The dollar value of the transaction represents approximately half of $840 million in gross proceeds from asset sales and contributions to its property funds in the second quarter. It also represents nearly two thirds of the 14.2 million square feet in 136 US properties that it plans to unload in 28 separate transactions for a total of $657 million as part of its $2-billion deleveraging effort.

In addition to the Stockbridge deal, ProLogis sold another $145 million of US industrial assets in the second quarter and has an additional $96 million to go. The $561 million of second quarter sales in the US are expected to generate approximately $200 million of net earnings.

The US property portfolio being sold averages 20 years in age and 105,000 square feet in size and are spread out in various markets including Chicago, Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, Memphis, Northern and Southern California, Seattle, Portland, Phoenix, Washington, D.C. and Northern New Jersey. The blended, stabilized cap rate for the entire $657 million portfolio of assets is expected to be 8.89%.

The sale to Stockbridge works out to $44 per square foot, which is approximately the value third-party appraisers placed on the full 33 million square feet ProLogis was marketing with the goal of selling approximately half. "We don't intend to sell all the assets that we have offers…," ProLogis chief investment officer Ted Antenucci said on a conference call with analysts in February. "We expect to see [cap rate] pricing in the single digits and that's where the competitive offers are right now."

"Internationally in the second quarter, ProLogis says it completed the sale of one property in Japan to GIC Real Estate for $128 million and generated proceeds of US$151 million from contributions of stabilized properties to ProLogis European Properties Fund II. While the appraised cap rate for the PEPF II contributions averaged 7.78%, the properties were contributed to the fund at or near book value with an average cap rate of 8.53%, according to ProLogis.

The PEPF II contribution pricing reflects the company's agreement with PEPF II investors to add a 75 basis point premium to appraised cap rates in the first and second quarters of 2009, due to the belief that appraisals have lagged true market conditions. This premium decreases to 50 basis points for any contributions made in the third quarter and 25 basis points in the fourth quarter. The second quarter cap rate compares with an average appraised cap rate of 7.63% and contribution cap rate of 8.39% for assets contributed to PEPF II in the first quarter of 2009.

ProLogis says it has now addressed all its 2009 balance sheet debt maturities and plans to further reduce the outstanding balance on its global lines of credit. In total, it has reduced its corporate debt by approximately 25%, or $2.7 billion, since September 30, 2008.