K64 Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services

Super bodies want wider ban on commissions

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Alice Uribe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 27-Jun-17

The Department of the Treasury is conducting a review of Australia’s Future of Financial Advice regime. The Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees and Industry Super Australia have used a joint submission to call for the ban on up-front and trailing commissions for life insurance sold within superannuation to be extended to all life insurance sales. They contend that commission-based remuneration structures serve to put the interests of financial planners ahead of their clients.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN INSTITUTE OF SUPERANNUATION TRUSTEES, INDUSTRY SUPER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION

Global investors moving ASX funds elsewhere

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Myriam Robin
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 31 : 23-Jun-17

Some fund managers suggest that the Australian sharemarket’s 1.6 per cent downturn on 21 June was prompted by foreign investors shifting out of local equities. Meanwhile, Tony Brennan and Mark Tomlins of Citigroup say Asian sharemarkets may be more attractive to international investors at present, given their better prospects for earnings upgrades. Hasan Tevfik of Credit Suisse adds that passive fund managers are likely to reduce their exposure to Australian shares in coming years as the MSCI Asia-Pacific ex-Japan’s weighting toward Chinese and Hong Kong-listed shares increases.

CORPORATES
CITIGROUP PTY LTD, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, MSCI ASIA-PACIFIC EX-JAPAN INDEX, MSCI EMERGING MARKETS INDEX, MSCI INCORPORATED, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, COMPUTERSHARE LIMITED – ASX CPU, MSCI AUSTRALIA INDEX

Investors wary of copycat state bank levies

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 31 : 23-Jun-17

Shares in Australian banks rose on 22 June, although they failed to retain early gains after the South Australian Government moved to impose a levy on banks’ state liabilities. Bank stocks are likely to be sold down in the near-term amid concern that other states could seek to balance their budgets via a levy on the sector. However, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 has shed just 3.7 per cent during May and June 2017 – well below the five-year average loss of 4.4 per cent – and the local bourse traditionally performs well in July.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MSCI INCORPORATED, MSCI ASIA-PACIFIC EX-JAPAN INDEX, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED

Market jitters set off $27bn plunge

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 1 : 22-Jun-17

The Australian sharemarket shed 1.6 per cent on 21 June, extending its losses since early May to nearly five per cent. The S&P/ASX 200 typically falls in May and June, in the lead-up to the end of the financial year, and it has shed 4.4 per cent over the last two months. A move to add China’s A shares to the MSCI Emerging Markets Index weighed on sharemarkets across the Asia-Pacific region, although China’s CSI 300 Index rose 1.2 per cent.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, CSI 300 INDEX, MSCI EMERGING MARKETS INDEX, BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED, QBE INSURANCE GROUP LIMITED – ASX QBE, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

PE, capital flows bolster local M&A prospects

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 17 : 20-Jun-17

Data from Dealogic shows that $US44.1bn ($A57.9bn) worth of Australian mergers and acquisitions have been announced so far in 2017. This is 52 per cent higher than at the same time in 2016, and market watchers anticipate that M&A activity will remain strong in the second half of the year. Kate Towey of law firm Allens says overseas investors regard the Australian market as stable and attractive, while Alex Cartel of Deutsche Bank expects shareholder activism to have an increasing influence on the local market.

CORPORATES
DEALOGIC (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, ALLENS, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, TATTS GROUP LIMITED – ASX TTS, TABCORP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TAH, ENDEAVOUR ENERGY LIMITED, ALINTA ENERGY (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, KKR AND COMPANY LP, VOCUS GROUP LIMITED – ASX VOC, PLATINUM EQUITY HOLDINGS, STAPLES AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, OFFICEMAX INCORPORATED, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, ELLIOTT MANAGEMENT CORPORATION, JOHNSON AND JOHNSON, ACTELION, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, WHOLE FOODS MARKET INCORPORATED, MINTER ELLISON, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD

Time running out for tax-loss selling

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Jessica Sier
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 19-Jun-17

Katana Asset Management’s Romano Sala Tenna notes that Australian investors traditionally engaged in tax-loss selling in the final week of June. However, he says investors are increasingly selling underperforming stocks well before the end of the financial year. Quantitative analysis shows that stock which experience a sharp sell-off in May and June typically rebound over the first few months of the new fiscal year. Stocks that have been subject to tax-loss selling in 2017 include Mayne Pharma, APN Outdoor Group and Harvey Norman.

