(By Balaseshan) Weingarten Realty Investors (NYSE: WRI) said it has closed the sale of its interests in three industrial joint ventures to Exeter Property Group's Fund II.
The portfolio sale was comprised of nine industrial properties, aggregating approximately 2.6 million square feet of building area, all located in Houston, Texas.
The sale price totaled $21.1 million for all three ventures, including $7.8 million of secured debt assumed by Exeter in the transaction.
In addition, the Weingarten closed the sale of two non-core, retail assets in October including Burbank Station located in a suburb of Chicago and Johnston Road Plaza in Charlotte, North Carolina. Burbank was the company's last property in Illinois.
Both transactions demonstrate the continued execution of the capital recycling strategy. Year-to-date dispositions have totaled $631 million, including the sale of the industrial portfolio.
"The completion of this portfolio sale marks our exit from the industrial business and positions Weingarten as a pure-play retail REIT. We will continue our commitment in building shareholder value through the repositioning of the retail portfolio into core markets with high barriers to entry and strong growth potential," said Drew Alexander, chief executive of WRI.
The company's primary business is leasing space to tenants in the shopping and industrial centers it owns or leases. It also provides property management services for both joint ventures in which it is partners and for other outside owners for which it charges fees.
WRI is trading down 0.19 percent at $26.97 on Tuesday. The stock has been trading between $19.73 and $28.99 for the past 52 weeks.