By Peter Grant
Commercial real-estate services giant Cushman & Wakefield is
continuing its acquisition binge even as it markets itself for
sale.
The New York firm on Wednesday said it is buying J.F. McKinney +
Associates, a large Chicago commercial real-estate firm in Chicago,
for an undisclosed sum. J.F. McKinney specializes in representing
office landlords and is currently handling more than 16 million
square feet in the Chicago region, including such buildings as the
John Hancock Center and 300 North LaSalle.
The deal marks the third major purchase for Cushman &
Wakefield in the past four months. The firm in January acquired
Massey Knakal Realty Services, a prominent New York commercial
real-estate sales firm. In February, it purchased Property Tax
Resources, an advisory firm based in Carlsbad, Calif.
Cushman & Wakefield, which is controlled by Exor SpA,
earlier this year put itself on the block. More than a dozen
potential bidders have expressed interest, and final proposals are
due next month, according to people familiar with the matter.
A number of private-equity firms are among the bidders,
including a venture led by TPG, according to people familiar with
the matter. That venture has purchased two other big brokerage
firms in the past six months, Chicago-based DTZ and Washington,
D.C.-based Cassidy Turley.
Another potential bidder is Chinese investment firm Fosun
International, which recently purchased the office tower at One
Chase Manhattan Plaza, said people familiar with the matter.
J.F. McKinney founder Jack McKinney will join Cushman &
Wakefield as vice chairman, responsible for the Chicago landlord
representation business.
Cushman's purchase of J.F. McKinney is expected to close by the
end of April.
Write to Peter Grant at peter.grant@wsj.com
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