A Walnut Creek real estate investment consulting firm has changed its name to Inverness Real Estate Investments.
The name change for the company, formerly known as 1031 Exchange Options, reflects its expanded roster of investment opportunities, said Cary Losson, Inverness founder and president.
Inverness offers consulting on co-ownership structured real estate, including tenants-in-common and Delaware statutory trust properties, real estate investment trusts and real estate fund investments. Its clients have completed more than 3,000 transactions, with a total value of more than $3 billion, according to a company news release.
The rebranding and additional investment offerings will help the company reach a broader market, Losson said.
"While much of our past business came from clients seeking investment properties to complete a 1031 exchange, we have seen over the past three years that our broad selection of real estate investment opportunities is drawing increased interest from direct investors," Losson said.
http://www.bizjournals.com/
Monday, March 10, 2008
Friday, March 7, 2008
How not to be misled by your advisor. 5 tips
Mis-selling and poor advice continue to plague the domain of investment and insurance products. To make matters worse, a section of advisors/agents vociferously claims that the aforementioned don't exist; others choose to justify the same by shifting the onus onto investors. Such trivialities notwithstanding, the ground reality is that mis-selling and poor advice are 'clear and present' menaces that investors routinely encounter.
Typically, by the time an investor realises that he has become a victim of mis-selling/poor advice, the damage has already been done. We thought it would be interesting to come up with a checklist of warning signals that can caution an investor of an impending investment/insurance disaster.
Now, we aren't claiming that this list is an exhaustive one. Perhaps, it wouldn't be possible to create an exhaustive list, given the numerous instances of poor advice rendered and the innovative mis-selling techniques deployed. But this can serve as a starting point for sure.
So here goes. It's time for you to be cautious if your advisor�
1. Only peddles forms and fails to offer advice
If your advisor is the kind who only approaches you for getting you invested in various avenues and offering advice doesn't feature in his scheme of things, then there is a cause for concern. An advisor's primary responsibility is to offer advice.
He is the one who should help you translate your investment objectives into monetary terms, lay out plans to help you achieve the same and get you invested in line with those plans. The advisor is also required to periodically review your plans and incorporate changes therein, if required.
While offering prompt and reliable service is important, offering accurate and unbiased advice is certainly an advisor's core responsibility. And dealing with an advisor who doesn't make the grade on the latter, could spell trouble for you.
2. Frequently churns your portfolio
Churning the portfolio is a term that investors in the mutual funds segment should be able to easily identify with. It means frequently buying and selling funds, especially of the equity variety. You can be sure that you are at the receiving end if most of this buying and selling is in NFOs (new fund offers).
Equity investing is essentially about investing for the long-term and if the advisor's recommendations were correct in the first place, there should be little need for a churn. So an advisor who frequently churns your portfolio is either incompetent or has an ulterior motive i.e. to make more money by getting you regularly invested in NFOs.
For the uninitiated, NFOs fetch higher commissions vis-�-vis investments in existing funds, thereby making them more popular among advisors. While you bear the burden of the churn in the form of entry and exit loads, the advisor makes a quick buck at your expense.
The good news for the investor is that SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) has taken concrete steps to curb mis-selling in NFOs and indications are that we are likely to see fewer equity NFOs going forward.
3. Attempts to entice you by offering rebates/kickbacks
Offering rebates/kickbacks is a practice wherein an advisor 'compensates' you for investing through him. For this he offers you a part of his commission earnings. The rebate/kickback offered is linked to the sum of investments.
Incidentally, the practice of offering rebates is explicitly prohibited in both mutual fund and insurance offerings. Without a doubt, if offering rebates is your advisor's forte, then something is amiss. He is doing so to cover up his incompetence and it is in your interest to steer clear of such advisors.
4. Only emphasises on returns and ignores risk
It is not uncommon to find advisors, whose arguments (to convince clients about the merits of any investment) revolve only around returns with the risk aspect being conveniently ignored. Any advisor worth his salt will vouch for the fact that while evaluating the worthiness of an investment avenue, the risk-return trade-off is of paramount importance i.e. both risk and return need to be accorded equal importance. Furthermore, the suitability of the investment avenue for the investor in question needs to be determined. This in turn entails understanding the investor's risk profile, needs and investment objectives. Clearly, there is much more to making an accurate recommendation than just evaluating the returns aspect. And any advisor who fails to do so, deserves a thumbs down.
