Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ):
ANZ Banking Group is considering a float of its New Zealand-based car financing arm after the sale of the division to a Chinese conglomerate was blocked by regulators concerned with the suitor’s shadowy ownership structure. ANZ (ANZ) said today it would “explore the possibility” of an initial public offering for its UDC Finance arm, after it ditched the potential $600 million deal with China’s HNA Group in January. New Zealand’s Overseas Investment Office in late December said it would block ANZ’s attempt to sell its vehicle financing arm UDC Finance to China’s HNA Group, after the conglomerate — which has substantial investments in Australia — failed to give clear information about its ownership and control interests.
Kathmandu Holdings Ltd (KMD):
Outdoor adventure wear and equipment retailer Kathmandu has announced an equity placement to acquire a US outdoor retail chain, as it delivered a strong rise in first-half net profit. Unveiling a first-half net profit after tax up 23 per cent to $NZ12.3 million, chief executive Xavier Simonet said the $US60m acquisition of Oboz Footwear in North America was a significant step in expanding the company’s geographic footprint. “As our wholesale business in Europe is expanding, we are now very pleased to announce the acquisition of Oboz, an innovative outdoor footwear brand based in North America,” he said. “This is a significant event for the company, accelerating our international growth, and diversifying our product mix, geography and channels to market.” The dual-listed company (KMD) declared an interim dividend of NZ4 cents per share fully franked for Australian shareholders, compared to the unfranked NZ4 cent first-half dividend it paid last year.
New Hope Corporation Limited (NHC):
New Hope Corporation recorded a 69 per cent jump in its fiscal first half profit, reflecting better coal prices, higher sales and lower operating costs. The coal miner (NHC) said it earned a net profit of $115.6 million for the six months through January, up from $68.4 million in the same period a year earlier. New Hope said it would raise its interim dividend by 50 per cent to 6 cents a share. The miner benefited from improved coal prices, which have been aided by restrictions on coal mining in China, sparking higher demand for foreign coal. The company also reported a 10 per cent increase in sales, underpinned by increased production from the Bengalla coal mine in NSW, and said it gained from “a continued focus on cost management.”
Seven West Media Ltd (SWM):
Seven West Media’s network director of sales Adam Elliott has quit his job to run his own business as another longserving executive leaves the Kerry Stokes-controlled television business. Mr Elliott will leave the company in May after 21 years with the business, Seven confirmed in a statement, replaced by Natalie Harvey, currently Sydney sales director. Seven’s chief revenue officer Kurt Burnette said last night: “For some time now Adam has talked about his ambition of running his own business, and now is the time for him to pursue that dream.” Mr Elliott has held several senior roles at Seven and is well regarded by media buyers and advertisers. He has sold advertising and sponsorship deals for some of the world’s biggest sporting events including the Beijing and Rio Olympics as well as the recent Winter Olympics, the Australian Open and the AFL.
TPG Telecom Ltd (TPM):
TPG Telecom has upgraded its full year guidance while keeping a lid on its overall costs, with the slowdown in the rollout of the National Broadband Network (NBN) helping it to manage the squeeze on its margins. NBN Co suspended the sale of services over the hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) portion of the network in November and TPG said that the halt had helped it manage its margins as customers move from its network to the NBN. TPG posted an 11 per cent drop in net profit to $198.7 million for the half year ended January 31, 2018, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the period were down 11.7 per cent to $418.2. However, underlying EBITDA increased slightly in the first half from $417.6m to $418.2m and total revenue for the half edged up 1 per cent to $1.25 billion. In light of the first half performance TPG has raised its underlying EBITDA guidance for the full year, from $800m to $815m to $825m-$830m. Capital expenditure for the full year is expected to stay within the range of $270m to $310m, even as the telco works to build its mobile network and gets ready for a 5G spectrum auction.
Wesfarmers Ltd (WES):
Analysts have broadly welcomed Wesfarmers’ decision to spin off Coles into a newly listed company on the ASX that could be worth up to $20 billion. Wesfarmers is now freed up to invest in new non-retail sectors where it could harness more growth than what it would expect to reap from Coles in the future. Morgans analyst Alexander Lu said the demerger made sense given long-term headwinds in -supermarkets and it -allowed more capacity to invest in higher returning businesses and/or pursue mergers and acquisitions. It was an attractive deal as Coles was delivering returns below that of other divisions.
