Blackstone Has Sold Most Equity Office Property: WSJ

Blackstone Group, which completed its purchase of Equity Office earlier this year, has sold so much of its office property portfolio in recent months that it has covered 70% of the deal's $39 billion cost, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Blackstone, riding a booming U.S. commercial real-estate market, has shed at least 62 million square feet out of about 102 million square feet of office space once held by Equity Office, the Journal said, citing a report by Real Capital Analytics. It sold several properties at record prices, it added.

Blackstone completed its $23 billion acquisition of office landlord Equity Office Property Trust in February. Including debt, the deal was valued at $39 billion, making it the biggest leveraged buyout in history.

A Blackstone spokesman was not immediately available for comment.