MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS – AUSTRALIA

KKR lured in Fairfax break-up hard sell

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Original article by Jake Mitchell
The Australian – Page: 19 & 22 : 18-May-16

Investment bank Credit Suisse is believed to have held meetings with private equity firm KKR regarding the acquisition of Fairfax Media. However, the media group itself was not involved in the talks, and KKR was not interested in a buyout. Providence Equity Partners and Hellman & Friedman are other private equity firms that could potentially be interested in Fairfax. Any buyer of the media group would most likely divest or cease publishing its print newspapers and focus on Fairfax’s digital assets, including Domain.

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, KKR AND COMPANY LP, PROVIDENCE EQUITY PARTNERS INCORPORATED, HELLMAN AND FRIEDMAN, DOMAIN.COM.AU, STAN ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, MACQUARIE MEDIA LIMITED – ASX MRN, SEVEN MEDIA GROUP PTY LTD, APN NEWS AND MEDIA LIMITED – ASX APN, NZME, GRABONE, THE RADIO NETWORK

Companies need to come up with growth strategies

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Original article by Philip Baker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 13-May-16

Many Australian-listed companies have prioritised dividend yields in recent years, rather than investing in growth strategies. However, Macquarie Securities’ Jason Todd believes that investors are poised to reward companies that pursue growth via strategies such as acquisitions and capital expenditure. He identifies a number of stocks that could benefit from a growth strategy, including Transurban Group, Wesfarmers, Amcor, Carsales.com, CSL and Orora.

CORPORATES
MACQUARIE SECURITIES PTY LTD, TRANSURBAN GROUP LIMITED – ASX TCL, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, AMCOR LIMITED – ASX AMC, CARSALES.COM LIMITED – ASX CAR, CSL LIMITED – ASX CSL, ORORA LIMITED – ASX ORA, ASCIANO LIMITED – ASX AIO, ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, DOMINO’S PIZZA ENTERPRISES LIMITED – ASX DMP, SEEK LIMITED – ASX SEK, INCITEC PIVOT LIMITED – ASX IPL, TREASURY WINE ESTATES LIMITED – ASX TWE, RAMSAY HEALTH CARE LIMITED – ASX RHC

Investors puzzled as AWE rejects Lone Star bid

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 18 & 31 : 12-May-16

Shares in oil and gas producer AWE Limited closed 16 per cent higher at $A0.715 on 11 May 2016, after directors spurned an unsolicited takeover approach from a US private equity firm. Lone Star has offered $A0.80 per share, valuing the bid at $A420m, but AWE has described it as "opportunistic". The board was also concerned about some of the conditions attached to the bid, including a requirement for exclusivity. AWE’s shares have traded at an average of $A0.50 for much of 2016.

CORPORATES
AWE LIMITED – ASX AWE, LONE STAR FUNDS, LONE STAR JAPAN ACQUISITIONS LIMITED, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, PEMBROKE RESOURCES PTY LTD, PEABODY ENERGY CORPORATION, PENGANA GLOBAL RESOURCES FUND, PENGANA CAPITAL LIMITED, CUE ENERGY RESOURCES NL – ASX CUE, ELLERSTON CAPITAL PTY LTD, PERENNIAL INVESTMENT PARTNERS LIMITED, ANTARES ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AZZ

Pembroke buys $104m Peabody coal projects

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 22 : 11-May-16

Pembroke Resources has secured a deal to acquire the Olive Downs South, Olive Downs North and Willunga coking coal deposits in Queensland from Peabody Energy Australia in a $A104m deal. The tenements were previously owned by Macarthur Coal, which Peabody acquired in 2011. Pembroke, which is owned by US private equity firm Denham Capital, intends to pursue further acquisitions.

CORPORATES
PEMBROKE RESOURCES PTY LTD, PEABODY ENERGY AUSTRALIA COAL PTY LTD, PEABODY ENERGY CORPORATION, MACARTHUR COAL LIMITED, DENHAM CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LP, CITIC RESOURCES HOLDINGS LIMITED

Foxtel chief waves off Ten takeover talk

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Original article by Dominic White
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 9-May-16

Foxtel CEO Peter Tonagh has downplayed speculation that the pay-TV group could seek to acquire free-to-air broadcaster Ten Network if cross-media ownership rules are relaxed. He argues that the competition regulator could be expected to closely scrutinise such a deal, and notes that a merger with Ten would make it more difficult for Foxtel to enter commercial arrangements with other free-to-air networks. Foxtel bought a 13.8 per cent stake in Ten in 2015.

