Artis REIT expects to complete $1 billion of divestments this year, says the organization’s president and CEO.

Samir Manji said Wednesday that Winnipeg-based Artis is on track to reach that goal.

“This [asset reduction] will result in a profound change to our balance sheet by year-end relative to where we finished 2023,” said Manji in a news release. “At the same time, it will put Artis in a strong liquidity position that we intend to harness on an opportunistic basis going forward.”

Artis has been conducting a massive asset sell-off that began around this time in 2023. The divestments are designed to reduce the REIT’s debt and bolster its unit value.

Manji made the comments as Artis announced that the REIT has entered into an unconditional agreement to sell a portfolio of nine U.S. industrial properties for US$197.4 million.

Six of the assets, totalling 822,393 square feet, are located in the Greater Phoenix Area. The other three, properties comprise 317,646 sf and are situated in the Twin Cities area (Minneapolis-St. Paul) of Minnesota.

The $197.4-million purchase price equates to U$173 per square foot. The properties have approximately US$58.8 million of mortgage financing.

The transaction is slated to close in the third quarter of 2024. The sale proceeds will be used to reduce the REIT’s overall debt.

Earlier this month, Artis completed the sale of the Park 8Ninety industrial park, a 12-property portfolio in the Greater Houston Area, for $234.2 million Artis has not identified the buyer, but published reports have identified the purchaser as U.S. public-equity firm KKR.

The divestments have been occurring in conjunction with a strategic review that Artis officially launched in September 2023, shortly after the sell-off began. The REIT’s board discussed the possibility of selling the entire business but decided that possibility was not feasible.

Manji indicated that Artis will provide further updates on its divestments in the REIT’s upcoming second-quarter report.

Pictured: Recently sold Park 8Ninety in the Greater Houston Area.

Photo: Artis REIT