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The Andromeda Metals Ltd (ASX: ADN) share price is losing ground today despite a series of updates for its Great White Kaolin project.

The Andromeda share price is down 8% trading at 20.5 cents at the time of writing.

What did Andromeda announce?

Offtake agreements

Earlier this month, the Andromeda share price surged as much as 27% to 27.5 cents following a significant binding offtake agreement for the supply of kaolin product.

The offtake agreement secured a much higher price to what was used in the company’s pre-feasibility study, of A$700/tonne for ceramic grade material.

Additionally, the offtake agreement introduces a second product stream of ultra-bright, high-purity kaolin product, known as “Great White PRM’. The company says this will provide the benefit of product diversification and assist in managing offtake market risk.

Today’s announcement advises that Conrad Partners, a commodity marketing agency, has engaged with high end ceramic users in China to secure additional offtake agreements for Andromeda. Some potential customers have previously signed letters of intent for Great White products. Conrad aims to translate potential interest into binding offtake agreements.

Additionally, Andromeda is in advanced discussion with potential customers located in Europe, the Middle East and other parts of Asia for the Great White refined halloysite-kaolin product.

Definitive feasibility study update

Andromeda advises that its definitive feasibility study (DFS) is “well advanced” but has only focused on the production of Great White CRM for the ceramics market.

The recent binding offtake agreement for Great White PRM for the coatings and polymer market will need to be incorporated into the DFS.

Mining lease application

Andromeda previously lodged a mining please application with the South Australian Department for Energy and Mining (DEM) on 25 February 2021.

The company forecasts the receipt of the mining please approval by mid-2022 in line with DFS and bankable feasibility study (BFS) completion.

Other updates

Andromeda is testing the potential use of its halloysite-kaolin product as a rheology modifier product for the concrete industry. The company has successfully lodged a patent and is currently undertaking additional test work. It said the addition of halloysite-kaolin to concrete could potentially reduce concrete costs, lower carbon footprint and improve performance for concrete suppliers.

The potential concrete application is currently in a testing phase and product marketing has yet to be performed. The company advised that this is unlikely to be included in the DFS.

Andromeda entered into a memorandum of understanding with AEM to use its patented process to make high purity alumina (HPA) using kaolin back in May.

Today’s announcement advised that HPA studies are progressing and samples have been provided to AEM for testing.

The Andromeda share price in 2021

Despite today’s positive list of updates, the Andromeda share price has slipped 6.67% to 21 cents today.

It’s possible today’s sharp fall could be exacerbated by the 1.8% drop in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO).

The Andromeda share price is down 32% this year, with a year-to-date low of 16 cents.

The post Andromeda (ASX:ADN) share price slides 8% despite positive updates appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why the Minotaur Exploration (ASX:MEP) share price is up 22% today
• Why the Andromeda Metals (ASX:ADN) share price is surging 20% today
• The Andromeda (ASX:ADN) share price is soaring 7% today. Here’s why

Kerry Sun has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.  The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: TLX) share price has been among the worst performers on the All Ordinaries on Monday.

The biopharmaceutical company’s shares were down as much as 14% to $5.53 at one stage.

Despite this, the Telix share price is still up more than 300% over the last 12 months.

Why is the Telix share price crashing today?

The weakness in the Telix share price on Monday appears to be due to a combination of broad market weakness, profit taking, and slight concerns over a study update this morning.

In respect to the latter, this morning Telix released an update on its study of TLX101 in combination with external beam radiation therapy in recurrent glioblastoma multiforme.

According to the release, Telix has decided to cease recruitment after dosing a tenth patient in this recurrent disease (second line) treatment setting. This was well short of its original recruitment target.

Nevertheless, the company has been pleased with the interim analysis of safety and preliminary efficacy. It feels the data is sufficiently encouraging to warrant study in front-line therapy, where radiation therapy is more extensively used.

What is TLX101?

