Blackstone’s infrastructure arm is acquiring the largest marina and superyacht servicing business in the US from Sun Communities for $5.65bn (€5.4bn).
The investment firm’s infrastructure funds have agreed to acquire Safe Harbor Marinas which owns and operates 138 marinas across the US and Puerto Rico.
Heidi Boyd, senior MD in Blackstone’s infrastructure business, said: “Marinas benefit from key long-term thematic tailwinds including the growth of travel and leisure, as well as population inflows into coastal cities.
“We believe Safe Harbor is the best-positioned company in this sector, and we look forward to working with their terrific team to invest behind their existing marinas and to expand their footprint.”
Sun Communities said it intends to use the disposal proceeds for debt reduction, shareholder distributions and reinvestment in its core businesses.
Gary Shiffman, chair and CEO of Sun Communities, said: “We are very pleased with this transaction which further accelerates Sun’s strategy to improve the company’s leverage profile and refocus on our core segments. On behalf of everyone at Sun, I would like to thank the Safe Harbor team for their dedication and hard work throughout our over four-year partnership.”
Jeff Blau, chair of Sun Communities’ capital allocation committee, said: “This transaction allows Sun to focus on our core businesses which operate at high margins and produce durable income streams, and we are confident they will continue to deliver strong, consistent long-term growth.
“Safe Harbor has been an outstanding performer for Sun, and this sale allows us to realise substantial value from our investment, while positioning the company for future growth and enhanced return opportunities for our stakeholders.”
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