Ardent Leisure Group (AAD):
Ardent Leisure told shareholders on Wednesday to vote against the two remaining resolutions proposed by shareholder Ariadne at Monday’s extraordinary general meeting. Shareholders should vote against the motions to elect Gary Weiss and Brad Richmond to the board, Ardent said.
Australian Vintage Limited (AVG):
Long-term shareholders in Australian Vintage will have derived more pleasure from drinking the company’s products than their investment returns, with the company’s share price spinning its wheels at the same low level it was five years ago. The sharp drop in the British pound since the Brexit vote last year crunched profits in 2016-17 in the Britain and Europe division, which makes McGuigan, Nepenthe and Tempus Two. The trio of brands in combination make up 57 per cent of total sales. Australian Vintage chief executive Neil McGuigan said on Wednesday that at the current exchange rate of 61p to the Australian dollar, it was ‘‘hard to achieve a satisfactory return’’. This was frustrating because the McGuigan brand is the fourth-largest of all players in the British market and had increased volumes by 6 per cent in Britain against the backdrop of a total British wine market that had shrunk by 10 per cent.
Billabong International Limited (BBG):
Billabong chief Neil Fiske hopes a new range of mono-colour bikinis and patterned board shorts will boost profits in Australia this year and help the surfwear retailer deliver underlying earnings growth. A fashion fail in Billabong’s swimwear assortment last year exacerbated choppy retail conditions and dragged Billabong’s Asia Pacific earnings down 28 per cent, partially offsetting a 47 per cent rebound in profits in the Americas and another year of improvement in Europe.
Boral Limited (BLD):
Boral chief executive Mike Kane echoes the private views of most business leaders when he says politicians in Canberra and Washington have been a serial disappointment and companies need to ignore the noise and get on with it. Boral chief executive Mike Kane expects Australia’s infrastructure boom to last for up to 10 years and deliver even bigger profit momentum than the housing boom, which is moderating slowly but will still stay well above long-term averages. Mr Kane has reassessed his own view of the future strength of Australia’s infrastructure pipeline of projects as governments spend more on roads, freeways, railways and bridges. Boral chief executive Mike Kane expects Australia’s infrastructure boom to last up to 10 years and deliver bigger profit momentum than the housing boom, which is slowly easing but will still stay well above long-term averages.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA):
‘‘In order to change perceptions, I don’t think it would be a good look for CBA to appoint someone from underneath Ian Narev,’’ Mr Murray said at a briefing in Sydney on Wednesday. ‘‘Rightly or wrongly they are being seen as being part of the issue so I would strongly encourage the CBA board to look outside of CBA for a new CEO. Narev has done many good things but the reality is the focus and the brutality of markets. It’s just as much about perception as reality.’’ The call comes after analysts at Credit Suisse singled out the CEO appointment process as the most critical factor to drive the share price of CBA, which was, until last week, the most valuable stock on the share market. CBA’s call for the Aussie to buy US85¢ by the end of 2018 is above the median economist forecast of US80¢, on Bloomberg numbers. Weakness in the US dollar explains much of this expected strength in the local currency, CBA chief currency strategist Richard Grace said in a note to clients, as trends that were apparent in late 2016, but which were knocked off course by the shock election of Donald Trump as US President, reassert themselves.
Charter Hall Group (CHC):
Charter Hall has launched a $268 million unlisted fund of commercial property, including its latest acquisition, a Port Adelaide office development. To be known as the Charter Hall Direct PFA Fund, the vehicle will be run as part of the platform’s broader $3 billion direct property business. The new fund’s portfolio will generate more than 70 per cent of its income from government tenants. The portfolio’s average lease expiry will be 9.2 years. The unlisted vehicle will hold six office buildings, including the Port Adelaide development which is fully leased to the South Australian government on a 15-year term. In all, the fund will control almost 60,000 square metres of space. The property is valued at $268 million, on an average capitalisation rate of 7.36 per cent.
Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (FLT):
Travel retailer Flight Centre keeps defying predictions of its demise, and continues to make its trio of founders extremely wealthy. Shares in the company that Financial Review Rich Listers Graham ‘‘Skroo’’ Turner, Geoff Harris and Bill James established – and still own large stakes in – are up 58 per cent since January 1. Combined, the trio hold about $2.1 billion worth of shares today – a far cry from when they made their debut on the Rich List in 1999 with total wealth of $398 million between them. Back then, Flight Centre was a market darling but on the verge of first being written off as a victim of the first dotcom boom and the internet, where ease of purchasing flights and making hotel bookings directly for consumers was going to spell the end of the company’s bricks and mortar retail model.
