The Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield CDI (ASX: URW) share price is climbing today after the company announced the sale of a major office building in France. The Unibail share price is currently trading 6.76% higher at $3.00.
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What does Unibail do?
Unibail is the largest listed real estate company in Europe. The company is classified as a retail real estate investment trust (REIT) on the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO).
Unibail focuses its operations on big shopping centres in major European cities, including the large office buildings in the heart and west of Paris, France, and major convention and exhibition venues in and around Paris.
Why happened today?
Unibail announced a deal this morning to sell the SHiFT office building in Paris for 620 million euros. The sale price represents a premium on the 30 June book value. However, shareholders should note that the transaction is subject to standard conditions and is expected to be completed by January 2021.
The SHiFT office building is located in the business district of Issy-les-Moulineaux (Paris) with a total area of 47,200 sqm. The property is currently leased to Nestlé for its French headquarters on a 12-year agreement.
What now for the Unibail share price
The transaction is part of the REIT's 9 billion euro reset plan to strengthen the group's balance sheet in response to COVID-19. On completion of the sale, the group will have generated 5.3 billion euros of net disposal proceeds since June 2018.
The Unibail share price has been on a downward spiral since the start of the pandemic. Despite this rare uptick in share price, shareholders are likely to be wary of the damage rising numbers of COVID-19 cases in Europe may have on the company's shares.
The Unibail share price has fallen a huge 73% since the start of 2020.
