Gazit-Globe to post $260 mln gain from Equity One sale

JERUSALEM, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Gazit-Globe, Israel's largest real estate development company, said on Tuesday it will reap a 1 billion shekel ($261 million) gain, or 5 shekels a share, from the sale of its Equity One Inc unit.

Grocery shopping center owner Regency Centers Corp said on Monday it would buy Equity One for about $4.6 billion, in which each share of Equity One stock will be converted into 0.45 shares of newly issued shares of Regency.

The transaction represents a 13.7 percent premium to Monday's share price.

The combined entity would have an equity market value of $11.7 billion and an enterprise value of $15.6 billion, Gazit-Globe said.

The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter or early second quarter of 2017. It still needs shareholder approval of both companies.

Gazit-Globe, which owns 34.3 percent of Equity One, will hold 13.2 percent of the merged company, while Gazit Chairman Chaim Katzman will serve as vice chairman.

($1 = 3.8370 shekels) (Reporting by Steven Scheer)