ARC lights into Cole, may up bid again

Management at American Realty Capital Properties Inc. has picked up where it left off last week, once again blasting the Cole Credit Property Trust III REIT board for not responding to ARC's unsolicited takeover offer. In addition, publicly traded ARC on Tuesday said it would consider sweetening its latest bid for the property trust giant. The improved offer would up to 60% from 20% the cash portion of its bid for the nontraded REIT and its management company, Cole Holdings Corp. “By giving a bigger pool of cash, it gives the board of the company knowledge that more cash is available for the investor,” said Nicholas Schorsch, ARC chief executive. “It makes it more reliable” as a takeover offer. Last week, ARC raised its initial bid for the Cole III REIT shares, upping the ante to no less than $13.59 a share in stock or $12.50 a share in cash. ARC's opening offering -- $12 in cash and stock -- was quickly rejected by the REIT's board. A committee of independent Cole III board members said last week it would consider ARC's revised offer. But Mr. Schorsch now says the Cole directors were simply playing for time while planning to go through with their own proposal to merge the REIT with the management company. In a letter Tuesday to the REIT's board, Mr. Schorsch claimed Cole has been unresponsive to ARC's overtures.