Apartment Income REIT To Go Private In $10 Bln Deal With Blackstone; Stock Climbs In Pre-market

(RTTNews) - Apartment Income REIT Corp., called as AIR Communities, (AIRC) on Monday said it has agreed to go private in an all cash deal with Blackstone (BX). In pre-market activity on the NYSE, AIR shares were climbing around 23 percent to trade at $38.54.

The companies have entered into a definitive agreement, under which Blackstone Real Estate Partners X will acquire AIR Communities for $39.12 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at around $10 billion, including the assumption of debt.

Once the deal is closed, AIR Communities will stop trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

The purchase price represents a premium of 25% to AIR Communities' closing share price on the NYSE on April 5, the last trading day prior to the announcement of the transaction. It also represents a 25% premium to the volume weighted average share price on the NYSE over the previous 30 days.

The deal was unanimously approved by the AIR Communities Board of Directors and is expected to close in the third quarter of 2024. The closure is subject to approval by AIR Communities' stockholders and other customary closing conditions.

As a condition to the transaction, AIR has suspended payment of its quarterly dividend, effective immediately.

AIR Communities' portfolio consists of 76 high-quality rental housing communities concentrated primarily in coastal markets including Miami, Los Angeles, Boston and Washington D.C.

Following the purchase, Blackstone plans to invest more than $400 million to maintain and improve the existing communities in the portfolio and may invest additional capital to fund further growth.

Nadeem Meghji, Global Co-Head of Blackstone Real Estate, said, "AIR Communities represents the highest quality, large scale apartment portfolio we have ever acquired, and is located in markets where multifamily fundamentals are strong. We are very impressed by the terrific operating team at AIR Communities and look forward to working closely with them, while continuing to deliver a fantastic resident experience."