Blackstone, acting through affiliates of Blackstone Real Estate Partners VIII, has acquired industrial property specialist Gramercy Property Trust for $27.50 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at $7.6B.
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At that price, the deal represents a premium of 15% over the closing price of Gramercy stock May 4. The deal is contingent on a vote by Gramercy shareholders, but not financing by Blackstone.
Gramercy's 81M SF portfolio is mostly single-tenant industrial properties. Last year, the REIT sold its European arm to clients of Axa Investment Managers for about $1.1B.
The acquisition is the latest in consolidation among REITs that hold industrial properties, which is a favored property type among investors as e-commerce expands. Just last week Prologis finalized a deal to buy DCT Industrial Trust for $8.4B.
For its part, Blackstone inked a deal in March to buy Canyon Industrial Portfolio’s warehouses and distribution centers for about $1.8B.
Names to watch for in the industrial real estate consolidation game include Stag Industrial, Duke Realty, Rexford Industrial, Eastgroup, Select Income, Terreno Realty, Monmouth Realty, Plymouth, Industrial Logistics and Liberty Property, Seeking Alpha reports.
