Bed Bath & Beyond, Inc.

A massive share repurchase program at Bed Bath & Beyond enabled the company to overcome increased expenses and a decline in gross margins to produce earning per share growth that exceeded analysts’ estimates.

Chicago -- Urban Retail Properties, LLC, announced the acquisition of Oakland Square and Oakland Plaza in Troy, Michigan, by its parent company RAIT Financial Trust. Purchase price was $50.8 million.

Both properties are adjacent to Oakland Mall, a 1.5-million-sq.-ft. super-regional center that Urban Retail currently manages.

Flushing, Queens -- Onex Real Estate Partners announced The Shops at SkyView Center has welcomed five new tenants to the growing roster of retailers during the third quarter.
 
The newest addition to Flushing’s mixed-use, multi-level shopping center includes Nordstrom Rack, the off-price retail division of Nordstrom, which officially opened on Sept. 10. Additionally, Justice & Brothers, a national retailer known for the best in tween fashion and accessories, catering to both boys and girls, has opened on Level D.
 

Miami -- Berkowitz Development Group announced the signing of a new long-term lease with PetSmart for 14,252 sq. ft. at Dadeland Station, a 330,000-sq.-ft. shopping center located at 8312 S Dixie Highway in Miami.

The new PetSmart store, which will include an on-site, full-service Banfield Pet Hospital, is slated to open during fourth quarter 2014.

Current tenants include Target, Michael’s, Bed Bath & Beyond, The Sport’s Authority and Best Buy.

North Brunswick, N.J. - Staples has leased a 14,000 sq. ft. space at North Village Shopping Center in North Brunswick, N.J. Levin Management, exclusive leasing and managing agent for the 132,000-sq.-ft. center, negotiated the lease.

Topeka, Kan. -- Mid-America Real Estate Corporation’s Investment Sales team recently brokered the sale of Wanamaker Shopping Center in Topeka, Kansas.  The regional shopping center was purchased for $18 million by Fort Wayne, Indiana-based Equity Investment Group.

The 269,875-sq.-ft. center is anchored by Big Kmart, Hobby Lobby, and Bed Bath & Beyond.

New Hyde Park, N.Y. - Kimco Realty Corp. has acquired a portfolio of 10 shopping centers from its joint venture with SEB Asset Management for $275.8 million, including $193.6 million of mortgage debt. Kimco, which previously held a 15% ownership interest in the properties, paid approximately $69.8 million for the remaining 85% equity interest held by SEB Asset Management, the group’s specialist real estate manager.

Union, N.J. - Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. has priced three series of senior unsecured notes for an aggregate principal amount of $1.5 billion. Of these notes, $300 million will mature in August 2024, $300 million will mature in August 2034, and $900 million will mature in August 2044.

The offering is expected to close, subject to normal closing conditions, on July 17, 2014. The company intends to use the proceeds from this offering for share repurchases of its common stock and for general corporate purposes.

Union, N.J. - Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. intends to offer, subject to market and other conditions, senior unsecured notes due 2024, senior unsecured notes due 2034 and senior unsecured notes due 2044 under a shelf registration on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Bed Bath & Beyond intends to use the proceeds from this offering for share repurchases of its common stock and for general corporate purposes.

J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and Wells Fargo Securities LLC are acting as joint book-running managers.

Kendall, Fla. -- Berkowitz Development Group announced the signing of a new long-term lease with Einstein Bagels for 2,466 sq. ft. at Kendallgate Shopping Center. The chain will take space within a freestanding retail building alongside AT&T in the Center’s plaza located at 12190 SW 88th Street in Miami.

Einstein Bagels has already begun construction at its new location and expects to open in late August.