22nd Apr 2014 11:45
LONDON (Alliance News) - Intu Properties PLC, a shopping centre investment firm, said Tuesday that 99% of its rights issue to shareholders was taken up, proceeds from which it will use to partly fund a deal to buy up two more Westfield shopping centres, and take a 50% stake in a third.
In March, Intu Properties said it spend GBP867.8 million on the acquisitions, funded through GBP423.8 million in new debt facilities and a rights issue. Intu said it will buy all of the Westfield Derby shopping centre, as well the Sprucefield retail park in Northern Ireland from Westfield. It will also buy a 50% stake in the Westfield Merry Hill shopping centre near Birmingham from Westfield, going into partnership with QIC which owns the other half of the business.
At the time, Intu said its fully underwritten rights issue, to part fund the deal, will offer two new shares for every seven existing shares at 180 pence, or ZAR32.28, a share, as it hoped to raise gross proceeds of GBP500 million, or about GBP488 million net of costs.
Intu Properties said Tuesday that out of the total rights issue, in which shareholders are given the right to buy new shares in proportion to their existing holding, 99% of the shares offered were taken up at the 180p price. It said that the company's joint bookrunners Merrill Lynch International, UBS Limited and HSBC Bank PLC, subsequently found subscribers for the remaining 2.7 million shares at a price of 289.50 pence, or ZAR51.27 per share.
Shares in the real estate investment trust were up 1.6% at 290.00 pence per share Tuesday early afternoon.
By Rowena Harris-Doughty; [email protected]; @rharrisdoughty
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