(Reuters) -UK’s Home REIT, which has been under scrutiny over the last few months after a short seller report, said on Thursday it received an unsolicited approach from investment firm Bluestar Group Ltd for a possible acquisition offer.
The housing provider for the homeless did not give any financial details but said any offer by Bluestar, a London-based investment firm focused on pan-European real estate-backed businesses, would likely be in cash.
The company said that following a report by its investment advisor, the board was considering all strategic options, including a possible sale.
The report from investment adviser Alvarium Home REIT Advisors highlighted a “serious deterioration” in rent collections for the quarter to November 2022 and identified “serious challenges” in getting rent for December and January.
The payment of rent for the coming months was “highly uncertain”, the company added, further vindicating Viceroy’s claims in its scathing report in November, questioning the ability of Home REIT’s tenants to pay rent.
Viceroy said it was unable to comment on the acquisition approach as Home REIT had not disclosed the offer price and added that rent deterioration mentioned by the company was “exactly in line with Viceroy’s thesis”.
Bluestar did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Home REIT has missed a deadline to publish its annual results after the report by Viceroy, best known for raising the alarm on Germany’s Wirecard, raised questions about a range of issues, including the ability of the firm’s tenants to pay rent and the valuation of its properties.
(Reporting by Aby Jose Koilparambil in Bengaluru; Editing by Dhanya Ann Thoppil)
