BEIJING/HONG KONG (Reuters) -China's largest commercial property developer Dalian Wanda Group on Thursday said it is appealing a court decision to freeze 1.9 billion yuan ($266.23 million) worth of shares it owns in a subsidiary.

The group in a statement said it "is confident it will defend its legitimate rights".

Two Shanghai court notices dated Monday showed the group cannot trade or otherwise use its shares in property manager Dalian Wanda Commercial Management Group until June 4, 2026. The notices did not detail reasons.

The group on Thursday said it had a dispute involving about 1 billion yuan with a company related to a mega-project in northern China, and the value of shares frozen far exceeded the amount in that dispute.

The court order was made after a request from the company, according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorised to speak to media.

Dalian Wanda did not disclose the name of the company involved in the dispute and declined to comment beyond its statement.

On Monday, the group suffered a credit-rating downgrade as it faces debt-repayment stress. It is also pursuing an initial public offering in Hong Kong of subsidiary Zhuhai Wanda which has stalled while awaiting regulatory approval.

($1 = 7.1368 Chinese yuan renminbi)

(Reporting by Beijing newsroom and Clare Jim in Hong Kong; Editing by Himani Sarkar, Christopher Cushing and Jamie Freed)