K64 Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services

Franking credits entice as currency plays dry up

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Original article by Simon Evans
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 32 : 26-Feb-15

The Australian dollar was trading at about $US0.78 on 25 February 2015, compared with $US0.90 in September 2014. The weaker currency will be a boon to investors who hold shares in Australian-listed stocks that report their financial results and pay dividends in the US dollar, such as CSL, BHP Billiton and Woodside Petroleum. Matthew Ross of Goldman Sachs does not expect the currency to fall much further, and says franking credits will become a bigger issue for investors than the impact of the dollar on dividends

CORPORATES
CSL LIMITED – ASX CSL, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, GOLDMAN SACHS AND PARTNERS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, OIL SEARCH LIMITED – ASX OSH, RIO TINTO PLC, TRIBECA INVESTMENT PARTNERS PTY LTD

Seven set for uptick

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Original article by Tess Ingram, Anthony Macdonald
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 26-Feb-15

Seven Group Holdings has posted a 2014-15 interim net profit of $A69.2m, which is 74 per cent lower than previously. The WesTrac division’s sales revenue was down 47 per cent at $A323m, although revenue from equipment servicing and parts sales rose by 16 per cent to $A750m. Meanwhile, Seven Group will undertake an on-market share buyback via Goldman Sachs. The group’s shares closed 11 per cent higher at $A6.85 on 25 February 2015

CORPORATES
SEVEN GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX SVW, WESTRAC HOLDINGS PTY LTD, GOLDMAN SACHS AND PARTNERS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, CATERPILLAR, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL

Jetpack dream achieves lift-off on ASX

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Original article by Sally Rose
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 25-Feb-15

Shares in Martin Aircraft Company were offered at $A0.40 in its Australian IPO, and the stock closed at $A0.44 on debut on 24 February 2015. The company has developed a wearable jetpack that will be priced from $US200,000 ($A250,000). Martin Aircraft aims to deliver the first Martin Jetpacks to customers in the second half of 2016

CORPORATES
MARTIN AIRCRAFT COMPANY LIMITED – ASX MJP, KUANGCHI SCIENCE LIMITED

BHP and QBE drive index closer to 6000

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Original article by Misa Han
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 32 : 25-Feb-15

The Australian sharemarket posted solid gains on 24 February 2015, with the S&P/ASX 200 adding 0.3 per cent to close at 5,927. The Commonwealth Bank was 0.7 per cent higher at $A91.04 and BHP Billiton rose by 2.9 per cent to end the session at $A33.06. However, National Australia Bank shed 0.2 per cent to finish at $A37.58 and MMA Offshore was 11.7 per cent lower at $A0.87

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, MMA OFFSHORE LIMITED – ASX MRM, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, QBE INSURANCE GROUP LIMITED – ASX QBE, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, FLIGHT CENTRE TRAVEL GROUP LIMITED – ASX FLT, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, AMCOR LIMITED – ASX AMC, PM CAPITAL LIMITED, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, BLOOMBERG LP, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX ALL ORDINARIES INDEX

More capital might lead to lower Westpac dividends

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Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 24-Feb-15

Westpac has regularly increased its interim dividend by $A0.02 since the first half of 2012, but this policy might be reviewed if regulators decide to introduce new capital levels. Morgan Stanley analyst Richard Wiles says such a review would also be necessary if economic conditions deteriorate in Australia. Morgan Stanley has a share price target on the stock of $A33.00

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Strong M&A tipped for 2015

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 24-Feb-15

Data from Dealogic shows that some $US13.9bn ($A17.7bn) worth of mergers and acquisitions have been proposed in Australia so far in 2015. M&A experts are generally upbeat about the outlook for 2015, with Minter Ellison partner Ron Forster anticipating strong activity in the gold and iron ore sectors in particular. Karen Evans-Cullen of Clayton Utz notes that the downturn in the value of the Australian dollar may attract more bids from offshore groups

CORPORATES
DEALOGIC (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, MINTER ELLISON, CLAYTON UTZ, BANK OF AMERICA AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MERRILL LYNCH (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, TOLL HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TOL, JAPAN POST, NOVION PROPERTY GROUP – ASX NVN, FEDERATION CENTRES – ASX FDC, PORT OF MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA. DEFENCE HOUSING AUSTRALIA, BOART LONGYEAR LIMITED – ASX BLY, CENTERBRIDGE PARTNERS LP, GRESHAM PARTNERS LIMITED, MIZUHO BANK LIMITED

$500m pay cut drives SMSFs to equities

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Original article by Philip Baker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 24-Feb-15

Credit Suisse estimates that each 25 basis point reduction in the cash rate slashes the income of self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs) by $A500m. The firm notes that SMSFs now boast some $A568bn worth of funds under management, with equities accounting for 42 per cent of their investment portfolios. SMSFs are likely to further increase their exposure to equities in order to offset the impact of lower interest rates

CORPORATES
CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, FLIGHT CENTRE TRAVEL GROUP LIMITED – ASX FLT, DULUXGROUP LIMITED – ASX DLX, PHILO CAPITAL ADVISERS PTY LTD, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE. INSTITUTE OF APPLIED ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RESEARCH, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Big four banks have large cross-sell potential

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 23-Feb-15

A Roy Morgan Consumer Single Source Survey has found that the "share of wallet" of each of Australia’s four major bank has increased over the last decade. The ANZ Bank’s share of wallet rose by 5.2 per cent to 28.8 per cent between January 2004 and December 2014, while the Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s share rose by 4.3 per cent to 34.2 per cent. For accounts/deposits, CBA has the highest share of their customers’ wallet with 60.3 per cent (up 7.1 per cent over the last 10 years), followed by Westpac with 55.3 per cent (up three per cent)

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

ASX has 6000 points in its sight

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Original article by Sally Rose
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 23-Feb-15

The S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.4 per cent on 20 February 2015, closing at 5,881.5 points. However, the Australian sharemarket has gained 8.7 per cent so far in 2015, and the benchmark index reached a year-to-date high of 5,915.7 on 18 February. There is agreement among six equities strategists that the S&P/ASX 200 will soon breach the 6,000-point level, although they do not expect it to reach the record high of 6,828.7 for another 2-3 years

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, PERPETUAL LIMITED – ASX PPT, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, PEOPLE’S BANK OF CHINA, MACQUARIE RESEARCH EQUITIES, MACQUARIE BANK LIMITED – ASX MBL, TOLL HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TOL, JAPAN POST, AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, UBS WEALTH MANAGEMENT AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MLC LIMITED, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX ALL ORDINARIES ACCUMULATION INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX

BHP under pressure to lift returns

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Original article by Amanda Saunders
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 23-Feb-15

BHP Billiton has not reduced its dividend since 1988, and analysts generally agree that a reduced payout is unlikely when the resources giant releases its 2014-15 interim results on 24 February 2015. Paul Young of Deutsche Bank does not expect BHP to increase its dividend for at least another two years, arguing that it should focus on growth rather than improving returns to shareholders. Paul McTaggart of Credit Suisse also says a share buyback is unlikely in the next several years

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, SOUTH32 LIMITED