ATLANTA AND DALLAS — Cushman & Wakefield has entered into an agreement to acquire the third-party client services group of Atlanta- and Dallas-based Cousins Properties (NYSE: CUZ).

“This move marks a key milestone as we begin the next phase of our strategic growth plan,” says Glenn Rufrano, president and CEO of Cushman & Wakefield. “Integrating such a quality group into our platform enables Cushman & Wakefield to continue to balance our service mix across our global platform and provide consistent quality service to our clients.”

Cousins’ client services group provides third-party services to owners of Class A office buildings in Atlanta and Dallas, including leasing, property management and project management services. Approximately 128 professionals will join Cushman & Wakefield’s corporate occupier and investor services group, and will provide immediate enhanced capabilities for clients supported by the company’s investor services and leasing groups. The transaction is expected to close by year’s end.

“We are very excited about this transaction. We really consider it a partnership, and view this as a win-win for Cousins, Cushman & Wakefield and most importantly, our clients,” says Larry Gellerstedt, president and CEO of Cousins Properties. “This not only ensures that our clients will be part of a broad global platform and can leverage all of the benefits that come with it, but is also consistent with Cousins’ strategic goal of simplification and a heightened focus on our core business.”

Cushman & Wakefield’s corporate services group manages nearly 16,000 properties totaling more than 800 million square feet worldwide.

Cousins Properties’ stock price closed at $7.71 per share on Wednesday, up from $7.28 a year ago.

— Savannah Duncan