City Office REIT

CIO

Market cap $275M

M&A activity is surging in infrastructure and real estate as regulatory and financial barriers ease, unlocking value in discounted public assets. Public REITs and infrastructure stocks trading below NAV are prime targets for private equity buyouts, often at significant premiums to market prices. Top buyout candidates include Global Medical REIT (GMRE) and Farmland Partners (FPI), both trading at deep discounts to their underlying asset values.

U.S. equity markets posted mixed performance this week- while long-term yields jumped- after the Federal Reserve cut short-term rates for a second-straight meeting, but reigned in expectations for future cuts. Fed Chair Powell hawkishly pushed back on market expectations, saying that another cut in December was "far" from certain and highlighting "strongly differing views" within the committee. Market breadth was exceptionally narrow this past week as post-earnings gains from a handful of mega-cap technology stocks offset weekly declines from over 70% of the S&P 500 constituents.

City Office REIT is being acquired by MCME Carell Holdings. Shareholders have approved the merger. Preferred Series A dividend continues to accrue.

U.S. equity markets rebounded this past week as the White House resumed negotiations with China following a major tariff threat, while investors focused on bank earnings that raised some eyebrows. Consistent with the "risk-off" theme that has prevailed amid the ongoing federal government shutdown with no resolution in sight, short-term Treasury yields receded to the lowest levels in three years. Buoyed by a dip in benchmark rates, real estate equities led the rebound this week after REIT earnings season began on a positive note with surprisingly strong industrial REIT results.

VANCOUVER , Oct. 16, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- City Office REIT, Inc. (NYSE: CIO) (the "Company" or "City Office") announced today that the stockholders of the Company voted to approve the merger pursuant to which all of the issued and outstanding shares of City Office will be acquired by MCME Carell Holdings, LP and MCME Carell Merger Sub, LLC (the "Merger"). The final voting results of the proposals voted on at the special meeting held on October 16, 2025 will be set forth in the Company's Form 8-K to be filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

After a strong August, REITs faded slightly in September (-0.73%), pulling the REIT sector's year-to-date average total return down to (-1.74%). Mid-cap REITs (-0.92%) averaged the lowest total return in September. Large caps (-0.29%), micro caps (-0.79%), and small caps (-0.83%) averaged modestly smaller declines. Only 37.4% of REIT securities had a positive total return in September.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oksenholt Capital Management LLC (“Oksenholt Capital”) today announced that its Chief Executive Officer, Jon Oksenholt, has sent a formal letter to the Chairman of the Board of City Office REIT, Inc. (NYSE: CIO), outlining serious concerns about the company's leadership, performance, and opposition to the proposed merger with affiliates of Elliott Capital. The letter identified several issues related to City Office REIT, Inc.'s (“CIO”) current management and.

U.S. equity markets rallied to fresh record-highs this past week as investors leaned into rate cut expectations following a wave of soft employment data and a Federal Government shutdown. For the fourth time since 1995, the federal government entered a partial "shutdown" after the U.S. Senate failed to reach the 60-vote threshold required for passage of appropriations. Defering to experience from prior shutdowns in 2013 (16 days) and in 2018 (35 days), markets largely shrugged off the latest Congressional impasse, with investors still anticipating a timely resolution.

Here at Zacks, our focus is on the proven Zacks Rank system, which emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find great stocks. Nevertheless, we are always paying attention to the latest value, growth, and momentum trends to underscore strong picks.

Investors interested in REIT and Equity Trust - Other stocks are likely familiar with City Office REIT (CIO) and EastGroup Properties (EGP). But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now?