The grocer is reportedly in discussion with a small number of parties over a potential £600m supermarket deal as it seeks the financial firepower to fund its turnaround.
Morrisons has reportedly held discussions with New York-listed Realty Income Corporation, along with a small number of other parties, according to Sky News.
It was reported that the deal is unlikely to take the form of a sale-and-leaseback of supermarkets but could instead involve financing tied to a portfolio of stores.
Sky News reported that an agreement is not thought to be imminent, despite Morrisons appointing CBRE to examine a deal around six months ago. Morrisons owns the freeholds of around 80% of its store estate and has no short-term debt maturities, meaning it is under no pressure to strike a deal.
Realty Inc has become a major investor in UK retail real estate over the last few years, striking billions of pounds-worth of deals with the likes of Asda, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose.
Any prospective deal would come weeks after Morrisons was overtaken by discounter Lidl and slipped to sixth in the UK grocery market, according to the most recent data from Worldpanel.
Last month, it reported slowing growth in what its chief executive Rami Baitieh described as an intensely competitive market.
The retailer operates approximately 500 supermarkets across the UK, employing some 95,000 people.
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