Sun Life Intends To Merge Bentall Kennedy With GreenOak - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Sun Life Financial Inc. (SLF.TO, SLF) announced that it intends to merge Bentall Kennedy, its North American real estate and property management firm, with GreenOak Real Estate. Sun Life Financial will acquire a majority stake in the combined Bentall Kennedy and GreenOak entity that will be named Bentall GreenOak and be part of Sun Life Investment Management.

Sun Life Financial will contribute its interest in Bentall Kennedy and pay GreenOak shareholders $146 million in cash in exchange for a 56% interest in the combined Bentall GreenOak entity, with GreenOak shareholders holding the remaining interest. As part of the transaction, Sun Life will have an option to acquire the remaining interest in Bentall GreenOak approximately seven years from the closing. Sun Life Financial will also be acquiring the right to a portion of the GreenOak shareholders' share of Bentall GreenOak net income in exchange for a fixed amount to be paid in quarterly installments.

Sun Life Financial expects the transaction to be accretive to underlying earnings per share and return on equity in 2019 by C$0.04 and 60 bps, respectively. The common shareholders' equity of Sun Life Financial will be reduced by approximately C$730 million when the transaction closes, from the establishment of a liability reflecting the present value of the expected settlement price on the purchase of the remaining interest of Bentall GreenOak.