CORPORATES
FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, MULTI CHANNEL NETWORK PTY LTD, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, PRESTO ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NOVA ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, SOUTHERN CROSS MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX SXL, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Pragmatic BHP not chasing coal bargains despite fire sale

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Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 : 26-Apr-16

BHP Billiton executive Mike Henry says acquiring coal assets is not high on the resources giant’s list of priorities. He adds that BHP would consider any coal assets that were put on the market at very low prices, but notes that any bargains are unlikely to include quality assets. A number of mining companies are seeking to divest coal mines, and Henry expects this trend to continue. BHP CEO Andrew Mackenzie has previously indicated that the group is particularly interested in buying copper and conventional oil assets.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, VALE SA, GLENCORE PLC, PEABODY ENERGY CORPORATION, ANGLO AMERICAN PLC, APOLLO GLOBAL MANAGEMENT LLC, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION

Executives retain appetite for deals

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 18-Apr-16

A new report by law firm Herbert Smith Freehills and the research division of the Financial Times shows that takeovers remain on the agenda for many companies. The survey of senior executives found that 75 per cent of respondents who are based in Australia expect to pursue mergers and acquisitions in the next three years, although only 33 per cent expect to make acquisitions that will boost group revenue by at least five per cent.

CORPORATES
HERBERT SMITH FREEHILLS PTY LTD, FINANCIAL TIMES GROUP, DEALOGIC (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, ASCIANO LIMITED – ASX AIO, CBH LIMITED, INTRALINKS INCORPORATED

BHP is poised to pounce: chief

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Original article by Barry FitzGerald
The Australian – Page: 19 & 20 : 12-Apr-16

BHP Billiton shareholders will receive interim dividends totalling $A848m after the group adopted a minimum payout ratio. Its half-year payout would have been about $A3.28bn if it had retained a progressive dividend policy. CEO Andrew Mackenzie says the change in policy means BHP has the capacity to undertake acquisitions if an appropriate opportunity arises. However, he adds that its focus will be on developing existing assets.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, SOUTH32 LIMITED – ASX S32

King & Wood Mallesons tops M&A table for first quarter

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Original article by Marianna Papadakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 8-Apr-16

King & Wood Mallesons has appeared at the top of the list of Australian law firms in terms of the value of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the first quarter of 2016, with about $US18.6 billion ($A24.5 billion) worth of deals. Other firms that handled a significant number of M&A deals included Gilbert + Tobin ($US17.3 billion), Allens ($US17.1 billion) and Herbert Smith Freehills ($US11.2 billion).

CORPORATES
KING AND WOOD MALLESONS, GILBERT AND TOBIN LAWYERS, ALLENS, HERBERT SMITH FREEHILLS PTY LTD

Go for gold with copper, Rio urged

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Original article by Amanda Saunders
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 6-Apr-16

Bernstein analyst Paul Gait says Rio Tinto should capitalise on the low price of copper and expectations of a supply deficit to pursue acquisitions in the sector. Gait has suggested that Freeport-McMoRan’s Cerro Verde copper mine in Peru should be at the top of the list of potential acquisitions when Jean-Sebastien Jacques succeeds Sam Walsh as CEO. Gait notes that Cerro Verde is a much higher-quality asset than some copper mines that have been sold recently.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, BERNSTEIN AND ASSOCIATES, FREEPORT-McMORAN COPPER AND GOLD INCORPORATED, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, WOOD MACKENZIE, MMG LIMITED – ASX MMG, ANTOFAGASTA PLC, SUMITOMO CORPORATION, COMPANIA DE MINAS BUENAVENTURA SA, ANGLO AMERICAN PLC, AUDLEY CAPITAL, FIRST QUANTUM MINERALS LIMITED, BOLIDEN MINERAL AB