Hilton insists ITT’s yard sale doesn’t change its plans at all: it still hopes to negotiate a friendly deal with ITT, owner of Sheraton Hotels and Caesars World casinos, but will take its case to shareholders if ITT keeps balking. For now the focus is on how much the bankers get for the Garden. Araskog paid more than a half-billion dollars for ITT’s stake in the Garden; if he sells it for less, shareholders will fume. But there are potential buyers out there, like Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. Aside from the selling spree, expect a more creative defense from ITT’s side–and settle into your seat. ““We’re only in the bottom of the first inning,’’ says Hilton shareholder Kenneth Londoner of J.W. Seligman. Araskog and his high-priced bankers had better start swinging for the fences sometime soon.
