Company news in brief

Clover says in takeover talks

Shares in South Africa's Clover Industries raced to their highest in almost two months on Friday after the dairy company said it is in talks with an unnamed firm that intends to acquire all its shares.

Clover, which processes products including yoghurt, beverages, cheese and olive oil, has focused on developing higher margin, value-added branded food and beverages as part of its strategy to move away from lower-margin commoditised dairy products.

The company, which has a market capitalisation of R2.73 billion, did not provide further details on the potential takeover, which comes as it recovers from a drought and depressed milk prices.

"It could be one of the private equity funds or one of the big food producers, it is unlikely to be Tiger Brands as they have had more than their fair share of problems," said Ron Klipin, portfolio manager at Cratos Wealth.

Klipin said other potential buyers could be Zeder Investments, which holds a 27% stake in Pioneer Food.

Oragroup to launch largest ever IPO on Abidjan bourse

Panafrican banking group Oragroup plans to raise 56.92 billion CFA francs (US$101 million) via the largest ever initial public offering (IPO) on the Abidjan Stock Exchange (BRVM), the company said on Friday.

The group, which operates in 12 countries in West and Central Africa, will list 20% of its equity by listing 6 million new and 7.8 million existing shares at a price of 4 100 CFA francs per share.

The underwriting will take place from Oct. 29 to Nov. 16, while the final listing is scheduled for February 2019.

With a market capitalisation of 56.9 billion CFA francs, Oragroup will remain behind Sonatel, which has the biggest capitalisation on BRVM at 1.95 trillion CFA francs. – Nampa/Reuters

Acacia Mining to force talks on Tanzania dispute

Acacia Mining threatened to use a bilateral investment treaty to force face-to-face talks with Tanzania over a long-running tax dispute that has seen the gold miner hit with a huge tax bill.

Acacia's parent Barrick Gold has been negotiating with the Tanzanian government over the issue for 19 months but no final settlement has been reached and Acacia's management stresses that it wants direct involvement in any talks.

An investment treaty between Tanzania and Britain could compel the east African country to have dialogue with Acacia over a period of six months, interim chief executive Peter Geleta told Reuters.

Acacia has lost over three-quarters of its market value since a ban on the export of unprocessed minerals was instituted last year. Tanzania banned the export of raw minerals in March 2017, introduced tough laws and hit Acacia with a US$190 billion tax charge.

Acacia maintains it has not been given the full document from a framework agreement struck by Barrick and the government a year ago that was meant to remedy these issues. – Nampa/Reuters

Intu considering bid from Whittaker's consortium

Retail property developer Intu Properties confirmed on Friday it was considering a 215 pence per share preliminary takeover offer from a consortium formed by British billionaire John Whittaker and Saudi Arabian and Canadian investors.

The consortium formed by Whittaker, Saudi Arabia's Olayan and Canadian property investor Brookfield Asset Management has been granted access to company documents to conduct due diligence with a view to making a firm offer, the company said.

The offer comes months after Intu CEO stepped down in July and it swung to a loss and warned of lower growth in rental income as it grapples with a downturn in Britain's bricks-and-mortar retail sector.

The consortium initially offered 205 pence per Intu share on Oct. 11, which was raised to 215 pence six days later, the company said.

The consideration will be reduced by any dividends or other distributions declared, payable or paid by Intu prior to completion. – Nampa/Reuters

Daimler's diesel troubles trigger profit warning

German carmaker Daimler AG said its operating profit would fall by over 10% this year, its second earnings warning since June, blaming "government proceedings and measures in various regions" as a crackdown on diesel emissions takes a toll.

Daimler warned investors it expected its full-year earnings before interest and tax to be "significantly below" last year's level. Earnings at Mercedes-Benz Cars, its main contributor, will likewise fall "significantly below" the prior-year level.

Analysts at Evercore ISI said in a note that the profit warning was not triggered by a slowdown in business, since demand for Mercedes-Benz cars remains high, but was caused by one-off factors such as regulatory and court rulings.

A hit of up to 400 million euros (US$460 million) was related to government proceedings into diesel and a European Court of Justice ruling around Mercedes' use of banned cooling agent R134a, analysts said.

The Stuttgart-based owner of Mercedes-Benz is being investigated for its diesel emissions in Europe and the United States, and last month announced chief executive Dieter Zetsche would step down in 2019 to become chairman from 2021. – Nampa/Reuters