By Kannaki Deka and Doyinsola Oladipo
(Reuters) – Tripadvisor Inc said on Monday the online travel agency had formed a special committee to evaluate proposals that may result in a deal, sending its shares up 14.2% in extended trading.
Centerview Partners will act as the financial adviser to the special committee, which will also look into the recent Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings’ disclosure of its intent to evaluate potential alternatives involving the two companies.
Liberty TripAdvisor, an entity created at the time of the spin off of Tripadvisor from Liberty Interactive, owns a 21% stake in the online travel agency.
“Liberty TripAdvisor is heavily indebted with a market cap of $89 million vs debt of $2.75 billion,” Bernstein analyst Richard Clarke wrote in a note.
“Liberty TripAdvisor likely would need to tap Tripadvisor’s balance sheet in some way to repay this debt,” Clarke added.
Tripadvisor is scheduled to report earnings on Feb. 14. Analysts expect revenue of $374.4 million and earning of 22 cents per share, according to LSEG data.
