Implats has mopped up even more Royal Bafokeng Platinum shares. This means that Implats has secured a 31.94% stake, slightly lower than Northam Platinum's stake which cost that company R180 per share to build. All eyes in the market are on this transaction and speculation is rife that there might be a bidding war. I would simply remind investors that speculating on deal dynamics is one of the riskiest ways to invest your money.
In a surprising turn of events that set tongues wagging on Twitter, Ascendis shareholder activist Harry Smit was part of a s164 arrangement that saw Ascendis pay him R1.19 per share. Smit claimed on Twitter that this was done to "set a floor" of the fair value before his involvement as an activist. A few tweets later, he also called it a "clever trade" - an ill-advised attempt at a joke. Smit hosted a Twitte r Space afterwards to try and set the record straight. We haven't heard the last of this story.
Industrials REIT is moving closer to being, well, an industrial REIT. The fund will sell a health and leisure club for around GBP10 million, leaving just one non-industrial property in the fund: a portfolio of four care homes in Germany held in a joint venture. Unsurprisingly, the sale of the club was at a 17% discount to the accounting book value, as the gym industry is struggling. Separately, the REIT has acquired a property in Glasgow for GBP5.25 million on a net initial yield of 5.6%.
Mining giant BHP has decided to move ahead with its "unification" - a change from a dual-listed corporate structure with two parent companies into a single parent company that will be listed on the same exchanges that the company is currently found on (Australia, London and the JSE). There is no change in the operations of the busines s or the dividend policy.
The Foschini Group (TFG) will acquire Quench, one of the last-remaining on-demand delivery apps in the market that hasn't been bought by a major retailer. This will be in an effort to improve its online shopping platform. Although the SENS doesn't say this so bluntly, the rationale behind a deal like this is always that it is easier to buy the technology than to build it.
Tharisa is a PGM and chrome business that has released its annual results for the period ended September. Revenue increased 46.9% and HEPS shot up by 126.6%. The dividend increased by even more, up 157.1% to 9 US cents per share.
Jubilee Metals closed 7.1% higher after releasing results for the year to June. Revenue increased 143% and HEPS was up 113%. Despite this, there's no dividend.
Hammerson has announced that its FY21 adjusted earnings should be no less than GBP60 million, provided there is no further Covid disruption in December. Footfall in the UK and Ireland is still around 10% down vs. 2019 and France is worse, 15% lower than pre-pandemic levels.
Labat Africa has secured R300 million in committed equity capital from GR Global Ventures LLC, an investment group in the US. Naturally, I Googled this entity and found absolutely nothing useful, so read into that what you will - the circular should have more information. The commitment takes the form of a put option, which suggests that Labat can access the funding whenever it wants at a strike price of the 30-day VWAP. In addition to the R300 million, the agreement includes the issue of 30 million warrants at a price of R0.50, approximately double the current share price. The funding will be used to roll out the cannabis operations.
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Have a terrific weekend!
The Finance Ghost
