AXA Investment Managers - Real Assets (AXA IM – Real Assets), announces that it has completed the acquisition of a portfolio of eight acute care hospital facilities in Northern Italy from private operator Policlinico Di Monza, for a total of approx. €180m. The acquisition, which is AXA IM – Real Assets’ first healthcare acquisition in Italy, has been made on behalf of a 50/50 joint venture between AXA Insurance Companies and a member of the group of companies owned by Medical Properties Trust Inc (MPT), a NYSE listed real estate investment trust focused on investing in and owning net-leased healthcare facilities.
This transaction comprises a sale and leaseback with Policlinico Di Monza, one of Italy’s leading private hospital operators, which has committed to a long-term lease and will continue to run the facilities. The agreement also provides an option to expand the relationship with Policlinico Di Monza through further acquisitions in line with AXA IM - Real Assets’ European real estate alternatives strategy of building portfolios through long-term partnerships with market leading operating businesses.
The portfolio comprises eight acute care facilities totalling over 80,000m² and 829 hospital beds, located across the affluent Piedmont and Lombardy regions of Northern Italy, and includes the largest hospital in the province of Monza-Brianza.
Earlier this month, AXA IM – Real Assets acquired two forest estates covering 4,695 acres, in Eastern Finland as part of its alternatives investment strategy.
Hideki Kurata, head of alternatives & special situations, Real Assets, commented: “This transaction is significant as it underlines our ongoing strategy of extending AXA IM - Real Assets’ €2.7 billion alternatives platform by partnering with operating companies that are market leaders in their sector and/or local geography. We believe that matching the right operating partner, with the right asset, in the appropriate location is crucial to successfully investing into alternatives and delivering value to our clients.”
Alessio Lucentini, head of asset management & transactions in Italy, Real Assets, added: “As our first healthcare acquisition on behalf of clients in Italy, the purchase of this portfolio is indicative of our confidence in the Italian healthcare sector, which is underpinned by a number of compelling socioeconomic factors, such as a growing elderly population. As one of the first institutional investors to move into this important segment of the Italian real estate market, we are firm believers in its long term growth prospects and will continue to monitor further investment opportunities.”
