20.11.2006 10:00 - category: Real Estate: Real Estate Industry
Blackstone seen making $20 billion real estate bid
Published report says private equity firm wants Equity Office Properties Trust, largest U.S. building owner, for $48.50 a share.
November 19 2006: 7:48 PM ESTNEW YORK (Reuters) -- Private equity firm Blackstone Group is set to announce a takeover plan for Equity Office Properties Trust, The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.
Citing people familiar with the matter, the newspaper said Blackstone is expected to pay about $48.50 for each share of Equity Office (Charts), the largest publicly traded office building owner in the United States.
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Shares of Equity Office closed higher on Friday at $44.72 on the New York Stock Exchange. Shares of competitor Boston Properties (Charts) also edged higher Friday while Mack-Cali (Charts) closed lower.
According to Reuters data, a price of $48.50 per share would give Equity Office a value of about $17 billion.
Icahn group bids for NY real estate firmNeither Blackstone nor Equity Office representatives were immediately available for comment.
Equity Office's management, including its founder Sam Zell, are not expected to be a part of the buyout group, the Journal reported.
