NorthStar and Colony Merger Expected to Close January 10th
January 5, 2016 | by James Sprow | Blue Vault
The shareholders of Colony Capital Inc., NorthStar Asset Management Group Inc. and NorthStar Realty Finance Corp. voted to approve the merger of the three companies on December 20, 2016. The merger was reported to be the largest commercial real estate merger of 2016, with a combined $58 billion in assets under management. The company will trade on the NYSE under the new ticker symbol “CLNS,” The merger is expected to close on January 10, 2017.
NorthStar Realty Finance Corp. is a publicly-traded, diversified commercial real estate company that is organized as a REIT and has been listed on the NYSE since 2004 under the symbol “NRF.” NorthStar Asset Management Group Inc. sponsors five nontraded REIT programs covered by Blue Vault in its Q3 2016 Nontraded REIT Industry Review (NorthStar Real Estate Income, NorthStar Real Estate Income II, NorthStar Healthcare Income, and NorthStar/RXR New York Metro Real Estate).
Thomas J. Barrack, executive chairman of Colony said “This merger is the result of decades of long line relationships by all three companies aligning into one powerful, global real estate and real asset investment manager.” Barrack will be the executive chairman of CLNS.
On December 29, 2016, Colony Capital announced a pro rata dividend at the rate of $0.004444 per day, which is the daily equivalent of the current quarterly dividend rate of $0.40 per share, and will accrue from January 1, 2017, up to and including the closing date of the merger. The dividend will be paid as soon as reasonably practicable following the closing of the merger to shareholders of record as of January 9, 2017.
