Tag: listing

Axia Real Estate Falls Down 2% to €9.80 on Its Launch

10/07/2014 – El Confidencial

Axia Real Estate floated yesterday as the fifth Socimi (Spanish REIT) listed this year, after the debuts of Lar España, Hispania, Merlin Properties and Mercal Inmuebles, although the last trades on the MAB (Spain´s Alternative Stock Exchange).

The shares have not started to sell smoothly as they lost 2% of value, from the initial 10 Euros down to 9.80 Euros a share. The Socimi promoted by Luis López de Herrera-Oria raised €360 million at the IPO among investors.

The company assured the demand for the shares was huge, therefore it issued 36 million new ones.

Axia is held by international funds such as Perry European Investments, Gruss Capital Management, Pelham Capital, Trowe Price and Taube Hodson Stonex, among others.

The Socimi declares to be the first to invest “exclusively” in the tertiary assets for rent (offices, logisitcs centers and commercial real estate). It will especially aim offices in the financial hearts of Madrid and Barcelona (to represent 70% of its portfolio), whereas the two other property types would make 20% and 10%  respectively.

Axia Real Estate begins with a “blind pool”, but it foresees investing the entirety of the IPO amount within the next 12-18 months.

 

Original article: El Confidencial

Translation: AURA REE

Merlin Depreciates 3.5% on the Flotation Day

1/07/2014 – Cinco Dias

Merlin Properties the Socimi (Spanish REIT firm) has closed its debut session on the stock market at 9.650 Euros a share, that indicates a 3.5% decline in regard to its initial price set at 10 Euros. Its opening offer reached €1.25 billion, making the flotation the biggest since 2011 and the third in Europe in the last year.

The rent-oriented real estate investment trust began with €600 million in committed funds. Moore Capital and Banca March are its anchor investors.

Although the maximum reached at the IPO did not amaze anyone (€10.05 per share), a possibility exists that the offer may be enlarged by €80 million if Merlin´s underwriters decide to execute their green shoe option, thereby taking a 6.01% stake each, valued at €8 million.

Originally, the Socimi was about to issue 150 million shares (99.96% of the total stake) at 10 €/share. In that case, the green shoe option would have corresponded to 22.5 million shares.

The firm will strike mainly offices (both prime and secondary market), shopping parks, logistics assets, as well as hotels and commercial real estate.

Recently, Merlin Properties pledged to buy entire portfolio of Tree Inversiones Inmobiliarias for €739.5 million, including 880 banking branches and 5 buildings located all over Spain, presently leased to BBVA.

 

Original article: Cinco Días (by D. M. P.)

Translation: AURA REE

Merlin the Socimi Debuts on the Stock at 10 Euros a Share

30/06/2014 – Expansion

Today, Merlin Properties floats at 10 Euros per share under the ticker MRL, after having sold 125 million shares for the joint €1.25 billion. The amount is smaller than the originally planned €1.5 billion IPO. If the underwriting banks choose to file for the pre-emptive right execution, the quote will enlarge by another €80 million, that is about 6.8% of the total offering. Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, UBS, Ahorro Corporación, Banca March, BBVA, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, N+1 and Société Générale coordinated the flotation.

Spanish investors have subscribed to €400 million in committed funds, one third of the total amount. Half of it comes from individual investors and family offices, whereas the rest from national institutions.

Merlin was set up by asset manager Magic Real Estate and it is the third real estate investment vehicle to become listed on the continuous market, following the steps of Lar and Hispania. Moreover, the flotation turns out to be the largest in the last 3 years. The target of Magic Real State is to call the attention of big-name investors, just like Lar that earned support of Bill Gross and Hispania with George Soros and John Paulson as the prominent investors. At the moment, it can count on such funds as Monarch Master Funding and Chenavari Investment Managers.

Merlin has acquired a portfolio consisting of offices and affiliates of BBVA from Tree Inversiones Inmobiliarias for €740 million.

 

Original article: Expansión (by R. M. R.)

Translation: AURA REE

Merlin Properties Trims IPO to €1.25 Bn As Interest Cools Down

27/06/2014 – Bloomberg

Facing diminishing apetitte of property investors, new Spanish Socimi (REIT-alike firm) Merlin Properties felt obliged to decrease the amount of its initial public offering to €1.25 billion, instead of originally planned €1.5 billion.

The trust will trade 125 million shares at 10 Euros each. It has already raised €600 million in committed funds from Moore Capital Management LLC, among other investors. 

As per the information provided by debt-restructuring company Irea, private equity and other financial institutions more than doubled their investment in Spain in 2013, reaching €13.9 billion. 

Credit Suisse Group AG (CSGN), UBS AG and Deutsche Bank AG coordinate and underwrite Merlin’s IPO. Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP act as legal advisors.

 

Original article: Bloomberg (by Ruth David)

Summary: AURA REE

Five Funds Invest Jointly €247 Mn in Axia

27/06/2014 – Expansion

Real Estate Investment Trust (or Socimi by its acronym in Spanish) Axia Real Estate will eventually debut on the continuous stock market on July 9th.

The new vehicle driven by ex-executive of Testa and Alza Real Estate, Luis López de Herrera-Oria, will start trading with a €400 million raised at its initial public offering of 40 million shares sold at 10 Euros each.

Axia has already got commitments for €247 million subscribed by huge institutional investors. Precisely, US hedge fund Perry Capital will take the seat at the managing board with 25% of the stake.

Tabue Hodson Stonex (THS), T Rowe Price, Gruss Capital Management and Pelham Capital will act as anchor investors grabbing 62% of the whole subscribtion. JB Capital Markets and Citigroup are the underwriting banks, whereas Gómez Acebo & Pombo, White & Case and Linklaters perform the functions of the legal advisors.

Axia, born without assets in possession, is going to focus its activity on offices (to make 70% of the entire portfolio), logistics (20%) and commercial real estate (10%) situated principally in Madrid and Barcelona.

Original article: Expansión (by Rocío Ruiz)

Translation: AURA REE