LAS VEGAS -- Shareholders of Station Casinos approved a $5.4 billion takeover bid from a private equity investor group that includes key members of its founding family.

A special meeting was attended by more than 100 shareholders, but there was no discussion and the meeting was over in about 20 minutes. The deal also includes the assumption of $1.1 billion in debt.

Colony is the Los Angeles-based real estate investment arm of billionaire Tom Barrack. Brothers Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta will also have a 21 percent stake in the new private company.

At least six shareholder groups sued the company and the investor group after the original an offer made in December, saying it was too low. But the company said in a proxy statement after the submission of the higher bid, it expects the plaintiffs to dismiss their complaints.

It was not clear when the deal would close because it still requires regulatory approval.

Frank Fertitta Jr., founded Station Casinos with a 100-slot-machine gambling parlor and snack bar in 1976, and his sons took the company public in 1993. It has grown to 16 properties, including the Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa that opened last year. It also is part owner in the Green Valley Ranch Station Casino in Henderson and manages Thunder Valley Casino near Sacramento, Calif., on behalf of the United Auburn Indian Community.