Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust (BREIT) is acquiring WPT Industrial Real Estate Investment Trust (WPT), a Canadian real estate investment trust, for US$3.1 billion.
WPT said Monday it has entered into an arrangement agreement under which BREIT will acquire all of the outstanding units of WPT through a series of transactions that will result in unitholders receiving US$22.00 per unit in an all-cash transaction valued at US$3.1 billion including the assumption of debt.
”The transaction price of US$22.00 per unit represents a 17.1% premium to the closing price of the units on the TSX on August 6, 2021, the last trading day prior to the announcement of the transaction, a 19.5% premium to WPTs 30-day volume-weighted average unit price on the TSX for the period ending August 6, 2021 and a 32.1% premium to the current research consensus net asset value per unit estimate for WPT of US$16.66 per unit,” said the companies in a joint statement.
“We are very proud to enter into a transaction that delivers unitholders a compelling premium to net asset value per unit and our all-time high Unit price. Blackstone’s interest in acquiring and investing in the WPT platform is a testament to the quality of our portfolio and capabilities of our team” said Scott Frederiksen, Chief Executive Officer of WPT.
“Blackstone is one of the world’s most active investors in logistics real estate and we are very pleased to enter into a transaction with such a highly reputable counterparty that delivers immediate value for WPT unitholders,” added Louie DiNunzio, Chair of the Special Committee.
David Levine, Senior Managing Director at Blackstone said: “Logistics remains one of our highest conviction themes as the sector continues to benefit from strong tailwinds driven by e-commerce. We look forward to expanding our logistics presence across key U.S. markets with the acquisition of this high-quality portfolio that WPT has built.”
The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2021.