Blackstone to buy real estate investment trust Strategic Hotels in $3.93 billion deal

The private equity firm Blackstone will buy real estate investment trust Strategic Hotels & Resorts Inc. in a cash deal valued at $3.93 billion.

Including debt, the deal is worth about $6 billion, the companies said Tuesday.

Blackstone Real Estate Partners VIII LP will pay $14.25 for each outstanding share of Strategic, which specializes in high-end hotels and resorts. That represents a 13 percent premium to the stock's trading price on July 23, before a media report detailed a potential transaction.

The companies expect to complete the deal by the first quarter.

Chicago-based Strategic Hotels has an ownership interest in 17 properties with 7,921 rooms as well as meeting and banquet space. The company said last month that its board was exploring options that included a potential sale.