Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL) (WHSP) and Goodman Group (ASX: GMG) have agreed a $1.9 billion deal for industrial property.
Within the last year, WHSP acquired Brickworks, a building products business that makes bricks, masonry and other products. Brickworks came with a significant real estate asset base.
Goodman and Brickworks each owned half of an industrial property trust that leased out buildings like warehouses to major tenants. They also owned half of a manufacturing trust that owns several of Brickworks’ manufacturing facilities.
It was announced today that WHSP is selling the industrial property trust stake.
$1.9 billion property sale
WHSP has entered into a binding agreement with Goodman to divest its investment in the industrial joint venture trusts assets.
The agreed sale price for the transaction is $1.89 billion, which is in line with the property values at the time of the combination of Brickworks and WHSP.
Completion of the transaction is expected to occur in late June 2026 and is “not subject to any conditions precedent”.
All parties are committed to working together to ensure a smooth completion process.
The transaction does not require WHSP shareholder approval.
What about the Brickworks Manufacturing Trust?
Today’s announced sale does not impact the Manufacturing Trust and Brickworks (as a subsidiary of WHSP) will continue to hold its 50.1% interest in this trust.
Why do this sale?
The WHSP CEO and Managing Director Todd Barlow explained that this was about recycling capital towards ideas in the local and international market:
This transaction provides an opportunity for Soul Patts to reallocate capital toward opportunities we are currently seeing across domestic and international markets. We believe greater liquidity and flexibility are an advantage in the current environment. Soul Patts and Goodman Group have a long and productive history, delivering significant value for both parties over many years. That relationship continues as joint venture partners in the Manufacturing Trust.
Final thoughts on the WHSP share price
It’s an interesting move to sell such a core investment, which was key to Brickworks and seemingly a sizeable part in acquiring Brickworks.
This sale gives WHSP a significant amount of capital to invest in other opportunities. It’s intriguing that Barlow mentioned “international markets” as part of the potential opportunity. It’ll be interesting to see what happens with the money.
If the WHSP investment team are convinced this is the right move, then it will probably play out that way because of their skill at identifying ideas.
I think WHSP is one of the best ASX dividend shares, so I’m still happy to own it for the ultra-long-term today.
