Mall Giant Simon Sells Stake In Retail Partner For $1.45B
Simon Property Group sold its stake in brand management company Authentic Brands Group for $1.45B.
The major mall owner shared details of the sale, which occurred in two transactions over the last two quarters, in its latest earnings call. It was reported to have a 10% stake in the company.
“We generated substantial value from the ABG investment and a seven-times multiple on our net invested capital during our short ownership period,” CEO David Simon told investors on the call.
Authentic Brands Group’s portfolio is varied, from apparel retailers such as Billabong to Sports Illustrated.
About a year ago, Simon said it might exit the retailer ownership business in five to 10 years, but Simon still has a fair, if shrinking, number of retailers in its portfolio.
ABG and Simon have a joint venture, SPARC, that owns a host of distressed retail brands, including Brooks Brothers and Forever21. SPARC was initially a 50-50 joint venture between Simon and ABG, but last October Simon said it reduced its stake in the JV to 33%, according to CoStar.
Simon also owns the department store JCPenney in a partnership with Brookfield Asset Management.