Incidentally, a similar view was recently echoed by SEBI in the context of mutual fund advertisements. The regulator was of the view that the rapid fire manner in which the standard warning is recited in advertisements makes it unintelligible. Apparently, the practice of side stepping risk is not restricted to advisors alone.
5. Offers ULIPs as a staple offering for all your needs
This one's for insurance advisors. Don't get us wrong, we have nothing against ULIPs (unit linked insurance plans) or even with advisors selling ULIPs for that matter, so long as proper disclosures are in place i.e. the client is made adequately aware of the costs involved and other implications of buying a ULIP. In other words, the advisor should enable his client to make an informed decision.
However, all is not in order, if the advisor recommends ULIPs as a standard offering for all your insurance needs. It's a well chronicled fact that term plans are the cheapest form of insurance; a term plan should ideally be the first insurance product that you must add to your insurance portfolio.
More importantly, the latter can play an important role in helping you achieve a cover that is in line with your Human Life Value. Of course, offerings like ULIPs and endowment plans can be added at a later stage.
So why do insurance advisors display a penchant for ULIPs? Maybe it's the higher commission earnings in ULIPs vis-�-vis term plans that are driving the insurance advisor i.e. mis-selling.
On the other hand, maybe the insurance advisor just doesn't know better i.e. he lacks proper knowledge. Anyway, being associated with such an advisor is an unenviable proposition for you.
As always, while this article has been written for the benefit of investors, there is no reason for advisors who go about conducting their business in an ethical and righteous manner to feel annoyed. We can only admire them for their resolve in the face of intense competition and tempting commissions.
http://inhome.rediff.com/money/2008/mar/07perfin.htm
Typically, by the time an investor realises that he has become a victim of mis-selling/poor advice, the damage has already been done. We thought it would be interesting to come up with a checklist of warning signals that can caution an investor of an impending investment/insurance disaster.
Now, we aren't claiming that this list is an exhaustive one. Perhaps, it wouldn't be possible to create an exhaustive list, given the numerous instances of poor advice rendered and the innovative mis-selling techniques deployed. But this can serve as a starting point for sure.
So here goes. It's time for you to be cautious if your advisor�
1. Only peddles forms and fails to offer advice
If your advisor is the kind who only approaches you for getting you invested in various avenues and offering advice doesn't feature in his scheme of things, then there is a cause for concern. An advisor's primary responsibility is to offer advice.
He is the one who should help you translate your investment objectives into monetary terms, lay out plans to help you achieve the same and get you invested in line with those plans. The advisor is also required to periodically review your plans and incorporate changes therein, if required.
While offering prompt and reliable service is important, offering accurate and unbiased advice is certainly an advisor's core responsibility. And dealing with an advisor who doesn't make the grade on the latter, could spell trouble for you.
2. Frequently churns your portfolio
Churning the portfolio is a term that investors in the mutual funds segment should be able to easily identify with. It means frequently buying and selling funds, especially of the equity variety. You can be sure that you are at the receiving end if most of this buying and selling is in NFOs (new fund offers).
Equity investing is essentially about investing for the long-term and if the advisor's recommendations were correct in the first place, there should be little need for a churn. So an advisor who frequently churns your portfolio is either incompetent or has an ulterior motive i.e. to make more money by getting you regularly invested in NFOs.
For the uninitiated, NFOs fetch higher commissions vis-�-vis investments in existing funds, thereby making them more popular among advisors. While you bear the burden of the churn in the form of entry and exit loads, the advisor makes a quick buck at your expense.
The good news for the investor is that SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) has taken concrete steps to curb mis-selling in NFOs and indications are that we are likely to see fewer equity NFOs going forward.
3. Attempts to entice you by offering rebates/kickbacks
Offering rebates/kickbacks is a practice wherein an advisor 'compensates' you for investing through him. For this he offers you a part of his commission earnings. The rebate/kickback offered is linked to the sum of investments.
Incidentally, the practice of offering rebates is explicitly prohibited in both mutual fund and insurance offerings. Without a doubt, if offering rebates is your advisor's forte, then something is amiss. He is doing so to cover up his incompetence and it is in your interest to steer clear of such advisors.
4. Only emphasises on returns and ignores risk
It is not uncommon to find advisors, whose arguments (to convince clients about the merits of any investment) revolve only around returns with the risk aspect being conveniently ignored. Any advisor worth his salt will vouch for the fact that while evaluating the worthiness of an investment avenue, the risk-return trade-off is of paramount importance i.e. both risk and return need to be accorded equal importance. Furthermore, the suitability of the investment avenue for the investor in question needs to be determined. This in turn entails understanding the investor's risk profile, needs and investment objectives. Clearly, there is much more to making an accurate recommendation than just evaluating the returns aspect. And any advisor who fails to do so, deserves a thumbs down.
