Knight Frank: High Street Investment Soared by 84% to €1.3bn in 2018

31 January 2019 – Eje Prime

The real estate sector has closed another year with a strong performance in the Spanish market. As we approach the end of the real estate cycle in the country, the tertiary sector is continuing to maintain high levels of investment, with growing rents and sustainable yields.

In the retail sector, the investment volume amounted to around €3.7 billion in 2018, according to data from Knight Frank. The main driver of that investment was the high street, where spending soared by 84% to €1.3 billion.

Despite that, the bulk of retail investment in Spain continued to be directed towards shopping centres, which accounted for 54% of the total last year with major operations such as the sale of the Summit portfolio, owned by Sonae Sierra in conjunction with CBRE GI, and of which 87% is now controlled by JT Real Estate.

Moreover, the consultancy firm highlights that interest has increased from investors in shopping centres and isolated retail warehouses in good locations “which allow them to manage last mile delivery points”, said the consultancy firm.

Returns have remained stable across the three segments with yields of 5.25% for retail parks, 4.25% for shopping centres and 3% for high street assets.

Despite the strong performance of the retail sector in 2018, the jewel in the Spanish real estate crown is still the logistics segment. In 2018, investment in logistics assets amounted to €1.255 billion, close to the record set in 2017 of €1.28 billion.

In the last quarter, several large operations were closed, such as Blackstone’s purchase of a portfolio of 55 assets from Neinver for €300 million.

Interest in the segment continues to generate expectations regarding the compression of yields, and so Knight Frank forecasts returns of around 5% this year.

Finally, the office sector has also maintained a robust rate of activity, after the maximums recorded in 2017 thanks to operations undertaken by the Administration. Specifically, Knight Frank estimates that 2018 closed with a gross absorption of 493,000 m2.

Following the trend set in 2017, 52% of the surface area leased was located outside of the M-30, although during the final quarter, it was the secondary centre that accounted for the bulk of the space rented, around 35%.

Prime office rents remained stable at around €30.5/m2/month, and reached maximums of €38.5/m2/month in the most sought-after areas of the business district.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake

Blackstone Considers Buying Neinver from the Losantos Family for €500M

23 January 2019 – El Confidencial

Neinver, a property developer and operator of shopping centres, specialising in outlets – focused on offering discounted products – is up for sale and the US fund Blackstone is one of the buyers that is evaluating the operation. The Losantos family is asking around €500 million for the company, which has become one of the major operators in the shopping centre sector in Europe, and which would fit well into Blackstone’s portfolio given the stable rents generated by its properties and land, according to explanations provided by sources in the real estate sector.

Spokespersons from Neinver consulted about the negotiations indicated that “they decline to comment on rumours” regarding the sale operation, one of the largest underway in the sector in Spain this year from a corporate perspective.

Nevertheless, other financial sources have assured that the Losantos family has entrusted the sale of the company to Credit Suisse, which has drawn up a sales book that it has been promoting since the end of the year and which is being considered by several funds.

Blackstone is the favourite because it has already acquired assets from Neinver. In November last year, the property developer placed a package of industrial warehouses and logistics assets with Blackstone for €290 million. Therefore, this fund, the largest overseas investor in the Spanish real estate sector, is an old acquaintance of the Losantos family.

Neinver is chaired by José María Losantos del Campo. It is the largest operator of outlet centres in Spain and Poland, where it operates under two own brands: The Style Outlets and Factory. It has developed some of its assets in association with the fund TH Real Estate. In total, it has promoted and managed 16 outlet centres, and six shopping centres and retail parks (…). It has a presence in seven countries, including France, Italy, Germany, Portugal and the Czech Republic.

Neinver in numbers

Neinver recorded revenues of €93.6 million in 2017, according to the consolidated accounts filed with the Mercantile Registry. That figure represented an increase of 27% compared with the previous year.

