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Blackstone to Acquire San Diego’s Excel Trust in $2 Billion Deal

Excel Trust Inc., a San Diego-based real estate investment company, has entered into an agreement to be acquired by Blackstone Property Partners LP in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $2 billion, the companies announced.

Company officials said the deal calls for New York-based Blackstone to acquire all outstanding shares of Excel Trust’s common stock for $15.85 per share. The transaction has been unanimously approved by Excel’s board of directors and represents a premium of nearly 15 percent over the company’s closing stock price April 9.

“We believe this is an excellent outcome for our shareholders,” Excel Trust Chairman and CEO Gary Sabin said in a statement.

Sabin added there is currently strong demand for high-quality real estate, with stock valuations approaching historic levels for real estate investment trusts, and Excel officials did not believe the market accurately reflected the value of the company’s assets prior to the deal.

“This led the Board to conclude it was time to more fully assess the value of our portfolio,” Sabin said. “After reviewing our options, we were pleased to have a group with Blackstone’s reputation step forward with this offer.”

Nadeem Meghji, co-head of U.S. real estate acquisitions for Blackstone, described Excel Trust as “a terrific company with great long-term potential.” Officials said the deal is expected to close in the second half of 2015 and is contingent on customary closing conditions.

Excel Trust (NYSE: EXL) is headquartered in Rancho Bernardo and oversees a nationwide portfolio of shopping centers and related retail properties.

Blackstone is among the world’s largest equity firms, with approximately $81 billion in investor capital under management. Its global real estate portfolio includes hotel, office, retail, industrial and residential properties.

Blackstone’s major holdings include Hilton Worldwide, homebuilder Invitation Homes and logistics services provider Logicor. Its parent firm, The Blackstone Group, is the largest shareholder in SeaWorld Entertainment Inc., parent of SeaWorld San Diego, which Blackstone Group spun off as a new publicly traded company in 2013.

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