Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ):
ANZ has revealed it is spending more on redundancies and re-structuring its business than it is on legal fees for the royal commission into financial services. ANZ told shareholders yesterday it would spend about $50 million complying with the inquiry this financial year. It also warned investors of a $630m loss on the sale of its wealth business. But the group will also book about $80m in “restructuring charges” in its interim accounts — a jump on the $26m and $36m it spent in the two preceding half-years. ANZ said this restructuring cost related “in large part” to the implementation of “agile ways of working” in the Australian division. “Agile” refers to an overhaul of its workplace culture in response to industry-wide cost-cutting and staff reductions.
Beach Energy Ltd (BPT):
Beach Energy has tightened its production forecast for the financial year and scaled back spending plans, deferring non-core maintenance projects at offshore operations while it conducts a review of its assets. The revised guidance follows a sharp jump in output during the latest quarter for the oil-and-gas producer, after the acquisition of a basket of assets early in 2018. Beach (BPT) said it now expected to produce between 26 million and 27 million barrels of oil equivalent in the year through June, from earlier guidance of 25.5 million-27.6 million, and forecast capital expenditure of $370 million to $400 million for the year against a previous target of $405 million-$455 million.
Blackmores Limited (BKL):
Vitamin maker Blackmores has increased its quarterly profit but said sales in China were impacted by “supply challenges”. The Australian-listed company (BKL) updated the market today on its latest quarterly results as it also announced that it had acquired the Catalent Australia tablet and soft gel capsule manufacturing facility in Victoria for $43.2 million. Blackmores reported that net profit after tax was $52m, which was 19.3 per cent higher than the prior corresponding period, while net sales for the nine months to March 31 were 8.5 per cent higher at $434m.
Blue Sky Alternative Investments Ltd (BLA):
The chairman of embattled fund manager Blue Sky Alternative Investments, John Kain, has conceded the resignation of chief executive Robert Shand was not a “silver bullet” to repair the listed investor’s battered reputation after a month of panic-selling triggered by short sellers. After a horrendous month that has now claimed its biggest scalp with the resignation of Mr Shand, as well as the announcement that two other executive directors, Elaine Stead and Nicholas Dignam, would step down from the board, Blue Sky’s shares have continued to tumble, diving another 10 per cent yesterday. The exits come just a week after Mr Shand slashed as much as $750 million from Blue Sky’s year-end guidance for fee-earning assets under management. At the time Blue Sky blamed negative sentiment towards its shares in the public market had hurt Blue Sky Alternative Investments’ ability to raise funds from private investors.
Boral Limited (BLD):
Shares in building materials company Boral tumbled 10 per cent after the company announced earnings were below expectations for the March quarter. In a trading update, Boral said despite booking lower-than-expected earnings in both Australia and North America, it still expects to deliver improved full-year earnings growth in its Australian business. Boral (BLD) shares sank 10 per cent in early trade to a six-month low of $6.78. The company said its Australian business will likely deliver improved earnings growth of between 10 and 20 per cent for the full year compared to fiscal year 2017, with the sale of its Prospect Masonry property expected to contribute about $56 million in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation to the company’s bottom line.
Fortescue Metals Group Limited (FMG):
Fortescue Metals Group said it shipped less iron ore last quarter and continued to grapple with a deep discount on its sales of the commodity versus benchmark prices. The world’s No. 4 iron ore exporter (FMG) said it shipped 38.7 million tonnes of the steelmaking commodity in the three months through March, a decline of 4.4 per cent quarter-over-quarter and down 2.3 per cent on a year earlier. Mining was affected by wet weather and shipments were dented by cyclone activity in remote northwest Australia, where Fortescue has its operations. It also was impacted by maintenance during the period. Still, the company said it remained on track to meet its goal of shipping 170 million tonnes for the full fiscal year. Fortescue said it received an average of roughly 62 per cent of the benchmark Platts index-price for its iron during the quarter, which compares with an average 68 per cent discount during its first half of the year.
