Vienna- and Warsaw-listed property group Immofinanz has purchased a €390 mln stake in Austrian peer S Immo, on the same day that US property investor Starwood Capital published its bid for minority shares in Immofinanz and CA Immo.
Immofinanz paid around €20 a share for 14.6 million S Immo shares from member companies of the RPR Group, as well as 4.9 million shares from the Signa Group to amass a 29.14% stake in S Immo.
The Austrian company said the deal would be funded from 'available liquidity and, if necessary, through additional bank financing'. The transaction is expected to close in a matter of months.
'The real estate portfolio of S Immo complements the Immofinanz portfolio in the office and retail areas,' Immofinanz said in a statement. 'The transaction is therefore expected to strengthen the market position of both companies and create synergies for the management of the properties. In the event of a future combination of the two companies, the increased size would lead to a stronger position on the capital market.'
It also referred to 'opportunities for the realisation of substantial synergies in financing and overhead costs'.
Starwood meanwhile published offer documents for minority stakes in CA Immo and Immofinanz, pursuing plans to diversify in CEE markets.
Last month, Immofinanz dismissed the terms offered by Starwood for a 5% stake in the firm, calling the price 'inappropriate'. CA Immo said it needed more information to decide.
According to Starwood documents, the Immofinanz offer expires May 30, while the offer for CA Immo runs until May 16.
