AWE Limited (AWE):
Sources yesterday were questioning whether a different party will return to the negotiating table with AWE in the days ahead after yet another group trying to buy the oil and gas provider was forced to walk away. Other possible acquirers include Asia’s Kerogen Capital or Tower Energy, backed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway. A Berkshire Hathaway-backed group had been in talks with Origin Energy about buying some of its assets in the Perth Basin before they were offloaded to Beach Energy as part of the Lattice Energy portfolio. AWE announced yesterday that China Energy Reserve and Chemical Group Australia had abandoned its $430 million pursuit of the operation. It told the market on November 30 that it had received a bid for CERCG at 71c cash per share, but yesterday said the Chinese group had withdrawn its offer.
BHP Billiton Limited (BHP):
Increased renewable power will require more steel, copper and other mined resources than fossil fuel or uranium plants, warns BHP Billiton chief executive Andrew Mackenzie. The drive for more renewable power, combined with global government and carmaker targets for electric vehicles, has driven huge interest in metals like lithium and cobalt. It has also led to increased demand forecasts for more established London Metals Exchange base metals like copper and nickel. But Mr. Mackenzie told a Melbourne Mining Club lunch yesterday that the benefits of increased wind and solar power may not be as clear-cut as they seem. Mr. Mackenzie said BHP Billiton was not looking for opportunities in lithium or other new metals to tap expected growing battery demand, unlike its major rival Rio Tinto
BHP Billiton Limited (BHP):
BHP Billiton chief Andrew Mackenzie says Western antipathy to free trade is blocking economic progress and providing China and other emerging nations with more opportunities. But the head of the world’s biggest miner says company tax cuts proposed by the Trump administration could spur spending and more jobs in the US, and if the move was followed by Australia it could mean more BHP investment here. Speaking at the Melbourne Mining Club yesterday, Mr. Mackenzie called for more transparency from the business world, which he said needed to regain the trust of the broader population. “Right now, there is a perception in the West that too few have benefited from globalization and too many have been left behind,” he said. “This has clearly distracted the West and created opportunities for China and the East, which they are seizing. “The ambition of China’s Belt and Road initiative is astounding,” he said. But he told the audience of more than 600 at the Melbourne Town Hall that Donald Trump’s plans to cut US corporate tax, if passed, could start to redress the balance.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA):
The Commonwealth Bank could be inching forward on a Colonial First State Global Asset Management float, with meetings held in the past week with major fund managers overseas. The bank, Australia’s largest by market capitalization, flagged in September that CFSGAM was officially on the block, ending months of speculation. A review is being carried out of CFSGAM to evaluate whether a float or trade sale of the business would be the best option for CBA. CBA’s decision to offload CFSGAM followed the quick sale of its CommInsure business to AIA, and the expectation was that the CFSGAM transaction could also be speedy. However, the process had started to quieten down in the lead-up to the end of the year. DataRoom understands that CFSGAM executives were in London last week and then travelled to New York for meetings with fund managers. There was speculation yesterday the briefings could have been a warm-up act for the start of more official meetings in a deal roadshow next year. CFSGAM has $219 billion worth of assets under its control and a float next year is expected to be a highlight for the domestic capital markets
Centuria Capital Group (CNI):
Centuria Capital has snapped up two properties in NSW worth just over $200 million as it bolsters its listed and unlisted funds businesses. The group’s listed office fund took the bulk of the properties and tapped investment banks UBS and Moelis to embark on a capital raising to fund its share of the assets, worth $119m. The trust, Centuria Metropolitan REIT, acquired a 50 per cent interest in the office building at 201 Pacific Highway, St Leonards, in Sydney’s north, for $85.8m with Centuria’s unlisted arm taking the other half of the complex. The purchase from Abacus Property and Goldman Sachs at a 6.6 per cent initial yield was brokered off market by Rick Butler, Steve Kearney and Mark Hansen of Inc Re and flagged in The Australian in October. Centuria owns the adjacent building and sees rising interest in Sydney’s northern suburbs office space
Slater & Gordon Limited (SGH):
Slater and Gordon shares are up 26 per cent to 4 cents today after shareholders voted in favour of the embattled law firm's recapitalization plan. Almost 70 per cent of votes at the firm's annual general meeting in Melbourne on Wednesday backed the plan which will see hedge funds led by New York-based Anchorage Capital assume control in a debt-for-equity deal. Chairman John Skippen said recapitalization was "essential for Slater and Gordon to avoid insolvency" and the only way to secure a future for the firm and its stakeholders.
TPG Telecom Limited (TPM):
TGP Telecom has had their AGM this morning, where chairman David Teoh outlined his disappointment in the company's recent share price performance. The stock is down 11.6 per cent in 2017, and over the last 18-monthsthey've slumped 49.9 per cent to $6.03. Investors have battered the stock as margins fall on the National Broadband Network, but Mr. Teoh is confident the telecommunications provider's investment in mobile and fibre infrastructure will pay off in the long-term. Mr. Teoh told shareholders that the telco was still in the early stage of its business lifecycle and had already amassed an enviable set of assets. "This year has seen us take the initial transformational steps for the next stage of TPG's growth and I am tremendously excited about the opportunities that our mobile projects offer to our Group," Mr. Teoh said.
Incitec Pivot Limited (IPL):
Incitec Pivot has warned that its 2020 and 2021 full-year profits will be hit by the end of a contract to supply ammonium nitrate prill to mining giant BHP Billiton. Incitec shares dropped 3.3 per cent on the news, falling to $3.85 in the first 10 minutes of trade on Wednesday. Incitec said there will be no financial impact in this financial year or the next, with the contract ending in November 2019. However, the fertilizer and explosives maker will incur a hit of $10 million on its net profit in FY20 and $25m in FY21 because of contractual commitments to a third-party supplier in WA. Ammonium nitrate prill is used as a blasting agent in iron ore mining. Incitec Pivot in November reported its full-year profit had more than doubled on the back of rising fertilizer prices and launched a $300m share buyback.
Wattle Health Australia Limited (WHA):
Wattle Health is understood to have struck an Australian distribution agreement with a large pharmacy chain to bolster the brand in its home market, which is considered crucial in building long-term success in the eyes of consumers in China. It's due to come out of the trading halt prior to the start of trading on December 7. There is speculation it may have secured shelf space with the Priceline pharmacy chain, which operates 400-plus outlets and is owned by Australian Pharmaceutical Industries. Wattle has been seeking to expand its Australian footprint. It already has distribution agreements with AYD in China, Tesco Lotus in China, and Metcash and some of its IGA and Foodland outlets in Australia. It also sells in Baby Mode retail stores in Australia and JR Duty Free stores, which was its first main avenue to market.
(Source: AIMS)
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