Several of the major investors in animation studio DreamWorks SKG will be able to realise a few dreams of their own after announcing plans on Monday to sell $500-million-worth of shares in the company.
The firm said shareholders include Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen as well as Lee Entertainment and Vivendi Universal Entertainment.
But the company’s founders, Steven Spielberg, David Geffen and Jeffrey Katzenberg, are not selling any of their shares.
Shares in DreamWorks, the maker of Shark’s Tale and Shrek, dropped on Wall Street as investors absorbed news of the planned sale. The company only floated on the stock market back in October.
At the time of the initial public offering, Allen — who founded Microsoft along with his friend Bill Gates — reaped $60-million from the sale of shares. He retained 34,6-million shares in the business. Lee Entertainment had 5,7-million after the flotation, with Vivendi Universal holding 2,7-million.
Allen became DreamWorks’ largest shareholder after pumping $660-million into the business, having been approached by the company’s three founders just more than 10 years ago.
The driving force behind the business was Katzenberg, who put the company together after he was ousted from his job as head of studios at Disney by boss Michael Eisner. While working at Disney, Katzenberg was responsible for animated hits such as Aladdin and The Lion King.
Allen, however, is likely to view the returns he receives from the sale of more of his shares in DreamWorks as small change.
He is ranked among the top 10 richest people in the world.
The sale of shares in the business will be completed some time after May 27, DreamWorks said in an official filing to the securities and exchange commission on Monday, when the company’s latest feature, Madagascar, is due to be released.
This month, DreamWorks reported better-than-expected figures, boosted by $360-million of revenues from Shrek II. The film was the third most successful United States box-office release to date, taking $436-million. Worldwide, it brought in $881-million. — Guardian Unlimited Â