It took about a century, but Cushman & Wakefield is finally heading to Wall Street and going public.
However, the rollout has not been particularly smooth. One source described the New York operation as a “shitshow,” while another predicted it would lead to an exodus of the company’s top people looking to cash out. The Real Deal took a detailed look at Cushman’s rocky preparations for the initial public offering process in its latest issue. The company hopes to use the IPO to pay off some of the $3 billion in debt that TPG Capital provided the firm, but its success is far from assured.
“If you don’t exceed expectations out the gate in the first couple quarters, that looks bad on management,” Wall Street analyst Jason Weaver said.
Elsewhere in the issue, TRD looked at the wave of mergers and acquisitions in the real estate industry, which hit $524.7 billion last year. This was almost 25 percent higher than the record from 2007 of $424.5 billion.
July’s issue also examined why New York has a harder time building “megatall” skyscrapers than other global cities. The city’s tallest building is currently One World Trade Center, which stands 1,776 feet tall, far behind towers in China and the United Arab Emirates. Another story looks into the EB-5 program, which is facing increasing allegations of fraud. We also looked into the ongoing and expanding challenges faced by New York City rental brokers.
And this month’s Closing is with Peter Kalikow, president of the development and management firm H.J. Kalikow & Company. The real estate dynasty heir talked about buying the New York Post and running the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
To read the July issue of TRD, click here or on the “Magazine” tab on the top left of the homepage. Enjoy! – Eddie Small