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Henderson Park buys Irish real estate fund Green Reit in €1.3bn deal

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Buildings are pictured on the Quayside, on the banks of the River Liffey, in Dublin on January 8, 2019. - British MPs on Wednesday begin five days of debate ahead of a historic delayed vote on Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit deal, a day after giving her a stinging blow aimed at preventing the country from crashing out of the EU with no agreement. Ireland was opposed to Brexit and is fearful both of the impact on trade with biggest economic partner Britain and any destabilising influence on the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, which ended three decades of sectarian conflict. (Photo by Paul FAITH / AFP) (Photo credit should read PAUL FAITH/AFP/Getty Images)

Real estate investment group Henderson Park today said it had agreed to acquire Irish real estate fund Green REIT in a €1.3bn (£1.2bn) deal.

Green Reit floated in 2013 as Ireland’s property market began to recover after the country’s real estate crash.

It put itself up for sale in April because its shares were trading at a discount to the value of its property portfolio.

The acquisition represents a premium of approximately 24.7 per cent to Green Reit’s closing share price of €1.534 on 12 April – the last day before the announcement of a sale processes.

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Under the terms of the deal Green Reit shareholders will be entitled to receive €1.9135 in cash for each share.

Chief executive of Henderson Park Nick Weber said: “The acquisition of Green REIT offers a rare opportunity to invest in a large institutional quality office portfolio and a strategic logistics park through a single transaction. 

“The portfolio offers exposure to high-quality properties located predominantly in Dublin, leased to blue chip tenants, and two strategic development sites. We believe in the short-term and long-term prospects of the Irish market with its strong macroeconomic backdrop and underlying real estate fundamentals.”

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Green Reit chair Gary Kennedy said: “Green Reit has been trading at a persistent structural discount to its underlying net asset value since early 2016. This persistent discount has been inconsistent with the value of the company’s assets, management, business plan and performance as well as the Irish commercial property sector.  

“Having undertaken a detailed strategic analysis, the Board determined that it was in the interests of shareholders to conduct a sale process to solicit offers for the company or its assets. Following a highly competitive process, the cash offer by Henderson Park to acquire the company represents an attractive outcome for shareholders delivering a premium to the share price prior to the announcement of the sale process and to Green Reit’s net asset value.”

The deal is subject to the consent of the Irish takeover panel, the approval of the High Court and the backing of Green Reit shareholders.