Hello Saragian and I hope you are well.
I have been stalking your charts with enormous appreciation -BINAMAIFL !and challenger up 8% today and you are an incredible analyst (I figured this out long ago ) and I forgive you absolutely for sabotaging my poetry classes.
-it was probably an expression of kindnesses.
Thank you - on behalf of me and all the more silent ones who gain from your (multiple) kindnesses.
Meanwhile at Bega I wonder who the new executives will be (two are now required I think?)
..and it seems that (once again) Bega may be considered as NOT be a bidder in the Lion Drink sale as I seem to remember it was paired with Asahi:
Cheers
Japanese drinks giant Asahi has pulled out of the race to buy Lion Dairy and Drinks as the troubled sales process shows further signs of struggling to nail down a buyer.
The decision by Asahi to down tools on putting together a bid for the business, owned by Japanese rival Kirin, has left just one serious buyer in the hunt.
Coca-Cola Amatil and Freedom Foods have joined to prepare an offer that will be put to Kirin and its advisers, Deutsche Bank and Greenhill, on March 29.
There is speculation that Chinese buyers could also remain in the hunt but such a move would likely be viewed negatively by the Foreign Investment Review Board and the government.
A reduced number of bidders means Kirin’s chances of getting the price it wants for the businesses is dramatically cut.
It’s thought that Kirin’s bankers have been seeking more interest from overseas parties to try to add some last-minute competition.
Kirin has made the decision to sell its specialty cheese business separately to the rest of the portfolio, which centres around white milk.
The sale of milk processing plants to Chinese buyers would be expected to trouble the Coalition’s Nationals partners, who have questioned farmland and agricultural deals in the past.
Selling the LDD portfolio has been a tough process from the start given the businesses that have been included in the deal. The toughest selling point has been the Dairy Farmers, Pura and Masters white-milk brands, which are traditionally loss-making businesses. The brands are facing the effects of the drought, supermarket competition and political pressure not to raise prices for consumers.
The best performing parts of the drinks business are the iced coffee and flavoured milk brands but they rely on the existing production facilities and supply chains for white milk. The portfolio for sale includes more than 30 milk and juice processing plants and a small number of dairy farms.
One aspect that has hampered Coca-Cola Amatil from buying into flavoured milk in the past is that it does not have a cold chain network.
The Asahi decision to pull out is sure to surprise observers who have been watching the LDD deal since it was announced in October last year.
Asahi was seen as a natural buyer given it was thought to have wanted to expand its Australian brands of Schweppes and existing juices like Spring Valley. Juice brands Berri, Daily Juice and Mildura are part of the Lion offering. The decision will also come as a blow for Rothschild, which has been advising Asahi on a transaction in the past few months.
JOURNALIST
Scott Murdoch is The Australian’s Data Room co-editor and has been a journalist for 20 years. He is a former China Correspondent for the newspaper and was based in Beijing for more than three years. Scott has p... Read more”
BGA Price at posting:
$4.56 Sentiment: None Disclosure: Not Held
(20min delay)