CORPORATES
KATANA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED, MAYNE PHARMA GROUP LIMITED – ASX MYX, APN OUTDOOR GROUP LIMITED – ASX APO, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, SUPER RETAIL GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUL, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, SPOTLESS GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX SPO, SLATER AND GORDON LIMITED – ASX SGH, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE

IPO tale: more floats, less cash

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Scott Murdoch
The Australian – Page: 20 : 19-Jun-17

A total of 137 companies listed on the Australian sharemarket during the first five months of 2017, compared with 113 for the same period in 2016. However, the total value of initial capital raised has fallen from $A22.6bn to just $A13.67bn, and the total value of secondary capital raised has fallen from $A43.5bn to $A35.5bn. Simon Poidevin of Bell Potter anticipates an upturn in secondary capital raisings in the new financial year as companies seek growth via acquisitions.

CORPORATES
BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED, BINGO INDUSTRIES LIMITED – ASX BIN, OFFICEWORKS SUPERSTORES PTY LTD, ZIP INDUSTRIES AUSTRALIA, CRAVEABLE BRANDS LIMITED, RED ROOSTER FOODS, OPORTO PTY LTD, KELLY PARTNERS GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX KPG, NUTRANO PRODUCE GROUP, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX

ASX ripe for activist investors: Credit Suisse

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 27 : 15-Jun-17

Hasan Tevfik of Credit Suisse expects more activist investors to target Australian-listed stocks in the wake of Elliott Management’s push for a restructuring at BHP Billiton. He says activist investment is gaining momentum in Australia and it is inevitable that local superannuation funds will adopt this strategy given the returns achieved by activist hedge funds in North America. Caltex, AMP, News Corporation and Lendlease are among the companies that are seen as potential targets for activist investors.

CORPORATES
CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, ELLIOTT MANAGEMENT CORPORATION, CALTEX AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX CTX, AMP LIFE LIMITED, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, LEND LEASE GROUP LIMITED – ASX LLC, CSR LIMITED – ASX CSR, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, TRIBECA INVESTMENT PARTNERS PTY LTD, ESCALA PARTNERS LIMITED, ARDENT LEISURE GROUP – ASX AAD, BRICKWORKS LIMITED – ASX BKW, WASHINGTON H SOUL PATTINSON AND COMPANY LIMITED – ASX SOL, PERPETUAL LIMITED – ASX PPT, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, LIM ADVISORS LIMITED, AMP CAPITAL CHINA GROWTH FUND

Tech sell-off isn’t end of the world

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Philip Baker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 32 : 14-Jun-17

The Nasdaq Composite Index has gained nearly 15 per cent so far in 2017, despite shedding 2.5 per cent in the last two trading sessions. While shares in the so-called FAANG stocks (Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix and Google parent Alphabet) have been heavily sold down in recent days, they have all posted strong gains so far in the calendar year. Meanwhile, although US technology stocks are widely considered to be overvalued, the price-to-earnings ratio of the Nasdaq 100 is trading at around 20.3, compared with a peak of around 45 prior to the "tech wreck" in 2000.

CORPORATES
NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, APPLE INCORPORATED, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, ALPHABET INCORPORATED

Technology plunge raises fears of meltdown

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 13-Jun-17

The Nasdaq Composite Index reached a record high on 9 June 2017, before closing down 1.8 per cent amid bearish sentiment toward technology stocks. Shares in Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Google parent Alphabet shed 3-5 per cent. The sell-off was prompted by a range of factors, including a report from Goldman Sachs suggesting that many US technology stocks are overvalued. Analysts have downplayed comparisons with the "tech wreck", while Bruce McCain of Key Private Bank says a pullback in the sector was inevitable.

CORPORATES
NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, APPLE INCORPORATED, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, ALPHABET INCORPORATED, MICROSOFT CORPORATION, THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INCORPORATED, KEY PRIVATE BANK, CITRON RESEARCH, NVIDIA CORPORATION, DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX