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Due diligence

August

AFR

Real estate portal Domain the ultimate fixer-upper for Nine’s board

It’s Australia in 2024, and property is (still) king. Getting the one-time growth engine firing again would make for some very happy shareholders.

  • Jemima Whyte
Inghams director Tim Longstaff said he opposed 24-hour trading at a proposed GYG in Sydney suburb of Mosman.

Inghams director warns: Guzman y Gomez store will attract ‘riff-raff’

Behind the minor fracas is a bigger question about whether the country’s biggest poultry producer can continue to squeeze big profits from fast food chains.

  • Jemima Whyte
It’s not a gun: DroneShield chief Oleg Vornik

DroneShield: a capital markets plaything or the real deal?

Even as sceptics question its valuation, the drone detection and jamming group has a near $1 billion market capitalisation.

  • Jemima Whyte

July

Sierra Rutile mines 20 per cent of the world’s rutile, used in paint.

Why M&A arb funds are sitting out ‘the trade of the year’

Sierra Rutile has caught the eye of London’s ‘most daring emerging markets fund’, a Sierra Leone mining contractor and a global commodities trader in a three-way bidding war.

  • Jemima Whyte
Rupert Murdoch and Lachlan Murdoch in 2022. The family controls both News Corp and Fox Corporation.

A letter and PowerPoint about News Corp made this activist fund $120m

A failed bid to merge with Fox Corporation pointed out the inherent value in a couple of News Corp’s assets. One investor cashed in on the rise.

  • Sam Buckingham-Jones
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Tesla cars in front of the company’s plant in California. The carmaker has several supply agreements with Australian miners, including Liontown.

Liontown lithium supply test of faith for Tesla after BHP nickel halt

Nickel and lithium have had a rocky ride over the past 18 months. But the outlook cannot be wider for the biggest local players in each commodity.

  • Brad Thompson
Superloop and Aussie Broadband are stealing share of the internet broadband market from Telstra, Optus and TPG Telecom

Competition for broadband intensifies as consumers crack down on bills

Small telcos such as Superloop and Aussie Broadband have been stealing internet customers from Telstra, TPG Telecom and Optus as consumers shop around.

  • Jenny Wiggins
Solomon Lew has been one of the country’s most successful retailers. After years of conflict with Myer, he and the department store appear to be on the same page.

Solomon Lew’s surprise role model? Vegas mogul Sheldon Adelson

Like the colourful businessman, the billionaire rag trader won’t stop building his empire. And Myer, with a new chief, is finally playing ball.

  • Updated
  • Jemima Whyte

June

Chinese steelmaking may have peaked, with the country’s shrinking population posing a multi-decade headwind for mining industry profits and government revenue.

Deterra’s big-ticket bet on lithium royalties faces tough reception

After years of being criticised for high costs and inaction, Iluka-backed Deterra Royalties has bid for Trident Royalties and is facing a backlash, again.

  • Jemima Whyte
PEXA says the governments’ planned path to e-conveyancing competition doesn’t deal with the main issues.

PEXA drags feet on breaking up its own monopoly, pleasing investors

While shareholders are hopeful of overseas riches, the property settlement platform is facing the threat of its stranglehold on e-conveyancing being broken.

  • Jemima Whyte
Lifestyle Communities managing director James Kelly in 2011.

Only way to lose on Aussie property? Top short defies doubters

Lifestyle Communities, one of the market’s most shorted stocks, was a key hedge fund bet at the Hong Kong Sohn conference.

  • Jemima Whyte

May

Microsoft Surface Pro devices will feature a new AI assistant known as Copilot, which the company hopes will boost sales.

Why Harvey Norman, JB Hi-Fi could be AI winners

Microsoft is making big bets on faster, more sophisticated computers. Harvey Norman, JB Hi-Fi and Officeworks could be unexpected beneficiaries.

  • Jemima Whyte
The duo have signed a $200 million deal to stay on the air together for another 10 years.

ARN Media’s M&A record holds out for elusive win

After seven months, the dream of an ARN-Southern Cross combination fell apart. But if history is any guide, M&A has been a source of unease for ARN investors.

  • Jemima Whyte
Healthscope has a contract with the NSW government to run the public wing of Northern Beaches Hospital until 2038.

Brookfield’s Healthscope debt trap is a mess for everyone involved

The investment giant is bringing its punchy approach to restructuring – and tactics more often found in the US – to Australia as it works on the hospital group.

  • Jemima Whyte
Rio Tinto CEO Jakob Stausholm says collapsing the DLC is not a priority.

Time for Rio Tinto dual-listing rethink with Anglo American in play

Trading the spread between the value of Rio Tinto’s dual-listed London and Australian shares is usually the province of specialist arbitrage funds. But BHP’s tilt at Anglo American has it back in focus.

  • Jemima Whyte
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April

 BHP CEO Mike Henry.

BHP has UBS, Barclays in corner as it eyes mega Anglo American deal

Sources close to discussions said negotiations were at an early stage and other miners were interested in the London-based producer of platinum and copper.

  • Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport
SkyCity’s Adelaide casino has been refurbished, but the company faces allegations it allowed billions of dollars of dirty money to be washed through its operations.

Another casino operator is in trouble. Nobody is talking about it

Star Entertainment has been tearing itself apart. But SkyCity is also in a world of pain, with lenders sceptical, money tight and management in disarray.

  • Zoe Samios
Lendlease CEO Tony Lombardo knows investors want urgency.

Why this time might be different for serial underperformer Lendlease

A demerger is often the go-to solution for companies weighed down with an underperforming division. But it might not stack up for under-pressure Lendlease.

  • Jemima Whyte

What is Macquarie’s secretive green investment arm even worth?

Valuations of renewable assets are volatile, and exits remain hard. At least one investor thinks the banking giant should get itself out of the business.

  • Jemima Whyte

March

Pejman Okhovat says that staff retention is improving, and that makes centres more stable.

G8 tries to escape childcare’s returns quagmire

The biggest listed player in childcare posted better profit results. But after years in the shareholder doldrums, many hurdles to consistent profit loom.

  • Liam Walsh

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/topic/due-diligence-1mqi