Sotheby's sold for $3.7 billion to telecom billionaire Patrick Drahi

Sotheby’s, the auction house whose shares have dropped 40% in the past year, is being sold to telecom titan Patrick Drahi for $3.7 billion.

Investors will receive $57 in cash per share of Sotheby’s common stock under terms of the agreement, according to a statement Monday from the New York-based company. The offer represents a 61% premium to the closing price on Friday. Sotheby’s shares rose 57% to $55.58 as of 9:40 a.m. in New York.

Sotheby’s is returning to private ownership after 31 years as a public company, the last few spent battling expenses and margins even as masterpieces