Marriott to sell three Edition hotels for $800mn

Marriott International Inc. (MAR), the largest publicly traded US hotel chain, reached a preliminary agreement to sell three properties under construction in London, south Florida and Manhattan for about $800 million.
The sale of each of the Edition brand hotels would take place after construction is completed if the transaction goes through, the Bethesda, Maryland-based Marriott said in a statement today (Friday 16).

The company said it signed a non-binding letter of intent to sell the properties, subject to long-term management agreements.
Marriott has been developing the boutique Edition brand with hotelier Ian Schrager. The company planned to sell the three hotels “when the timing is right,” chief executive officer Arne Sorenson said on an Aug. 1 conference call.

Construction will be complete on the London property within 30 days, the Miami Beach hotel in the second half of 2014, and the Clock Tower Edition in New York in early 2015, according to Friday's statement.
Buyers weren’t disclosed. The residential component of the Miami Beach Edition isn’t included in the deal, and Marriott would continue to own the units pending their sale to individual purchasers, according to the statement.
The Wall Street Journal last week reported that Marriott was close to a deal to sell the three Edition hotels to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. Erik Portanger, a spokesman for the sovereign-wealth fund, declined to comment on the report.