TLX101 is currently under evaluation for the treatment of recurrent glioblastoma multiforme at five sites across Australia and Europe. Recurrent glioblastoma is a highly aggressive cancer that progresses rapidly and has very few effective treatment options.

Telix’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Colin Hayward, commented: “We are highly encouraged by the safety profile of this single arm dose-escalation study, where different dosing regimens have been combined with external radiation therapy.”

“Whilst a small study of ten patients, promising overall survival and anti-tumour response observed from longitudinal imaging supports the decision to progress this candidate into an earlier line of therapy. A follow-on study is currently in planning to accelerate the development of TLX101 in this important therapy area with high unmet medical need,” he added.

The post Here’s why the Telix (ASX:TLX) share price is crashing 14% lower appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• The Telix (ASX:TLX) share price has rocketed 12% today. Here’s why.

James Mickleboro owns Telix shares. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Where has the year gone? It’s nearly the end of June already, prompting a tax time refresher for ASX share investors.

As per usual, the Australian financial year ends on 30 June. Now don’t be alarmed, but that’s only 9 days away. Between now and then there are a few things to think about regarding your ASX share transactions.

Tax time certainly isn’t one of the most exciting parts of the share market. But it can have big impacts on your returns. So, what can you do to be best prepared and informed this year?

Have you sold some ASX shares?

The most obvious tax implication for most investors will come in the form of capital gains and dividends. While any dividends paid to you will be considered as ordinary income, capital gains are a little more complex.

In the event you have sold some ASX shares, any profits will be subject to capital gains tax (CGT). However, the duration of ownership is important. If you have owned the shares for less than 12 months, the full profit will be subject to tax at your marginal rate.

On the other hand, if the investment was held for more than 12 months, you will only pay tax on half of the profit.

For example, if you sold 50 shares in Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) last week at $105 a piece that you bought late last year for $68 each – the full $1,850 profit would be taxed at your marginal rate. Whereas, if you had bought the same CBA shares a couple of years ago, you’d only be taxed on $925.  

Offsetting ASX share gains with losses

Furthermore, disbanding a losing investment from your portfolio like A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M) comes with its own tax implications. The main thing to know is that any losses incurred can be used to offset any realised profits.

If A2 Milk or some other ASX shares are in the doldrums and you would rather crystallise the loss, cutting the line on a losing position isn’t a complete negative. For instance, a $1,000 loss on A2 Milk could bring that $1,850 profit on CBA down to $850 come tax time.

Remember that even there were no profit-making sells this year, a realised loss can be carried forward to future financial years as well.

Easy to forgets

When collecting all the documents for this tax year, there’s a few things that are easy to forget but are very important.

Firstly, any micro-investing apps such as RAIZ Invest Ltd (ASX: RZI) and Spaceship will have likely incurred some taxable returns for you to report. Jump across and gather the tax statements to establish any taxable returns.

Secondly, cryptocurrencies… If you have bought and sold any amount of cryptocurrency, this will need to be reported. Despite the marketing of ‘privacy’, the Australian Tax Office (ATO) can determine if any transactions with the digital asset have occurred thanks to the ‘know your customer’ regulations across exchanges.

Lastly, if you do sell an ASX share for a loss, be sure not to invest in it again the following financial year. This is known as a ‘wash sale’ and the ATO certainly doesn’t allow it.

Get the help of a tax advisor

In reality, the above commentary skims the surface of tax considerations and implications when it comes to ASX shares. A qualified tax advisor can help make light work of these matters and save you a pretty penny. And a dollar saved is worth more than a dollar earned — because you don’t pay tax on a dollar saved.

More money in your back pocket means more money for future great investments. Whether that is investing in the broad market through the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) or tech high-flyers like Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT).

The post Selling some ASX shares before tax time? Here’s what you should know appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO and Commonwealth Bank of Australia. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended A2 Milk. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Boral Limited (ASX: BLD) share price reached a new milestone this morning. In early trade, Boral shares hit a one-year high of $7.06 before partially retreating. At the time of writing, shares in the construction materials company are swapping hands for $6.79 – up by 0.15%.

By comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is down by a whopping 1.87%.

The price jump came after the company announced the sale of its North American business and guaranteed the term of its CEO and CFO for at least one more year.

Let’s take a closer look at today’s news.

Why the Boral share price is in the green

Boral shares are defying the wider market selloff today following the company’s latest update.

But before delving deeper into the ASX statement, it’s worth noting the announcement could have an impact on the proposed offer by Seven Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: SVW) to take over Boral. This morning, Boral updated its target statement to reflect the North American sale and shoring up of the CEO and CFO positions. Seven has not yet released any further updates regarding its takeover bid following Boral’s news.

Sale of North American business

In its first statement, Boral declared it had sold its North American building products business to a subsidiary of Westlake Chemical Corporation (NYSE: WLK) for US$2.15 billion.

The sale is subject to the usual processes and conditions, according to Boral. Though the company expects the sale to be finalised within the first half of FY22.

Boral CEO and managing director Zlatko Todorcevski said:

We are pleased to announce that we have entered into an agreement to sell Boral’s North American Building Products business, which is expected to unlock significant value for Boral’s shareholders. This agreement follows an extensive market testing process in which we received strong interest from a broad range of high calibre potential buyers.

The Board will determine the most appropriate way to return surplus capital to shareholders taking into account the availability of franking credits, the relative share price and the preferences of Boral shareholders as a whole.

Updated CEO and CFO arrangements

In its second statement, Boral said it will “strengthen” the job security of its CEO, Zlatko Todorcevski, and CFO, Tino La Spina. To that end, the company is guaranteeing neither will be removed from their positions without cause until July 2022. If Boral breaks this arrangement, it will be liable to pay either manager the bonus that would be owed to them up to July 2023.

Boral share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, the Boral share price has increased by more than 80%. As stated, the company is subject to a takeover approach by Seven Holdings. The Boral board has asked its shareholders to reject the offer, saying it undervalues the company.

Based on the current Boral share price, the company has a market capitalisation of around $8 billion.

The post Why the Boral (ASX:BLD) share price just hit a 52-week record appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) could be one of the ASX dividend shares to consider for income.

Coles operating segments

The parent business has a number of different operating segments. There’s Coles supermarkets – it has more than 800 across the country. Coles also offers Coles Online for customers to buy products digitally.

Coles Group also has over 900 stores with brands like Liquorland, Vintage Cellars and First Choice Liquor.

Coles Express is one of Australia’s biggest fuel and convenience retailers, with over 700 sites.

It owns half of flybuys that has over eight million active members. There is also Coles Financial Services, which provides insurance, credit cards and personal loans in Australia.

How is the Coles dividend going?

The latest movement with the dividend was the FY21 half-year result. That was where the Coles board decided to increase the dividend by 10% to 33 cents per share.

That brought the rolling 12 months of dividends to 60.5 cents per share. At the current Coles share price, that means the trailing grossed-up dividend yield is currently 5.25%.

Commsec dividend forecast numbers suggest further dividend growth in FY22 and FY23.

The FY22 dividend is predicted to be $0.62 per share. Then there’s growth of almost 5% of the dividend in FY23 to $0.65 per share.

By the time FY23 ends, Coles is expected to have a grossed-up dividend yield of 5.6%.

Profit pays for dividends

Businesses pay for their dividends from the profits that they make each year.

Coles has seen profit increase materially since the onset of COVID-19.

In the first six months of FY21, not only did Coles experience high single digit sales growth but it experienced operating leverage which helped grow profit faster.

HY21 sales revenue increased by 8.1%, earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) grew by 12.1% and net profit after tax (NPAT) went up 14.5% to $560 million. Earnings per share (EPS) also increased 14.5% to 42 cents.

That result included significant levels in its digital consumer sales growth, with an increase of 61%. That was partly thanks to strategic investments made in the user experience and capacity leading to significant improvements in the perfect order rate and customer satisfaction.

