REA Group is one of the first big listed groups to report next week and there’s high hopes over what it will deliver.
Expectations are that REA, which counts News Corp, publisher of The Australian, as its major shareholder, holding 61 per cent, will prosper with more listings expected to hit the market.
Consumers have been holding on for some time with the rising cost of living, and with increased unemployment, now’s the time that more property owners will bite the bullet and opt for a sale.
REA’s share price has increased $235 to $246.95 in the past month, with its market value at $32.6bn.
Last year, the company tried to buy its UK rival Rightmove for at least $12bn, but the offer was rejected.
REA said at the time the British company’s share price had “lacked any sustained upward momentum for two years” despite being supported by a share buyback and a revised strategy announced last year.
Rightmove’s share price is currently £6.51 and last year, REA was offering about £7.70 so it would not be the right price for a revised tilt at its target.
Meanwhile, Navis Capital now has bankers at Jefferies and Morgan Stanley preparing documents for the sale of Device Technologies and is expected to come to market within weeks.
Big private equity firms out of Asia like EQT, Affinity Equity Partners and TPG Capital are considered to be the most likely buyers.
Pacific Equity Partners was also a keen buyer last time it was for sale.
Navis Capital purchased Device Technologies in 2018 for just over $700m from Pemba Capital and its founders when it was earning about $70m annually.
Device Technologies generates profits by securing Australian distribution rights for products from overseas companies for at least 10 years and getting them on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods.
It operates in Australia, New Zealand and Asia in the areas of Robotics, Orthopaedics, Critical Care, Microsurgical Robotics, Cardiothoracic Surgery to name just some.
Meanwhile, there’s no news yet as to whether Permira is bringing back the country’s largest radiology provider, IMED, to the market anytime soon.
Last year, Macquarie was considering a purchase for $3bn but a deal never eventuated.
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