Highwoods Closes $436 Million Acquisition of Bank of America Tower at Legacy Union in CBD Charlotte
RALEIGH, N.C., Nov. 14, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) has closed the acquisition of Bank of America Tower at Legacy Union in the heart of Charlotte’s dynamic Uptown CBD submarket for a total investment of $436 million. Bank of America Tower at Legacy Union is a trophy, LEED gold-registered office building encompassing 841,000 square feet with structured parking that delivered this year. Bank of America Tower at Legacy Union is currently 90% leased.
The Company funded the acquisition with available cash and borrowings under its unsecured revolving credit facility, which currently bears interest at LIBOR plus 100 basis points.As previously disclosed, the Company has a two-phased plan to exit the Greensboro and Memphis markets. The first phase consists of selling a select portfolio of assets in Greensboro and Memphis by mid-2020 with a total sales price that approximates the $436 million total investment for Bank of America Tower at Legacy Union and closing its division offices. The second phase is the planned sale of the remaining assets in both markets. There is no pre-determined timetable for the second phase. About Highwoods
Highwoods Properties, Inc., headquartered in Raleigh, is a publicly-traded (NYSE:HIW) real estate investment trust (“REIT”) and a member of the S&P MidCap 400 Index. Highwoods is a fully-integrated office REIT that owns, develops, acquires, leases and manages properties primarily in the best business districts (BBDs) of Atlanta, Charlotte, Greensboro, Memphis, Nashville, Orlando, Pittsburgh, Raleigh, Richmond and Tampa. For more information about Highwoods, please visit our website at www.highwoods.com.Certain matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws, such as: planned sales of non-core assets and expected pricing and impact with respect to such sales, including the tax impact of such sales; the anticipated total investment, projected leasing activity, estimated replacement cost and expected net operating income of acquired properties and properties to be developed; and expected future leverage of the Company. These statements are distinguished by use of the words ”will,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “anticipate” and words of similar meaning. Although Highwoods believes the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that its expectations will be achieved.Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Highwoods’ current expectations include, among others, the following: buyers may not be available and pricing may not be adequate with respect to the planned dispositions of non-core assets; comparable sales data on which we based our expectations with respect to the sales price of the non-core assets may not reflect current market trends; anticipated G&A expense savings may not be realized; the financial condition of our customers could deteriorate; development activity by our competitors in our existing markets could result in excessive supply of properties relative to customer demand; development, acquisition, reinvestment, disposition or joint venture projects may not be completed as quickly or on as favorable terms as anticipated; we may not be able to lease or re-lease second generation space quickly or on as favorable terms as old leases; our markets may suffer declines in economic growth; we may not be able to lease our newly constructed buildings as quickly or on as favorable terms as originally anticipated; unanticipated increases in interest rates could increase our debt service costs; unanticipated increases in operating expenses could negatively impact our NOI; we may not be able to meet our liquidity requirements or obtain capital on favorable terms to fund our working capital needs and growth initiatives or to repay or refinance outstanding debt upon maturity; the Company could lose key executive officers; and others detailed in the Company’s 2018 Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent SEC reports.Contact: Brendan Maiorana
Executive Vice President, Finance
919-431-1529