K64 Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services

IFM ready to snap up oil assets

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Original article by Amanda Saunders
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 28 : 5-Mar-15

IFM Investors CEO Brett Himbury has indicated that the group is looking to invest in Australian oil and gas pipeline assets. Potential acquisitions could include the Gladstone LNG pipeline in Queensland and the Australia Pacific LNG pipeline, which may both be put on the market. IFM recently missed out on the sale of BG’s gas pipeline in Queensland, which will be acquired by APA Group

CORPORATES
IFM INVESTORS PTY LTD, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, GLADSTONE LNG PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA PACIFIC LNG LIMITED, BG GROUP PLC, APA GROUP – ASX APA, DUET GROUP – ASX DUE, FREEPORT LNG DEVELOPMENT LP, QIC LIMITED, AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, CHINA INVESTMENT CORPORATION

Rate pause clobbers share prices

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Original article by Jacob Greber, Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 8 : 4-Mar-15

The Australian sharemarket fell sharply and the dollar rallied after the Reserve Bank defied expectations and left official interest rates on hold on 3 March 2015. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index ended the session at 5,933.9 points, and Tony Paterno of Ord Minnett says it is now unlikely to breach the 6,000-point level in the near-term. The central bank has maintained its easing bias, with governor Glenn Stevens indicating that there may be further rate cuts if this is deemed appropriate

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, ORD MINNETT GROUP LIMITED, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, AUSBIL INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED, CONTANGO ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED, RP DATA LIMITED, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Banks to put out welcome mats for the disruptors

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Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 17 : 4-Mar-15

The New South Wales Government has unveiled plans for a financial technology hub in the Sydney CBD. The Stone & Chalk hub will receive financial backing from a range of companies, including major banks, insurers, retailers and technology groups. The hub will provide financial technology start-ups with subsidised office space and facilities to work with financial and technology companies to further develop their business

CORPORATES
NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, HSBC AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS PTY LTD, SUNCORP BANK, INSURANCE AUSTRALIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX IAG, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, VEDA GROUP LIMITED – ASX VED, AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, INTEL CORPORATION, ORACLE CORPORATION, FINZSOFT SOLUTIONS (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, ALLENS, KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, CAPITAL MARKETS CO-OPERATIVE RESEARCH CENTRE LIMITED, CENTRE FOR INTERNATIONAL FINANCE AND REGULATION, FINANCIAL SERVICES INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALASIA, AWI VENTURES LIMITED, SOCIETYONE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, LEVEL39, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Dividends keep climbing despite weak corporate profits

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 4-Mar-15

Data from JP Morgan shows that the dividend payout ratio for companies in the S&P/ASX 200 increased by about five per cent overall during the February 2015 reporting season. Deutsche Bank in turn estimates that underlying earnings growth rose by about two per cent overall. The benchmark index gained 6.1 per cent during February. Meanwhile, JP Morgan and Citigroup have both scaled back their expectations for growth in earnings per share for the full year

CORPORATES
JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, CONTANGO ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, FIDELITY INVESTMENTS AUSTRALIA LIMITED, S&P CAPITAL IQ

Orica launches $400m share buyback

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Original article by Tim Binsted
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 3-Mar-15

Australian-listed Orica has revealed plans for an on-market share buyback from mid-March 2016. The explosives group intends to repurchase up to $A400m worth of shares over the next 12 months, following the sale of its chemicals division to Blackstone for $A750m. The private equity firm has announced that the business will be known as Ixom. It boasts EBIT of around $A110m and revenue of $A1.2bn

CORPORATES
ORICA LIMITED – ASX ORI, THE BLACKSTONE GROUP LP, IXOM, GOLDMAN SACHS AND PARTNERS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, LAZARD PTY LTD, FONTERRA CO-OPERATIVE GROUP LIMITED, NUFARM LIMITED – ASX NUF, CALTEX AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX CTX, SYDNEY WATER CORPORATION, BLUESCOPE STEEL LIMITED – ASX BSL

Stunned traders caught in the glare of ASX200’s headlights

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Original article by John Wasiliev
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 28 : 3-Mar-15

The Australian sharemarket reached its highest level in seven years on 2 March 2015, ahead of the Reserve Bank’s monthly board meeting. More than 50 per cent of economists expect the central bank to reduce the cash rate again, after a 25 basis point cut in February. However, opinion is divided as to whether the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 will breach the 6,000-point level in the near-term

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, CMC MARKETS PTY LTD, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX ALL ORDINARIES INDEX, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, INSURANCE AUSTRALIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX IAG, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, WORLEYPARSONS LIMITED – ASX WOR, TOLL HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TOL, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, IG MARKETS LIMITED, OANDA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, THINKFOREX

Bets mount on second cash rate cut in weeks

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Original article by Mark Mulligan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 22 : 2-Mar-15

Futures traders expect the Australian sharemarket to lose ground when trading resumes on 2 March 2015. With the reporting season over, investors are likely to focus on economic data to be released in the coming week, as well as the Reserve Bank’s monthly board meeting. The recent release of disappointing capital expenditure data has heightened speculation that the central bank could reduce the cash rate again in March, following a 25-basis point cut in February

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, BANK OF AMERICA AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MERRILL LYNCH (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, PEOPLE’S BANK OF CHINA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW

Equity volumes soar on low rates

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 2-Mar-15

Data from IRESS shows that equity trading volumes in Australia rose by 15 per cent to $A438.9bn during the first two months of 2015. This is the highest level of trading activity for the first two months of the year since 2008, and the S&P/ASX 200 Index is close to breaching the 6,000-point level. Meanwhile, a number of companies are slated to undertake IPOs in the near-term, including MYOB, Fleetpartners and GenesisCare

CORPORATES
IRESS LIMITED – ASX IRE, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MYOB TECHNOLOGY PTY LTD, FLEET PARTNERS PTY LTD, GENESIS CARE PTY LTD, TOUCHCORP LIMITED, ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX, CHI-X AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AURIZON HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX AZJ, VEDA GROUP LIMITED – ASX VED, EVOLUTION MINING LIMITED – ASX EVN, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, EUROZ LIMITED – ASX EZL, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MACQUARIE SECURITIES PTY LTD

Numbers add up for new millionaires

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Original article by Ruth Liew
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 2-Mar-15

Data from Investments Trends shows that the number of high net worth investors in Australia rose by 43,500 in 2014, to 443,500. They collectively control some $A1.6trn worth of investable assets. The nation also boasts 580,000 people with investable assets of between $A500,000 and $A1m. The research also shows that just 40 per cent of high net worth investors obtained professional advice in 2014

CORPORATES
INVESTMENT TRENDS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, ANZ PRIVATE BANK, PERPETUAL LIMITED – ASX PPT, COMMONWEALTH FINANCIAL PLANNING LIMITED, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, MACQUARIE PRIVATE WEALTH MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

IFM to invest in international equities

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Original article by Amanda Saunders
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 2-Mar-15

IFM Investors will expand into international shares, as part of its growing push to diversify beyond Australian asset classes. CEO Brett Himbury argues that the nation’s superannuation system needs to reduce its focus on the local sharemarket, noting that many of the group’s clients already have exposure to offshore equities. IFM began investing in overseas infrastructure assets several years ago

CORPORATES
IFM INVESTORS PTY LTD, MAGELLAN FINANCIAL GROUP LIMITED – ASX MFG, PLATINUM ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED – ASX PTM