LONDON - A German real estate company owned by Terra Firma, the private equity firm run by the British financier Guy Hands, has shelved a planned initial public offering, citing adverse market conditions.
Deutsche Annington, one of Germany’s largest residential landlords, said in a statement late on Tuesday that the initial public offering that was planned for Wednesday in Frankfurt was called off, but that the company would continue with its investment plan. Deutsche Annington said it would continue to evaluate the market environment and might sell shares sometime in the future.
Terra Firma, which was set up by Mr. Hands in 1994, had been expected to sell a part of its investment in Deutsche Annington in the initial share sale. Terra Firma bought Deutsche Annington in 2001 and has since helped it to grow through acquisitions of arge real estate portfolios, betting on the relative stability of the German residential real estate market.
Deutsche Annington was expected to raise 1.1 billion euros, or $1.4 billion, in the sale. It would have followed some successful initial offerings of similar businesses this year, including Germany’s LEG Immobilien. But concerns among investors that central banks could curb stimulus and start to unwind any support for the markets since the financial crisis five years ago had recently weighed on stock prices around the globe.
‘‘Based on our strong financial position, we will focus on driving our operational performance including continuing our investment and modernization program as planned,’’ Rolf Buch, Deutsche Annington’s chief executive, said in a statement.
Deutsche Annington owns more than 180,000 residential units worth a combined 10.4 billion euros. The company employs about 2,400 people.
