The boards of LondonMetric and LXi have agreed the terms of a recommended all-share merger, which will see LondonMetric acquire the entire issued and to-be-issued ordinary share capital of LXi, creating a new £4.1bn UK REIT.
Following completion of the merger, the REIT will be the UK’s fourth largest boasting a combined portfolio worth £6.2bn, 93% of which is in the logistics, healthcare, convenience, entertainment and leisure sectors.
The merger values the entire issued and to-be-issued ordinary share capital of LXi at approximately £1.9bn and represents a premium of approximately 9% to the undisturbed closing price per LXi share of 99.5p and a premium of approximately 13% to the volume weighted average closing price per LXi share of 95.7p for the one-month period ending 15 December 2023.
Following completion of the merger, existing LondonMetric shareholders will hold approximately 54% and LXi shareholders will hold approximately 46% of the enlarged issued share capital of LondonMetric.
The boards of LondonMetric and LXi said the merger “would build on the strengths and strong track records of both companies to create a new major UK REIT, aligned to structurally supported sectors with high barriers to entry and income security, with a low cost base, better access to capital through greater scale, and enhanced scope for capital recycling and asset management to drive compounding income growth and total returns for shareholders”.