Independence Group NL (IGO):
Independence Group managing director Peter Bradford says the miner will look at boosting shareholder returns in the next few years, with its Nova nickel mine set to hit full capacity in the next three months. The company’s net debt sat at $164 million at June 30. Mr Bradford says the low interest costs associated with servicing the debt – he compared it to ‘‘an entry-level housing loan’’ rate – meant there was little pressure to pay off borrowings early. Analysts expect cash to build sharply in the 2018 and 2019 financial years, with the Nova project set to ramp up to full production in the September quarter, 12 months ahead of schedule. Nova has a policy to pay 30 per cent of net profit out as dividends, but Mr Bradford said the company would look at other ways to return capital to shareholders.
Medibank Private Ltd (MPL):
Medibank Private has defeated an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission case alleging it misled members over the withdrawal of some benefits to avoid negative publicity ahead of its November 2014 privatisation. The ACCC alleged Medibank misled members by assuring them they were covered for out-of-pocket expenses for in-hospital diagnostic testing, and by assuring them that if it changed their benefit entitlements it would let them know. The regulator alleged that both assurances became misleading after September 1, 2014 – two months ahead of the company’s debut on the Australian Securities Exchange – when the entitlements for out-ofpocket expenses on hospital diagnostic tests charged at rates above the Medicare Benefit Schedule rate were withdrawn from about half of Medibank’s members. The ACCC also alleged that the insurer acted unconscionably by withdrawing the benefits without giving members notice.
Metcash Limited (MTS); Wesfarmers Ltd (WES); Woolworths Limited (WOW):
Metcash will clip the ticket on about $1 billion of stock now sourced by IGA retailers directly from suppliers as part of the wholesaler’s Amazon defence strategy. Metcash is putting the final touches on a new online portal known as indieDirect, which will enable independent retailers to link up directly with suppliers to make contact with a wider range of independent retailers. Unveiling details of indieDirect at Metcash’s annual meeting yesterday, chairman Rob Murray and head of supermarkets Steve Cain said the portal would enable independent retailers to source a wider range of products to differentiate themselves from Coles and Woolworths and better compete with Amazon. It will also enable Metcash to play a role by negotiating better deals with suppliers on behalf of retailers and earn a small commission or margin on additional sales without having to distribute or hold the stock. Mr Cain said most IGA retailers sourced about 70 per cent of their stock from Metcash and about 30 per cent directly from suppliers.
Ramsay Health Care Limited (RHC):
Australia’s largest private hospital operator Ramsay Health Care is scoping out Germany and Scandinavia as possible new beachheads for its hospitals business, with new chief executive Craig McNally declaring acquisitions are on the radar. Mr McNally – the former chief operating officer and a 29-year company veteran – said while Australia remains the powerhouse of Ramsay’s operations, posting strong earnings growth in fiscal 2017, its European businesses delivered on expectations in a tough environment, and he is keeping an eye out for acquisitions. One of the high-profile corporate growth stories of the past 15 years, Ramsay Health Care, has confirmed it is entering a period of slower earnings growth as it copes with government moves to slash healthcare costs. New chief executive Craig McNally admitted in an analyst briefing yesterday that there would be no growth in the company’s private hospital businesses in France and Britain this financial year.
Santos Ltd (STO):
Santos has added momentum to its increasingly desperate quest to avoid the Commonwealth’s threat of contract-busting export controls in signing a large gas swap ‘‘agreement’’ that could release new gas to the domestic market and generate some serious value to the South Australian’s unnamed counterparty. For the second time in two weeks, Santos has trumpeted a gas deal that promises to reintroduce material volumes of gas to south-east coast markets in what Adelaide’s gas company correctly promotes as a classic market response to price signals. While the detail is scant, the effect of this swap framework is essentially what Santos claims it to be. Santos has taken another step to try to fend off damaging caps on its LNG exports from Queensland, signing a ‘‘swap’’ deal with Shell that should free up gas for sale to local buyers in the southern states. The deal, for at least 18 petajoules a year of gas, takes effect next January, Santos said, the date that controls on exports from its GLNG plant in Gladstone would start if the federal government triggers the Domestic Gas Security Mechanism for next year.
