US hedge fund Davidson Kempner has purchased a majority share in a shopping centre in Navan, Ireland for €62 mln, while distressed specialist Oaktree has secured a mall in Mullinger for €12 mln.
The assets were part-owned by CarVal, which had purchased loans underpinning both shopping centres during the financial crisis.
Navan Town Centre, located in County Meath, comprises 23,300 m2 and is anchored by Marks & Spencer.
Joint selling agents Cushman & Wakefield and Savills said that the Navan deal would produce a net yield of 7.31%, with the Mullingar transaction achieving a return of 8.13% on net operating income.
The deals, reported in the Irish Times, continue a trend of US interest in Irish assets.
Davidson Kepner has been an active buyer in Ireland in recent times, purchasing large portfolios of residential and retail assets from the Bank of Ireland last year.
Oaktree, which is the largest distressed debt investor in the world, also has a track record in the country. In 2014, it teamed up with Irish bad bank NAMA and developer Bennet Group on a Dublin docklands development scheme worth €450 mln.
