The ASX has climbed today.
The S&P/ASX200 gained 37.00 points or 0.49% to 7,530.80 and over the last five days, the index has gained 1.60% and is currently 1.34% off its 52-week high.
Top-performing stocks in this index are Pendal Group Ltd up 19.20% and Liontown Resources (ASX:LTR) Limited up 9.51%.
Pendal shares spiked after the company announced it had received a conditional, non-binding indicative proposal from Perpetual to acquire 100% of the shares in Pendal by way of a Scheme of Arrangement.
The indicative value is $6.23 per share.
“Under the proposal, these two highly complementary businesses would combine to create a leading global asset manager with significant scale, diversified investment strategies, strong ESG capabilities and a world-class global distribution network, complemented by high quality wealth management and trustee businesses,” Perpetual said in a statement to the market.
“The combined group will be well placed to grow its asset management businesses across all key markets and channels, gain improved leverage and scalability across a unified business platform, delivering high quality client service, greater innovation, whilst meaningfully enhancing the growth profile of both companies.
“The proposal aligns with Perpetual’s strategy to grow its business globally and is strategically and financially compelling, with an initial estimate of approximately $50 million of run-rate pre-tax annual cost synergies expected, creating a clear leader in the Australian asset management market.”
As for Liontown, it extended its offtake term sheet with LG Energy Solution Ltd (LGES).
The Offtake Term Sheet with South Korean-based LGES is for the supply of up to 150,000 dry metric tonnes per annum of spodumene concentrate produced at Kathleen Valley expected to commence in 2024, representing approximately one-third of the project’s start-up SC6.0 production capacity of ~500,000 tonnes per annum.
Commenting on this announcement with LGES, Liontown’s managing director and CEO Tony Ottaviano said “our negotiations with LGES continue to build a very strong and strategic long-term partnership and we look forward to concluding this foundational agreement.”
Could ASX achieve fourth straight week of gains?
Strong demand for mining and energy stocks this week could drive the ASX higher for the fourth week in a row.
"Supported by the geopolitical disaster in Europe that has offshore investors hunting in packs for our Materials and Energy stocks, there is a sense of inevitability that the ASX200 will soon make fresh all-time highs," senior market analyst at City Index Tony Sycamore said.
"Adding to the lustre of the local equity market, the prospect of higher interest rates has started to rub the shine from the Sydney and Melbourne property markets in recent weeks.
"As the RBA is expected to leave the cash rate unchanged at 0.1 per cent, the real focus will be on any hawkish language that indicates the RBA is moving closer to hiking interest rates for the first time since 2010."
Sycamore said local investors are “itching for the RBA to get started”, and has predicted a hike in June, with a total of 170bp of hikes priced by the end of the year.
On the small cap front
- Eclipse Metals Ltd finished 23.33% higher.
- Kinetiko Energy Ltd finished 9.76% higher.
- Chase Mining Corporation Ltd finished 8.83% higher.
- Duke Exploration Ltd finished 8% higher.
- Creso Pharma Ltd finished 6.94% higher.
- Medallion Metals Ltd finished 5.56% higher.
- Tietto Minerals Ltd finished 4.40% higher.
- Core Lithium Ltd finished 3.58% higher.
- Vango Mining Ltd finished 3.54% higher.
- Yandal Resources Ltd finished 2.04% higher.