Syrah Resources Ltd (SYR):
Syrah shot up to trade 9.2 percent higher at $2.97 on Wednesday as the markets took on board news of a mining agreement between Syrah and the Mozambique Government. The industrial minerals and technology company told the market that the mining agreement was approved by the Mozambique Government on August 29. Syrah said it “provides the company with clarity around the governing laws and contractualises the mining rights and other obligations for the Balama project in Mozambique”. The Balama project is described as the “world’s largest graphite resource”. Syrah says Balama is under construction and nearing completion.
Telstra Corporation Ltd (TLS):
As a former chief executive of Telstra, Ziggy Switkowski, who is chairman of NBN Co, must have felt some sympathy for Telstra CEO Andy Penn this week when he killed Telstra’s $5.5 billion pull forward of future NBN receipts. In one fell swoop, Switkowski and his fellow NBN Co directors stopped Penn from executing a plan that would have resulted in Telstra cutting its debt by $1 billion and handing back $3 billion to shareholders through a buyback. Telstra has been forced to junk plans to pay down debt by $1 billion and conduct $3 billion in share buybacks after NBN rebuffed its proposal to securitise its long-term payments from the builder of the national broadband network. The telco wanted to create a investment vehicle to securitise $5.5 billion in recurring payments it will receive from providing NBN access to Telstra infrastructure and offer it to investors. Telstra said the securitisation proposal was well progressed and was being supported by debt and equity investors but yesterday it told the ASX that NBN had killed the plan. Wednesday was always going to be an eventful trading session for Telstra, with its shareholders free to dump the stock having qualified for the second half of its (fully franked) 31¢ dividend. Shares wobbled between gains and losses on Wednesday as the ASX failed to join a region-wide rebound, weighed down by a sharp fall in Telstra as it traded ex-dividend and more selling in the big banks.
Tamawood Limited (TWD):
Home builder Tamawood on Wednesday said growth of its housing starts in NSW and Queensland had outstripped the industry average in both states, but that Queensland offer edit greater scope for growth. ‘‘While I don’t see the Brisbane housing market getting much stronger than it is now, we’re going to continue to take market share up there and that will be stronger for us,’’ chair Robert Lynch said.
Ten Network Holdings Limited (TEN):
CBS’ shock bid for Network Ten, which gazumped Lachlan Murdoch and Bruce Gordon, values the free-to-air broadcaster at $500 million at least. A report on the state of Ten’s finances in administration and the sale process is expected to be given to creditors on Thursday. The United States media giant put in a claim for $795.5 million after Ten went into administration, making it the Australian broadcaster’s largest creditor. However, in assessing the claim, the value of CBS’s debt was brought down to $350 million, to reflect the fact the US studio could sell its content, which was the basis for the large majority of its claim, elsewhere. With CBS’ surprise bid coming out on top, Foxtel will have to walk away with nothing from its $77 million investment in Network Ten.
Webjet Limited (WEB):
The chief executive of online travel group Webjet, John Guscic, sees no sign of demand for travel slowing down, after the company posted a record statutory profit of $52.4 million for 2016-17, up146.6 per cent. The statutory profit factors in a $28 million windfall from the disposal of Asia-focused online travel agent brand Zuji. But profit from continuing operations was still up 58 per cent, at $33.1 million. Statutory revenues grew 41.5 per cent to $218.7 million. The number could have been even higher had Webjet not had a dispute with its auditor, BDO, over its accounting treatment of an agreement with Thomas Cook Travel to supply it with hotel inventory. Despite two top-tier accounting firms agreeing with Webjet’s original treatment, Mr Guscic’s leadership team eventually decided to accept BDO’s verdict, despite it slicing $11.5 million off 2016-17 earnings.
Yellow Brick Road Holdings Ltd (YBR):
A slowing residential market will curb Yellow Brick Road’s new loan growth this year from the 16.7 per cent increase it enjoyed in the year to June, but the smaller lender was better placed to cope with slowing than its larger counterparts, executive chairman Mark Bouris said on Wednesday. Speaking after his financial services company reported its first full-year profit in the year to June from higher revenue and lower costs, Mr Bouris said the residential market’s move to a ‘‘healthy, sustainable’’ level of growth would be good for the whole lending industry. The lender whose underlying loan book picked up to $44.1 billion from $37.8 billion a year earlier and which saw a 6.9 per cent increase in wealth management revenue to $10.4 million could thrive in a slower market, Mr Bouris.