Nevertheless, the strong performance in terms of sales was not reflected in its profits. Neinver is selling more but earning less. In 2017, its net consolidated profit amounted to €4.7 million, a third of the €16.1 million that it earned in 2016. The decrease in profitability was due in large part to the projects underway and its indebtedness.

According to the group’s consolidated accounts, the gross debt at the end of last year amounted to €466.3 million, €30 million more than during the previous year, “due to debts stemming from the new companies incorporated into the Neptune joint venture”. Neptune is the joint venture owned by Neinver and TH Real Estate.

Valuations

The €500 million asking price is without the debt. The book value of the company’s assets amounts to €913 million, according to Neinver’s own accounts. The main appeal of the company is the revenue stream stemming from the rental of its assets (…).

Original story: El Confidencial (by Marcos Lamelas)

Translation: Carmel Drake

The Losantos Family Puts Neinver Up for Sale for €500M+

26 December 2018 – Cinco Días

One of the historical names of Spanish real estate, the Losantos family, is putting its real estate firm Neinver up for sale for more than €500 million. Neinver specialises in building and managing retail outlets and is the company that manages shopping centres such as The Style Outlets and the Factory. It has a presence in several countries.

The company, chaired by José María Losantos del Campo, has engaged the bank Credit Suisse to search for interested parties in this multi-national firm that started life in La Rioja, according to four financial and real estate sources familiar with the operation. The financial entity and the company declined to comment about this operation.

The founder of the company, born in 1936, started out in the sale and purchase of tinplate, together with his brother Mario, and later founded Neinver in 1969. Mario would go on to found Riofisa, one of the large real estate empires in Spain (…).

José María Losantos grew Neinver, which is now headquartered in Alcobendas (Madrid), specialising in turnkey projects, for example, in several wineries, and which has opted for shopping centres over the last two decades. His son, Daniel Losantos, serves as the firm’s CEO. The real estate company has, in turn, been controlled by the company Teckel Gestora since 2016, which also owns rural estates in Ciudad Real and which is owned by the patriarch of the family.

Neinver manages 600,000 m2 of commercial spaces, across almost 2,000 stores and in 15 outlet centres under the brand The Style Outlets and Factory, which span a commercial surface area of 300,000 m2.

The company has a joint venture to share ownership of some of these assets with TH Real Estate, the real estate arm of TIAA, the US teachers’ pension fund. Neinver controls a lot of these properties through 23 companies, according to reports from Insight View based on property registry data.

In addition to the centres in Spain, it owns assets together with TH Real Estate and other partners in France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic.

In Spain, it owns The Style Outlets – which are dedicated to the off-season sale of well-known brands – in Las Rozas, San Sebastián de los Reyes and Getafe (all three in Madrid), A Coruña and Viladecans (Barcelona), as well as the Madrilenian shopping centres Alegra and Nassica.

This search for buyers entrusted to Credit Suisse comes at a critical moment for investment in the Spanish real estate market, which is featuring many international funds and Socimis. So far this year, until the middle of December, a record investment figure of €18.719 billion has been registered, according to CBRE, up by 45% compared to 2017, boosted above all by the acquisition of companies. In the case of retail, €4.279 billion has been invested to date this year.

Original story: Cinco Días (by Alfonso Simón Ruis & Pablo Martín Simón)

Translation: Carmel Drake

2018: The Year that Blackstone was Crowned the King of the Spanish Real Estate Sector

17 December 2018 – Eje Prime

Blackstone wants it all and it wants it now. That is the sensation that the US investment fund, the new king of the Spanish real estate market, is transmitting throughout the real estate sector. Its portfolio is worth more than €20 billion after an accelerated period of purchases during 2018.

One of the objectives of the US fund manager has been, precisely, to expand its network in the Spanish real estate sector by entering markets such as the logistics segment. At the beginning of December, the company closed its latest operation in the country with the purchase of a logistics portfolio from Neinver for €300 million.

