Cans of Sapporo Black Label brand beer are stacked up at the Sapporo Beer Co., Ltd. factory in Eniwa City, Hokkaido.
Tomohiro Osumi | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Japan’s Sapporo Holdings sells real estate business to global private equity firm KKR and Asia-based alternative investment firm PAG announced in a joint statement on Wednesday.
Sapporo The company said the transaction’s enterprise value, including debt, is 477 billion yen (approximately $3 billion).
The company’s real estate holdings include the Ebisu Beer Factory as well as Tokyo’s Ebisu Garden Place, a popular tourist destination with high-end restaurants and shopping facilities.
Sapporo, known for its beer brewing business, aims to concentrate its management resources on its core business, and plans to use the proceeds from the sale to invest in its beer business and other areas.
“Sapporo Holdings will continue to focus on and further strengthen the alcoholic beverages business, where we have a competitive advantage,” the statement said. Proceeds from sales will also be reinvested into efforts to strengthen customer touchpoints and expand offerings, including healthier beverage options.
The company’s shares closed 3.7% higher after the announcement, but KKR shares fell slightly in after-hours trading.
“We are pleased to be working with PAG to support our next phase of growth, and look forward to sharing our global network, investment experience, and deep operational expertise in development, operations, and hospitality across KKR’s global platform,” said Yutaka Hirano, CEO of KKR Japan.
In October, the Nikkei Shimbun reported that the company granted preferential negotiation rights to KKR and PAG, but ended exclusive negotiations the following month.
The report said the parties could not agree on a sale price for the real estate business because the properties in the portfolio “require extensive and expensive repairs due to aging equipment and the implementation of necessary safety measures.”
At the time, Sapporo had begun selling to other buyers, reportedly approaching a consortium made up of private equity fund Lone Star Funds and real estate fund manager Kenedix.