(Source: AIMS)
Ardent Leisure told shareholders on Wednesday to vote against the two remaining resolutions proposed by shareholder Ariadne at Monday’s extraordinary general meeting. Shareholders should vote against the motions to elect Gary Weiss and Brad Richmond to the board, Ardent said.
Australian Vintage Limited (AVG):
Long-term shareholders in Australian Vintage will have derived more pleasure from drinking the company’s products than their investment returns, with the company’s share price spinning its wheels at the same low level it was five years ago. The sharp drop in the British pound since the Brexit vote last year crunched profits in 2016-17 in the Britain and Europe division, which makes McGuigan, Nepenthe and Tempus Two. The trio of brands in combination make up 57 per cent of total sales. Australian Vintage chief executive Neil McGuigan said on Wednesday that at the current exchange rate of 61p to the Australian dollar, it was ‘‘hard to achieve a satisfactory return’’. This was frustrating because the McGuigan brand is the fourth-largest of all players in the British market and had increased volumes by 6 per cent in Britain against the backdrop of a total British wine market that had shrunk by 10 per cent.
Billabong International Limited (BBG):
Billabong chief Neil Fiske hopes a new range of mono-colour bikinis and patterned board shorts will boost profits in Australia this year and help the surfwear retailer deliver underlying earnings growth. A fashion fail in Billabong’s swimwear assortment last year exacerbated choppy retail conditions and dragged Billabong’s Asia Pacific earnings down 28 per cent, partially offsetting a 47 per cent rebound in profits in the Americas and another year of improvement in Europe.
Boral Limited (BLD):
Boral chief executive Mike Kane echoes the private views of most business leaders when he says politicians in Canberra and Washington have been a serial disappointment and companies need to ignore the noise and get on with it. Boral chief executive Mike Kane expects Australia’s infrastructure boom to last for up to 10 years and deliver even bigger profit momentum than the housing boom, which is moderating slowly but will still stay well above long-term averages. Mr Kane has reassessed his own view of the future strength of Australia’s infrastructure pipeline of projects as governments spend more on roads, freeways, railways and bridges. Boral chief executive Mike Kane expects Australia’s infrastructure boom to last up to 10 years and deliver bigger profit momentum than the housing boom, which is slowly easing but will still stay well above long-term averages.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA):
‘‘In order to change perceptions, I don’t think it would be a good look for CBA to appoint someone from underneath Ian Narev,’’ Mr Murray said at a briefing in Sydney on Wednesday. ‘‘Rightly or wrongly they are being seen as being part of the issue so I would strongly encourage the CBA board to look outside of CBA for a new CEO. Narev has done many good things but the reality is the focus and the brutality of markets. It’s just as much about perception as reality.’’ The call comes after analysts at Credit Suisse singled out the CEO appointment process as the most critical factor to drive the share price of CBA, which was, until last week, the most valuable stock on the share market. CBA’s call for the Aussie to buy US85¢ by the end of 2018 is above the median economist forecast of US80¢, on Bloomberg numbers. Weakness in the US dollar explains much of this expected strength in the local currency, CBA chief currency strategist Richard Grace said in a note to clients, as trends that were apparent in late 2016, but which were knocked off course by the shock election of Donald Trump as US President, reassert themselves.
Charter Hall Group (CHC):
Charter Hall has launched a $268 million unlisted fund of commercial property, including its latest acquisition, a Port Adelaide office development. To be known as the Charter Hall Direct PFA Fund, the vehicle will be run as part of the platform’s broader $3 billion direct property business. The new fund’s portfolio will generate more than 70 per cent of its income from government tenants. The portfolio’s average lease expiry will be 9.2 years. The unlisted vehicle will hold six office buildings, including the Port Adelaide development which is fully leased to the South Australian government on a 15-year term. In all, the fund will control almost 60,000 square metres of space. The property is valued at $268 million, on an average capitalisation rate of 7.36 per cent.
Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (FLT):
Travel retailer Flight Centre keeps defying predictions of its demise, and continues to make its trio of founders extremely wealthy. Shares in the company that Financial Review Rich Listers Graham ‘‘Skroo’’ Turner, Geoff Harris and Bill James established – and still own large stakes in – are up 58 per cent since January 1. Combined, the trio hold about $2.1 billion worth of shares today – a far cry from when they made their debut on the Rich List in 1999 with total wealth of $398 million between them. Back then, Flight Centre was a market darling but on the verge of first being written off as a victim of the first dotcom boom and the internet, where ease of purchasing flights and making hotel bookings directly for consumers was going to spell the end of the company’s bricks and mortar retail model.
