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SL Green (SLG) Advances Strategic Plan With 49.9% Stake Sale

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SL Green Realty Corp. (SLG - Free Report) , New York City's foremost office landlord, announced the divestment of a 49.9% interest in 245 Park Avenue. The stake was purchased by a U.S. affiliate of Mori Trust Co., Ltd., and the transaction valued the asset at $2.0 billion.

This sale is a pivotal component of SL Green's 2023 financial strategy, coming on the heels of a successful $500 million refinancing of 919 Third Avenue earlier in April. Reflecting positive sentiments, SLG shares were up more than 19% during Monday’s regular trading session.

Harrison Sitomer, chief investment officer of SL Green, expressed his excitement about the partnership with Mori Trust, a premier development and investment company based in Tokyo. According to Sitomer, this collaboration attests to the continuing allure of investing in trophy midtown NY assets and the resilience of the Park Avenue corridor as New York’s most desirable office market.

SL Green took ownership of this 1.8 million-square-foot office property located on the renowned Park Avenue corridor between 46th and 47th Streets in September 2022. The company's vision was to collaboratively reposition this asset, which involved a comprehensive redesign plan.

On the leasing front, SL Green has shown impressive performance. According to an announcement made earlier in June, since the beginning of the second quarter and through Jun 5, the company signed 31 office leases covering around 300,000 square feet. This lifted SL Green's office leasing volume from the beginning of the year through that date to more than 800,000 square feet, with an office leasing pipeline exceeding one million square feet.

This series of events, including the stake sale and the impressive leasing performance, underlines SL Green's strength as New York City's top office landlord. These developments also underscore the resilience of the NYC commercial real estate market and SL Green's strategic position within it.

Despite the sale of a 49.9% interest in 245 Park Avenue, SL Green maintains a robust presence in the New York City commercial real estate market, particularly through its other assets and the leasing successes. The strategic sale of the stake to Mori Trust affiliate not only provides substantial liquidity to SL Green but also reaffirms the appeal of the NYC real estate market to global investors.

Furthermore, the robust leasing activity across SL Green's portfolio signifies a positive trend for the company. The continued leasing success reflects the attractiveness of SL Green's properties, which are conveniently located, well-amenitized, and managed by a well-capitalized operator.

While challenges persist in the office market environment, SL Green's latest developments showcase its ability to navigate these hurdles and underline its strength as New York City's top office landlord. As the company continues to leverage its strategic position, investors can anticipate seeing more growth and success from SL Green in the future.

Shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have outperformed the industry it belongs to in the past three months. The company’s shares have rallied 36.7% against the industry’s decline of 1.2% over this period.

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The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EastGroup Properties’ current-year funds from operations (FFO) per share has moved 1.6% north over the past two months to $7.56.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Innovative Industrial Properties’ 2023 FFO per share has moved 3.6% upward in the past two months to $8.66.

Note: Anything related to earnings presented in this write-up represent funds from operations (FFO) — a widely used metric to gauge the performance of REITs.

Disclaimer: This article has been written with the assistance of Generative AI. However, the author has reviewed, revised, supplemented, and rewritten parts of this content to ensure its originality and the precision of the incorporated information.

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