Indianapolis, Indiana-based real estate investment trust
(REIT),
Simon Property Group Inc. (
SPG
)
, recently announced it had added retailers in its
under-construction upscale outlet joint venture St. Louis Premium
Outlets in Chesterfield, Missouri. The company also stated
that the grand opening date of the outlet mall has been moved up
to August 22, 2013, to meet the needs of both shoppers and
retailers. The opening was originally scheduled for September
2013.
The new retailers who intend to join the outlet center include
merchants such as
Nike Inc. (
NKE
)
and its subsidiaries, The Gymboree Corporation, Adidas, Claire's
Accessories and Wilsons Leather of
G-III Apparel Group, Ltd. (
GIII
)
. As a matter of fact, the property already anchors numerous
well-known brands for an all-genre shopping experience for
residents and visitors. Some of the brands include
Saks Incorporated (
SKS
)
,
ANN INC (
ANN
)
,
Skechers USA Inc. (
SKX
)
and
PVH Corp. (
PVH
)
.
St. Louis Premium Outlets is a part of a mixed-use development,
Chesterfield Blue Valley. The 131-acre complex will boast a class
of office space, hotel, restaurant and entertainment venues upon
completion. Positioned west of I-64/US Highway 40 and east of
Daniel Boone Bridge, Chesterfield Blue Valley will include 85
stores. Upon completion of the final phase, the St. Louis Premium
Outlets will span approximately 415,000 square feet.
Simon Property has been constructing St. Louis Premium Outlets in
a joint venture with Woodmont Outlets and EWB Development, LLC.
Simon Property holds a 60% interest in the project. Woodmont
Outlets - an associate of The Woodmont Company - specializes in
providing commercial real estate-related services. These includes
development, asset management, tenant representation, brokerage
and construction supervision.
However, Simon Property needs to be wary of its competitor in the
Chesterfield area,
Taubman Centers, Inc. (
TCO
)
, who recently stated the opening of its mall - Taubman Prestige
Outlets - on August 2, 2013. The $150 million property is
projected to have over a hundred stores, including primary
products of
The Gap Inc. (
GPS
)
and J.Crew Group, Inc.
Simon property reported third-quarter 2012 FFO (funds from
operations) per share of $1.99, exceeding the Zacks Consensus
Estimate of $1.92 and year-ago FFO of $1.71. The company
currently owns or has ownership interests in 333 properties
spanning 242 million square feet of gross leasable space in North
America, Europe, and Asia.
We have a long-term Outperform recommendation on Simon property.
Also, it carries a short-term Zacks #2 Rank (Buy).
Note: FFO, a widely used metric to gauge the performance of
REITs, is obtained after adding depreciation and amortization and
other non-cash expenses to net income.
ANN INC (ANN): Free Stock Analysis Report
G-III APPAREL (GIII): Free Stock Analysis
Report
GAP INC (GPS): Free Stock Analysis Report
NIKE INC-B (NKE): Free Stock Analysis Report
PVH CORP (PVH): Free Stock Analysis Report
SAKS INC (SKS): Free Stock Analysis Report
SKECHERS USA-A (SKX): Free Stock Analysis
Report
SIMON PROPERTY (SPG): Free Stock Analysis
Report
TAUBMAN CENTERS (TCO): Free Stock Analysis
Report
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