Incidentally, a similar view was recently echoed by SEBI in the context of mutual fund advertisements. The regulator was of the view that the rapid fire manner in which the standard warning is recited in advertisements makes it unintelligible. Apparently, the practice of side stepping risk is not restricted to advisors alone.
5. Offers ULIPs as a staple offering for all your needs
This one's for insurance advisors. Don't get us wrong, we have nothing against ULIPs (unit linked insurance plans) or even with advisors selling ULIPs for that matter, so long as proper disclosures are in place i.e. the client is made adequately aware of the costs involved and other implications of buying a ULIP. In other words, the advisor should enable his client to make an informed decision.
However, all is not in order, if the advisor recommends ULIPs as a standard offering for all your insurance needs. It's a well chronicled fact that term plans are the cheapest form of insurance; a term plan should ideally be the first insurance product that you must add to your insurance portfolio.
More importantly, the latter can play an important role in helping you achieve a cover that is in line with your Human Life Value. Of course, offerings like ULIPs and endowment plans can be added at a later stage.
So why do insurance advisors display a penchant for ULIPs? Maybe it's the higher commission earnings in ULIPs vis-�-vis term plans that are driving the insurance advisor i.e. mis-selling.
On the other hand, maybe the insurance advisor just doesn't know better i.e. he lacks proper knowledge. Anyway, being associated with such an advisor is an unenviable proposition for you.
As always, while this article has been written for the benefit of investors, there is no reason for advisors who go about conducting their business in an ethical and righteous manner to feel annoyed. We can only admire them for their resolve in the face of intense competition and tempting commissions.
http://inhome.rediff.com/money/2008/mar/07perfin.htm
Banks, insurance, pension funds
Banks
Banks will assume a more cautious approach to lending activity in 2008, especially in regard to retail loans, Deputy Governor of Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) Roumen Simeonov told the sixth Banks, Investments, Money conference.
Overviews of the different financial sectors and the trends in banking, insurance and pension funds were discussed at the international exhibition, which took place on February 27 to 29 in Plovdiv.
According to Simeonov, banks were becoming more conscious of households looking to borrow more than they could afford. The adjustment was more of a forward-looking change to policy than a problem that banks were facing and needed to eliminate now. There was no concern about the share of bad loans both in regard to corporate and retail loans at the moment, Simeonov said. The shift in the market, from consumer to corporate loans, that started last year was set to continue for a number of years, he said.
It was unlikely that the new risk awareness of banks would translate into fewer new loans this year, either in terms of value or number. Therefore, according to Simeonov, credit growth would remain strong but not at the same levels as in 2007.
Last year, the cumulative loan portfolio of banks rose by 63.7 per cent, with the bulk of the growth coming from corporate loans, which grew at 71 per cent. Household loans during the same period grew by 52 per cent. Corporate loans accounted for about 62 per cent of all bank loans at the end of 2007, consumer loans for nearly 25 per cent and mortgages for 13 per cent. The total cumulative loan portfolio was equal to 70 per cent of GDP.
Banks in Bulgaria had seen limited impact from the international financial crisis and were unlikely to find it difficult to procure financing for growth, Simeonov said. However, the cost of financing was expected to grow as a result of the crisis and this would cause price adjustments to banks.
Currently, 50 per cent of the banks’ financing came from deposits and the remainder from their parent companies, he said.
To ensure banks remained on course for stability, BNB will retain its conservative policy regarding the control and oversight of banks. Specifically, the central bank will raise quality requirements, as well as the requirements to maintain additional funds and liquidity in case of unexpected events. Banks will also be urged to notify customers about any risks they plan to undertake.
Insurance
The insurance discussion focused on growth. The share of the four largest insurers in Bulgaria decreased over the year, demonstrating that competition on the Bulgarian insurance market was growing, Zhivka Slavkova, head of Insurance Oversight department at the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) told the expo.
The market was also seeing double-digit growth. The sector’s gross premiums last year were up 21 per cent in absolute terms to 1.498 billion leva. After adjustments for inflation, growth in revenues was 10.8 per cent.
General insurance was the largest part of the market, with 1.264 billion leva in premiums and a year-on-year increase of 19.1 per cent. The life insurance segment reported an increase of 25.7 per cent on the year to 234.1 million leva.
