AXA Investment Managers - Real Assets (AXA IM - Real Assets) said on Monday that it has completed the acquisition of the entire issued share capital of New York-listed REIT NorthStar Realty Europe Corp (NRE).
The acquisition, which was made as part of a core strategy on behalf of a client, was approved at a special meeting of NRE stockholders held on September 25. NRE will now be delisted from the NY stock exchange.
The final consideration amounts to $17.01 per NRE share, AXA IMRA said in a statement.
Through a single transaction, the acquisition provides AXA IMRA with immediate access to a €1.1 bn, 122,000 m2 portfolio of modern, prime and well located office space in key European cities within Europe’s three core markets of Germany, the UK and France. The portfolio also includes two hotels in Berlin which total 334 rooms across 12,000 m2.
Commenting on the acquisition John O’Driscoll, European head of Transactions at AXA IMRA, said: 'This transaction affords us the rare opportunity to secure a significant portfolio of prime European offices and hotels which we now look forward to integrating into AXA IM - Real Assets’ wider portfolio of core European real estate assets under management. The properties, which are all located in the major cities of Europe’s largest economies of France, the UK and Germany, have high occupancy and produce strong levels of income that are ideally suited to our clients, whilst offering longer term potential for both asset management and further income generation.'
He added: 'This transaction is also a clear example of our highly flexible 360-degree approach to investing in real estate via debt or equity and through a range of private or public entry points, including complex corporate acquisitions.'
