Tishman/Lehman to Buy Archstone for $22B

Archstone-Smith, a Denver-based real estate investment trust, is being acquired by Tishman Speyer and Lehman Brothers for about $22 billion, including $60.75 per Archstone-Smith share in cash.The acquisition price includes the assumption of Archstone-Smith debt and is the largest going-private deal in the multifamily REIT sector, according to Archstone-Smith. The acquisition price represents a 22.7% premium over Archstone-Smith's closing stock price on May 24. Scot Sellers, chairman and chief executive officer of Archstone-Smith, is expected to continue with Tishman-Speyer after the deal closes. The Archstone-Smith portfolio includes 344 communities with 86,014 units in a number of major metropolitan areas. Tishman Speyer is funding the acquisition with an equity input, as well as debt and equity funding from Lehman Brothers and Bank of America. In a research note on the deal put out by the JP Morgan US Equity REIT group, the analysts said that "shareholders could push back on the price and/or seek a thorough justification as to why they should sell at the agreed upon level."