Blackstone (NYSE: BX) and Retail Opportunity Investments Corp.
(Nasdaq: ROIC) (“ROIC” or the “Company”) today announced that they
have entered into a definitive agreement under which Blackstone
Real Estate Partners X will acquire all outstanding common shares
of ROIC for $17.50 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at
approximately $4 billion, including outstanding debt. ROIC’s
portfolio consists of 93 high-quality, grocery-anchored retail
properties totaling 10.5 million square feet concentrated in Los
Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco and Portland.
The purchase price represents a premium of 34% to ROIC’s closing
share price on July 29, 2024, the last trading day prior to news
reports of a potential sale.
“We are pleased to reach this agreement with Blackstone, as it
will provide significant and certain value to our stakeholders,”
said Stuart A. Tanz, President and Chief Executive Officer of ROIC.
“This transaction represents the culmination of the steadfast
commitment and extraordinary dedication of our talented team and
their tireless efforts over the past 15 years. We are confident
that Blackstone will position ROIC’s portfolio for continued growth
and success.”
Jacob Werner, Co-Head of Americas Acquisitions at Blackstone
Real Estate, said, “This transaction reflects our strong conviction
in necessity-based, grocery anchored shopping centers in densely
populated geographies. The sector is experiencing accelerating
fundamentals, benefiting from nearly a decade of virtually no new
construction, while demand for brick-and-mortar grocery stores,
restaurants, fitness and other lifestyle retailers remains healthy.
We are pleased to be acquiring ROIC, which owns a unique collection
of high-quality assets in some of the most desirable West Coast
markets.”
The transaction has been approved by ROIC’s Board of Directors
and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2025, subject to
customary closing conditions, including the approval of the
Company’s common stockholders.
J.P. Morgan acted as ROIC’s exclusive financial advisor.
Clifford Chance US LLP served as ROIC’s legal counsel. BofA
Securities, Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Newmark, and Eastdil
Secured acted as Blackstone’s financial advisors. Simpson Thacher
& Bartlett LLP served as Blackstone’s legal counsel.
About Retail Opportunity Investments Corp.
Retail Opportunity Investments Corp. (NASDAQ: ROIC), is a
fully-integrated, self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT)
that specializes in the acquisition, ownership and management of
grocery-anchored shopping centers located in densely-populated,
metropolitan markets across the West Coast. As of September 30,
2024, ROIC owned 93 shopping centers encompassing approximately
10.5 million square feet. ROIC is the largest publicly-traded,
grocery-anchored shopping center REIT focused exclusively on the
West Coast. ROIC is a member of the S&P SmallCap 600 Index and
has investment-grade corporate debt ratings from Moody’s Investor
Services, S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings, Inc. Additional
information is available at: www.roireit.net.
About Blackstone Real Estate
Blackstone is a global leader in real estate investing.
Blackstone’s real estate business was founded in 1991 and has US
$325 billion of investor capital under management. Blackstone is
the largest owner of commercial real estate globally, owning and
operating assets across every major geography and sector, including
logistics, data centers, residential, office and hospitality. Our
opportunistic funds seek to acquire undermanaged, well-located
assets across the world. Blackstone’s Core+ business invests in
substantially stabilized real estate assets globally, through both
institutional strategies and strategies tailored for income-focused
individual investors including Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust,
Inc. (BREIT). Blackstone Real Estate also operates one of the
leading global real estate debt businesses, providing comprehensive
financing solutions across the capital structure and risk spectrum,
including management of Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE: BXMT).
Forward-Looking Statements. Certain information contained
in this press-release (the “Material”) constitutes “forward-looking
statements,” which can be identified by the use of forward-looking
terminology or the negatives thereof. These may include statements
about plans, objectives and expectations with respect to future
operations. Such forward‐looking statements are inherently
uncertain and there are or may be important factors that could
cause actual outcomes or results to differ materially from those
indicated in such statements. Blackstone believes these factors
include, but are not limited to, those described under the section
entitled “Risk Factors” in its Annual Report on Form 10‐K for the
most recent fiscal year, and any such updated factors included in
its periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
which are accessible on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. These
factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read in
conjunction with the other cautionary statements that are included
in the Materials and in the filings. Blackstone undertakes no
obligation to publicly update or review any forward‐looking
statement, whether as a result of new information, future
developments or otherwise.
Opinions. Opinions expressed reflect the current opinions
of the named persons or Blackstone where indicated, as of the date
appearing in the Material only and are based on opinions of the
current market environment, which are subject to change. Certain
information contained in this Material discusses general market
activity, industry or sector trends, or other broad-based economic,
market or political conditions and should not be construed as
research or investment advice.
Third Party Information. Certain information contained in
this Material has been obtained from sources outside Blackstone,
which in certain cases have not been updated through the date
hereof. While such information is believed to be reliable for
purposes used herein, no representations are made as to the
accuracy or completeness thereof and none of Blackstone, its funds,
nor any of their affiliates takes any responsibility for, and has
not independently verified, any such information.
