Prudential Near Deal to Sell Century City Twin Towers

Prudential Insurance Co. of America said Tuesday that it is close to selling its Century Plaza Towers complex in Los Angeles for a price real estate experts estimated could exceed $500 million.

“We are hopeful of having a deal very soon,” Prudential spokesman Rick Matthews said. He said Prudential, which had announced plans to sell the landmark complex earlier this year, had recently reduced the field of potential bidders.

However, a reported suitor, Hong Kong real estate developer Great Eagle Holdings Ltd., denied a published report that it had emerged as the highest bidder for the complex. A spokesman for the company said it had no plans to buy U.S. real estate.

A report by Bloomberg Business News, attributing the information to people familiar with the deal, said Great Eagle had submitted an offer of $515 million. It said Great Eagle’s bid for the property topped a $500-million offer from a real estate fund managed by J.P. Morgan Investment Management Co. and the $495 million offered by Chicago real estate investor Sam Zell.

Matthews declined to comment on the identity of the buyers.

Representatives of J.P. Morgan and Zell couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

The 2.2-million-square-foot Century Plaza consists of 44-story twin towers, an underground parking garage with more than 5,000 spaces, and the ABC Entertainment Center complex.

Prudential and its 50% partner, Citicorp, hired real estate investment bank Eastdil Realty Inc. of New York earlier this year to help market the property. Prudential’s real estate holdings total about $5.5 billion.

Century Plaza is one of the most distinctive properties in the Los Angeles area and is often used as a backdrop in motion pictures. Its tenant list includes defense contractor Teledyne Inc. and several major law firms.

Prudential built the complex in the mid-1970s with its then-partner Century City Inc.