Bedford Board to Consider Sale of Company

LAFAYETTE, CA-Locally based Bedford Property Investors says it board of directors will review strategic alternatives for the company, including the sale or merger of the company and its eight million sf of property. The news comes as the shares of the industrial and suburban office REIT are trading at a 52-week high.In addition to a merger or sale, the company says another alternative is to sell certain of its 94 properties and either reinvest the proceeds in other properties or dividend out the proceeds to the company’s stockholders. During the review, the company says it will suspend its search for a successor candidate to CEO/chairman Peter Bedford, who is retiring. Bedford will continue to serve while any of the alternatives are pursued.Bedford could immediately not be reached for comment Thursday morning. In a prepared statement, he says company executives believe it is an appropriate time for the company to review its strategic direction, but cautioned that “it is possible that no action would be taken,” adding that whatever the strategic course of action, “it will be one that is designed to continue to create value for our stockholders.”Bedford Property Investors’ share price has been on the rise since it hit a low of $27 in August. Last Friday, shares traded at a 52-week high of $31.99 before closing at $31.86. Today, shares have traded as high as $32.10, though the most recent trade was at $31.42, up $0.15 from Wednesday’s close.As of Dec. 31, 2003, the company owned and operated 92 properties totaling approximately 7.8 million rentable sf. Of these 92 properties, 61 are industrial properties and 31 are suburban office properties. As of Dec. 31, 2003, the 92 properties were leased to 504 tenants with an average occupancy rate of approximately 93%. The properties are located in California, Arizona, Washington, Colorado and Nevada. Last month, the company added properties in Arizona and Oregon, paying $31.2 million for the two-building 196,000-sf Phoenix Technology Center office complex and paying $9.8 million for Tanasbourne Corporate Park, a 77,965 sf R&D building in Hillsboro, OR.