despite a slight pullback on Monday.
The stock, which closed last Wednesday at $19.45 per share, closed Monday at $21.46.
The shares rose 11.6 percent on Thursday and Friday before giving back 25 cents – 1.15 percent – on Monday.
The reason for the spike? Reports last Thursday that the Miami Marlins have a “handshake agreement” to be sold for $1.6 billion.
If that deal is eventually completed at such a lofty price — no sure thing – it would value the Marlins far higher than the stock market’s valuation of the Braves, currently approximately $1.1 billion.
Liberty Media has suggested previously that the market was undervaluing the Braves.
The Colorado-based company's chief financial officer, Mark Carleton, spoke bullishly about the Braves at an investors meeting in November, saying it would be "not unreasonable" to value the franchise at about $1.5 billion.
Liberty issued tracking stock in the Braves last April. The shares declined dramatically on their first day of trading but have been much less volatile since then. The stock remains well below where it opened on the first day of trading, but above where it closed on the first day.
Tracking stocks allow investors to invest in the economic performance of a specific subset of a company – in this case, Liberty Media’s baseball team and its mixed-use development surrounding SunTrust Park.
Note: Prices quoted in this article are for the Braves’ Series C shares, which trade on Nasdaq under the symbol BATRK. They are the most heavily traded of three classes of Braves stock. The classes carry different voting rights for shareholders.
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Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Within less than three months, Jess Simpson has been a football coach at the high school (Buford), college (Georgia State) and now NFL (Falcons) levels.
Remarkable journey.
The longtime Buford coach, who resigned to join Georgia State’s staff in December, is now moving to the Falcons as assistant defensive line coach.
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The NBA trading deadline is nearing, and the Hawks are reiterating: Paul Millsap is "not going anywhere."
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Some happy words: Pitchers and catchers report today.
See Braves’ key spring training dates here.
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