Persis seeking Hawaii projects
Persis Corp., fresh from the latest of more than $100 million in mainland commercial real estate transactions so far this year, is looking for local investment opportunities.
The Honolulu-based real estate investment firm currently has no Hawaii holdings, but its president, Easton Manson, said the company is evaluating the local property market for opportunities.
However, he added that any local property would need to meet the minimum yield requirement of the company's investment strategy, which he didn't disclose.
The company, which owns and manages more than 2 million square feet of commercial space throughout the U.S., yesterday sold the 283,600-square-foot Newell Rubbermaid Building in Bolingbrook, Ill., marking the completion of $102.4 million in real estate transactions so far this year. The company didn't disclose the price of the latest transaction.
Other transactions this year include sales of warehouses in Texas and Kentucky and a distribution center in Massachusetts, as well as the purchase of grocery stores in Florida and a Wal-Mart Supercenter in Wisconsin.
"These recent transactions have been building momentum for the company as we continue to rebalance our commercial real estate holdings," he said.
Persis, which was led by Thurston Twigg-Smith until 2002, was created in 1967 as Asa Corp.
The company is the former owner of the Honolulu Advertiser, which it sold in 1993 to Gannett Co. for $250 million as part of its strategy to divest of its media holdings and increase its commercial real estate portfolio. In 1999, Persis decided to focus solely on commercial real estate and private equity investments.