Planet Fitness acquires 114 Sunshine Fitness locations

Jan. 11 (UPI) -- Planet Fitness announced Monday that it will acquire 114 locations from Sunshine Fitness valued at $800 million.

The company signed an agreement to fund the purchase through securitized notes and cash on hand. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2022.

Sunshine Fitness is an operator of over 100 Planet Fitness clubs in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.

The purchase will expand Planet Fitness -- which primarily operates in the Northeast -- into the south.

Once the transaction closes, Planet Fitness will own more than 200 corporate locations -- or 10% -- of its total portfolio.

CEO and Co-founder of Sunshine Fitness Shane McGuinness will oversee operations of the combined portfolio, Planet Fitness said.

Planet Fitness shares rose 17% in 2021 and ended the year with 15.2 million members. It opened 132 locations during the year and has a global count of 2,254 locations.

"We exceeded our expectations for both member and new store growth in 2021," said Planet Fitness CEO Chris Rondeau in a press release. "The silver lining of the pandemic is that it opened people's eyes to the importance of fitness and overall health, and we're seeing members who are visiting our stores are visiting more frequently than in the past, demonstrating their commitment to improving their health."