Owners May Sell Loews Chain

The owners of Loews Cineplex Entertainment Corp. said Friday that they were considering selling the 3,100-screen movie theater chain barely two months after they scrapped merger talks with rival AMC Entertainment Inc.

Loews’ owners, Toronto-based Onex Corp. and Los Angeles-based private equity firm Oaktree Capital Management, said they had hired investment banks Citigroup and Credit Suisse First Boston to help explore strategic alternatives, including a possible sale.

In addition to its namesake theaters, Loews owns and operates Star Theaters, Cinemex and Cineplex Odeon and is a partner in L.A.-based Magic Johnson Theatres.

The decision comes amid anticipation of further consolidation in an industry that suffered from bankruptcies in the late 1990s but has bounced back with hits such as the “Lord of the Rings” movies.

Loews, a privately held company, plans to begin soliciting bids over the weekend, one person familiar with the situation said.

Loews could fetch as much as $2 billion, based on one analyst’s estimate that its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization are as high as $250 million.