One of the factors that is driving margins higher is the own brand revenue. Half-year own brand revenue grew 10% with 11 own brand products winning ‘product of the year’ awards.

Coles is working on its business with its ‘smarter selling’ strategy that is on track to produce more than $250 million of cost savings in FY21.

Some of those initiatives include better flow of fresh foods with a more efficient supply chain, providing greater shelf life. It’s looking for profit protection with optimising the markdowns of its products and loss prevention (entry gates, public view monitors etc).

Data and technology enhancements are also planned to be used to reduce manual handling of cartons and improve availability for customers.

At the current Coles share price, it’s valued at 22x FY21’s estimated earnings according to Commsec. . 

The post Why Coles (ASX:COL) might be a good ASX share for dividends appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended COLESGROUP DEF SET. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Shares in Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) are nose-diving today despite the company not releasing any price-sensitive news. At the time of writing, the Qantas share price is $4.67 – 3.81% less than its previous closing price.

For comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is down 1.77% today.

While Qantas hasn’t released any news to the ASX today, it has announced yet another benefit from its newly expanded agreement with Alliance Airlines. Let’s take a look.

Darwin’s delight

Qantas has launched a new service allowing almost 1000 passengers per week to travel directly between Canberra and Darwin.

The service will take advantage of the E190 jets provided to QantasLink through Qantas’ deal with Alliance Airlines. The expanded agreement has seen QantasLink making use of 4 more aircraft that can each seat 94 passengers.

QantasLink is now flying return between Canberra and Darwin up to 5 times each week.

According to Qantas, it’s the first time in 9 years that the capitals will be directly linked by air.

The airline introduced this latest boost to Darwin services in response to strong demand.

Qantas is operating more frequent flights and flying larger aircraft to Darwin from other Australian capital cities, particularly for the tropical city’s peak tourism season which runs from July to September.

According to Qantas, it’s increased its passenger capacity for flights between Melbourne to Darwin by 120% compared to what it was before COVID-19 hit Australia. Return flights from Sydney, Perth, and Adelaide to Darwin have also increased their capacities by 60% since the pandemic hit.

Commentary from management

QantasLink’s CEO John Gissing commented on the new routes, saying:

With no other airline currently operating on the route, the direct flights will save business and leisure travellers more than two hours travel time on a round trip instead of flying via other capital cities.

More visitors to Darwin will be great for the Northern Territory economy with flow on benefits for local businesses in their recovery from the impact of COVID.

These flights also provide travellers from regional New South Wales with a convenient gateway to the Northern Territory and they’re launching just in time for a holiday during the colder winter months.

Qantas share price snapshot

2021 hasn’t been a great year so far for the Qantas share price.

Currently, shares in Qantas have fallen by 4.89% year to date. However, they have gained 11.46% since this time last year.

The airline has a market capitalisation of around $9.5 billion, with approximately 1.8 billion shares outstanding.

The post The Qantas (ASX:QAN) share price is falling today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The MetalsTech Ltd (ASX: MTC) share price is rocketing higher today. Shares are currently trading for 26 cents, up 10.6% in early afternoon trade having earlier posted gains of 20%.

Below we take a look at the latest resource update from the ASX gold share.

What update did MetalsTech announce?

MetalsTech’s share price is soaring today after the company reported a major Mineral Resource upgrade at its Sturec Gold Project in Slovakia.

The new Mineral Resource estimate for Sturec is 44% higher than the prior estimate. The ASX gold miner said that 93% of the Mineral Resource falls under the Measured and Indicated categories.

According to the release, the Mineral Resource also includes a higher grade subset of 6.25Mt @ 3.27 g/t AU and 19.4 g/t Ag containing 658,000 ounces of gold and 3.89 million ounces of silver using a cut-off grade at 2 g/t gold.

The new Mineral Resource estimate includes the “high-grade, southerly plunging mineralisation zone” the company targeted in its recently completed drill campaign.

