W. P. Carey Provides €67 Million in Sale-leaseback Financing to Agrokor through Retail Portfolio Acquisition

-- Proceeds support Agrokor's expansion and growth strategy

LONDON, Dec. 19, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- W. P. Carey Inc. (NYSE: WPC), a real estate investment trust ("REIT") specializing in corporate sale-leaseback financing, build-to-suit construction financing and the acquisition of single-tenant net-lease properties, announced today that CPA®:17 – Global and  CPA®:18 – Global, two of its publicly-held non-traded REIT affiliates, acquired five modern retail stores from Agrokor in Croatia.

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Key facts:

• Long term triple-net lease with strong tenant: Agrokor is Croatia's largest private company with approximately 40,000 employees. It is the country's largest food retailer, producer, processor, and distributor. In 2012, Agrokor generated approximately €4 billion in total revenues and €363 million in EBITDA. The five stores are leased to Konzum—the largest food retailer in Croatia and Agrokor's principal subsidiary—on a 20-year triple-net basis. Konzum controls 30% of the national food retailing market and 40% of the market in the capital city Zagreb.
• Modern retail facilities: With a weighted-average age of approximately seven years, the portfolio consists of modern, class-A food retailing assets built to Western standards. Three assets are located in Zagreb with the two remaining stores located in the major coastal tourist destinations of Split and Zadar.
• Acquisition cost: Approximately €67 million ($92 million) gross acquisition cost divided between CPA®:17 – Global and CPA®:18 – Global (20% and 80%, respectively), closed on an all-equity basis.

Quotes

Jeffrey Lefleur, Managing Director of W. P. Carey Europe: "With this transaction closed, we have completed approximately €350 million of total European investment volume for 2013, many of which were all-cash acquisitions which utilized our large equity base.  We have successfully closed a range of long-term net-lease investments and sale-leasebacks across Europe this year, demonstrating our ability to source transactions at attractive yields in both established Western European markets as well as more challenging Eastern European markets."

Ivica Todorić, Founder and President of Agrokor: "While there is a trend among investors to reduce their exposure in Eastern Europe, W. P. Carey has continued to be a valuable long-term partner and alternative source of capital for Agrokor.  This relationship has become particularly important as we prepare for a potentially large acquisition and expansion in the region."

W. P. Carey Inc.

Celebrating its 40th anniversary, W. P. Carey Inc. is a publicly traded REIT (NYSE: WPC) that provides long-term sale-leaseback and build-to-suit financing for companies worldwide and owns and manages an investment portfolio totaling over $15 billion. Active in Europe since 1998, European assets comprise approximately €2.9 billion ($3.9 billion) of its global portfolio. The largest owner/manager of net lease assets, WPC's corporate finance-focused credit and real estate underwriting process is a constant that has been successfully leveraged across a wide variety of industries and property types. Its portfolio of long-term leases with creditworthy tenants has an established history of generating stable cash flows that have enabled WPC to deliver consistent and rising dividend income to investors for nearly four decades. www.wpcarey.com  

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Federal securities laws.  The statements of Mr. Lefleur are examples of forward looking statements. A number of factors could cause actual results, performance or achievement to differ materially from those anticipated.  Among those risks, trends and uncertainties are the general economic climate; the supply of and demand for office and industrial properties; interest rate levels; the availability of financing; and other risks associated with the acquisition and ownership of properties, including risks that the tenants will not pay rent, or that costs may be greater than anticipated.  For further information on factors that could impact CPA®:17 – Global and CPA®:18 – Global, reference is made to each company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Contacts

Europe
Dan de Belder/ Guy Scarborough/Tom Cahn
+44-207-861-3232
ddebelder@bell-pottinger.com

US
Guy Lawrence
+1-212-308-3333
gblawrence@rosslawpr.com

Kristina McMenamin
+1-212-492-8995
kmcmenamin@wpcarey.com