In a significant consolidation of movie theater holdings, AMC Entertainment will acquire Carmike Cinemas for about $737 million in cash, forming the country’s largest chain with more than 600 theaters, the companies said on Thursday.

AMC娱乐(AMC Entertainment)周四表示，该公司将在一次重大的影院控股公司合并中，以7亿3700万美元现金收购卡麦克影院(Carmike Cinemas)，形成美国国内最大的、拥有超过600家影院连锁院线。

Under the terms of the deal, AMC will pay $30 a share, up 19 percent from Carmike’s closing price on Thursday. Including the assumption of Carmike’s debt, the transaction is valued at about $1.1 billion.

根据交易条款，AMC娱乐每股将付30美元，相较于卡麦克周四的收盘价格溢价19%。包括卡麦克的债务在内，这场交易的价格约为11亿美元。

The deal is the biggest by AMC since it returned to the public markets in a 2013 stock sale. And it represents a bold effort by AMC’s controlling investor, Wang Jianlin of China’s Dalian Wanda Group, to consolidate the American cinema industry.

这是AMC娱乐自2013年销售股票重新上市以来规模最大的一次交易。这也代表了AMC的控股人、中国大连万达集团董事长王健林的一次大胆的举动，意在巩固美国的电影业。

Dalian Wanda agreed in January to buy Legendary Entertainment, a film production and finance company, for about $3.5 billion. It bought AMC in 2012 for about $2.6 billion, and is building a large commercial and residential complex in Beverly Hills, Calif., adjacent to the Beverly Hilton hotel, where the Golden Globes and other Hollywood events take place.

大连万达集团于1月同意了以约35亿美元的价格收购传奇影业(Legendary Entertainment)，一家电影制作与金融公司。该集团于2012年以26亿美元收购了AMC娱乐，并正在加州比弗利山上建造一个大型的商业与居住区，毗邻举行金球奖颁奖礼和其他好莱坞活动的比弗利希尔顿酒店。

AMC, based in Leawood, Kan., is the country’s second-biggest movie theater chain with 5,426 screens, behind the Regal Entertainment Group. It is particularly strong in large markets, including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.

位于堪萨斯州利伍德(Leawood)的AMC娱乐有5426个影厅，是美国第二大的连锁影院，位列帝王娱乐集团(Regal Entertainment Group)之后。AMC娱乐在大型市场中实力尤其强劲，包括在纽约、洛杉矶和芝加哥。

Carmike, based in Columbus, Ga., has most of its 2,954 screens in midsize cities. The combined companies will be based in Leawood, they said.

位于乔治亚州哥伦布(Columbus)的卡麦克拥有2954个影厅，大部分都位于中等城市。该公司表示，合并后的公司将会设在利伍德。

By comparison, Regal operated 7,361 screens and 572 theaters as of year end.

相较而言，帝王娱乐截止去年底，共管理着7361个影厅和572个影院。

AMC said the deal would increase the geographic spread of its theaters, while allowing it to trim expenses by consolidating administrative operations for the two companies. The company estimated the merger would yield about $35 million in annual cost savings.

AMC娱乐表示交易的完成会带来院线的不断扩张，同时通过整合两家公司的管理机构得以缩减开支。公司估计因此可以每年节省将近350万美元的开支。

The deal is expected to close by the end of the year, pending approval from regulators and by Carmike shareholders.

这场交易预计会在年底前完成，悬而未决的因素来自于监管机构和卡麦克的股东。

“This is a compelling transaction that brings together two great companies with complementary strengths to create substantial value for our guests and shareholders,” Adam Aron, AMC’s chief executive, said in a statement.

“这是一场瞩目的交易，会使两家原本强大的公司优势互补，强强联合，给我们顾客和股东带来实质的利益。”AMC娱乐首席执行官亚当·艾伦(Adam Aron)在声明中称。

Together with Regal, AMC owns Open Road Films, a movie distributor whose “Spotlight” was named best picture at the Academy Awards on Sunday.

AMC娱乐和帝王娱乐都对影业公司开路影业(Open Road Films)持有股份，最近在奥斯卡颁奖礼上斩获最佳影片的《聚焦》就是这家公司的作品。

Debt financing for the deal will be provided by Citigroup, which also provided financial advice to AMC, while the law firm Husch Blackwell provided legal counsel. JPMorgan Chase and the law firm King & Spalding advised Carmike.

花旗会给AMC娱乐提供有关交易的债务融资情况和其它财务方面的建议，而法律方面的事务则会由法律事务所胡布莱克威尔(Husch Blackwell)负责。而卡麦克一方的经济和法律事务则由摩根大通和金斯伯丁法律事务所(King & Spalding)负责。