Commenting on the Mineral Resource, Russell Moran, MetalsTech’s chairman said:

Sturec is proving to be a very generous ore body with tremendous resource growth potential. At over 1.5 million ounces of gold, we are well on our way to proving up a world class gold deposit. We will deploy drilling equipment in the coming weeks as we look to further grow the resource base with step out drilling, as well as exploring some higher risk, high impact discovery drilling of some exciting targets regionally and at depth.

Moran added that the planned additional drilling will offer more data for another resource update later this year along with a maiden scoping study.

MetalsTech said that Sturec mine has historically produced more than 1.5 million ounces of gold and 6.7 million ounces of silver.

MetalsTech share price snapshot

Over the past full year MetalsTech shares have gained 82%, well ahead of the 23% gains posted by the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO).

Year-to-date the MetalsTech share price has continued to be a strong performer, up 22% so far in 2021.

The post Here’s why the MetalsTech (ASX:MTC) share price is rocketing 11% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why the MetalsTech (ASX:MTC) share price is rocketing 81% higher

The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Aussie Broadband Ltd (ASX: ABB) share price has been flourishing on the ASX this year. Shares in the telecommunications company have gained 40.5% since the start of 2021.

At the time of writing, the Aussie Broadband share price is $2.84.

That’s around 50% more than it was at the company’s initial public offering (IPO) in October last year.

Let’s look at what Aussie Broadband has been up to lately.

News driving the Aussie Broadband share price

The first time we heard from Aussie Broadband this year was when it released a trading update in late January.

The company stated it was expecting its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to be between $6.9 million and $7.4 million for its first financial half-year – meaning it was set to smash its prospectus’ predicted EBITDA of $12.66 million for the full 2021 financial year.

The update saw shares in Aussie Broadband close for 7.6% higher than they did in the previous session.

Then, in mid-February, the company released its results for the half-year ended 31 December.

The period saw Aussie Broadband’s revenue increase by 89% – above its prospectus’ forecast of 84.1%.

Additionally, its EBITDA reached $7.3 million. 

The company’s share price gained 6.6% on the back of its results.

Aussie Broadband released exciting news on 13 April that saw its share price close 4% higher than the previous session.

The company introduced its new white-label solution. The white-label solution will allow large retailers to provide their customers with some of Aussie Broadband’s services through their own brand.

Aussie Broadband expects its white-label solution’s first large retailer to provide it with 25,000 more customers.

The final time we heard from Aussie Broadband was in late May, when it upgraded its full-year guidance and named its first white-label customer.

Aussie Broadband advised it expected to record EBITDA of between $17 million and $20 million for the 2021 financial year, excluding the costs of its IPO. That’s 38% to 62% higher than it previously predicted.

Aussie Broadband also announced its first white label customer will be Origin Energy Ltd (ASX: ORG).

The news saw the Aussie Broadband share price end the day 1.8% higher than its previous session.

The post The Aussie Broadband (ASX:ABB) share price has gained 40% in 2021 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Aussie Broadband Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Aussie Broadband Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Coda Minerals Ltd (ASX: COD) share price is firmly in negative territory today. This comes after the mineral explorer provided an update on its recent equity raise.

During mid-morning trade, Coda Minerals shares are swapping hands for $1.26, down 9.03%

Placement update

Investors are scrambling to sell Coda Minerals shares as the company prepares to dilute existing shareholder value.

According to its release, the mining outfit announced it has received $14.4 million in firm commitments by a way of placement. The offer saw significant oversubscription from both institutional and sophisticated investors.

In total, 12 million new ordinary shares will be added to its registry at a price of $1.20 a pop. This represents a discount of around 4.1% to the 5-day volume weighted average price (VWAP) until 16 June 2021. However, the 12 million shares will join the 69.7 million already on its registry.

Coda Minerals will use its existing placement capacity to create the new shares. Under listing rule 7.1, this allows up to 15% of its total shares to be issued without shareholder approval.