Nevertheless, the deal involving the giant Neinver is by no means the most significant operation that Blackstone has undertaken this year. Over the last twelve months, the group has taken control of Hispania, to grow in the hotel sector; it has acquired 80% of Testa, to manage thousands of rental homes, and in the logistics sector, it has accumulated 1 million m2 of space with the 55 assets from Neinver and the purchase of an industrial portfolio from Lar España.

Blackstone has disbursed almost €4 billion in the Spanish real estate sector this year, a figure that far exceeds the €127.5 million that it spent on its first investment in the domestic market in 2013. Moreover, that debut was not free from controversy, given that the group purchased 18 residential developments, containing 1,860 social housing units, which the Town Hall of Madrid sold the fund through the Municipal Housing and Land Company of Madrid (Emvsa).

Five years later, Blackstone is one of the largest owners of residential assets in Spain and the leader of the hotel sector. It leapt to first position in the hotel market ranking this year following its successful takeover of the Socimi Hispania. The company paid €1.99 billion for that vehicle, managed by Azora. With that operation, the fund added 46 assets and almost 13,150 rooms in Spain to a portfolio that it started to grow in 2017 with the purchase of HI Partners, the hotel arm of Banco Sabadell, for €630 million. In total, the manager owns 63 assets and almost 18,000 hotel rooms across Spain.

Hispania also provided Blackstone with residential assets worth €230 million, as well as 25 office buildings whose market value exceeds €600 million. Also in that segment, the company added the iconic Planeta office building in Barcelona to its portfolio during 2018, which it purchased from the Lara family in July for €210 million.

Spain, 20% of its global portfolio

Today, Spain accounts for 20% of Blackstone’s global investment. In total, the US firm owns property worth almost USD 120,000 million (€105,387 million) around the world. This real estate giant has become the largest unlisted real estate company in Spain (…).

The superiority of Blackstone’s portfolio in Spain with respect to those of the large domestic real estate firms is clear. The two largest players, Merlin and Colonial, are ranked within the top 15 Socimis in Europe and, yet, their portfolios are worth just half of that of the fund, at €11.785 billion and €11.19 billion, respectively.

Santander’s best friend

As well as mixing with other real estate players, Blackstone has made friends with some of the Spanish financial institutions. The banks, big losers in the previous real estate cycle, have worked hard over the last two years to place their property with the highest bidder, taking advantage of the new boom in the residential market.

In this way, in 2017, Banco Santander agreed with Blackstone the largest operation involving the sale of toxic assets from the real estate sector in the country. The fund manager purchased 51% of Popular’s property, a portfolio with €30,000 million in assets.

The relationship with the bank owned by the Botín family has been strengthened in 2018 with Project Quasar, the real estate firm created by the financial institution and the fund. The joint venture received a capital injection amounting to €300 million in May. Through this vehicle, the transfer of Popular’s assets is being carried out.

In order to place this property into circulation, as part of the operation in 2017, Blackstone also acquired the bank’s servicer, Aliseda, led by Eduard Mendiluce (…), who also manages the Socimi Albirana.

Albirana Properties is one of four residential Socimis that Blackstone currently has listed on the Alternative Investment Market (MAB). The others are Fidere Patrimonio, Corona Patrimonial and Torbel Investments.

Original story: Eje Prime (by Jabier Izquierdo)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Neinver Sells a 55-Asset Logistics Portfolio to Blackstone for €300M

10 December 2018 – Europa Press

Neinver, a company specialising in the investment, construction and management of real estate assets, has sold a portfolio of industrial and logistics assets to the real estate fund managed by Blackstone, for approximately €300 million.

Specifically, the transaction, which represents the largest logistics operation of the year, includes 55 logistics assets and 162,000 m2 of land for industrial use, of which Neinver is the owner, co-owner and manager, according to a statement.

Of the total portfolio managed by Neinver, which spans more than half a million m2, 37 assets are owned by Colver, the joint venture that the Spanish company created together with Colony Capital at the end of 2014.

Over the last three years, the joint venture has almost tripled its volume and achieved occupancy rates of 98%, generating rental income of more than €11.5 million.

