NEW YORK CITY — New York City-based DeSimone Consulting Engineers has purchased RRC Engineering, a Plainville, Mass.-based firm that specializes in the design of data centers. RRC’s founder and principal Robert Chartrand will continue to lead the firm from its current office, while DeSimone will also continue to operate its regional office from 31 Milk St. in Boston. DeSimone was founded in 1969 and provides engineering solutions across a range of commercial asset classes.
HOUSTON — Houston-based investment firm MLB Capital Partners has launched MLB Commercial Real Estate, a full-service brokerage division. A team led by Todd Mason and Jeff Lindenberger, both of whom previously worked at Avison Young, will head the new branch. Specialty services will include tenant and landlord representation, investment sales and leasing for the industrial and self-storage sectors for the greater Houston market.
NEW JERSEY — AMC Theatres (NYSE: AMC) will open all 27 of its theaters in New Jersey over the course of the next week, beginning with the reopening of AMC Jersey Gardens 20 and AMC Wayne 14 this Friday. An additional seven locations are scheduled to open on Monday, Sept. 7, with all remaining theaters then opening on Thursday, Sept. 10. New Jersey is AMC Theatres’ sixth-largest market by screen count.
BOISE, IDAHO — New York-based Berkadia has acquired LIHTC Advisors, a Boise-based brokerage firm that serves apartment investors with a focus on affordable housing. Jeff Irish and Brandon Grisham, formerly principals of LIHTC Advisors, will lead the new team in Boise. Prior to the merger, Irish and Grisham were involved in the sale of more than $2 billion of affordable housing assets throughout the country. In 2019, Irish and Grisham closed 53 transactions and are expected to exceed that this year. The addition of LIHTC Advisors will broaden Berkadia Affordable’s market presence and support long-term strategic growth under the leadership of David Leopold, senior vice president and head of Berkadia Affordable. “This is a huge step forward in Berkadia’s goal of expanding our affordable housing team, another investment in this critical space,” says Berkadia CEO Justin Wheeler. In 2019, Berkadia’s loan origination volume was $27 billion, while its investment sales platform totaled $9 billion.
NEW YORK CITY AND WASHINGTON, D.C. — Dwight Capital, a private commercial real estate lender based in New York City, has acquired Love Funding, the Washington, D.C.-based HUD lending subsidiary of Midland States Bank. As a result of this acquisition, Dwight Capital claims it is now the largest dedicated HUD multifamily and healthcare financing firm in the nation. The Love Funding platform will be integrated within Dwight Capital’s existing operating structure. Midland States Bank will retain the existing Love Funding servicing portfolio. Additional terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
NEW YORK CITY — Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) reported approximately $3.56 billion in net sales across its Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury brands during its fiscal second quarter ending Aug. 1, a 34.7 percent decline from the same period in 2019. However, the New York City-based retailer said its second-quarter performance exceeded expectations, thanks largely to a 53 percent spike in year-over-year sales across its digital platforms. Digital sales represented 54 percent of Macy’s total revenue figure for the quarter. Macy’s CEO Jeff Gennette also said that the successful reopening of a number of stores helped the company beat expectations for the second quarter, and that Macy’s top priority moving forward was the execution of a successful holiday shopping season. Macy’s stock price opened at $7.45 per share on Wednesday, Sept. 2, up 8 percent from the previous day but down nearly 50 percent from $14.65 per share a year ago.
FAIRHOPE AND MOBILE, ALA. — Gulf States Real Estate Cos. and The Holyfield Co. have merged operations in Alabama, giving Gulf States a presence in the Yellowhammer State. The Covington, La.-based company will absorb Holyfield’s real estate operations, while Donald and Ronnie Holyfield will continue to maintain their appraisal business under The Holyfield Co. name. Gulf States also offers project, property and construction management, as well as development services. Gulf States now has offices in Mobile and Fairhope, Ala. Terms of the merger were not disclosed.
SAN FRANCISCO — Driven by a 95 percent surge in online sales, San Francisco-based Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) reported a 13 percent increase in its comparable sales for the fiscal second quarter, which ended Aug. 1. Gap’s decision to make face masks early on in the COVID-19 pandemic paid off, bringing in $130 million in sales, according to the company. Gap has produced face masks for individuals as well as the city of New York, the state of California and Kaiser Permanente. Net sales were down 18 percent year over year, reflecting a 48 percent decline in store sales, which was driven by partial closures due to the pandemic, according to Gap. Approximately 90 percent of Gap’s stores were open as of Aug. 1. Gap sells clothing and accessories under the brands Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic, Athleta, Intermix, Janie and Jack, and Hill City. The company’s stock price closed at $17.54 per share Friday, Aug. 28, up from $15.59 per share one year ago.
NEW YORK CITY — A syndicate of investors led by Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust (BREIT) has acquired a $300 million stake in Tricon Residential, Toronto-based investment and development firm with a portfolio of approximately 30,000 single- and multifamily units in the United States and Canada. BREIT acquired the stake at an exchange price of $8.50 per share, which represents a 16 percent premium over Tricon’s 30-day weighted average trading price as of Aug. 26. Tricon will use the proceeds to pay off its corporate debt.
SEATTLE — Seattle-based Nordstrom (NYSE: JWN) has reported a 53 percent decrease in net sales from last year for the second quarter ended Aug. 1, reflecting temporary store closures due to COVID-19. The company experienced a second-quarter net loss of $255 million, which included after-tax COVID-19-related charges of $14 million, a decrease from net earnings of $141 million during the same period in fiscal 2019. While the reductions were in line with the company’s expectations, Nordstrom still managed to generate positive operating cash flow of more than $185 million, with total liquidity of $1.3 billion, through improved merchandise margins and significant overhead cost reductions. The company’s exceeded cash flow enabled it to pay down $300 million on its revolving line of credit. “At the onset of the pandemic, we focused on protecting and enhancing liquidity, and we successfully executed on these plans,” says Erik Nordstrom, chief executive office of Nordstrom. During the first quarter, Nordstrom reduced its inventory by more than 25 percent to mitigate markdowns and seasonal inventory and bring in newness for customers, resulting in second-quarter merchandise margin trends improving and exceeding expectations. In preparation for its yearly anniversary sale, which began August, the company increased inventory to …