Wells Taking Steps to Go Public - or Something....
Wells Real Estate Investment Trust proxied investors in late February to purchase its external (but affiliated) management company. This should be the first step in the REIT being listed on an exchange. The REIT will purchase the management company for $168 million in REIT shares. That is a good deal for Leo & company. An investor filed suit a few weeks ago claiming that the price is too high and is hoping to get class certification. Good for the lawyers.

If the price is too high, the market will discount the listing price, and a price below what investors paid for their shares originally would not be acceptable to Wells. Look no further than CNL's abortive attempt to take its hotel REIT public several years ago. The exorbitant price that the hotel REIT paid for its management company scuttled the listing when Wall Street offered $12 to $14 per share for what CNL was targeting for $20 (which was the original price paid by investors). The discount was due in large part to the price paid by CNL Hotel for its management company. It will be interesting as this progresses.