Kogan.com Ltd (KNG):
Shares in ASX-listed online tech retailer Kogan.com plummeted almost 18 per cent yesterday, despite posting numbers its founder and chief executive Ruslan Kogan declared as strong. Investors were not impressed with yesterday’s trading update, which saw Kogan.com reporting gross revenue growth of 46.1 per cent for the March quarter year on year, and gross transaction value growth of 49.8 per cent. The company also lifted its active customer numbers to 1.3 million by the end of the March quarter, up from 1.17 million in December. It said it had $19.3 million in cash. Investors dumped the stock, however, with the retailer’s shares closing down 17.75 per cent at $7.60.
Lendlease Group (LLC):
Lendlease is moving into the retirement village market in China with plans for a $400 million project in Shanghai, as the country’s ageing population creates more demand for senior living. The largest developer and operator of senior living communities in Australia, Lendlease announced today it had reached a deal with a local government in Shanghai for a 50-year land use contract to build a retirement village with around 900 independent living units. Lendlease (LLC) will build the project, for the Qingpu local government, and operate it under a long-term agreement. The project will be the first of several similar retirement villages in the Shanghai area which will be developed by Lendlease which has been operating in China for just under 30 years.
Myer Holdings Ltd (MYR):
Downtrodden Myer investors will be hoping new chief executive John King will bring some of the retail magic he sprinkled over British department store owner House of Fraser as its boss before it was sold to Chinese owners for a bumper price tag of £450 million, with the appointment already winning the support of Myer’s second-biggest shareholder. Investors Mutual chief executive Anton Tagliaferro told The Australian last night the appointment of the British retail veteran was a win for Myer. Mr Tagliaferro said he was impressed with Mr King’s credentials as well as the “sense of urgency” brought in by Myer chairman Garry Hounsell as Mr Hounsell steered the nation’s biggest department store through the most tumultuous time in its recent corporate history.
Newcrest Mining Limited (NCM):
Newcrest Mining has decided to forgo up to 3 million ounces of unmined gold and 270,000 tonnes of unmined copper as part of its response to a slump in the tailings dam at its Cadia mine in NSW. The Melbourne-based company yesterday said that it had received initial approval to use a portion of its old Cadia Hill open pit to store tailings, which it said would allow the Cadia underground mine and processing plant to return to full production. Cadia is Newcrest’s biggest source of cash but was temporarily shut down last month after a breach of a wall around its northern tailings dam. Processing started up again earlier this month but the mine has been operating at an annualised rate of around 8 million tonnes of ore — well below its normal production levels — with operations constrained by the limitations of its remaining southern tailings dam.
Santos Ltd (STO):
Santos is set to emerge as a big winner from an extension of the Darwin liquefied natural gas plant after it and its partners formally agreed to study the development of the Barossa gasfield in the Timor Sea. Santos confirmed late yesterday the start of the front-end engineering and design phase at Barossa, with a view to using gas from the field to backfill Darwin LNG. The LNG plant was previously forecast to run out of gas in the early 2020s, when the existing Bayu-Undan field is expected to stop production. Barossa had long been in the box seat to be the next development through Darwin LNG, although the Sunrise gasfield between Australia and East Timor had also been floated as a potential source of gas for the plant. A development of Barossa, 300km north of Darwin, would see Santos’s share of production out of Darwin LNG increase meaningfully, given Santos owns a 25 per cent interest in Barossa compared to its 11.5 per cent stake in Darwin LNG.
Vocus Group Ltd (VOC):
Vocus Group has opted against selling its New Zealand business after failing to land an offer it could accept, but said that despite that it currently has no plans for an equity offering to raise funds. The Australian telecommunications provider (VOC) said its board had determined it was in the best interests of shareholders to retain the business, so all talks with suitors interested in the operation had been ended. None of the offers for Vocus NZ reflected the fundamental and strategic value of the business or provided sufficient funding certainty, the company said. It added it intends to continue to invest and grow the New Zealand business.