Neinver has specified that this transaction forms part of its growth strategy based on the rotation of assets and investment in new business opportunities in the retail and industrial and logistics sectors. Moreover, with this operation, it strengthens its position as an investor and manager of real estate assets.

The director of the Industrial and Logistics area at Neinver, Juan Carlos Ortega, has explained that the sale of the portfolio is a “strategic divestment” for the company, which culminates a process of several years of work where value has been created through the design of a portfolio of high-quality and versatile assets in strategic locations distributed across the main logistics axis of Spain.

In this way, the portfolio has national coverage, with a presence in 26 Spanish provinces, including Madrid, Barcelona, Vizcaya, Navarra, Málaga, Sevilla, Valencia and Zaragoza, amongst others.

Original story: Europa Press 

Translation: Carmel Drake

Blackstone Negotiates the Purchase of 37 Logistics Centres from Neinver for €290M

22 November 2018 – Eje Prime

Blackstone is on a mission in the Spanish logistics sector. The US giant is finalising the purchase of 37 logistics centres that the Spanish group Neinver and the Californian fund Colony Capital own in the country, which span a total surface area of 261,000 m2, for €290 million.

In this way, Neinver, owned by the businessman José María Losantos, and Colony will put an end to an alliance that was created in 2015 to invest €200 million over the medium term in properties relating to the logistics sector in Spain, according to reports from Expansión.

For Blackstone, the operation represents a new boost to its investment strategy in Spain, where it already owns a portfolio worth more than €22 billion. The fund has managed to convert itself into the largest owner of real estate in the country with operations in the residential, hotel and logistics sectors.

In terms of this latest segment, the group already owns 1 million m2 of industrial space in Spain, through Logicor, in which it retains a 10% stake. In July, Blackstone purchased Lar’s logistics portfolio for €120 million, its first major industrial acquisition in the country.

Meanwhile, Neinver divides its activity between investment in land and logistics warehouses and the management of 19 outlets. The group carries out its activity in Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany, France, the Czech Republic and Poland. Moreover, Colony Capital is a US company specialising in real estate operations with USD 44 billion in assets under management.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake

Lar Spends €6M on Renovation of Megapark Barakaldo Shopping Centre

10 April 2018 – Eje Prime

Lar is giving one of its assets a makeover. The Socimi owned by the Lar España group has started work on the complete renovation of the Megapark Barakaldo shopping centre, for the first time since its construction in 2004, which will involve an investment of €6 million, according to a statement issued by the group.

The shopping centre, which is owned by Lar España Real Estate Socimi, has been managed by Neinver since 2016. Neinver, which is directing the renovation work, is one of the leaders in the development and management of outlet centres in Spain and the second largest operator in Europe.

The renovation of Megapark is going to be carried out in two phases. Firstly, work will be undertaken in the retail space; this has already begun, without affecting the daily activity of the centre, and is due to be completed in November 2018. Subsequently, work will begin on the leisure area to modernise and unify its image with the rest of the park.

“During this first phase, the renovation of Megapark Barakaldo’s retail area will be reflected primarily in a more current image, which is going to be accompanied by the renovation of all of the façades, outdoor spaces and common areas”, explain sources at the group. For this, an urbanisation plan has been developed, which includes introducing urban design furniture and children’s areas.

The general remodelling of the centre is also being accompanied by the renovation of some of the retail stores such as those of Mediamarkt, Kiabi, Merkal and Forum, as well as the expansion of the Conforama store by 1,200 m2 to reach 6,200 m2.

Megapark Barakaldo is located fifteen minutes from the centre of Bilbao and is the only retail and leisure area of its kind in a 400 km radius. In 2017, it received more than 10 million visitors and it has a surface area of 128,000 m2.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake

Madrid & Valencia Led The Logistics Market In October

6 November 2017 – Cadena de Suministro

The month of October was marked by the developments carried out by Mercadona, Grupo Lar and Inditex in the Community of Valencia; as well as by the transfer of DB Schenker’s operations in Madrid, Invesco’s new development in Getafe and Neinver’s purchase of a 40,000 m2 site (also in Madrid).

