French retailer Carrefour has sold 97 domestic supermarket properties to an asset manager for EUR365m (US$476m).
The company, which was dogged by profit warnings, speculation over management reshuffles and shareholder rebellion throughout 2011, said it would reinvest the money into real estate development projects.
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It will continue to operate the 97 sites under the Carrefour Market banner with 12-year leases. The buyer of the properties is La Francaise AM, a French company that manages EUR5.8bn in property assets, according to its website.
The day after the announcement shares in Carrefour dropped from EUR17 to EUR16.6.
Last month The Financial Times reported that the US investment fund Knight Vinke, which has a 1.5% stake in Carrefour, was in talks with the retailer over taking a seat on its board.
In October, Knight Vinke urged the company to appoint an independent chairman after a profit warning in a bid to combat the company’s “very poor performance” and “serious governance issues”.
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