CORPORATE DIVESTITURE – AUSTRALIA

Wesfarmers to outline Coles move

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Original article by Eli Greenblat
The Australian – Page: 19 : 4-Oct-18

There is speculation that Wesfarmers could release the scheme booklet for its proposed demerger of Coles before 15 October, when the supermarket chain will announce its sales figures for the first quarter of 2018-19. JPMorgan has upgraded its forecast for same-store sales growth from 2.5 per cent to four per cent. In contrast, the firm has scaled back Woolworths’ same-store sales growth expectations from 1.8 per cent to 1.3 per cent. However, Shaun Cousins of JPMorgan expects Woolworths to outperform Coles in the medium-term.

CORPORATES
WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, WOOLWORTHS SUPERMARKETS, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Rio pushes closure of Grasberg deal into first half of next year

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 1-Oct-18

PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium has signed binding agreements with Rio Tinto and Freeport McMoran to assume control of the Grasberg copper mine in Indonesia. However, the agreements are still subject to a number of conditions, and Rio Tinto has advised that the transaction may not be settled until mid-2019. Rio Tinto will receive $US3.5bn ($4.8bn) for its stake in the mine, and much of the proceeds are expected to be returned to shareholders.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, FREEPORT-McMORAN COPPER AND GOLD INCORPORATED, PT INDONESIA ASAHAN ALUMINIUM, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, BP PLC, MERIT ENERGY

CBA may need a rethink on dividend

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Original article by Sarah Turner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 31 : 30-Aug-18

Analysts suggest that the Commonwealth Bank may have to reduce its dividend payout if it proceeds with the demerger of CFS Group. Shareholders received a total dividend of $4.31 per share for the 2017-18 financial year, but Richard Wiles of Morgan Stanley estimates that this could fall to around $4 per share if its wealth management and mortgage broking assets are demerged. However, Andrew Martin of Alphinity Investment Management does not expect the bank to reduce its dividend in the near-term.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, CFS GROUP, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, ALPHINITY INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, CLIME ASSET MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, PLATYPUS ASSET MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC

Buyer eyes Fairfax Media events arm

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis, Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 28-Aug-18

US-based Motiv has declined to comment on reports that it has made an informal approach to acquire Fairfax Media’s events business, which Macquarie Equities values at about $60m. Fairfax’s proposed merger partner, Nine Entertainment Company, divested its own events business in 2015. A Nine spokeswoman says it is too soon to comment on potential asset sales. There has been speculation that Nine could divest other Fairfax assets, including its regional newspapers.

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, MOTIV, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITY MEDIA, STUFF LIMITED, MACQUARIE EQUITIES LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN METRO MEDIA, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AFFINITY EQUITY, TEG PTY LTD

Ellison puts halt to speculation of BCI bid

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 28-Aug-18

BCI Minerals plans to divest its iron ore assets in the Pilbara in order to focus on its salt and potash assets. Mineral Resources MD Chris Ellison has indicated that the company will not bid for the BCI assets, which could fetch around $100m, preferring to focus on its existing Pilbara assets. Mineral Resources recently secured a joint venture agreement regarding Brockman Mining’s Marillana project, while it bought the Koolyanobbing mine from Cleveland-Cliffs earlier in 2018.

CORPORATES
BCI MINERALS LIMITED – ASX BCI, MINERAL RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX MIN, BROCKMAN MINING LIMITED – ASX BCK, CLEVELAND-CLIFFS INCORPORATED, ATLAS IRON LIMITED – ASX AGO, WROXBY PTY LTD

Golden age of mining returns may be hard to sustain

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 & 16 : 7-Aug-18

The proceeds of large Australian miners’ asset sales will boost shareholders’ returns in 2018, but Plato Investment Management MD Don Hamson cautions that investors must lower their future expectations. He argues that miners have limited scope to maintain high returns via asset sales, and the "golden age" for shareholders must end. However, Camille Simeon of Aberdeen Standard Investments and Brenton Saunders of Pendal Group contend that large miners such as BHP can keep rewarding investors by constantly refreshing their portfolios.