General insurers paid out 454.4 million leva in indemnities, an increase of 25 per cent from 2006. Indemnities on life insurance rose by 13.6 per cent on the year to 77.3 million leva.
Last year, the share of the top four general insurers in Bulgaria declined to 52.22 per cent, and that of the top life insurers was down to 67 per cent.
Local insurance penetration, the ratio of gross collected premiums to the gross domestic product, was 2.73 per cent in 2007, an increase from 2.54 per cent the year before. Insurance density, which measures the amount of total annual premium payments divided by the population, was down from 162.38 in 2006 to 100.9 in 2007.
Pension funds
Pension funds were also expected to see fast growth, especially if the Government made the relevant legal changes, said Valentina Dinkova, director of the FSC social insurance supervision division. By 2010, the net assets of pension funds are set to increase to six billion leva and proceeds from supplementary insurance instalments to 890 million leva.
This year, supplementary pension contributions are forecast to reach 675 million leva and 780 million leva in 2009.
Dinkova called for a series of legal amendments to allow pension funds to expand and diversify the scope of their activities, including a brand new bill, which could allow pension funds to buy into bonds of large infrastructure projects. The bill, to define the procedures for the issue of bonds, could allow pension funds to buy into the securities either through the stock exchange or through a major financial institution, acting as the project’s main investor.
According to Government estimates, Bulgaria will have spent more than nine billion leva on large infrastructure projects by the end of 2015. The transport sector is expected to need more than 3.5 billion leva, environment 307 million leva and energy 5.2 billion leva.
The idea for the bill can only be developed if there is a broad discussion between the ministries, municipalities, FSC, BNB, the Bulgarian Association for Supplementary Pension Insurance Companies and the Association of Banks in Bulgaria on the subject, Dinkova said. It also has to run alongside legal amendments to the State Property Act, the Concessions Act and the Black Sea Coastal Area Act.
Other changes that might drive the operations of pension funds, are the passage of the bill on the funding of funds and the law on pension funds with a view to raising the requirements of pension licence issue.
Pension funds are also awaiting regulatory changes that could allow them invest in initial public offerings and the liberalisation of some investment limitations such as the increase of the capital in corporate bond investments.
http://www.sofiaecho.com/
Banks will assume a more cautious approach to lending activity in 2008, especially in regard to retail loans, Deputy Governor of Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) Roumen Simeonov told the sixth Banks, Investments, Money conference.
Overviews of the different financial sectors and the trends in banking, insurance and pension funds were discussed at the international exhibition, which took place on February 27 to 29 in Plovdiv.
According to Simeonov, banks were becoming more conscious of households looking to borrow more than they could afford. The adjustment was more of a forward-looking change to policy than a problem that banks were facing and needed to eliminate now. There was no concern about the share of bad loans both in regard to corporate and retail loans at the moment, Simeonov said. The shift in the market, from consumer to corporate loans, that started last year was set to continue for a number of years, he said.
It was unlikely that the new risk awareness of banks would translate into fewer new loans this year, either in terms of value or number. Therefore, according to Simeonov, credit growth would remain strong but not at the same levels as in 2007.
Last year, the cumulative loan portfolio of banks rose by 63.7 per cent, with the bulk of the growth coming from corporate loans, which grew at 71 per cent. Household loans during the same period grew by 52 per cent. Corporate loans accounted for about 62 per cent of all bank loans at the end of 2007, consumer loans for nearly 25 per cent and mortgages for 13 per cent. The total cumulative loan portfolio was equal to 70 per cent of GDP.
Banks in Bulgaria had seen limited impact from the international financial crisis and were unlikely to find it difficult to procure financing for growth, Simeonov said. However, the cost of financing was expected to grow as a result of the crisis and this would cause price adjustments to banks.
Currently, 50 per cent of the banks’ financing came from deposits and the remainder from their parent companies, he said.
To ensure banks remained on course for stability, BNB will retain its conservative policy regarding the control and oversight of banks. Specifically, the central bank will raise quality requirements, as well as the requirements to maintain additional funds and liquidity in case of unexpected events. Banks will also be urged to notify customers about any risks they plan to undertake.
Insurance
The insurance discussion focused on growth. The share of the four largest insurers in Bulgaria decreased over the year, demonstrating that competition on the Bulgarian insurance market was growing, Zhivka Slavkova, head of Insurance Oversight department at the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) told the expo.
The market was also seeing double-digit growth. The sector’s gross premiums last year were up 21 per cent in absolute terms to 1.498 billion leva. After adjustments for inflation, growth in revenues was 10.8 per cent.
