Merger Talks
November 17th, 2008 by Antony Ganzitti
Closing Data
| current | change | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dow Jones | 8497.31 | -337.94 | -3.8% |
| NASDAQ | 1516.85 | -79.85 | -5.0% |
| S P 500 | 873.29 | -38 | -4.2% |
| FTSE 100 | 4232.97 | 63.76 | 1.5% |
| Nikkei 225 | 8462.39 | 223.75 | 2.7% |
| SPI Futures | 3652 | -105 | -2.8% |
| All Ords | 3,726.00 | 53.6 | 1.5% |
| Oil | 57.18 | -1.13 | -1.9% |
| Gold | 742.5 | 37.5 | 5.3% |
| Silver | 9.49 | 0.69 | 7.8% |
| Aluminium | 1888 | 16.5 | 0.9% |
| Copper | 3722 | 131 | 3.6% |
| Lead | 1349 | 47 | 3.6% |
| Nickel | 11100 | 695 | 6.7% |
| Tin | 14370 | 220 | 1.6% |
| Zinc | 1199 | 53 | 4.6% |
Australian stocks are expected to start mildly lower on Monday, pushed down by a fall on Wall Street. The Group of 20 (G20) leaders met in Washington for a weekend summit to tackle the financial crisis, however fell short of announcing any new measures or major regulatory breakthroughs. The summit noted a need for broader policy responses, but largely left it to individual countries to take appropriate monetary and fiscal policy measures to revive growth.
December SPI futures dropped 64 points to 3693 or a 55 point discount to the close of the underlying SP/ASX 200 index on Friday.
The Australian Financial Review has also reported that Coca-Cola Amatil (CCL) and Lion Nathan (LNN) are in merger talks. Without citing its sources, the AFR said talks have intensified recently between parent companies Kirin and Coca-Cola Co. Discussions had originally begun 6 months ago. The deal is expected to unlock millions of dollars in synergies by cutting distribution costs and overheads and is likely to be looked on favourably by the market. The merger would also create a headache for rival Fosters.
Takeover proposal has been received by CCL and comprises: $6.15 cash and $0.469 LNN shares for every 1 CCL share. Based on Friday’s closing price for LNN of $9.10 the offer values CCL at $10.42 which is a 22 per cent premium to Friday’s closing price of $8.52.
As there is great value in the Australian share market at the present level we may see corporate activity in takeover and acquisitions increasing in future.
Important events in Australia this week:
Monday, James Hardie JHX 2nd quarter results
Tuesday, RBA minutes of November policy meeting
Macquarie Group half-year results
Lion Nathan full-year results
Wednesday, AWB full-year results
Sales of new motor vehicles
Thursday, RBA monthly bulletin
Friday, Telstra annual meeting
Important events in the US this week:
Monday, Target Corp earnings
Tuesday, Producer Price Index for October
Home Depot earnings
Wednesday, Consumer Price Index for October
Thursday, Gap Corp earnings
Friday, Heinz Co earnings
Quote – “Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve”
Dr Napoleon Hill
Contact your Freeman Fox Stockbroker on 07 3031 9960 or 1800 003 369 Ext 7.
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