The Spanish logistics market is continuing to perform well, as demonstrated by the increase in demand in Madrid (+57%) and Valencia (+35%) during the 9 months to September. It is precisely in Valencia where, in October, TH Real Estate acquired the logistics platform that serves Carrefour.

Meanwhile, in the Spanish capital, Neinver incorporated 40,000 m2 of logistics space into its portfolio, located in an industrial estate in the town of Getafe; and in Zaragoza, Ibercaja sold two warehouses, measuring 15,926 m² and 11,170 m² in PlaZa to Savills Investment Management.

At the international level, one of the most noteworthy operations last month was the purchase of IDI Gazeley by Global Logistics Properties for €2,400 million. The acquisition of Logicor also pushed ahead, for which China Investment will pay €12,250 million, in a deal that has finally been approved by the European Union.

New developments

In terms of new developments, Madrid and the Community of Valencia headed up the leaderboard once again. Mercadona formalised its purchase of a 358,270 m2 plot in Parc Sagunt, where it is going to build its largest logistics centre in Spain, whilst Lar España committed to starting work soon on the construction of its logistics park in the Valencian town of Cheste.

Meanwhile, Inditex plans to expand its facilities in the Alicante town of Elche, where it has a platform dedicated to footwear. In the same way, it plans to open a new centre in Marchamalo, in the Corredor del Henares area, at the end of 2018.

In Madrid, the operator DB Schenker moved and unified the operations of all of its divisions into a new location in Vicálvaro, where the Port Authority of Valencia is considering establishing an intermodal logistics platform.

Meanwhile, Invesco started building new facilities on the Puerta Mayor Los Gavilanes Business Park, in the town of Getafe. In terms of Barcelona, which saw less activity in the logistics market in October, Kiabi announced it is about to start operations at its new centre in La Bisbal de Panadés.

In other geographic regions, the Ministry of Development found a definitive location for the logistics platform in Talavera de la Reina, Toledo. Moreover, the Junta de Andalucía announced that it will spend some of its budget for 2018 on turning the autonomous region into a logistics hub, capable of leveraging the traffic that connects Europe with the North of Africa and America.

Operations involving logistics clients

One of the most important developments undertaken by the business sector in Spain in October was the opening of Elektro 3’s logistics platform in Tarragona, with a surface area of 16,000 m2, and of Covestro’s platform in the same province. Moreover, the Construction Platform was opened in the Madrilenian town of Pinto, spanning 33,000 m2 and the equivalent version was opened in Froiz, Vigo, measuring 1,700 m2.

Construction work also started at Berlys’ new plant for frozen products in the Navarran town of Tajonar as well as on the plant for Frutas E. Sánchez in Mercamadrid, which will be operative from Q1 2018 and November 2018, respectively.

In this context, the spare parts distributor Diesel Technic announced that it will move its warehouse from Alcalá de Henares to the Casablanca II de Rockspring platform in Torrejón de Ardoz; and the Zaragoza-based company Casa Matachín said that is planning to invest €21 million on the construction of a logistics platform in PlaZa.

Original story: Cadena de Suministro

Translation: Carmel Drake

Neinver Acquires 40,000m2 Plot In Getafe To Build Logistics Warehouse

31 October 2017 – Observatorio Inmobiliario

Neinver has acquired 40,000 m2 of industrial land on the Carpetania Industrial Estate in Getafe (Madrid), where it plans to build an industrial warehouse with a GLA (Gross Leasable Area) of 24,000 m2. This project, which involves an investment of approximately €16 million, reflects the company’s commitment to logistics development; since its creation, the firm has now built more than 2 million m2 of logistics assets.

Currently, Neinver is one of the main property developers, managers and investors in the southern part of the Community of Madrid, with more than 70,000 m2 of GLA under management in the Getafe area.

