The boards of LondonMetric and Urban Logistics have agreed the terms of a £698.9m takeover deal.
The deal will see LondonMetric acquire the entire issued and to be issued ordinary share capital of Urban Logistics to create a combined group with a market capitalisation of £4.4.bn.
Under the terms of the acquisition, for each Urban Logistics share held shareholders will be entitled to receive 0.5612 new LondonMetric shares and 42.8p in cash.
Andrew Jones, chief executive of LondonMetric, said: “This is an excellent transaction that grows our urban logistics platform and supports our triple net strategy. Urban warehousing remains our strongest conviction call for organic rental growth across the UK real estate market. The portfolio is well located, highly reversionary and our asset management focus will ensure that it delivers reliable, repetitive and growing income-led returns.
“We have a demonstrable track record of successfully executing on M&A and we expect the transaction will deliver substantial synergies, cost savings and accelerated earnings growth. Our scale will continue to deliver enhanced access to capital, more debt optionality, increased share liquidity and larger investment opportunities.”
Nigel Rich, independent non-executive chairman of Urban Logistics, added: “Since its IPO in 2016, Urban Logistics has assembled an exceptional portfolio of single-let, ‘last mile’ assets and has outperformed the UK REIT sector and other relevant benchmarks. I would like to congratulate Richard Moffitt and the rest of the management team on this achievement and to thank them for their commitment and dedication.
“The board of Urban Logistics believes that the acquisition offers Urban Logistics shareholders a premium price for their shares, an attractive combination of cash and share consideration and ongoing exposure to the logistics sector via a company of greater scale and liquidity.”
