Four Seasons Gets Private Bid

Investors such as Microsoft's Bill Gates and Saudi Price Alwaleed Bin Talal have joined with current Four Seasons CEO Isadore Sharp in a plan to take the Toronto-based hotel chain private for $3.7 billion or $82 per share. If the deal goes through, Sharp would remain chairman and CEO of the company he originally founded. The company has set up a special committee to consider the offer. "The transaction is intended to ensure the legacy of the Four Seasons," Sharp said on Monday. "The proposal achieves all my objectives for Four Seasons and my family, and is the only one that I am prepared to pursue."