ROIC Forward Looking Statements. This communication
includes certain disclosures from ROIC (as used in this paragraph
only, the “Company”) which contain “forward-looking statements”
within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, and in Section 21F of the Securities and Exchange Act of
1934, as amended, including but not limited to those statements
related to the transaction, including financial estimates and
statements as to the expected timing, completion and effects of the
transaction. When used herein, the words “believes,” “anticipates,”
“projects,” “should,” “estimates,” “expects,” “guidance” and
similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking
statements. Such forward-looking statements involve known and
unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the
actual results to differ materially from future results expressed
or implied by such forward-looking statements. Important factors,
risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ
materially from such plans, estimates or expectations include but
are not limited to: (i) the parties’ ability to complete the
transaction on the anticipated terms and timing, or at all,
including the Company’s ability to obtain the required stockholder
approval, and the parties’ ability to satisfy the other conditions
to the completion of the transaction; (ii) potential litigation
relating to the transaction that could be instituted against the
Company or its directors, managers or officers, including the
effects of any outcomes related thereto; (iii) the risk that
disruptions from the transaction will harm the Company’s business,
including current plans and operations, including during the
pendency of the transaction; (iv) the ability of the Company to
retain and hire key personnel; (v) potential adverse reactions or
changes to business relationships resulting from the announcement
or completion of the transaction; (vi) legislative, regulatory and
economic developments; (vii) potential business uncertainty,
including changes to existing business relationships, during the
pendency of the transaction that could affect the Company’s
financial performance; (viii) certain restrictions during the
pendency of the transaction that may impact the Company’s ability
to pursue certain business opportunities or strategic transactions;
(ix) unpredictability and severity of catastrophic events,
including but not limited to acts of terrorism, outbreaks of war or
hostilities or pandemic, as well as management’s response to any of
the aforementioned factors; (x) the possibility that the
transaction may be more expensive to complete than anticipated,
including as a result of unexpected factors or events; (xi) the
occurrence of any event, change or other circumstance that could
give rise to the termination of the transaction, including in
circumstances requiring the Company to pay a termination fee; (xii)
those risks and uncertainties set forth under the headings
“Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Information” and “Risk
Factors” in the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K,
as such risk factors may be amended, supplemented or superseded
from time to time by other reports filed by the Company with the
Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) from time to time,
which are available via the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov; and
(xiii) those risks that will be described in the proxy statement
that will be filed with the SEC and available from the sources
indicated below.
These risks, as well as other risks associated with the
transaction, will be more fully discussed in the proxy statement
that will be filed by the Company with the SEC in connection with
the transaction. There can be no assurance that the transaction
will be completed, or if it is completed, that it will close within
the anticipated time period. These factors should not be construed
as exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with the other
forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements relate
only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. The
Company and Blackstone do not undertake any obligation to publicly
update or review any forward-looking statement except as required
by law, whether as a result of new information, future developments
or otherwise. If one or more of these or other risks or
uncertainties materialize, or if our underlying assumptions prove
to be incorrect, our actual results may vary materially from what
we may have expressed or implied by these forward-looking
statements. We caution that you should not place undue reliance on
any of our forward-looking statements. You should specifically
consider the factors identified in this communication that could
cause actual results to differ. Furthermore, new risks and
uncertainties arise from time to time, and it is impossible for us
to predict those events or how they may affect the Company or
Blackstone.
Information regarding such risks and factors is described in
ROIC’s filings with the SEC, including its most recent Annual
Report on Form 10-K, which is available at: www.roireit.net.
Important Additional Information and Where to Find It
This communication is being made in connection with the
transaction. In connection with the transaction, the Company will
file a proxy statement on Schedule 14A and certain other documents
regarding the transaction with the SEC. Promptly after filing its
definitive proxy statement with the SEC, the definitive proxy
statement will be mailed to stockholders of the Company. This
communication does not constitute an offer to sell or the
solicitation of an offer to buy any securities. BEFORE MAKING ANY
VOTING OR INVESTMENT DECISION, COMPANY STOCKHOLDERS ARE URGED TO
READ THE PROXY STATEMENT THAT WILL BE FILED BY THE COMPANY WITH THE
SEC (INCLUDING ANY AMENDMENTS OR SUPPLEMENTS THERETO) AND ANY OTHER
RELEVANT DOCUMENTS THAT ARE FILED OR WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC
CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE
THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE TRANSACTION.
Company stockholders will be able to obtain, free of charge, copies
of such documents filed by the Company when filed with the SEC in
connection with the transaction at the SEC’s website
(http://www.sec.gov). In addition, the Company’s stockholders will
be able to obtain, free of charge, copies of such documents filed
by the Company at the Company’s website (www.roireit.net).
Alternatively, these documents, when available, can be obtained
free of charge from the Company upon written request to the Company
at 11250 El Camino Real, Suite 200, San Diego, CA 92130.
Participants in the Solicitation
The Company and certain of its directors, executive officers and
other employees may be deemed to be participants in the
solicitation of proxies from stockholders of the Company in
connection with the transaction. Additional information regarding
the identity of the participants, and their respective direct and
indirect interests in the transaction, by security holdings or
otherwise, will be set forth in the proxy statement and other
relevant materials to be filed with the SEC in connection with the
transaction (if and when they become available). You may obtain
free copies of these documents using the sources indicated
above.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241106366347/en/
ROIC Stuart A. Tanz (858) 255-4901 stanz@roireit.net
Blackstone Claire Keyte (646) 482-8753
Claire.Keyte@Blackstone.com
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