Prologis Acquires Liberty Warehouse In $12.6 Billion Deal
Warehouse giant Prologis Inc. stated it has settled to buy the competing industrial real-estate business Liberty Property Trust.
The buying cost is around $12.6 billion in arrangement to advance its U.S. presence amid the e-commerce boom.
If approved, Prologis also said Liberty shareholders would obtain 0.675 times of a Prologis share. They will have about $61 a share for each unit they hold,
Meanwhile, in the first quarter of 2020, the transaction is expected to close.
Prologis indicated that the all-stock deal comprising the statement of debt would extend its presence in U.S. markets.
The places included were Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley, Chicago, Houston, New Jersey, and Southern California. Moreover, Prologis has a global footprint.
In a statement, Prologis Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Hamid Moghadam said, “Liberty’s logistics assets are highly complementary to our U.S. portfolio, and this acquisition increases our holdings and growth potential in several key markets.”
Prologis To Sell Approximately $3.5 Billion Worth Of Assets
On the flip side, Liberty Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Bill Hankowsky stated, “The joining of these two platforms at this moment, when industrial logistics has become so pivotal to the new economy, will further the industry’s ability to support the nation’s supply chain.”
In the announcement, Prologis plans on selling about $3.5 billion worth of assets.
The sale comprises $2.8 billion of “non-strategic” logistics properties and $700 million of office assets.
In addition, around $120 million is expected to be immediately saved by the deal.
According to the company, it is from organizational costs, operating leverage, lower interest expense, and lease adjustments.
Elsewhere, activist investor Jonathan Litt of Land & Buildings Investment Management LLC had pushed Wayne, Pennsylvania-based Liberty, to consider selling itself.
He said the shares were undervalued. Moreover, he cited the recent acquisitions of similar real-estate assets by Blackstone Group Inc and Prologis.
In September, Litt said he knew an anonymous party ready to pay $60 a share for Liberty.
Litt did not immediately answer an email looking for a comment on Sunday night.
According to its website, Prologis customers include Amazon.com Inc, Walmart Inc and FedEx Corp.