(Ian Ritter is national online editor for GlobeSt.com/RETAIL.)

PARSIPPANY, NJ-Prudential Real Estate Investors has joined Kimco Realty trust in the $4-billion acquisition of 138-center Pan Pacific Retail Properties. Prudential will kick in $1.1 billion toward the deal on behalf of three institutional investors it represents.

"This transaction gives our investors an opportunity to hold a stake in well-located shopping centers in the western US," says Steve Vittorio, principal in the Capital Markets Group at PREI, in a statement. "The locations and tenants for these assets give them a solid inherent value that we hope to further enhance over time."

Kimco was set to close its acquisition of San Diego-based Pan Pacific by the end of the month. The New Hyde Park, NY-based REIT had previously announced it is paying $70 per share for Pan Pacific, with $60 in cash and $10 in newly issued Kimco stock.