Independence Group NL (IGO):
Independence Group managing director Peter Bradford says the miner will look at boosting shareholder returns in the next few years, with its Nova nickel mine set to hit full capacity in the next three months. The company’s net debt sat at $164 million at June 30. Mr Bradford says the low interest costs associated with servicing the debt – he compared it to ‘‘an entry-level housing loan’’ rate – meant there was little pressure to pay off borrowings early. Analysts expect cash to build sharply in the 2018 and 2019 financial years, with the Nova project set to ramp up to full production in the September quarter, 12 months ahead of schedule. Nova has a policy to pay 30 per cent of net profit out as dividends, but Mr Bradford said the company would look at other ways to return capital to shareholders.
Medibank Private Ltd (MPL):
Medibank Private has defeated an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission case alleging it misled members over the withdrawal of some benefits to avoid negative publicity ahead of its November 2014 privatisation. The ACCC alleged Medibank misled members by assuring them they were covered for out-of-pocket expenses for in-hospital diagnostic testing, and by assuring them that if it changed their benefit entitlements it would let them know. The regulator alleged that both assurances became misleading after September 1, 2014 – two months ahead of the company’s debut on the Australian Securities Exchange – when the entitlements for out-ofpocket expenses on hospital diagnostic tests charged at rates above the Medicare Benefit Schedule rate were withdrawn from about half of Medibank’s members. The ACCC also alleged that the insurer acted unconscionably by withdrawing the benefits without giving members notice.
Metcash Limited (MTS); Wesfarmers Ltd (WES); Woolworths Limited (WOW):
Metcash will clip the ticket on about $1 billion of stock now sourced by IGA retailers directly from suppliers as part of the wholesaler’s Amazon defence strategy. Metcash is putting the final touches on a new online portal known as indieDirect, which will enable independent retailers to link up directly with suppliers to make contact with a wider range of independent retailers. Unveiling details of indieDirect at Metcash’s annual meeting yesterday, chairman Rob Murray and head of supermarkets Steve Cain said the portal would enable independent retailers to source a wider range of products to differentiate themselves from Coles and Woolworths and better compete with Amazon. It will also enable Metcash to play a role by negotiating better deals with suppliers on behalf of retailers and earn a small commission or margin on additional sales without having to distribute or hold the stock. Mr Cain said most IGA retailers sourced about 70 per cent of their stock from Metcash and about 30 per cent directly from suppliers.
Ramsay Health Care Limited (RHC):
Australia’s largest private hospital operator Ramsay Health Care is scoping out Germany and Scandinavia as possible new beachheads for its hospitals business, with new chief executive Craig McNally declaring acquisitions are on the radar. Mr McNally – the former chief operating officer and a 29-year company veteran – said while Australia remains the powerhouse of Ramsay’s operations, posting strong earnings growth in fiscal 2017, its European businesses delivered on expectations in a tough environment, and he is keeping an eye out for acquisitions. One of the high-profile corporate growth stories of the past 15 years, Ramsay Health Care, has confirmed it is entering a period of slower earnings growth as it copes with government moves to slash healthcare costs. New chief executive Craig McNally admitted in an analyst briefing yesterday that there would be no growth in the company’s private hospital businesses in France and Britain this financial year.
Santos Ltd (STO):
Santos has added momentum to its increasingly desperate quest to avoid the Commonwealth’s threat of contract-busting export controls in signing a large gas swap ‘‘agreement’’ that could release new gas to the domestic market and generate some serious value to the South Australian’s unnamed counterparty. For the second time in two weeks, Santos has trumpeted a gas deal that promises to reintroduce material volumes of gas to south-east coast markets in what Adelaide’s gas company correctly promotes as a classic market response to price signals. While the detail is scant, the effect of this swap framework is essentially what Santos claims it to be. Santos has taken another step to try to fend off damaging caps on its LNG exports from Queensland, signing a ‘‘swap’’ deal with Shell that should free up gas for sale to local buyers in the southern states. The deal, for at least 18 petajoules a year of gas, takes effect next January, Santos said, the date that controls on exports from its GLNG plant in Gladstone would start if the federal government triggers the Domestic Gas Security Mechanism for next year.
