Ardent Leisure sells marinas for $126 million to focus on family entertainment centres

ARDENT, owner of Dreamworld theme park, has offloaded d’Albora Marinas, the nation’s largest marina group, for $126 million.

Ardent Leisure has sold its d’Albora Marinas business for $126 million, including the Rushcutters Bay marina in Sydney's east.

ARDENT Leisure has weighed anchor on its marina portfolio.

Ardent, owner of Dreamworld theme park, yesterday said it had offloaded d’Albora Marinas, the nation’s largest marina group, for $126 million.

The theme park group sold the portfolio to a special purpose vehicle jointly-owned by Sydney-based private lender and fund manager Balmain Corporation and Goldman Sachs.

Balmain Corporation is a financial services company specialising in commercial property finance.

It has more than $6 billion of assets under management.

Ardent, which reopened Dreamworld at the weekend for the first time since four people died on a ride on October 25, in March revealed plans to divest its $113 million marina portfolio to focus on its growing American entertainment business.

At the time, Ardent’s shares jumped almost 12 per cent on the news.

Outgoing chairman Neil Balnaves then said marinas were “lower-yielding assets” and not mainstream to Ardent’s family entertainment market.

He said the group planned to sell the marinas to concentrate on its Main Event Family Entertainment Centres in the US.

Ardent shares yesterday closed steady at $2.29.

Ardent, which sold the marinas in one line rather than individually, said the $126 million sale, which followed an expressions of interest campaign, was at a 11 per cent premium to its current book value of $113.5 million.

The portfolio comprises seven high-profile marinas with more than 1300 berths at

Rushcutters Bay, The Spit and Cabarita Point in Sydney, at Nelson Bay, two at Port Melbourne, and Akuna Bay north of Sydney.

Completion of the marinas transaction is expected to occur before June 30 next year and is dependent upon securing landlord consents for the transfer of the head leases.

The sale process incurred transaction costs of approximately $3.3 million and a commitment to complete $5.6 million of pre-planned capital expenditure projects.

“The group’s decision to prepare d’Albora Marinas for sale with extended lease tenure, targeted capital works and a transparent sale process has ensured that the maximum value for investors has been realised,” said Ardent Leisure Group chief executive Deborah Thomas

Ms Thomas said the agreed price would improve the balance sheet capacity of the group.

In August, the group sold its Goodlife Health Clubs and exercise equipment business Hypoxi for $260 million deal to private equity firm Quadrant Private.