Madison Square Garden Shares Down After LeBron Signs With Miami Heat

Madison Square Garden (MSG) shares were bouncing like a basketball this week amid speculation that NBA superstar LeBron James might join the New York Knicks, and they could still be active Friday in the wake of his Thursday night announcement that he was leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers to join the Miami Heat.

The stock climbed 5% on Wednesday, then sank 5% on Thursday after ESPN said James was leaning toward signing with the Heat.

And now, it's certain: The major shot in the arm that analysts had hoped for is not making its way to the Knicks. UBS analyst Thomas E. Cubeta had priced LeBron's potential value to the Knicks at $5 a share, or $35 million in 2011-2012 EBITDA.

Now, MSG shares are arguably expensive,The Wall Street Journal's Martin Peers writes. And that's even before considering MSG's commitment to renovate its namesake venue for as much as $850 million.

It could be that investors had already mostly priced in the news Thursday. Of course, the disappointment could be lingering: The stock is down over 4% in recent pre-market activity.