A unit of Britian’s Barclays PLC has taken a sizable stake in Irvine-based homebuilder Standard Pacific Corp.
The move by Barclays Global Fund Advisors, a unit that works with exchange traded funds, is part of a series of investments in homebuilders.
Barclays also invested in D.R. Horton Inc., Centex Corp. and other builders, and reported an investment in Los Angeles-based office landlord Maguire Properties Inc., which counts a large local portfolio.
At 10.6%, the investment in Standard Pacific is the second largest after a 12.4% stake in M/I Homes Inc. of Ohio.
Barclays described the investments as passive, meaning the company isn’t looking to bring changes to the homebuilders.
It likely is betting on a rebound in homebuilder stocks, some of which are off about 50% in the past year.
The investment makes Barclays a big investor in Standard Pacific, but nowhere near the biggest.
New York-based MatlinPatterson Global Advisors LLC owns two-thirds of Standard Pacific but is capped at a 49% voting stake after a financing deal last year that saved the struggling homebuilder.
Standard Pacific Chief Executive Ken Campbell comes from MatlinPatterson.
He’s looking to expand Standard Pacific by acquiring other homebuilders.