(Source: AIMS)
ANZ has revealed it is spending more on redundancies and re-structuring its business than it is on legal fees for the royal commission into financial services. ANZ told shareholders yesterday it would spend about $50 million complying with the inquiry this financial year. It also warned investors of a $630m loss on the sale of its wealth business. But the group will also book about $80m in “restructuring charges” in its interim accounts — a jump on the $26m and $36m it spent in the two preceding half-years. ANZ said this restructuring cost related “in large part” to the implementation of “agile ways of working” in the Australian division. “Agile” refers to an overhaul of its workplace culture in response to industry-wide cost-cutting and staff reductions.
Beach Energy Ltd (BPT):
Beach Energy has tightened its production forecast for the financial year and scaled back spending plans, deferring non-core maintenance projects at offshore operations while it conducts a review of its assets. The revised guidance follows a sharp jump in output during the latest quarter for the oil-and-gas producer, after the acquisition of a basket of assets early in 2018. Beach (BPT) said it now expected to produce between 26 million and 27 million barrels of oil equivalent in the year through June, from earlier guidance of 25.5 million-27.6 million, and forecast capital expenditure of $370 million to $400 million for the year against a previous target of $405 million-$455 million.
Blackmores Limited (BKL):
Vitamin maker Blackmores has increased its quarterly profit but said sales in China were impacted by “supply challenges”. The Australian-listed company (BKL) updated the market today on its latest quarterly results as it also announced that it had acquired the Catalent Australia tablet and soft gel capsule manufacturing facility in Victoria for $43.2 million. Blackmores reported that net profit after tax was $52m, which was 19.3 per cent higher than the prior corresponding period, while net sales for the nine months to March 31 were 8.5 per cent higher at $434m.
Blue Sky Alternative Investments Ltd (BLA):
The chairman of embattled fund manager Blue Sky Alternative Investments, John Kain, has conceded the resignation of chief executive Robert Shand was not a “silver bullet” to repair the listed investor’s battered reputation after a month of panic-selling triggered by short sellers. After a horrendous month that has now claimed its biggest scalp with the resignation of Mr Shand, as well as the announcement that two other executive directors, Elaine Stead and Nicholas Dignam, would step down from the board, Blue Sky’s shares have continued to tumble, diving another 10 per cent yesterday. The exits come just a week after Mr Shand slashed as much as $750 million from Blue Sky’s year-end guidance for fee-earning assets under management. At the time Blue Sky blamed negative sentiment towards its shares in the public market had hurt Blue Sky Alternative Investments’ ability to raise funds from private investors.
Boral Limited (BLD):
Shares in building materials company Boral tumbled 10 per cent after the company announced earnings were below expectations for the March quarter. In a trading update, Boral said despite booking lower-than-expected earnings in both Australia and North America, it still expects to deliver improved full-year earnings growth in its Australian business. Boral (BLD) shares sank 10 per cent in early trade to a six-month low of $6.78. The company said its Australian business will likely deliver improved earnings growth of between 10 and 20 per cent for the full year compared to fiscal year 2017, with the sale of its Prospect Masonry property expected to contribute about $56 million in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation to the company’s bottom line.
Fortescue Metals Group Limited (FMG):
Fortescue Metals Group said it shipped less iron ore last quarter and continued to grapple with a deep discount on its sales of the commodity versus benchmark prices. The world’s No. 4 iron ore exporter (FMG) said it shipped 38.7 million tonnes of the steelmaking commodity in the three months through March, a decline of 4.4 per cent quarter-over-quarter and down 2.3 per cent on a year earlier. Mining was affected by wet weather and shipments were dented by cyclone activity in remote northwest Australia, where Fortescue has its operations. It also was impacted by maintenance during the period. Still, the company said it remained on track to meet its goal of shipping 170 million tonnes for the full fiscal year. Fortescue said it received an average of roughly 62 per cent of the benchmark Platts index-price for its iron during the quarter, which compares with an average 68 per cent discount during its first half of the year.