General insurance was the largest part of the market, with 1.264 billion leva in premiums and a year-on-year increase of 19.1 per cent. The life insurance segment reported an increase of 25.7 per cent on the year to 234.1 million leva.
General insurers paid out 454.4 million leva in indemnities, an increase of 25 per cent from 2006. Indemnities on life insurance rose by 13.6 per cent on the year to 77.3 million leva.
Last year, the share of the top four general insurers in Bulgaria declined to 52.22 per cent, and that of the top life insurers was down to 67 per cent.
Local insurance penetration, the ratio of gross collected premiums to the gross domestic product, was 2.73 per cent in 2007, an increase from 2.54 per cent the year before. Insurance density, which measures the amount of total annual premium payments divided by the population, was down from 162.38 in 2006 to 100.9 in 2007.
Pension funds
Pension funds were also expected to see fast growth, especially if the Government made the relevant legal changes, said Valentina Dinkova, director of the FSC social insurance supervision division. By 2010, the net assets of pension funds are set to increase to six billion leva and proceeds from supplementary insurance instalments to 890 million leva.
This year, supplementary pension contributions are forecast to reach 675 million leva and 780 million leva in 2009.
Dinkova called for a series of legal amendments to allow pension funds to expand and diversify the scope of their activities, including a brand new bill, which could allow pension funds to buy into bonds of large infrastructure projects. The bill, to define the procedures for the issue of bonds, could allow pension funds to buy into the securities either through the stock exchange or through a major financial institution, acting as the project’s main investor.
According to Government estimates, Bulgaria will have spent more than nine billion leva on large infrastructure projects by the end of 2015. The transport sector is expected to need more than 3.5 billion leva, environment 307 million leva and energy 5.2 billion leva.
The idea for the bill can only be developed if there is a broad discussion between the ministries, municipalities, FSC, BNB, the Bulgarian Association for Supplementary Pension Insurance Companies and the Association of Banks in Bulgaria on the subject, Dinkova said. It also has to run alongside legal amendments to the State Property Act, the Concessions Act and the Black Sea Coastal Area Act.
Other changes that might drive the operations of pension funds, are the passage of the bill on the funding of funds and the law on pension funds with a view to raising the requirements of pension licence issue.
Pension funds are also awaiting regulatory changes that could allow them invest in initial public offerings and the liberalisation of some investment limitations such as the increase of the capital in corporate bond investments.
http://www.sofiaecho.com/
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Toll says Asian investments paying off
Transport and logistics group Toll Holdings Ltd says its investments in Asia are starting to pay off, and Toll will make more acquisitions in the region soon.
Toll reported a 10.3 per cent rise in first half profit to $236.7 million, saying earnings and cashflow would continue to grow.
Like-for-like net profit grew by 18 per cent to $248 million, excluding discontinued operations and development costs related to airline Virgin Blue, in which Toll holds the majority 62 per cent stake.
Toll managing director Paul Little said Toll's strategy of expanding into Asia was now delivering for the company, with strong underlying revenues being generated in Asia at the present time.
The outlook for Toll's Asian businesses was "very positive" as the group built scale and capability across the supply chain.
"We expect organic revenue and earnings growth to accelerate," Mr Little said.
Toll shares rose 8.09 per cent, or 76 cents, to end at $10.15.
Mr Little said Toll would continue to make "value-accretive acquisitions in Asia as they present themselves".
"Further acquisitions to support our international forwarding strategy are expected in coming months," he said.
Toll recently added to its Asian operations, taking control of Hong Kong-based freight forwarding and logistics company BALtrans Holdings Ltd.
Toll also has a small stake in privately owned, Hong Kong-based freight forwarder Cargo Services.
Last year, Toll acquired Singapore-based logistics provider Sembawang Kimtrans Ltd.
In 2006, Toll acquired Singaporean logistics provider SembCorp Logistics (SembLog) for about $1 billion.
Toll said that the Virgin Blue board was assessing expressions of interest designed to increase shareholder value.
Toll has previously indicated that it intends to reduce its stake in Virgin Blue to deploy capital to its logistics operations.
"In the last three months the VBA (Virgin Blue) board has initiated a detailed review to maximise shareholder value," Mr Little said.
"It is clear that the level of liquidity in the listed stock (Virgin Blue) is not supportive of shareholder value.
"A number of expressions of interest have been received designed to unlock value, and these are currently being assessed."
Mr Little said it was too sensitive at this stage to discuss valuation expectations.
