Pinewood Group, the film and TV studios majority-owned by Peel Group, has been sold to a real estate fund for £323 million.
The deal with PW Real Estate Fund, run by French property investor Leon Bressler, will net the Manchester-based Peel Group £126m.
Stockport-based jewellery company Warren James Holdings, owned by siblings Ann Jones and John Coulter, will take home £84m for its 26% stake. The Isle of Man government was the next largest shareholder, with a 4.99% stake in the company.
Shareholders will receive 560p in cash for each share, plus a final dividend of 3.2p per share. As a result of a failed takeover attempt in 2011, Peel Group owns 39.09% of the company, having sold a 19% stake last year for £30m.
Pinewood Group, which first came to prominence in the 1950s and 1960s as the home of the “Carry On” and Norman Wisdom comedies, turned over £75m in the year to March 2015, with profit before tax of £5m. Pinewood Studios is home to the James Bond movie franchise as well as the most recent Star Wars film.
The new owner has stated that it does not intend to separate Pinewood’s property portfolio from its operating business.
