(HOUSTON) – Hines Real Estate Investment Trust, Inc. (“Hines REIT") announced today it has completed the sale of seven West Coast office assets to a Blackstone affiliate for $1.162 billion. Shareholders approved the board-recommended plan to liquidate and dissolve Hines REIT during its annual shareholder meeting on November 7. Hines REIT was the first of three non-traded REITs sponsored by the international real estate firm.
So far in 2016, Hines REIT has sold 22 of its directly owned properties for $2.3 billion, before transaction costs and retirement of debt. In addition, during that same time period, the Hines US Core Office Fund LP, in which Hines REIT owns a 28.8 percent LP interest, sold four of its properties for $762.7 million, before transaction costs and retirement of debt. Hines REIT is in the process of liquidating the few remaining assets it owns directly and through its interest in Hines US Core Office Fund LP and currently anticipates those sales will be completed before year-end.
“The sale of seven of our West Coast office assets to a Blackstone affiliate was a significant and positive transaction and a result of our focus on maximizing the assets’ appeal to the institutional market and providing Hines REIT’s investors with an attractive outcome,” said Sherri Schugart, President and CEO of Hines REIT. “The vast majority of our investors will have experienced a positive return on their investment in Hines REIT given the cash distributions we have paid through the years combined with capital we expect to return to investors as a result of this liquidity event and capital we have returned in previous years. We are pleased with this performance relative to the performance of many of our peers and other investment alternatives that had comparable investment strategies and timing, especially considering the impact of the financial crisis and economic downturn during 2008 and 2009.”
Hines REIT currently expects to initially distribute a significant portion of the net proceeds from the completed asset sales to its shareholders before the end of this year and to have one or more additional liquidating distributions to its shareholders during the first quarter of 2017, after all remaining business activities are concluded. Hines REIT presently expects that the aggregate liquidating distributions to its shareholders will be within the range of $6.35 to $6.65 per share, as disclosed when Hines REIT announced the plan of liquidation. In addition to these liquidating distributions, Hines REIT previously paid special distributions totaling $1.01 per share from July 2011 through April 2013, which were designated as a partial return of invested capital to shareholders. For additional information regarding the voting results from our annual meeting, please see Hines REIT’s 8-K filing dated November 7, 2016.
About Hines REIT:
Hines REIT is a public, non-listed real
estate investment trust sponsored by Hines. Hines REIT was formed in
August 2003 for the purpose of investing in and owning interests in real
estate. In total, Hines REIT acquired interests in 66 properties, representing
approximately 33 million square feet, since its inception and has sold its
interests in 63 of those properties as of November 10, 2016. For additional
information about Hines REIT, visit www.hinessecurities.com.
About Hines:
Hines is a privately owned global real
estate investment firm founded in 1957 with a presence in 192 cities in 20
countries. Hines has $93.2 billion of assets under management, including $47.9
billion for which Hines provides fiduciary investment management services, and
$45.3 billion for which Hines provides third-party property-level services. The
firm has 105 developments currently underway around the world. Historically,
Hines has developed, redeveloped or acquired 1,180 properties, totaling over
379 million square feet. The firm’s current property and asset management
portfolio includes 483 properties, representing over 199 million square feet.
With extensive experience in investments across the risk spectrum and all
property types, and a pioneering commitment to sustainability, Hines is one of
the largest and most-respected real estate organizations in the world.
Visit
www.hines.com for more information.
Forward-Looking
Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 based on current
expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties
that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially. These
forward-looking statements include, among others, statements about the expected
benefits of the plan of liquidation (the “Plan”), the estimated range and the
timing of the payment of liquidating distributions, the expected timing and
completion of the Plan, the return to be achieved by shareholders and the
future business, performance and opportunities of Hines REIT.
Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of
words or phrases such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,”
“plan,” “foresee,” “looking ahead,” “is confident,” “should be,” “will,”
“predicted,” “likely,” or similar words or phrases intended to identify
information that is not historical in nature. These risks and uncertainties
include, without limitation, unanticipated difficulties or expenditures
relating to the Plan, the response of tenants, business partners and
competitors to the announcement of the Plan; legal proceedings that may
be instituted against the Company and others related to the Plan; general risks
affecting the real estate industry (including, without limitation, the
inability to enter into or renew leases, dependence on tenants’ financial
condition, and competition from other developers, owners and operators of real
estate); adverse economic or real estate developments in Hines REIT’s existing
markets; reductions in asset valuations and related impairment charges; risks
associated with downturns in domestic and local economies, changes in interest
rates and volatility in the securities markets; potential liability for
uninsured losses and environmental contamination; risks associated with Hines
REIT’s potential failure to qualify as a real estate investment trust under the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended; possible adverse changes in tax and
environmental laws; and risks associated with Hines REIT’s dependence on key
personnel of Hines Interests Limited Partnership or its affiliates whose
continued service is not guaranteed. For a further list and description of such
risks and uncertainties, see the reports filed by Hines REIT with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, including Hines REIT’s most recent annual
report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. Any forward-looking
statement speaks only as of the date of this press release. Hines REIT
disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information or developments, future
events or otherwise.