According to Juan Carlos Ortega, Director of Industrial and Logistics at Neinver, “with this operation, Neinver is strengthening its position as a developer of logistics projects in the Spanish market. Besides managing a portfolio spanning half a million m2, the development of a new warehouse in a location as strategic as Carpetania, reflects the company’s commitment to this sector, so rooted in the origins of Neinver”.

This operation comes after Neinver acquired two other logistics assets in Barcelona and Pamplona, with a combined constructed surface area of 15,000 m2, in February of this year, through Colver, its joint venture with Colony Northstar.

In total, Neinver currently manages a portfolio of 500,000 m2 in terms of logistics and industrial surface area, corresponding to a gross asset value (GAV) of €300 million.

Original story: Observatorio Inmobiliario

Translation: Carmel Drake

Patron Capital Acquires Los Alcores Shopping Centre

30 April 2017 – ABC

A constant and silent trickle of investments has seen a significant number of the shopping centres in Andalucía change hands. The latest operation was closed in March, when the investment fund Patron Capital – which is headquartered in London and which has a portfolio worth more than €5,000 million – acquired Los Alcores, the most well-known establishment in Alcalá de Guadaíra (with a leasable area of 124,000 m2). Its tenants include H&M, Lefties, Bershka, Stradivarius and Cinesur.

The shopping centre, located at the foot of the A-92 motorway, has belonged to Incus Capital since 2013, just like El Mirador (in Cuenca) and Alzamora (in Alcoy). Now, these three properties have been acquired by Patron Capital, which has joined forces with the firm Eurofund to invest more than €13 million modernising the properties.

According to the experts, the operation makes sense, “Los Alcores is located in an area that will be served by the metro in the near future and which has large residential projects underway nearby, such as Hacienda Rosario being constructed by Aedas Homes; it is highly visible from the motorway and its tenants include many household names”, said Rosa Madrid, Director of CBRE in Andalucía, the firm that advised the operation.

A report by this consultancy highlights that the shopping centre business has “been recovering for several years and recorded a successful year in 2016”. Behind this rise is “the increase in consumption and, therefore, the good indicators in terms of visitor numbers and sales, which improved by 3.1% and 1.6%, respectively (taking the portfolio of shopping centres managed by CBRE in Spain as a sample)”.

From there, the significant interest from the major commercial brands in growing again, “which has allowed shopping centre occupancy rates to increase at a good pace”. In the CBRE portfolio, “the average occupancy rate rose from 89.6% to 93.9% between 2014 and 2016, figures that illustrate the improvement in the sector”.

If we look at what has happened over the last twelve months, it is clear that this sector “is on a roll”. At the end of 2016, the Via Outlet group – in which the London-based giant Hammerson owns a stake – purchased The Style Outlet in the town of San José de la Rinconada (better known as “The Airport Factory”). Until now, that establishment has belonged to a fund promoted by the Spanish real estate company Neinver (controlled by the Losantos family). Its major rival, the Outlet de Dos Hermanas, had already been acquired by Green Oak, just a few months earlier.

Major sales

These operations joined a long list, which also includes Grupo Lar, which sold the Airesur de Castilleja de la Cuesta shopping centre to CBRE Global Investors. And an Andalucían company has also made money in this wave, specifically, the case of Bogaris, which sold six retail parks in Andalucía and Extremadura to Redevco Iberian Ventures in the middle of last year for €95 million (including Kinepolis Pulianas, las Marismas del Polvorín and the Motril retail park).

And the activity does not end there: Axiare Patrimonio purchased the Viaparck shopping centre in Almería for €20 million; Alpha Pyrenees Trust bought the Connecta shopping centre in Córdoba….and just a few weeks ago, New Winds Group (the owner of the Windsor building in Madrid) purchased Málaga Plaza shopping centre. Just another sign of the good health of a business that is taking off again.

Original story: ABC (by Luis Montoto)

Translation: Carmel Drake