SPH Reit's private placement raises $164.5m

SPH Reit has raised $164.5 million from a private placement of 156.6 million new units to partially fund its proposed acquisition of a 50 per cent stake in a shopping centre in South Australia.

The issue price was fixed at $1.05 per new unit, which falls in the middle of the indicative range of between $1.031 and $1.075 per unit announced by the manager on Thursday.

The finalised issue price represents an approximate 5.5 per cent discount to the volume-weighted average price (VWAP) of $1.111 of all trades done on Wednesday - the market day before the placement agreement was signed.

It also represents a discount of around 4.3 per cent to the adjusted VWAP - which subtracts the estimated cumulative distribution of around 1.39 cents, the midpoint of an estimated range of between 1.37 cents and 1.41 cents per unit.

The group said the placement was "multiple times covered" and drew strong participation from new and existing institutional investors.

Around $162.4 million or 98.7 per cent of gross proceeds will be used to partially fund the proposed acquisition of Westfield Marion Shopping Centre, which SPH Reit is planning to buy a 50 per cent stake for A$670 million (S$620 million).

The new units are expected to be listed at 9am on Dec 2, upon in-principle approval from Singapore Exchange. The manager has called for a lift in the trading halt.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on November 23, 2019, with the headline SPH Reit's private placement raises $164.5m. Subscribe