FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich., July 22, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ramco-Gershenson Properties Trust (NYSE:RPT) (the "Company") today announced that it has acquired two strategic, multi-anchored community shopping centers in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota and Cincinnati, Ohio for approximately $150 million. The acquisitions were financed with $58.6 million of assumed mortgage debt, $9.9 million in disposition proceeds, $60.0 million in borrowings under the Company's revolving line of credit, and $21.5 million in cash. The Company also announced that in the first half of 2014 it raised approximately $50 million in net cash proceeds by issuing 3.1 million common shares through its at-the-market equity program.
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The shopping centers are:
Woodbury Lakes is prominently positioned just east of the intersection of I-94 and I-494/I-694, 25 minutes from downtown Minneapolis, 15 minutes from downtown St. Paul, and 10 minutes from Wisconsin's western border. The Minneapolis-St. Paul market has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the nation at 4.0% and a population growth rate 1.5x times the national rate. Woodbury Lakes is part of an expansive trade area that is bolstered by excellent schools, executive housing options, and convenient access via I-94 with an average household income of $96,000. Woodbury Lakes is the Company's first acquisition in the Minneapolis-St. Paul market.
Bridgewater Falls is located at the intersection of Princeton Road and State Highway 4, approximately 30 miles north of Cincinnati. The trade area has an average household income of $77,000. Bridgewater Falls is the Company's second acquisition in the Cincinnati MSA. In December 2013, the Company acquired the 460,000 square foot Deerfield Towne Center in Mason, Ohio.
"Woodbury Lakes and Bridgewater Falls are terrific additions to our high-quality shopping center portfolio," said Dennis Gershenson, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Each demonstrates our commitment to fortifying our asset base with exceptional shopping centers that continue to diversify our markets into leading MSAs, contain opportunities to add value, and demonstrate our measured approach to long-term growth. The funding of these acquisitions was undertaken with a prudent balance of equity and debt in keeping with our desire to maintain a strong balance sheet."
About Ramco-Gershenson Properties Trust
Ramco-Gershenson Properties Trust (NYSE:RPT) is a fully integrated, self-administered, publicly-traded real estate investment trust (REIT) based in Farmington Hills, Michigan. The Company's business is the ownership and management of multi-anchor shopping centers in strategic metropolitan markets throughout the Eastern, Midwestern and Central United States. At March 31, 2014, the Company owned and managed a portfolio of 79 shopping centers and one office building with approximately 15.8 million square feet of gross leasable area owned by the Company or its joint ventures. The properties are located in Michigan, Florida, Ohio, Georgia, Missouri, Colorado, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, and Tennessee. At March 31, 2014, the Company's core operating portfolio was 95.8% leased. Additional information regarding the Company is available via the corporate website at www.rgpt.com.
This press release may contain forward-looking statements that represent the Company's expectations and projections for the future. Management of Ramco-Gershenson believes the expectations reflected in any forward-looking statements made in this press release are based on reasonable assumptions. Certain factors could occur that might cause actual results to vary, including deterioration in national economic conditions, weakening of real estate markets, decreases in the availability of credit, increases in interest rates, adverse changes in the retail industry, our continuing ability to qualify as a REIT and other factors discussed in the Company's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
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