Starwood accepts Anbang’s $13.2B takeover offer

Chinese insurance giant outbid rival Marriott to acquire hotel operator

From left: Anbang’s Wu Xiaohui of Anbang (credit: Anbang Insurance Group) and Thomas Mangas of Starwood
From left: Anbang’s Wu Xiaohui of Anbang (credit: Anbang Insurance Group) and Thomas Mangas of Starwood

Starwood Hotels & Resorts accepted Anbang Insurance Group’s $13.2 billion takeover offer with the Chinese insurance giant acquiring the hotel owner and operator.

Anbang will pay $78 per share in cash for Starwood, with news of the bid made public just this week. However, Marriott, under the terms of a prior agreement to buy Starwood in November for $12.2 billion, now has five days to respond.

Anbang will also have to pay a hefty fee to Marriott if the bid goes through, CNBC reported.

Marriott plans to make a counter-bid, sources told CNBC.

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News of the deal lifted Starwood’s stock to 4.6 percent to $79.90 in pre-market trading, according to CNBC.

Last weekend, Anbang, which owns the Waldorf Astoria, also moved to acquire another marquee U.S. hotel portfolio. The Beijing-based insurer has a deal to buy the 16-property Strategic Hotels & Resorts portfolio from the Blackstone Group for a record $6.5 billion.

The Real Deal looked at what was behind the more than $19 billion play — global ambitions coupled with a slowdown in China. The combined figure roughly represents the total volume of Chinese investment in U.S. commercial real estate from 2007 to 2015. [CNBC]Dusica Sue Malesevic