Kogan.com Ltd (KNG):
Shares in ASX-listed online tech retailer Kogan.com plummeted almost 18 per cent yesterday, despite posting numbers its founder and chief executive Ruslan Kogan declared as strong. Investors were not impressed with yesterday’s trading update, which saw Kogan.com reporting gross revenue growth of 46.1 per cent for the March quarter year on year, and gross transaction value growth of 49.8 per cent. The company also lifted its active customer numbers to 1.3 million by the end of the March quarter, up from 1.17 million in December. It said it had $19.3 million in cash. Investors dumped the stock, however, with the retailer’s shares closing down 17.75 per cent at $7.60.
Lendlease Group (LLC):
Lendlease is moving into the retirement village market in China with plans for a $400 million project in Shanghai, as the country’s ageing population creates more demand for senior living. The largest developer and operator of senior living communities in Australia, Lendlease announced today it had reached a deal with a local government in Shanghai for a 50-year land use contract to build a retirement village with around 900 independent living units. Lendlease (LLC) will build the project, for the Qingpu local government, and operate it under a long-term agreement. The project will be the first of several similar retirement villages in the Shanghai area which will be developed by Lendlease which has been operating in China for just under 30 years.
Myer Holdings Ltd (MYR):
Downtrodden Myer investors will be hoping new chief executive John King will bring some of the retail magic he sprinkled over British department store owner House of Fraser as its boss before it was sold to Chinese owners for a bumper price tag of £450 million, with the appointment already winning the support of Myer’s second-biggest shareholder. Investors Mutual chief executive Anton Tagliaferro told The Australian last night the appointment of the British retail veteran was a win for Myer. Mr Tagliaferro said he was impressed with Mr King’s credentials as well as the “sense of urgency” brought in by Myer chairman Garry Hounsell as Mr Hounsell steered the nation’s biggest department store through the most tumultuous time in its recent corporate history.
Newcrest Mining Limited (NCM):
Newcrest Mining has decided to forgo up to 3 million ounces of unmined gold and 270,000 tonnes of unmined copper as part of its response to a slump in the tailings dam at its Cadia mine in NSW. The Melbourne-based company yesterday said that it had received initial approval to use a portion of its old Cadia Hill open pit to store tailings, which it said would allow the Cadia underground mine and processing plant to return to full production. Cadia is Newcrest’s biggest source of cash but was temporarily shut down last month after a breach of a wall around its northern tailings dam. Processing started up again earlier this month but the mine has been operating at an annualised rate of around 8 million tonnes of ore — well below its normal production levels — with operations constrained by the limitations of its remaining southern tailings dam.
Santos Ltd (STO):
Santos is set to emerge as a big winner from an extension of the Darwin liquefied natural gas plant after it and its partners formally agreed to study the development of the Barossa gasfield in the Timor Sea. Santos confirmed late yesterday the start of the front-end engineering and design phase at Barossa, with a view to using gas from the field to backfill Darwin LNG. The LNG plant was previously forecast to run out of gas in the early 2020s, when the existing Bayu-Undan field is expected to stop production. Barossa had long been in the box seat to be the next development through Darwin LNG, although the Sunrise gasfield between Australia and East Timor had also been floated as a potential source of gas for the plant. A development of Barossa, 300km north of Darwin, would see Santos’s share of production out of Darwin LNG increase meaningfully, given Santos owns a 25 per cent interest in Barossa compared to its 11.5 per cent stake in Darwin LNG.
Vocus Group Ltd (VOC):
Vocus Group has opted against selling its New Zealand business after failing to land an offer it could accept, but said that despite that it currently has no plans for an equity offering to raise funds. The Australian telecommunications provider (VOC) said its board had determined it was in the best interests of shareholders to retain the business, so all talks with suitors interested in the operation had been ended. None of the offers for Vocus NZ reflected the fundamental and strategic value of the business or provided sufficient funding certainty, the company said. It added it intends to continue to invest and grow the New Zealand business.
(Source: AIMS)
Latest comments