A joint venture, comprising SparrowHawk and Almanac Realty Investors, has secured $236 million in acquisition financing to acquire a 4.4 million square foot, 20-property US industrial portfolio, according to a press release. Fidelity Investments had previously reported that the joint venture had purchased the portfolio from EQT for just under $400 million.
PPM America provided the $236 million in financing as a five-year loan with fixed and floating interest rates. The JLL Capital Markets team, consisting of Brian Walsh, Lucas Borges, Steve Klein, Chris Pratt, Emma Berner and Christian Johnston, arranged the transaction.
Strategic Positioning and Institutional Quality
JLL's Brian Walsh remarked in a statement that SparrowHawk possesses "deep operational expertise" in the industrial real estate sector, whilst he described Almanac Realty Investors as an institutional player with "significant capital resources". He further elaborated that this transaction garnered significant interest from lenders due to the institutional quality of the sponsors and the strategic positioning of the portfolio in high-performing Midwest markets.
Known as "The Central Logistics Portfolio", the 20-property portfolio is spread across six markets in four states: Kentucky, Ohio, Missouri and Illinois. It is 94 percent occupied by 30 logistics and distribution tenants from various industries. The buildings were completed, on average, in 2006 and have an average building size of 221,000 square feet.
Central Location in the Midwest
Owing to its location in the four Midwest states and cities such as Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, Louisville, Cleveland and St. Louis, the portfolio is within a day's drive of 50 percent of the US population. The transaction comes less than a year after SparrowHawk secured a $300 million capital investment from Almanac Realty Investors to fund acquisitions.
Alfredo Gutierrez, President and Founder of SparrowHawk, stated: "The strategic location of these assets in key Midwest markets, combined with JLL's financing expertise and PPM's execution, positions us well for long-term growth."
- —JLL Capital Markets: Brian Walsh, Lucas Borges, Steve Klein, Chris Pratt, Emma Berner and Christian Johnston
- —Investors: SparrowHawk and Almanac Realty Investors
- —Financier: PPM America
- —Seller: EQT