CORPORATES
PLATO INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED, ABERDEEN STANDARD INVESTMENTS, PENDAL GROUP LIMITED – ASX PDL, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, SOUTH32 LIMITED – ASX S32, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, WHITEHAVEN COAL LIMITED – ASX WHC

Perpetual motion: Lloyd to lead NAB wealth spin-off

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Original article by Cliona O’Dowd
The Australian – Page: 17 & 21 : 18-Jul-18

National Australia Bank has advised that Geoff Lloyd will become CEO of its MLC wealth business on 1 September. Lloyd recently stepped down as CEO of Perpetual after six years, a period which saw strong growth in its profits and share price. NAB plans to divest MLC via a sharemarket float or trade sale, and Lloyd says the opportunity to grow the business as a stand-alone wealth manager was a key reason for his decision to take on the role. The spin-off will include NAB’s superannuation and financial planning businesses.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, MLC LIMITED, PERPETUAL LIMITED – ASX PPT, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, IOOF HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX IFL, JBWERE LIMITED, NABTRADE, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, LEND LEASE GROUP LIMITED – ASX LLC, NIPPON LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION

BHP’s shale sale to reap dividends

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 19 : 12-Jul-18

BHP Billiton chairman Ken MacKenzie has told shareholders that the resources group hopes to secure at least one deal for its US shale assets by the end of 2018. He said there has been strong interest in the assets due to factors such as US company tax cuts and a rise in the crude oil price. MacKenzie also signalled that BHP is likely to return some of the sale proceeds to shareholders via share buybacks or increased dividends. He also said there is still strong support at boardroom and executive level for BHP’s conventional oil assets.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, BP PLC, CHEVRON CORPORATION, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, ELLIOTT MANAGEMENT CORPORATION

Rio nears sale of Grasberg mine stake

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 23 : 4-Jul-18

Rio Tinto is believed to have reached agreement on a deal to sell its stake in Indonesia’s Grasberg copper and gold mine to the state-owned Indonesia Asahan Aluminium. The Indonesian Government must still strike a deal with the mine’s operator, Freeport McMoran, as part of its push to take a minimum stake of 51 per cent in the project. Rio Tinto may gain around $US3.5bn from the sale of its interest in the mine, and the proceeds are tipped to be returned to shareholders via a buyback or increased dividend payout.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, PT INDONESIA ASAHAN ALUMINIUM PERSERO, FREEPORT-McMORAN COPPER AND GOLD INCORPORATED, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, INDONESIA. DEPT OF STATE-OWNED CORPORATIONS

CBA retreats to simpler bank model

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Original article by Alice Uribe, Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 18 : 26-Jun-18

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia will focus on its core banking operations after revealing plans to demerge its wealth management, financial planning and mortgage broking assets into a separately listed company. Analysts says the move was widely expected given the reforms that are likely to emerge from the banking royal commission. CBA has advised that it will not hold a stake in CFS Group, which is expected to have a market capitalisation of around $A8bn. CBA may also divest its general insurance business in a separate transaction.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, CFS GROUP, COLONIAL FIRST STATE GROUP LIMITED, COLONIAL FIRST STATE GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT, COUNT FINANCIAL LIMITED, FINANCIAL WISDOM LIMITED, AUSSIE HOME LOANS LIMITED, MORTGAGE CHOICE LIMITED – ASX MOC, COUNTPLUS LIMITED – ASX CUP, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, MLC LIMITED, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, BT FINANCIAL GROUP PTY LTD, CONCENTRATED LEADERS FUND LIMITED – ASX CLF, SHAW AND PARTNERS LIMITED, MORNINGSTAR PTY LTD, COMMONWEALTH FINANCIAL PLANNING LIMITED, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, GOLDMAN SACHS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP