Australia | Mar 08 2007
By Rudi Filapek-Vandyck
Contrary to ongoing speculation in the market, investors should not expect a hostile takeover attempt for Origin Energy (ORG) by AGL Energy (AGK). At least that’s the conclusion drawn by SB Citigroup analysts on the basis of a speech given this week by AGL CEO Paul Anthony at a conference in London.
Similar to previous years, Citigroup organised a two day conference in the UK this week providing Australian and New Zealand companies with an opportunity to present themselves directly to European investors.
According to a report on the conference by Citigroup analysts, the AGL CEO made it clear in his presentation there would be no hostile pursuit of Origin. Full stop.
Remains the question, or course, of how trustworthy is an AGL CEO in the midst of what is widely seen as a possibly very beneficial deal to shareholders of both companies?
Is it all a ploy for an alternative approach or has Anthony just made it clear he is not into pretending and scheming to grab the opportunity?
Amongst the compatriots who also presented to the European audience was AMP (AMP) head honcho Andrew Mohl who took the opportunity to reconfirm the insurer will easily achieve its goals regarding a higher value for the company way before the 2009 deadline. According to the Citigroup report Mohl is thinking “sometime in 2008” instead.
Investors looking for soon to be announced deals may want to put Macquarie Bank (MBL) on their radar with Deputy Managing Director Richard Sheppard reportedly flagging a soon to be announced purchase of another small company like the Cook Inlet trading business. Citigroup believes such a deal would give the bank some new people and capability inside the US.
A company that has little intention of announcing any deals anytime soon appears to be Tabcorp Holdings (TAH) with the analysts stating MD/CEO Mathew Slatter did his utmost best to “downplay all probing on potential opportunities in UK market and elsewhere”.
On the other hand Macquarie Infrastructure Group (MIG) may be about to release some disappointing traffic figures. At least that’s what the analysts thought CEO Stephen Allen was trying to flag in London. Apparently it all has to do with bad winter affecting traffic on US roads in combination with capital works done.
For capital management initiatives investors are definitely at the right address as far as Brambles (BXB) is concerned, but CEO David Turner doesn’t want another share buyback, he said. As a result the company is busy reviewing alternative and tax efficient ways to conduct its widely anticipated capital management. Citigroup reports Turner saying it was all taking a lot of time and far from a straightforward exercise.
Don’t discount Woolworths (WOW) when it comes to capital management. Apparently MD/CEO Michael Luscombe told the conference the company would be ready in early 2008 to undertake capital management initiatives. This, of course, under the assumption management doesn’t find a suitable acquisition target instead.
To top it all off, Cochlear (COH) CEO Chris Roberts initiated his audience into how management is putting in place great efforts to make the company’s supply chain leaner and meaner.
It’s all about speed, Citigroup explains. Management has already achieved that orders can now be filled in 14 days compared with 28 days previously. The past twelve months have seen the company invest in infrastructure distribution in China, the UK and the US. The beauty of all this is that the benefits have yet to trickle through to the company’s bottom line. Well that’s what Roberts believes anyway.