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Unibail-Rodamco of France has agreed to acquire Westfield Corp., an Australia-based shopping mall company with several large U.S. properties, for $15.8 billion.
Why it matters: Because this comes just one day after GGP rejected a $14.8 billion takeover offer from Brookfield Property Partners, and could double as revised pricing guidance for that transaction. Let alone whatever someone might bid for Macerich, which is under pressure from activist Dan Loeb.
Plus, if malls are dying, no one bothered to tell the M&A market.
Bottom line: "If I am an anchor store such as Sears and Macy's that do business in a Westfield-owned mall, this deal is petrifying. Department stores don't fit in this new mall as a community world, and an eager property owner may try to push them out via higher rents in order to redevelop the space for 2040." — Brian Sozzi, TheStreet