Toll said it believed the development of Virgin Blue was proceeding well, even though it was heavily affected in the short term by fuel prices and a competitive market.
Toll said the volatility in global financial markets had not yet caused any slowdown in markets in which Toll operated.
"In fact, we see that the current financial global climate may well present some excellent opportunities for us," Toll chief financial officer Neil Chatfield said.
Toll's core logistics operations in Australia, Asia and New Zealand had all performed well so far in the second half and were generating the growth that Toll was looking for.
"So we expect a strong full year outlook," Mr Chatfield said.
Toll said that in the first half, underlying operations throughout the group had generally performed well ahead of last year.
The group's Australian operations had achieved record EBIT (earnings before interest) margins on the back of strong revenue growth and cost control.
Toll Australia continued to benefit from high volumes associated with the resources sector and a buoyant retail sector.
Margins in the group's New Zealand operations increased despite difficult trading conditions, reflecting cost controls and a selective capital expenditure program.
In Asia, revenue and earnings both grew, partly as a result of continued activity in the offshore supply and marine logistics sector, and new contracts and contract renewals in Malaysia, Vietnam and China.
Toll's revenue for the six months to December 31, 2007 rose by 8.3 per cent to $4.12 billion.
Group underlying EBIT from continuing operations and pre-Virgin Blue development costs was $431 million - up 13 per cent.
Toll declared an interim dividend of 13.5 cents, down from 16 cents last year.
http://news.smh.com.au/
Toll reported a 10.3 per cent rise in first half profit to $236.7 million, saying earnings and cashflow would continue to grow.
Like-for-like net profit grew by 18 per cent to $248 million, excluding discontinued operations and development costs related to airline Virgin Blue, in which Toll holds the majority 62 per cent stake.
Toll managing director Paul Little said Toll's strategy of expanding into Asia was now delivering for the company, with strong underlying revenues being generated in Asia at the present time.
The outlook for Toll's Asian businesses was "very positive" as the group built scale and capability across the supply chain.
"We expect organic revenue and earnings growth to accelerate," Mr Little said.
Toll shares rose 8.09 per cent, or 76 cents, to end at $10.15.
Mr Little said Toll would continue to make "value-accretive acquisitions in Asia as they present themselves".
"Further acquisitions to support our international forwarding strategy are expected in coming months," he said.
Toll recently added to its Asian operations, taking control of Hong Kong-based freight forwarding and logistics company BALtrans Holdings Ltd.
Toll also has a small stake in privately owned, Hong Kong-based freight forwarder Cargo Services.
Last year, Toll acquired Singapore-based logistics provider Sembawang Kimtrans Ltd.
In 2006, Toll acquired Singaporean logistics provider SembCorp Logistics (SembLog) for about $1 billion.
Toll said that the Virgin Blue board was assessing expressions of interest designed to increase shareholder value.
Toll has previously indicated that it intends to reduce its stake in Virgin Blue to deploy capital to its logistics operations.
"In the last three months the VBA (Virgin Blue) board has initiated a detailed review to maximise shareholder value," Mr Little said.
"It is clear that the level of liquidity in the listed stock (Virgin Blue) is not supportive of shareholder value.
"A number of expressions of interest have been received designed to unlock value, and these are currently being assessed."
Mr Little said it was too sensitive at this stage to discuss valuation expectations.
Toll said it believed the development of Virgin Blue was proceeding well, even though it was heavily affected in the short term by fuel prices and a competitive market.
Toll said the volatility in global financial markets had not yet caused any slowdown in markets in which Toll operated.
"In fact, we see that the current financial global climate may well present some excellent opportunities for us," Toll chief financial officer Neil Chatfield said.
Toll's core logistics operations in Australia, Asia and New Zealand had all performed well so far in the second half and were generating the growth that Toll was looking for.
"So we expect a strong full year outlook," Mr Chatfield said.
Toll said that in the first half, underlying operations throughout the group had generally performed well ahead of last year.
The group's Australian operations had achieved record EBIT (earnings before interest) margins on the back of strong revenue growth and cost control.
Toll Australia continued to benefit from high volumes associated with the resources sector and a buoyant retail sector.
Margins in the group's New Zealand operations increased despite difficult trading conditions, reflecting cost controls and a selective capital expenditure program.
In Asia, revenue and earnings both grew, partly as a result of continued activity in the offshore supply and marine logistics sector, and new contracts and contract renewals in Malaysia, Vietnam and China.
Toll's revenue for the six months to December 31, 2007 rose by 8.3 per cent to $4.12 billion.
