Announcing the results of the offer on Monday, Hyprop said the acceptance by SA Retail unit-holders included the prior acceptance by Redefine Income Fund, which held 25% of SA Retail units.

Hyprop already held a 6,6% stake in SA Retail, which it purchased on the open market.

About 31,5% of SA Retail unitholders elected to swap their SA Retail units for combined units in Hyprop, with 6,4% choosing the cash offer of R8 a unit equating to a cash payout of R114,7m.

Hyprop MD Pieter Prinsloo said: "The acceptance of the offer reflects the confidence of investors in Hyprop's track record of sustainable growth and their wish to participate in the continuing upside of our successful asset management."

However, Marriott CEO Simon Pearse sees the fact that Hyprop only secured a 44,4% stake as a victory for Marriott-managed SA Retail.

"Marriott has successfully defended the hostile takeover bid by Hyprop for SA Retail. We did this in the best interests of the SA Retail unitholders, and they have voted in our favour."

Breaking down the results of the offer, Prinsloo explained that only a small percentage of individual unitholders in SA Retail did not accept Hyprop's offer. "We had anticipated that Whirlprops, Old Mutual and Marriott were unlikely to accept the offer. According to Marriott, these companies together account for 52% of SA Retail's unitholding," he noted.

"Added to the 44,4% stake we now own in SA Retail, this amounts to 96,4%, leaving only 3,6% of independent investors who elected to retain their units in SA Retail."

He believed that strategically, the acceptance gave Hyprop a strong platform from which to drive future earnings growth.