NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION IN THE UNITED
STATES OR OVER UNITED
STATES WIRE SERVICES
QUÉBEC CITY, Oct. 1, 2014 /CNW
Telbec/ - Cominar Real Estate Investment Trust ("Cominar") (TSX:
CUF.UN) announces today that it has closed its previously-announced
acquisition (the "Acquisition") of a real estate portfolio from
Ivanhoé Cambridge Inc. ("Ivanhoé Cambridge"), the real estate subsidiary of
Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec ("La Caisse"), for an
aggregate purchase price of approximately $1.35 billion. The acquired portfolio, comprising
a total of approximately 5.0 million square feet of gross
leasable area, consists of 10 retail properties (4.2 million
square feet), three office properties (0.7 million square feet)
including one property under development, and one industrial and
mixed-use property (0.1 million square feet). The portfolio
includes the 50% and 15% interests of the co-owners of Mail
Champlain and Les Galeries de Hull which Cominar also acquired
today.
The Acquisition increases Cominar's asset base by approximately
21% to more than $7.8 billion
with more than 44 million square feet of leasable area. The
Acquisition also enhances Cominar's asset type diversification
profile, increasing its retail net operating income ("NOI")
contribution from 24% to 36%, with office at 45% and industrial and
mixed-use at 19%. The Acquisition has a marginal impact on
geographic distribution.
The acquisition of Centre Rockland, consisting of a
649,174-square foot enclosed shopping mall located in the town of
Mount Royal, remains subject to a
right of first refusal of a third party, and is not included in the
Acquisition announced today. Cominar's offer to acquire Centre
Rockland, if the right of first refusal is not exercised, remains
in place.
The approximately 104 Ivanhoé Cambridge employees dedicated to the
properties acquired today have been transferred to Cominar.
Details of the
Portfolio
|
|
|
|
|
Property
|
Location
|
GLA(1)
|
Retail
|
Mail
Champlain
|
Brossard,
QC
|
718
|
Centropolis
|
Laval, QC
|
674
|
Galeries
Rive-Nord
|
Repentigny,
QC
|
569
|
Les
Rivières
|
Trois-Rivières,
QC
|
422
|
Dixie Outlet
Mall
|
Mississauga,
ON
|
419
|
Carrefour
Rimouski
|
Rimouski,
QC
|
345
|
Centre Commercial
Rivière-du-Loup
|
Rivière-du-Loup,
QC
|
312
|
Carrefour
St-Georges
|
St-Georges,
QC
|
311
|
Les Galeries de
Hull
|
Gatineau,
QC
|
306
|
Carrefour
Frontenac
|
Thetford Mines,
QC
|
180
|
Total
Retail
|
|
4,256
|
|
|
|
|
Office
|
Édifice de la
Haute-Ville
|
Québec City,
QC
|
284
|
55 University
Ave.
|
Toronto,
ON
|
258
|
3055 Boul. St-Martin
Ouest(2)
|
Laval, QC
|
118
|
Total
Office
|
|
660
|
|
|
|
|
Industrial
|
Le 505 Parc
Technologique
|
Québec City,
QC
|
99
|
|
|
|
Total
Portfolio
|
|
5,015
|
_____
Notes
(1) In thousands of square feet.
(2) Under
development.
Private Placement of Trust Units
Concurrently with the
closing of the Acquisition, Cominar has completed a private
placement with Ivanhoé Cambridge,
pursuant to which Ivanhoé Cambridge has purchased 13,158,000 trust units
at $19.00 per trust unit for gross
proceeds to Cominar of $250 million
(the "Ivanhoé Cambridge Private Placement").
Ivanhoé Cambridge beneficially
owns, or exercises control or direction over, directly or
indirectly, an aggregate of 13,158,000 trust units of Cominar,
representing approximately 8.4% of the issued and outstanding trust
units. Ivanhoé Cambridge has also agreed not to sell any
trust units of Cominar it holds for a period of nine months from
the closing of the Acquisition, at which time 50% of such trust
units will cease to be subject to these restrictions, with the
remaining trust units also ceasing to be subject to these
restrictions twelve months from the closing of the Acquisition.
Ivanhoé Cambridge will also be
invited to put forward a candidate for election on the Board of
Trustees of Cominar, subject to the approval of the Nominating and
Governance Committee of Cominar. This will enable Ivanhoé
Cambridge to contribute more
readily to Cominar's future growth.
Financing of the Acquisition
The purchase price of the
Acquisition, together with the transaction expenses, were funded
through (i) a new 10-year hypothecary loan of $250 million provided by Otéra Capital, the
commercial real estate financing subsidiary of La Caisse, on
Galeries Rive-Nord and Les Rivières; (ii) the Ivanhoé
Cambridge Private Placement; and (iii) the balance from
Cominar's unsecured revolving credit facility and cash on hand.
Pro Forma Leverage
Following closing of the
Acquisition and the Ivanhoé Cambridge Private Placement, Cominar
has a debt to gross book value ratio of approximately 55.3%
(approximately 53.0% excluding convertible debentures). Cominar's
long-term target leverage remains at approximately 50%.
Cominar's aggregate unencumbered assets increased to more than
$3.2 billion representing
approximately 157% of the aggregate principal amount of senior
unsecured indebtedness outstanding following the closing of the
Acquisition and the Ivanhoé Cambridge Private Placement.
COMINAR PROFILE as at October 1,
2014
Cominar is the third largest diversified real estate investment
trust in Canada and remains the
largest commercial property owner in the Province of Québec.
Cominar currently owns a real estate portfolio of 540 properties in
three different market segments, that is, office properties, retail
properties and industrial and mixed-use properties. Cominar's
portfolio totals 44.5 million square feet spread out across Québec,
Ontario, the Atlantic Provinces
and Western Canada. Cominar's
objectives are to pay growing cash distributions to unitholders and
to maximize unitholder value through proactive management and the
expansion of its portfolio.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements with
respect to Cominar and its operations, strategy, financial
performance and financial condition. These statements generally can
be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as "may",
"will", "expect", "estimate", "anticipate", "intend", "believe" or
"continue" or the negative thereof or similar variations. The
actual results and performance of Cominar discussed herein could
differ materially from those expressed or implied by such
statements. Such statements are qualified in their entirety by the
inherent risks and uncertainties surrounding future
expectations. Some important factors that could cause actual
results to differ materially from expectations include, among other
things, general economic and market factors, competition, changes
in government regulation and the factors described under "Risk
Factors" in the Annual Information Form of Cominar. The
cautionary statements qualify all forward-looking statements
attributable to Cominar and persons acting on its behalf. Unless
otherwise stated, all forward-looking statements speak only as of
the date of this press release.
SOURCE Cominar Real Estate Investment Trust