Group underlying EBIT from continuing operations and pre-Virgin Blue development costs was $431 million - up 13 per cent.
Toll declared an interim dividend of 13.5 cents, down from 16 cents last year.
http://news.smh.com.au/
Porsche to use €10bn credit line for investments
Porsche showed it has as much financial opportunism as the bankers who buy its sports cars yesterday when it drew down a €10bn (£7.6bn) credit line to put it in low-risk investments.
The credit line was originally granted to the German carmaker to fund a takeover approach for Volkswagen on terms that reflected a more favourable time in credit markets. Like a sharp-eyed arbitrageur, Porsche spotted that returns from low-risk investments were now higher than the costs of borrowing the money.
"The amount borrowed will be invested free of risk at favourable interest rates and will bring in additional profit for Porsche," it said.
The move could spell trouble for banks if other companies draw down on similar credit lines, some analysts say, because they already face significant constraints on their balance sheets and the availability of funds. Also, most credit lines have covenants that restrict their use.
One London-based analystsaid: "This has to be a worrying thing for the banks involved.
"If others are also doing this it will be adding an extra strain to banks' balance sheets, on top of which you'd have to ask, 'does Porsche know what it is doing with the investments it's going to make?'"
Porsche declined to comment on how it would invest the proceeds of the loan. Originally, €35bn in credit was provided by a consortium of ABN Amro, Barclays Capital, Merrill Lynch, UBS and Commerzbank to finance a complete takeover of Volkswagen but Porsche deliberately made a low-ball offer designed to fail. However, it kept open the €10bn credit line to help it finance lifting its stake in VW from 31 per cent to more than 50 per cent.
Porsche agreed to pay interest of 20 basis points, or 0.2 percentage points, more than the euro interbank offered rate for the loan, which matures on June 27, according to Bloomberg data.
The move is another example of Porsche's use of financial trades to hunt for profit, which led to it last year making more than three times as much money - €3.6bn - from trading share options as it did from building cars.
Porsche also made large amounts of money from currency hedging earlier this decade and some analysts have suggested that it is behaving more like a hedge fund than a carmaker.
Although Porsche denied its action had any bearing on its plans for VW, it will give it a war chest on top of its considerable cash reserves to buy further shares when it pleases.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Mackenzie Investments reports total assets under management and fund sales for December
TORONTO, Jan. 3, 2008 (Canada NewsWire via COMTEX) -- Mackenzie Financial Corporation (Mackenzie Investments), part of IGM Financial Inc. (TSX:IGM), today announced preliminary total assets under management of $61.3 billion at December 31, 2007, down 0.5% from the prior year. Mackenzie Investments also reported preliminary gross mutual fund sales and mutual fund net new money for December 2007 were $593.1 million and $(65.6) million, respectively.
<<
Further information can be found below in the tables of unaudited month-
end data:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Assets Under Management 2007 2006
(AUM) ($millions) December December % Change
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mutual Funds:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Long-term mutual funds $44,640 $44,732 (0.2)%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Money market mutual funds 1,832 1,761 4.0%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Mutual Funds AUM 46,472 46,493 (0.0)%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Institutional, sub-advised and
other 14,806 15,085 (1.8)%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Assets Under Management $61,278 $61,578 (0.5)%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sales 2007
($millions) December
------------------------------------------------------------------------- Net New
Mutual Funds: Sales Redemptions Money*
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Long-term mutual funds $420.1 $556.2 $(136.1)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Money market mutual funds 173.0 102.5 70.5
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Mutual Fund Sales 593.1 658.7 (65.6)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Other retail managed products 0.0 12.5 (12.5)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Fund Sales $593.1 $671.2 $(78.1)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Net New Money is defined as Sales less Redemptions and is consistent
with the terminology now used by IFIC.>>
Additional information about Mackenzie Investments' assets and fund flows will be available on the Investment Funds Institute of Canada's website (www.ific.ca) on approximately the 15th of each month as part of a Canadian industry-wide release of monthly statistics.
Mackenzie Investments: Mackenzie Investments was founded in 1967, and is a leading investment management firm providing investment advisory and related services. With $61.3 billion in assets under management, Mackenzie Investments distributes its services through a diversified network of third-party financial advisors. Mackenzie Investments is a member of the IGM Financial Inc. (TSX: IGM: 58.32, -0.16, -0.27%) group of companies. IGM Financial is one of Canada's premier financial services companies with $121 billion in total assets under management.
