Shurgard Storage Centers, Inc. Rejects Unsolicited Proposal
02 August 2005 - 3:13AM
PR Newswire (US)
Shurgard Storage Centers, Inc. Rejects Unsolicited Proposal
SEATTLE, Aug. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Shurgard Storage Centers,
Inc. (NYSE:SHU), a leading self-storage real estate investment
trust (REIT) in the United States and Europe, confirmed today's
announcement by Public Storage, Inc. of an unsolicited proposal for
the acquisition of Shurgard through a fully taxable all stock
transaction for the exchange of 0.8 shares of Public Storage common
stock for each outstanding share of Shurgard common stock. Shurgard
said that its Board of Directors previously met on July 22, 2005
and, with the assistance of financial and legal advisors, conducted
a thorough review of the proposal, originally made on July 8, 2005.
The Board unanimously decided to reject the proposal. The Board of
Directors determined that a combination of the companies on the
terms proposed would not be in the best interests of Shurgard's
shareholders. Charles Barbo, Chairman of the Board and Chief
Executive Officer of Shurgard stated, "Our Board of Directors
carefully evaluated this proposal and unanimously rejected it. We
believe our current strategic plan provides superior, compelling
long-term value to our shareholders, and the proposal by Public
Storage is clearly an opportunistic attempt to deprive our
shareholders from fully realizing that long-term value. Shurgard
has the highest quality portfolio in the storage industry and is
the leader in the developing European storage market. The success
of our substantial European investments is increasingly evident, as
same store occupancy rates in Europe increased from 75% at the end
of the first quarter to 80% at June 30, 2005. We remain committed
to driving shareholder value, and we're confident that our current
projected growth from Europe and other key markets combined with
our continuing cost cutting initiatives will deliver significant
and sustainable value to our shareholders. This proposal is good
for Public Storage, but bad for Shurgard." About Shurgard Storage
Centers, Inc. Shurgard Storage Centers, Inc. is a real estate
investment trust headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Shurgard
specializes in all aspects of the self-storage industry and
operates a network of over 630 operating storage centers located
throughout the United States and in Europe. Forward Looking
Statements This press release contains statements that are not
based on historical fact and are "forward-looking statements"
within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995. Statements in this release concerning the beliefs,
expectations, intentions, future events, future performance,
business prospects and business strategy in the United States and
Europe, including statements regarding projections for 2005 and
beyond, are based on several assumptions. If any of these
assumptions are not satisfied or prove to be incorrect, actual
results could differ materially from those indicated in the
forward-looking statements, depending on a variety of factors
including, but not limited to, Shurgard's ability to implement its
business strategy, competition in the market, as well as other risk
factors as described more fully in Shurgard's Annual Report on Form
10-K for the year ended December 31, 2004, filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission on March 29, 2005, and its
report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2005, filed on
May 10, 2005. The information presented in this release reflects
Shurgard's expectations as of the date of this release. Except as
required by law, Shurgard undertakes no obligation to update or
revise the information herein. DATASOURCE: Shurgard Storage
Centers, Inc. CONTACT: Alan Oshiki or Roland Tomforde, both of
Broadgate Consultants, Inc., +1-212-232-2222, for Shurgard Storage
Centers, Inc. Web site: http://www.shurgard.com/
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