The proceeds of the placement will see Coda Minerals fund an exploration programme at the 70%-owned Elizabeth Creek Copper Project in South Australia. The company will also tap into its existing cash reserves to accelerate resource drilling activities.

Coda Minerals will have approximately $21.5 million in the bank after costs of the placement.

It’s expected the placement’s new shares will be settled on 25 June 2021, with allotment following thereafter on 28 June.

Coda Minerals chair, Keith Jones commented, “We are absolutely delighted with the strong support received from the market.”

“The next six months promises to be a transformational period for Coda shareholders.”

The Company remains on track to deliver its Mineral Resource Estimate at the Emmie Bluff Copper-Cobalt Deposit in the second-half of 2021.

Coda Minerals share price summary

It’s been an exciting month for Coda Minerals shares, having accelerated to astronomical highs. The company’s share price hit an all-time high of $1.75 on 16 June, before plummeting today.

On valuation grounds, Coda Minerals commands a market capitalisation of around $87 million.

The post Coda Minerals (ASX:COD) share price sinks 9% after placement update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here’s why the Coda Minerals (ASX:COD) share price just rocketed 235%
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Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Mercury NZ Ltd (ASX: MCY) shares are edging lower in morning trade after the company released news of an acquisition. At the time of writing, the Mercury share price is down 1.83% to $5.89. For context, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is also trading lower, currently down 1.81%.

The New Zealand energy provider advised today it has entered into binding agreements to acquire Trustpower Ltd‘s retail business.

Trustpower is an energy and telecommunications company based in New Zealand and listed on the New Zealand stock exchange.

Let’s take a closer look at today’s news from Mercury.

Proposed acquisition

According to Mercury’s release, Trustpower’s retail business provides electricity, gas, fixed and wireless broadband, and mobile phone services to around 231,000 New Zealanders.

At 52%, more than half of Trustpower’s customers use two or more of the company’s services.

Once combined, Mercury and Trustpower would hold around 780,000 connections, spanning both power and telco services.  

According to Mercury, Trustpower will bring in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation, and foreign currency (EBITDAF) of $55 million annually and provide $35 million of cost synergies across both businesses.

Mercury intends to pay NZ$441 million in cash to acquire Trustpower.

However, before the acquisition goes ahead, several conditions must be met.

Firstly, Mercury must obtain clearance from New Zealand’s Commerce Commission. Some of the Commerce Commission’s responsibilities including enforcing fair trading and competition, and regulating the nation’s energy and telecommunications sectors.

Additionally, Trustpower’s shareholders must approve the acquisition.

Mercury also requires the Tauranga Energy Consumer Trust (TECT) to complete its proposed restructure before it will finalise the acquisition.

The TECT was established in 1992 after substantial reform of New Zealand’s electricity market. The community-owned TECT now holds 26% of Trustpower’s shares.

Mercury expects all of these conditions to be met and the acquisition finalised by the end of the year.

Despite the seemingly positive news, investors are driving the Mercury share price lower on Monday, roughly in line with the wider market.

Commentary from management

Mercury chief executive Vince Hawksworth commented on the acquisition:

Mercury and Trustpower are two highly complementary organisations, and this agreement would see the best of both being brought together for our customers.

We know customers value the convenience and ease of bundled services in their home and Trustpower has deep expertise in bundling products in a way that people clearly appreciate…

Customers will continue to enjoy all the great services and support they have today with Trustpower and with Mercury. And we’re looking forward to unlocking even more benefits and products for them over time.

Mercury share price snapshot

The energy company has not been having the best year so far on the ASX, with the Mercury share price falling 6.06% year to date. However, Mercury shares have gained around 27% since this time last year.

The company has a market capitalisation of around $8 billion, with approximately 1.3 billion shares outstanding.

The post Mercury (ASX:MCY) share price dips despite acquisition news appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Mercury (ASX:MCY) share price falls after earnings downgrade

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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