Business · Companies · 9 hrs ago
Glass Lewis urges H&R REIT investors to reject $3.4-billion sale
Glass Lewis urged H&R REIT investors to reject a proposed $3.4-billion sale of the Canadian property trust.
It joined Institutional Shareholder Services, which made the same recommendation last week.
The deal would transfer H&R’s varied portfolio to several buyers, with GO Residential leading the acquisition and taking its largest portion.
Glass Lewis criticized the sale process, saying investors had little reason to believe the terms offered the best available value.
H&R owns residential, industrial, office and retail properties, making a sale of its entire portfolio to one buyer more complex.
The deal needs support from at least two-thirds of votes cast at a special meeting scheduled for Nov.
13.
The vote will decide whether the proposed sale can proceed.
Glass Lewis urged H&R REIT unitholders to reject a proposed $3.4-billion takeover led by GO Residential Real Estate Investment Trust.
The recommendation joined a similar call last week from proxy adviser Institutional Shareholder Services.
Glass Lewis criticized the sale process and said investors had little basis to conclude the terms offered the best available value.
At least two-thirds of votes cast at a special meeting scheduled for Nov. 13 must support the deal for it to proceed.
The proposed sale divides H&R’s properties among several buyers, including GO, Blackstone, Crestpoint, the Public Sector Pension Investment Board and the Hofstedter family.
- Who
- Glass Lewis urged H&R REIT unitholders to reject the deal; GO Residential is leading the proposed acquisition.
- What
- Glass Lewis recommended voting against the $3.4-billion sale of H&R’s portfolio.
- When
- The recommendation was reported on Nov. 2, 2026. A shareholder meeting is scheduled for Nov. 13.
- Where
- H&R REIT’s portfolio includes properties in Canada and the United States.
- Why
- Glass Lewis criticized the sale process and said investors had limited reason to believe the terms represented the best available value.
Glass Lewis and ISS
H&R REIT and the deal’s supporters
Sale recommendation
Glass Lewis and ISS
Glass Lewis and ISS recommend that investors vote against the deal.
H&R REIT and the deal’s supporters
The proposed sale is proceeding to a shareholder vote; the sources do not state a specific response from H&R or the deal’s supporters to the recommendations.
Sale process and value
Glass Lewis and ISS
Glass Lewis criticized the process and said investors had limited cause to conclude the terms offered the greatest value.
H&R REIT and the deal’s supporters
Not stated
H&R launched a strategic review after receiving an unsolicited takeover offer from an unidentified potential buyer.
The strategic review ended without a deal, and H&R pledged to sell $2.6-billion worth of assets.
H&R announced the proposed transaction, according to the article’s account.
ISS recommended that H&R investors vote against the deal.
Glass Lewis recommended that H&R unitholders oppose the proposed sale.
H&R’s special shareholder meeting is scheduled to consider the proposal.
- Proposed deal value
- $3.4-billion
- Vote threshold
- At least two-thirds of votes cast must support the proposal
- Scheduled meeting
- Nov. 13
- GO’s residential assets
- 23 Lantower Residential properties, plus Gotham Center and a 50-per-cent interest in Jackson Park
- H&R office portfolio
- Roughly 11 per cent of its total portfolio
- H&R strategic review
- Launched in February 2025
What people are saying
The GO transaction should be seen as a firm non-starter for unaffiliated H&R investors.
The overriding impression here is negative.
scuppered basic guardrails, with a largely passive board effectively permitting an interested party to govern critical procedural elements without any effort to sense check then-current interest among other credible and capable counterparties.
Unaffiliated investors have thus been offered exceptionally limited cause to conclude the current terms clearly and convincingly approximate the greatest value and most attractive alternative available to H&R investors at this juncture.