COMPANY RESULTS – AUSTRALIA

McGrath writes off all goodwill

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Su-Lin Tan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 35 : 21-Aug-18

Listed real estate agency McGrath has reported a net loss of $63 million for 2017-18, which includes an impairment expense of $59 million after writing off its entire goodwill. McGrath recorded EBITDA of $1 million, while revenue fell by 23 per cent to $99 million. Its full-year fees from property management were down, with the number of properties managed by company-owned agencies declining from 7,463 to 7,215.

CORPORATES
McGRATH LIMITED – ASX MEA

Domain sees considerable upside to proposed Fairfax-Nine merger

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 14-Aug-18

Domain Holdings’ executive chairman Nick Falloon says the merger between Nine Entertainment Company and Fairfax Media will help to grow Domain’s business. Falloon is also the chairman of Fairfax, which owns 60 per cent of Domain. He notes that both Domain and Nine have lots of useful data that when combined would be of benefit to both businesses. The property listings company has a posted a statutory net loss of $6.2m for 2017-18, while revenue was 11.5 per cent higher at $357.3m.

CORPORATES
DOMAIN HOLDINGS AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX DHA, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, MARTIN CURRIE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED

SEEK warns of flat profits, seeks loyalty

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 & 14 : 7-Aug-18

Shares in employment classifieds and services company SEEK fell by 8.8 per cent on 6 August, after it announced a profit downgrade and writedown. SEEK will write down $178 million on its investments in Mexico and Brazil, while its expects its 2018-19 net profit after tax to be around the $200 million result it achieved in 2017-18. A survey of analysts by Bloomberg had forecast a 2018-19 result of $240 million. SEEK CEO Andrew Bassat notes that it is reinvesting revenue in preference to targeting profit growth; SEEK expects its 2018-19 revenue to grow by between 16 and 20 per cent.

CORPORATES
SEEK LIMITED – ASX SEK, BLOOMBERG LP, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, ZHAOPIN LIMITED

Fortescue Metals Group hits export goal amid 36pc discount

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 27-Jul-18

Pure-play iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group has advised that its shipments reached a record 46.5 million tonnes in the final quarter of 2017-18, and it shipped 169.7 million tonnes in the full year. Fortescue had flagged total shipments of 170 million tonnes for the financial year. Fortescue’s unit costs averaged $US12.36 per tonne in 2017-18, and it received an average of 64 per cent of the benchmark price of iron ore. Rising demand for higher-grade iron ore in China prompted Fortescue to downgrade its price realisation forecast several times during 2017-18.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG

Myer to shed head office jobs but keep stores

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 20-Jul-18

Department store group Myer has reduced staff numbers at its head office in Melbourne’s Docklands precinct by about 30 per cent in recent years, and CEO John King is expected to seek further job cuts. However, sources have rejected suggestions that up to 50 per cent of head office staff could be retrenched. King also intends to reduce the number of Myer stores, although he is expected to wait until existing leases expire. Meanwhile, David Jones has posted 2.2 per cent growth in sales for the first half of 2018, and growth of 2.7 per cent in same-store sales. Full-year sales were 0.9 per cent lower than previously.

CORPORATES
MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, DAVID JONES LIMITED, WOOLWORTHS HOLDINGS LIMITED, HOUSE OF FRASER HOLDINGS PLC, SEARS HOLDINGS, KMART CORPORATION, LATITUDE FINANCIAL SERVICES LIMITED, PREMIER INVESTMENTS LIMITED – ASX PMV, VICTORIA RACING CLUB LIMITED

OZ commits to ongoing dividend payout

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 20-Jul-18

OZ Minerals produced 54,597 tonnes of copper in the first half of 2018, putting it on track to achieve its full-year target of 100,000 to 110,000 tonnes. Gold output totalled 58,994 ounces, and OZ Minerals expects full-year output of 120,000 to 130,000 ounces. A review of OZ’s capital management strategy is nearly complete, and CEO Andrew Cole has stressed that shareholders will continue to receive regular dividend payments despite a big increase in expenditure on exploration and development.

CORPORATES
OZ MINERALS LIMITED – ASX OZL, AVANCO RESOURCES LIMITED, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, S2 RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX S2R

Evolution forecasts output reduction

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 27 : 20-Jul-18

Listed gold producer Evolution Mining has advised that its output for 2017-18 totalled 801,187 ounces, at an all-in sustaining cost of $797 per ounce. It has forecast that gold production in 2018-19 will be within the range of 720,000 to 770,000 ounces, at an all-in sustaining cost of $850 to $900 per ounce. Evolution’s operating mine cash flow reached a record $221.9m in the fourth quarter of 2017-18, and its net debt has fallen to $72m.

CORPORATES
EVOLUTION MINING LIMITED – ASX EVN

BHP rides record iron ore wave

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 19 : 19-Jul-18

BHP Billiton will aim to produce between 241 million and 250 million tonnes of iron ore in 2018-19, after output in 2017-18 rose by three per cent to a record 238 million tonnes. BHP has attributed the 2017-18 result to factors such as record production at its Jimblebar and Mining Area C mines in the Pilbara and its rail and port operations’ productivity gains. Meanwhile, BHP has advised that its costs associated with the Samarco tailings dam disaster in Brazil are likely to rise by $US440m ($600m).

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, SAMARCO MINERACAO SA, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, JEFFERIES AND COMPANY, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

Rio, Vale boost output and market share

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 16 : 18-Jul-18

Rio Tinto’s iron ore shipments from the Pilbara totalled 168.8 million tonnes in the first half of 2018, which is 9.4 per cent higher than previously. Rio Tinto has advised that its export volumes will be similar in the second half, and shipments for the calendar year are expected to be at the higher end of its guidance of between 330 million and 340 million tonnes. Brazilian rival Vale has reported production of 96.8 million tonnes and sales of 86.5 million tonnes of iron ore for the June quarter. It will increase production by 18 per cent in the second half, and it will target full-year output of around 390 million tonnes.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, VALE SA, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, CLEVELAND-CLIFFS INCORPORATED, ATLAS IRON LIMITED – ASX AGO, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG

Hancock hopes rising as Atlas bleeds cash

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 19 : 13-Jul-18

Atlas Iron held cash on hand of $57 million at the end of June, down from $78 million at the end of March. It shipped 2.1 million tonnes of iron ore during the June quarter, but lost an average of $3 per tonne on every tonne shipped. The amount owed by Atlas to lenders increased from $83 million to $85 million over the quarter. The rise in debt and the fall in Atlas’s cash position has boosted the likelihood that shareholders will accept Hancock Prospecting’s $390 million takeover bid.

CORPORATES
ATLAS IRON LIMITED – ASX AGO, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, MINERAL RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX MIN