- Brookfield revealed it was in the ‘early stages’ of evaluating a possible offer
- Tritax completed £924m acquisition of UK commercial property REIT last month
Tritax EuroBox has said it has not yet received an acquisition proposal after Brookfield Asset Management announced it was preparing a bid for the portfolio.
Brookfield revealed on Monday that it is in the “early stages” of evaluating a potential bid for the London-listed real estate investment trust, which owns distribution centers in several European countries, including Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands.
Under City takeover rules, the Canadian firm, whose chairman is former Bank of England governor Mark Carney, has until 5pm on July 1 to declare a “firm intention to make an offer” or backing out.
Portfolio: Real estate investment trust Tritax Eurobox owns distribution centers in several European countries, including Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands.
In response, Tritax told shareholders that it had not received an offer from Brookfield and that there was “no certainty” the company would submit a proposal.
“Further announcement will be made when appropriate,” the company added. “In the meantime, shareholders are advised not to take any action.”
Brookfield’s potential move for Tritax comes amid heightened M&A activity involving the UK-based REIT.
Tritax itself completed its £924 million acquisition of UK commercial property REITs last month, bolstering its portfolio of warehouses, shopping centers and office buildings.
Additionally, LondonMetric recently spent £1.9bn buying LXi, which had major stakes in entertainment venues Thorpe Park and Alton Towers, as well as hotels and industrial parks.
Abrdn Property Income also agreed to merge with Custodian Property Income REIT, but the deal fell through after only 61 per cent of Abrdn shareholders voted in favour, below the 75 per cent threshold.
Many REITs have struggled in recent years as higher interest rates hit real estate values and the rise of working from home depressed demand for office space.
Tritax Eurobox is currently trading at a 21.2 percent discount to its net asset value, according to data from the Association of Investment Companies. Peers in AIC’s real estate sector in Europe face an average discount to net asset value of 26.1 percent.
Analysts at Peel Hunt said Brookfield’s potential cash offer for Tritax was “another sign of liquidity returning to markets, which bodes well for prices.”
Tritax Eurobox Shares They rose 1.3 per cent to 164.3p early on Tuesday afternoon, but have remained stable over the past 12 months.
