Cerberus JV Closes Cold Storage Recap With Heitman, Artemis

November 17, 2025

In two separate transactions, the companies recapitalized a combined 1.7 million square feet.

Provender Partners and Cerberus Capital Management have recapitalized two cold storage portfolios totaling 1.7 million square feet in two separate deals with Artemis Real Estate Partners and Heitman.

Artemis’ agreement involves a six-asset assemblage comprising 857,000 square feet, while Heitman’s business revolves around a five-property collection spanning 795,000 square feet. JLL Capital Markets represented Provender and Cerberus.

The 11-facility portfolio is spread across metros such as Boston, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Orlando, Fla., Philadelphia, Portland, Ore., St. Louis, Tampa, Fla. and the Inland Empire. Tenants within the food-distribution sector lease these specialized cold storage facilities.

JLL Capital Markets Senior Managing Directors Sher Hafeez, Michael Leggett and John Huguenard, together with Vice President Wells Waller, as well as Director Will McCormack, in addition to Associate Josh Lieberman and Analyst Harrison Malek, represented Provender and Cerberus in the transaction proceedings.

Provender is the sole U.S. company 100 percent dedicated to food-distribution refrigerated properties. Cerberus partnered with Provender in 2020, with plans at the time calling for the accumulation of a multibillion-dollar cold storage portfolio.

Over the past five years, Provender has acquired roughly $965 million in refrigerated assets totaling 9 million square feet. It also sold $780 million worth of warehouses and leased more than 7.5 million square feet of space.

A similar deal closed two years ago when Provender recapped a 1 million-square-foot portfolio in a $158 million agreement with StepStone Real Estate, selling its interests on a secondary basis.

Cold storage cap rates contract, vacancy ticks up

Cold storage market cap rates began moderating, following their 2023 crest of nearly 6.5 percent, according to a recent Newmark report. In June, the index clocked in at roughly 6.0 percent, 50 basis points above the industrial average.

Meanwhile, the refrigerated inventory is forecast to wrap up 2025 with a vacancy of 7 percent, the report shows. Next year’s figure is set to increase by 50 basis points on account of supply-demand imbalances. However, most current vacant space is still in old buildings, even as new completions account for 10 percent of stock.