Author: roymorgansocial

Macquarie Media lifts despite Jones absence

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Original article by Stephen Brook
The Australian – Page: 25 : 9-Aug-17

Macquarie Media has posted a 2016-17 after-tax profit of $A17.32m, which is 21 per cent higher than previously. Group revenue was two per cent lower at $A131.11m, which has been primarily attributed to a downturn in royalty and contra revenues. Macquarie’s revenue was also affected by an extended leave of absence by 2GB presenter Alan Jones on medical grounds. Shareholders will receive a fully franked final dividend of $A0.04 per share.

CORPORATES
MACQUARIE MEDIA LIMITED – ASX MRN, 2GB, 3AW SOUTHERN CROSS RADIO PTY LTD, RADIO 2UE SYDNEY PTY LTD, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, SATELLITE MUSIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Be cautious about retail landlords, Citi warns clients

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Original article by Nick Lenaghan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 37 : 8-Aug-17

Shares in listed retail property trusts such as Vicinity Centres, Scentre Group and Westfield Corporation have struggled recently, due to concern that their tenants will be damaged by the arrival of Amazon in Australia. However, the general consensus of analysts is that retail real estate investment trusts will post earnings growth of five per cent for 2018. Citigroup is less optimistic than some of its peers, predicting growth of just 3.5 per cent.

CORPORATES
VICINITY CENTRES – ASX VCX, SCENTRE GROUP – ASX SCG, WESTFIELD CORPORATION – ASX WFD, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, BUNNINGS GROUP LIMITED, CHARTER HALL RETAIL REIT – ASX CQR, SHOPPING CENTRES AUSTRALASIA PROPERTY GROUP – ASX SCP, CLSA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, GOODMAN GROUP – ASX GMG, STOCKLAND – ASX SGP, INVESTA OFFICE FUND – ASX IOF, MIRVAC GROUP – ASX MGR, BWP TRUST – ASX BWP

Anglo American vows to halve costs using technology

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 20 : 8-Aug-17

Tony O’Neill of Anglo American says the company will seek further productivity gains via technological innovation, after lifting productivity by 70 per cent over the last 4-5 years. O’Neill has outlined some of these technologies at the annual Diggers & Dealers forum, but he noted that securing regulatory permits is the main hindrance to adopting some of the innovations. Meanwhile, Roy Hill Holdings has advised that iron ore shipments from its namesake mine totalled 4.45 million tonnes in June 2017, and shipments had averaged 2.8 million tonnes during the first half of the calendar year.

CORPORATES
ANGLO AMERICAN PLC, ROY HILL HOLDINGS PTY LTD, DIGGERS AND DEALERS FORUM, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Ferguson leads IR reform push

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 8-Aug-17

Martin Ferguson will advocate changes to the Fair Work Act on behalf of the Minerals Council of Australia. He will urge the Federal Government to introduce reforms that would allow workers to sign individual workplace agreements rather than an enterprise agreement if their income is above a certain threshold. Ferguson, a former Labor minister and ex-ACTU president, will argue that individual agreements are already widely used in the mining sector. Other workplace reforms to be proposed by the MCA include changes to the rules on unions’ right of entry and restrictions on adverse actions.

CORPORATES
MINERALS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, ACTU, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, GLENCORE PLC, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION

‘Zombie’ blockade to stymie PM’s agenda

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Original article by Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 5 : 8-Aug-17

The Australian Government is seeking to have 10 important measures passed by the Senate, but it is suggested that only two will get through because of a lack of cross-bench support. Changes to citizenship laws, higher education reforms, the same-sex marriage plebiscite and the media reform package are among the bills that are likely to be rejected. As a result, savings and revenue measures valued at some $A12 billion are at risk.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY, ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIAN CONSERVATIVES, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Netflix leads as streamers take down pay TV

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 8-Aug-17

Telsyte estimates that the number of paid streaming video subscriptions in Australia totalled 3.7 million in June 2017, and it is expected to top 3.8 million by mid-2018. This includes the Foxtel Now streaming service, while the total number of traditional pay-TV subscriptions is 3.3 million. The Telsyte analysis shows that Netflix boasts a 55 per cent share of the streaming video market, ahead of Stan with 24 per cent. Telsyte MD Foad Fadaghi says a number of factors are contributing to the uptake of streaming services.

CORPORATES
TELSYTE PTY LTD, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, STAN ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, FOXTEL NOW, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, PRESTO ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, CRICKET AUSTRALIA, ULTIMATE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP, NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS

CBA tipped to grind out $9.8b profit

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Original article by James Frost
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 8-Aug-17

Analysts expect the Commonwealth Bank of Australia to post a cash profit of $A4.9bn for the second half of 2016-17, an increase of 5.8 per cent, and a full-year cash profit of $A9.8bn. The banking major’s provision for bad and doubtful debts is likely to remain largely unchanged, while its net interest margin is tipped to have declined by two basis points in the second half. CBA’s earnings guidance is likely to come under scrutiny in the wake of its money-laundering scandal, while the bank is forecast to increase its dividend for the second half to $A2.24 per share.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN

Morgan blasts Morrison’s bank tax as a grab for revenue

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 8-Aug-17

Former Westpac CEO David Morgan has dismissed claims by Treasurer Scott Morrison that the Australian Government’s levy on the nation’s five largest banks. levy will merely offset the implicit government guarantee on bank deposits. However, Morgan supports a regulatory push to ensure that banks are "unquestionably strong", but he notes that higher capital ratios are just one of the measures that are aimed at achieving this. The Chi-X Australia chairman adds that the stock exchange operator will begin offering transferable custody receipts to local investors in late 2017.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, CHI-X AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE, NASDAQ, JC FLOWERS AND COMPANY LLC, ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX, DIGITAL ASSET HOLDINGS, DEUTSCHE BANK AG

Woolies customers fume after being charged twice

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Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 8-Aug-17

Payments processor Cuscal has accepted responsibility for an error which saw customers of Woolworths billed twice for the same purchase. The problem affected purchases made at various Woolworths units, including BWS, Big W and its petrol stations. Affected customers had paid for transactions as long ago as March 2017 with their Visa cards, and were billed for the same transactions again in early August. Many irate customers were quick to vent their anger at Woolworths.

CORPORATES
WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, CUSCAL AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, BWS – BEER WINE SPIRITS, BIG W DISCOUNT STORES

Media companies soar ahead of vote

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Original article by Lucy Battersby
The Age – Page: 25 : 8-Aug-17

The Australian Government’s cross-media ownership reform bill is slated to be debated in the Senate on 9 August. Shares in some media companies have rallied in the lead-up to the resumption of Parliament. Prime Media Group’s shares have gained 16.5 per cent in the last two weeks, amid speculation that the regional TV broadcaster would become a takeover target if media laws are relaxed. Shares in Nine Entertainment Company, Southern Cross Media Group Fairfax Media have also risen in the last week.

CORPORATES
PRIME MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX PRT, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, SOUTHERN CROSS MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX SXL, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, STAN ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, MORNINGSTAR PTY LTD, TRIPLE M CORPORATION PTY LTD, HIT NETWORK, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED