insto - Australian financial markets

Listed Brisbane-based brokerage Wilton HTM has a new chief executive with the promotion of David Groth and a settlement with major shareholder Deutsche Bank. Wilson HTM has agreed to pay Deutsche, which holds a 19.9 percent stake in the company, $2.5 million a year as a percentage of its profit for the past four and a half years. The firm has lead managed, co lead managed and underwritten $3.4 billion in IPOs since 2005 as well as being involved in A$5.2 billion in M&A transactions. Two Deutsche Bank directors will stay on the Wilson HTM board.

The big economic news for the week was on the jobs front, with the February unemployment rate coming in at a seasonally adjusted 5.3 percent, up 0.1 percent on January.
Despite the lift, the focus was on the fact that full-time employment rose by 11,400 in February, while part-time employment fell by 11,000. Economists interpreted the figures as showing how firms which had put employees onto part-time work were now re-hiring them full-time, a positive sign for the economy.

NAB is reportedly looking at a capital raising of up to $3 billion to fund acquisitions, such as its bid for AXA Asia Pacific and possibly a portfolio of RBS branches in the UK.

German building and construction giant Bilfinger Berger says as many as four possible buyers are looking at its Australian unit, which could mean the asset is headed for a trade sale rather than an IPO, worth a possible A$1.5 billion.

The A$3.26 billion bid for Arrow Energy from joint bidders Royal Dutch Shell and PetroChina has kicked off the much-anticipated M&A action in Australia’s LNG and coal bed methane (CBM) sector.
Arrow holds the largest CBM acreage in Australia and is an attractive target for oil firms attempting to position themselves away from conventional energy sources. Shell has had a relationship with Arrow for several years, taking a 30 percent stake in the company’s CBM assets in 2008 and a 10 percent interest in its international operations.

The CEO of retail house Myer, Bernie Brookes, has conceded that the company went too early to the market for its $2 billion IPO under pressure from private equity owner TPG.
Announcing a disappointing $45.75 million net profit – short of the prospectus forecast – a figure which included $93.5 million in costs related to the float, Brookes said: “My inclination was always to wait but the owners made the decision, not management.”
$380 million has been slashed from Myer’s market capitalization since the November float, with the shares 16 percent lower than the offer price.

*MTN*
BNP Paribas Sydney branch (AA/Aa2/AA) launched and priced its A$750m senior unsecured MTN due on 18 Mar 2015 via BNP, NAB, and Westpac last Thursday. The $300m 6.75pct fixed rate notes have an issue price of 99.72pct to yield 6.817pct. The $450m FRN have an issue price of 100par with a spread of 3mth BBSW+110bpts/ ACGB 6.25pct Apr 2015+ 146.2bpts. The deal, with a pricing guidance of BBSW+ 115bpts, will settle on Mar 18.

New Zealand’s Warehouse Group started an offer of up to $100 million long 5-year fixed-rate retail bonds on Friday.

Details are:
Issuer: Warehouse Group
Amount: up to NZ$100m
Type: Unsecured, Unsubordinated
Issue Price: 100pct
Arranger and lead manager: Craigs Investment Partners

Minimum Interest Rate Set Date: 23 March 2010
Final Interest Rate Set Date: 28 April 2010
Maturity Date: 15 June 2015

Coupon will be paid semi-annually.

The bonds will be listed on the NZDX.

Co-managers are ANZ, BNZ, and Forsyth Bar.