WSJ: Starwood eyes new investors

Starwood Capital Group reportedly hired Morgan Stanley to solicit investors for a minority stake in the real estate giant.

The Wall Street Journal cited multiple unnamed sources, adding that Greenwich-based Starwood and New York City-based Morgan Stanley declined comment.

Founded and run by Barry Sternlicht, Starwood has amassed $19 billion in assets under management since 1991, primarily in the form of hotels and multi-family housing. In 2009, it raised $950 million in an initial public offering of stock for Starwood Property Trust Inc. to exploit opportunities in commercial real estate following the market crash of 2008. Starwood Property Trust has since raised an additional $1.4 billion in three follow-on offerings.

Starwood Capital is currently raising a separate, $3 billion fund to invest in distressed real estate and loans.