Author: roymorgansocial

Private equity walks away from Fairfax

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Original article by Max Mason, Anthony Macdonald
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 2 : 3-Jul-17

TPG Capital will not proceed with a $A2.7bn bid for Fairfax Media after undertaking due diligence. Rival private equity suitor Hellman & Friedman had not submitted a binding bid by the deadline of 30 June, and Fairfax CEO Greg Hywood has indicated that the media group will now press ahead with its proposal to spin off the Domain property listings business. Thorney Investment Group chairman Alex Waislitz supports the demerger plan, and he has previously forecast that Domain’s EBITDA could rise from around $A115m at present to at least $A200m in the future.

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, TPG CAPITAL LP, HELLMAN AND FRIEDMAN, DOMAIN.COM.AU, THORNEY INVESTMENT GROUP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, MACQUARIE MEDIA LIMITED – ASX MRN, STAN ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS

Spread the word: he’s a happy little Vegemite

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Original article by John Durie
The Australian – Page: 21 : 30-Jun-17

Australian-listed Bega Cheese will assume ownership of the iconic Vegemite brand on 30 June. Bega paid $A460m for the local food brands of Mondelez, including Vegemite, Zoosh, Bonox and peanut butter products that were formerly sold under the Kraft brand. The Mondelez assets will contribute 40 per cent of Bega’s earnings and 25 per cent of its revenue. Bega undertook a $A122.5m capital raising to help finance the Mondelez deal.

CORPORATES
BEGA CHEESE LIMITED – ASX BGA, MONDELEZ AUSTRALIA (FOODS) LIMITED, MONDELEZ INTERNATIONAL INCORPORATED, KRAFT FOODS INCORPORATED, MURRAY GOULBURN CO-OPERATIVE COMPANY LIMITED

Reform or fail: BHP’s Nasser

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 30-Jun-17

BHP Billiton chairman Jac Nasser has told the Competitive Advantage Forum that Australia needs bipartisan political support for reform in areas such as taxation, energy policy and education. He warned that Australia is approaching a "tipping point" and without strong leadership on key issues it risks ceasing to be a "great country" socially and economically. Amongst other things, Nasser says a national policy on energy security is required, while he has criticised proposals for bank levies by the federal and South Australian governments. Nasser will step down as chairman of BHP in August.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, FORD MOTOR COMPANY

Rio weighs up $3.5bn mines windfall

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Original article by Matt Chambers, Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 22 : 30-Jun-17

Rio Tinto will proceed with the sale of its Hunter Valley coal mines to Yancoal after its Australian shareholders endorsed the $US2.69bn ($3.5bn) deal on 29 June. Shareholders in Rio Tinto’s London-listed entity had approved the sale earlier in the week, and Rio has advised that more than 97 per cent of shareholders overall voted for the deal. Some analysts and investors have suggested that part of the proceeds should be returned to shareholders via a share buyback or an increased dividend, but chairman Jan du Plessis says the miner will consider its options in due course.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, GLENCORE PLC, SHAW AND PARTNERS LIMITED, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, COAL AND ALLIED INDUSTRIES LIMITED, YANKUANG CORPORATION GROUP LIMITED

Super funds to return bumper 10.5pc

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Original article by Sally Patten
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 30-Jun-17

Chant West expects Australian superannuation funds to achieve an average return of 10.5 per cent for the 2016-17 financial year. Chant West director Warren Chant notes that major super funds have performed well for eight years, despite sustained economic and political uncertainty. Meanwhile, returns from industry super funds are forecast to exceed those of retail funds by about 0.7 per cent in 2016-17.

CORPORATES
CHANT WEST FINANCIAL SERVICES PTY LTD, HOST-PLUS, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX

Greens at war over Rhiannon suspension

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Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 30-Jun-17

Australian Greens senator Lee Rhiannon has been banned her by federal colleagues from attending important party room meetings. The ban resulted from claims that Rhiannon was undermining them over the party’s approach to the federal government’s schools funding package. They will not lift the ban until the Greens’ New South Wales branch ceases telling its MPs how they should vote, but the NSW branch has refused to accept Rhiannon’s suspension.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN GREENS, THE GREENS NSW INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN EDUCATION UNION

Grech steps aside from Slater + Gordon

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Original article by Jonathan Shapiro, Sarah Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 24 : 30-Jun-17

The board of embattled law firm Slater & Gordon will resign in the wake of a debt-for-equity deal with a group of international institutional investors. US hedge fund Anchorage Capital will emerge as the major shareholder in the listed law firm, while investment banks and distressed debt funds will also convert their debt into equity. Slater & Gordon’s veteran MD Andrew Grech will stay at the firm as a non-executive director until a successor is appointed. The firm incurred large losses following its expansion into the UK market.

CORPORATES
SLATER AND GORDON LIMITED – ASX SGH, ANCHORAGE CAPITAL PARTNERS PTY LTD, YORK CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LP, TACONIC CAPITAL ADVISORS LP, DAVIDSON KEMPNER CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LP, RIVER BIRCH CAPITAL, METRIC CREDIT PARTNERS, BANK OF AMERICA CORPORATION, MERRILL LYNCH AND COMPANY INCORPORATED, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, QUINDELL PLC, MIRVAC GROUP – ASX MGR, MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD

Barnaba quits Macquarie for RBA board

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Original article by Julie-anne Sprague
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 : 30-Jun-17

Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison has announced that Mark Barnaba will replace John Akehurst as Western Australia’s representative on the board of the Reserve Bank. Barnaba will step down as the head of global resources at Macquarie Capital to take up the central bank role. Macquarie Group CEO Nicholas Moore has praised Barnaba’s contribution to the investment bank. He is also chairman of Macquarie’s WA division.

CORPORATES
MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, MACQUARIE CAPITAL PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA, BLACK SWAN THEATRE COMPANY LIMITED, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, WEST COAST EAGLES FOOTBALL CLUB

Domestic woes to weigh on stocks

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Original article by Myriam Robin
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 : 30-Jun-17

Australia’s S&P/ ASX200 index has gained 10.8 per cent in 2016-17, with resources stocks generally performing well while defensive stocks have disappointed. JP Morgan Asset Management’s Kerry Craig notes that some stocks have failed to match their first-half performance in the second half of the financial year. He adds that sector-specific issues and the Australian economy are likely to weigh on the sharemarket in 2017-18.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, JP MORGAN ASSET MANAGEMENT INCORPORATED, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, WESTFIELD CORPORATION – ASX WFD, WHITEHAVEN COAL LIMITED – ASX WHC, THE A2 MILK COMPANY LIMITED – ASX A2M, BLUESCOPE STEEL LIMITED – ASX BSL, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN, BELLAMY’S AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX BAL, DEUTSCHE BANK AG

Bombshell charges for Pell but Pope ‘on side’

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Original article by John Ferguson, Jacquelin Magnay
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 30-Jun-17

Catholic Church officials say Cardinal George Pell’s career in the Vatican is almost certainly over, even if he is cleared of historical sexual abuse offences. Cardinal Pell has stood aside as Prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy of the Holy See and will return to Melbourne to defend the charges in court. He has been summonsed to appear in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on 26 July, and he has told a press conference in Rome that the allegations are false and being formally charged will give him the opportunity to clear his name.

CORPORATES
CATHOLIC CHURCH, MELBOURNE MAGISTRATES’ COURT, VICTORIA POLICE