Syrah Resources Ltd (SYR):
Syrah shot up to trade 9.2 percent higher at $2.97 on Wednesday as the markets took on board news of a mining agreement between Syrah and the Mozambique Government. The industrial minerals and technology company told the market that the mining agreement was approved by the Mozambique Government on August 29. Syrah said it “provides the company with clarity around the governing laws and contractualises the mining rights and other obligations for the Balama project in Mozambique”. The Balama project is described as the “world’s largest graphite resource”. Syrah says Balama is under construction and nearing completion.
Telstra Corporation Ltd (TLS):
As a former chief executive of Telstra, Ziggy Switkowski, who is chairman of NBN Co, must have felt some sympathy for Telstra CEO Andy Penn this week when he killed Telstra’s $5.5 billion pull forward of future NBN receipts. In one fell swoop, Switkowski and his fellow NBN Co directors stopped Penn from executing a plan that would have resulted in Telstra cutting its debt by $1 billion and handing back $3 billion to shareholders through a buyback. Telstra has been forced to junk plans to pay down debt by $1 billion and conduct $3 billion in share buybacks after NBN rebuffed its proposal to securitise its long-term payments from the builder of the national broadband network. The telco wanted to create a investment vehicle to securitise $5.5 billion in recurring payments it will receive from providing NBN access to Telstra infrastructure and offer it to investors. Telstra said the securitisation proposal was well progressed and was being supported by debt and equity investors but yesterday it told the ASX that NBN had killed the plan. Wednesday was always going to be an eventful trading session for Telstra, with its shareholders free to dump the stock having qualified for the second half of its (fully franked) 31¢ dividend. Shares wobbled between gains and losses on Wednesday as the ASX failed to join a region-wide rebound, weighed down by a sharp fall in Telstra as it traded ex-dividend and more selling in the big banks.
Tamawood Limited (TWD):
Home builder Tamawood on Wednesday said growth of its housing starts in NSW and Queensland had outstripped the industry average in both states, but that Queensland offer edit greater scope for growth. ‘‘While I don’t see the Brisbane housing market getting much stronger than it is now, we’re going to continue to take market share up there and that will be stronger for us,’’ chair Robert Lynch said.
Ten Network Holdings Limited (TEN):
CBS’ shock bid for Network Ten, which gazumped Lachlan Murdoch and Bruce Gordon, values the free-to-air broadcaster at $500 million at least. A report on the state of Ten’s finances in administration and the sale process is expected to be given to creditors on Thursday. The United States media giant put in a claim for $795.5 million after Ten went into administration, making it the Australian broadcaster’s largest creditor. However, in assessing the claim, the value of CBS’s debt was brought down to $350 million, to reflect the fact the US studio could sell its content, which was the basis for the large majority of its claim, elsewhere. With CBS’ surprise bid coming out on top, Foxtel will have to walk away with nothing from its $77 million investment in Network Ten.
Webjet Limited (WEB):
The chief executive of online travel group Webjet, John Guscic, sees no sign of demand for travel slowing down, after the company posted a record statutory profit of $52.4 million for 2016-17, up146.6 per cent. The statutory profit factors in a $28 million windfall from the disposal of Asia-focused online travel agent brand Zuji. But profit from continuing operations was still up 58 per cent, at $33.1 million. Statutory revenues grew 41.5 per cent to $218.7 million. The number could have been even higher had Webjet not had a dispute with its auditor, BDO, over its accounting treatment of an agreement with Thomas Cook Travel to supply it with hotel inventory. Despite two top-tier accounting firms agreeing with Webjet’s original treatment, Mr Guscic’s leadership team eventually decided to accept BDO’s verdict, despite it slicing $11.5 million off 2016-17 earnings.
Yellow Brick Road Holdings Ltd (YBR):
A slowing residential market will curb Yellow Brick Road’s new loan growth this year from the 16.7 per cent increase it enjoyed in the year to June, but the smaller lender was better placed to cope with slowing than its larger counterparts, executive chairman Mark Bouris said on Wednesday. Speaking after his financial services company reported its first full-year profit in the year to June from higher revenue and lower costs, Mr Bouris said the residential market’s move to a ‘‘healthy, sustainable’’ level of growth would be good for the whole lending industry. The lender whose underlying loan book picked up to $44.1 billion from $37.8 billion a year earlier and which saw a 6.9 per cent increase in wealth management revenue to $10.4 million could thrive in a slower market, Mr Bouris.
(Source: AIMS)
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