SKOKIE, IL-EPN Holdings has taken over 100% of EDT Retail Trust, the former Macquarie DDR Trust with holdings of 48 retail assets in 20 states, and has delisted the company from the Australian Stock Exchange. EPN, locally led by CEO Alex Berman, is a venture made up of Elbit Plaza USA LP (a subsidiary of Tel Aviv, Israel-based Elbit Imaging Ltd. and Netherlands-based Plaza Centers NV) and New York City-based NCH Capital Inc.
Berman, a former international executive with Chicago-based General Growth Properties, used the venture to take over about half of EDT in June 2010 with the assistance of the venture. Both Elbit and NCH, through its subsidiary Eastgate Capital, committed $200 million.
A little more than two weeks ago, EPN completed an offer to purchase up to 96.4% of EDT for another $242 million. The company has now completed a tender offer, of 9 cents a share, to take over the remaining shares. Today, EDT was delisted from the Australian Stock Exchange.
Berman said in a statement that the EDT holdings are of high quality and are well-managed, with an outstanding tenant lineup. The 10.9-million-square-foot portfolio is 89% leased, and valued at $1.4 billion, including assets such as the 253,000-square-foot Fairfax Towne Center in Fairfax, VA. “This is an important step in fulfilling EPN’s investment strategy in the United States,” he said. Total EDT equity is about $529 million.
Dudi Machluf, co-CEO of Elbit, said in a statement in mid-July that the portfolio generates a healthy yield. “Such a yielding segment, as well as the diversity in our activities and sources of income, is highly important in the unstable economic environment we are experiencing in the global financial markets. We further believe that taking EDT private will result in significant cost reductions and more efficient management procedures and structure,” Machluf said.
In a letter to EDT shareholders on July 17, Berman said that EPN will pay for the EDT acquisition within the time required under the Corporations Act, a period of about four to six weeks.
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