Kennedy-Wilson Acquires Asset

Kennedy-Wilson Holdings Inc, ( KW - Snapshot Report ) , an international real estate services company, recently announced the acquisition of The Academy Tower in North Hollywood, California. The purchase price of the property was $48 million, with $28 million of loan financing and $19 million of equity investment by the company.

Spanning 175,012 square feet, Academy Tower (97% leased ) is located in North Hollywood, one of the most flourishing localities, in close proximity to production studios with easy access to cultural and entertainment centers. The company expects that improving demand driven by international tenants will increase the rental growth of the property going forward. Consequently, the acquisition is expected to be accretive to the company.

Additionally, Kennedy Wilson refinanced a 354,782 square foot office building named One Baxter Way in Thousand Oaks, California for $63.5 million. The financing was obtained from Bank of America Merrill Lynch, — part of Bank of America Corporation ( BAC - Analyst Report ) .

Headquartered in Beverly Hills, California, Kennedy Wilson offers a wide array of real estate services including auction, conventional sales, property services, and research and investment management with 24 offices in the U.S., U.K, Ireland and Japan. Since 2010, Kennedy Wilson, along with its institutional partners, has acquired approximately $6.8 billion worth of real estate and debt through consolidated investments.

Kennedy Wilson currently retains a Zacks #3 Rank, which translates into a short-term Hold rating. We have a long-term Neutral recommendation on the stock. One of its competitors, CBRE Group, Inc ( CBG - Analyst Report ) holds a Zacks #5 Rank, which translates into a short term Strong Sell rating.