Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group Co, one of the biggest theatre operators in the United States, is in talks to purchase a stake in U.S. film studio Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., Bloomberg News said on Monday. Discussions between Lions Gate and Wanda are "at an early stage and may not lead to a deal", Bloomberg reported, citing an interview with Wanda's Chairman Wang Jianlin.Wang's comments are the latest sign of the company's interest in making further inroads into the U.S. film industry. It comes three days after Wanda Cinema Line Co. Ltd, a movie theatre company controlled by Wang, received approval for a share-offering in China in which it hopes to raise up to 2 billion yuan.A spokesman for Wanda could not be reached for comment. A Lions Gate spokesman declined comment.Wang, who Forbes magazine says is China's fourth-richest man, said the owners of Lion Gate "have only been willing to sell a minority stake", according to Bloomberg. He said he was also in talks about investing in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc.
Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. (Lionsgate) is a global entertainment company with a diversified presence in motion picture production and distribution, television programming and syndication, home entertainment, family entertainment, digital distribution, new channel platforms and international distribution and sales. Shares of LGF traded higher by 1.53% or $0.51/share to $33.90. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $24.54 and as high as $35.74. On average, 1333080 shares of LGF exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 431357.
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