(Source: AIMS
ANZ Banking Group is considering a float of its New Zealand-based car financing arm after the sale of the division to a Chinese conglomerate was blocked by regulators concerned with the suitor’s shadowy ownership structure. ANZ (ANZ) said today it would “explore the possibility” of an initial public offering for its UDC Finance arm, after it ditched the potential $600 million deal with China’s HNA Group in January. New Zealand’s Overseas Investment Office in late December said it would block ANZ’s attempt to sell its vehicle financing arm UDC Finance to China’s HNA Group, after the conglomerate — which has substantial investments in Australia — failed to give clear information about its ownership and control interests.
Kathmandu Holdings Ltd (KMD):
Outdoor adventure wear and equipment retailer Kathmandu has announced an equity placement to acquire a US outdoor retail chain, as it delivered a strong rise in first-half net profit. Unveiling a first-half net profit after tax up 23 per cent to $NZ12.3 million, chief executive Xavier Simonet said the $US60m acquisition of Oboz Footwear in North America was a significant step in expanding the company’s geographic footprint. “As our wholesale business in Europe is expanding, we are now very pleased to announce the acquisition of Oboz, an innovative outdoor footwear brand based in North America,” he said. “This is a significant event for the company, accelerating our international growth, and diversifying our product mix, geography and channels to market.” The dual-listed company (KMD) declared an interim dividend of NZ4 cents per share fully franked for Australian shareholders, compared to the unfranked NZ4 cent first-half dividend it paid last year.
New Hope Corporation Limited (NHC):
New Hope Corporation recorded a 69 per cent jump in its fiscal first half profit, reflecting better coal prices, higher sales and lower operating costs. The coal miner (NHC) said it earned a net profit of $115.6 million for the six months through January, up from $68.4 million in the same period a year earlier. New Hope said it would raise its interim dividend by 50 per cent to 6 cents a share. The miner benefited from improved coal prices, which have been aided by restrictions on coal mining in China, sparking higher demand for foreign coal. The company also reported a 10 per cent increase in sales, underpinned by increased production from the Bengalla coal mine in NSW, and said it gained from “a continued focus on cost management.”
Seven West Media Ltd (SWM):
Seven West Media’s network director of sales Adam Elliott has quit his job to run his own business as another longserving executive leaves the Kerry Stokes-controlled television business. Mr Elliott will leave the company in May after 21 years with the business, Seven confirmed in a statement, replaced by Natalie Harvey, currently Sydney sales director. Seven’s chief revenue officer Kurt Burnette said last night: “For some time now Adam has talked about his ambition of running his own business, and now is the time for him to pursue that dream.” Mr Elliott has held several senior roles at Seven and is well regarded by media buyers and advertisers. He has sold advertising and sponsorship deals for some of the world’s biggest sporting events including the Beijing and Rio Olympics as well as the recent Winter Olympics, the Australian Open and the AFL.
TPG Telecom Ltd (TPM):
TPG Telecom has upgraded its full year guidance while keeping a lid on its overall costs, with the slowdown in the rollout of the National Broadband Network (NBN) helping it to manage the squeeze on its margins. NBN Co suspended the sale of services over the hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) portion of the network in November and TPG said that the halt had helped it manage its margins as customers move from its network to the NBN. TPG posted an 11 per cent drop in net profit to $198.7 million for the half year ended January 31, 2018, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the period were down 11.7 per cent to $418.2. However, underlying EBITDA increased slightly in the first half from $417.6m to $418.2m and total revenue for the half edged up 1 per cent to $1.25 billion. In light of the first half performance TPG has raised its underlying EBITDA guidance for the full year, from $800m to $815m to $825m-$830m. Capital expenditure for the full year is expected to stay within the range of $270m to $310m, even as the telco works to build its mobile network and gets ready for a 5G spectrum auction.
Wesfarmers Ltd (WES):
Analysts have broadly welcomed Wesfarmers’ decision to spin off Coles into a newly listed company on the ASX that could be worth up to $20 billion. Wesfarmers is now freed up to invest in new non-retail sectors where it could harness more growth than what it would expect to reap from Coles in the future. Morgans analyst Alexander Lu said the demerger made sense given long-term headwinds in -supermarkets and it -allowed more capacity to invest in higher returning businesses and/or pursue mergers and acquisitions. It was an attractive deal as Coles was delivering returns below that of other divisions.
(Source: AIMS
Latest comments