UK property company Hammerson in share sale to finance investments

(Adds detail, background, updates shares)

By Karolin Schaps

LONDON, Sept 25 (Reuters) - British property firm Hammerson is selling up to 71.3 million new shares to fund the purchase of its joint venture partner's stake in a shopping centre in Leicester, central England, and a planned expansion in outlet fashion centres.

Hammerson (Other OTC: HMSNF - news) is proposing to place the shares, which will represent around 10 percent of the company's current share capital, with investment institutions via an accelerated bookbuild. It did not say at what price the stock was being sold.

Its shares were trading down 3 percent at 567 pence by 0747 GMT.

The shopping centre landlord said had signed an agreement to buy the outstanding 40 percent stake in the Leicester shopping centre for 280 million pounds ($457 million) from its joint venture partner, the former Royal Mail (LSE: RMG.L - news) pension plan.

The 114-store Highcross centre generates a rent of 27.8 million pounds and adds to Hammerson's shopping centre portfolio, which includes Birmingham's Bullring and Brent Cross in north London.

The company also said it was investing 100 million pounds to expand its involvement in Europe's fashion outlet centres, which offer top-name brands at discount prices.

It is investing 70 million pounds in VIA Outlets, which has acquired interests in outlets in major European cities including Amsterdam and Prague.

And it is providing 30 million pounds to Value Retail to help fund extensions at Bicester Village and Kildare Village outlet centres in Britain and Ireland (Other OTC: IRLD - news) , as well as the opening of a Value Retail village in Shanghai in 2015.

Deutsche Bank (Xetra: 514000 - news) and JP Morgan Cazenove are acting as joint bookrunners for the placing. Lazard is acting as financial adviser on the deal. (1 US dollar = 0.6131 British pound) (Editing by David Holmes)