SOURCE: Mackenzie Investments
Catharine Marion, Environics Communications Inc., (416) 969-2809,
cmarion@environicspr.com
http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/industries/finance/article/mackenzie-investments-reports-total-assets-management-fund-sales-december_422828_9.html
<<
Further information can be found below in the tables of unaudited month-
end data:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Assets Under Management 2007 2006
(AUM) ($millions) December December % Change
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mutual Funds:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Long-term mutual funds $44,640 $44,732 (0.2)%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Money market mutual funds 1,832 1,761 4.0%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Mutual Funds AUM 46,472 46,493 (0.0)%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Institutional, sub-advised and
other 14,806 15,085 (1.8)%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Assets Under Management $61,278 $61,578 (0.5)%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sales 2007
($millions) December
------------------------------------------------------------------------- Net New
Mutual Funds: Sales Redemptions Money*
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Long-term mutual funds $420.1 $556.2 $(136.1)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Money market mutual funds 173.0 102.5 70.5
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Mutual Fund Sales 593.1 658.7 (65.6)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Other retail managed products 0.0 12.5 (12.5)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Fund Sales $593.1 $671.2 $(78.1)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Net New Money is defined as Sales less Redemptions and is consistent
with the terminology now used by IFIC.>>
Additional information about Mackenzie Investments' assets and fund flows will be available on the Investment Funds Institute of Canada's website (www.ific.ca) on approximately the 15th of each month as part of a Canadian industry-wide release of monthly statistics.
Mackenzie Investments: Mackenzie Investments was founded in 1967, and is a leading investment management firm providing investment advisory and related services. With $61.3 billion in assets under management, Mackenzie Investments distributes its services through a diversified network of third-party financial advisors. Mackenzie Investments is a member of the IGM Financial Inc. (TSX: IGM: 58.32, -0.16, -0.27%) group of companies. IGM Financial is one of Canada's premier financial services companies with $121 billion in total assets under management.
SOURCE: Mackenzie Investments
Catharine Marion, Environics Communications Inc., (416) 969-2809,
cmarion@environicspr.com
http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/industries/finance/article/mackenzie-investments-reports-total-assets-management-fund-sales-december_422828_9.html
Canadian General Investments: Investment Update-Unaudited
TORONTO, CANADA, Jan 3, 2008 (Marketwire via COMTEX) -- Canadian General Investments, Limited (CGI: 36.15, +0.12, +0.33%) (TSX:CGI)(TSX:CGI.PR.A)(TSX:CGI.PR.B)(TSX:CGI.PR.C)(LSE:CGI) reports on an unaudited basis that its net asset value per share (NAV) at December 31, 2007 was $31.89, resulting in a one-year NAV return with dividends reinvested of 7.2% . This compares with the 9.8% return of the benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index on a total return basis for the same period.
The closing price for CGI's common shares at December 31, 2007 was $28.30, resulting in an annual market return, with dividends reinvested, of 9.5% .
CGI paid regular cash dividends of $0.24 and a special cash capital gains dividend of $1.36 per common share in 2007, representing a yield of 5.65% on the year-end closing market price.
The sector weightings of CGI's investment portfolio at market as of December 31, 2007 were as follows:
Financials 21.3%
Materials 21.2%
Energy 19.9%
Industrials 12.7%
Consumer Discretionary 8.0%
Information Technology 7.0%
Telecommunication Services 3.8%
Consumer Staples 2.8%
Utilities 1.6%
Cash & Cash Equivalents 0.9%
Health Care 0.8%
The top ten investments, which comprised 23.9% of the investment portfolio at market, excluding non-convertible preferred shares, as of December 31, 2007 were as follows:
Research In Motion Limited 4.0%
Urbana Corporation 3.2%
Rogers Communications Inc. 2.6%
TSX Group Inc. 2.3%
Cameco Corporation 2.2%
Labrador Iron Ore Royalty Income Fund 2.1%
BPO Properties Ltd. 2.0%
BMTC Group Inc. 1.9%
Canadian Western Bank 1.9%
Algoma Central Corporation 1.7%
SOURCE: Canadian General Investments, Limited
Canadian General Investments, Limited
Jonathan A. Morgan
President and CEO
(416) 366-2931
(416) 366-2729 (FAX: 5.92, +0.04, +0.67%)
Email: cgifund@mmainvestments.com
Website: www.mmainvestments.com
http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/industries/finance/article/canadian-general-investments-investment-updateunaudited_423469_9.html
The closing price for CGI's common shares at December 31, 2007 was $28.30, resulting in an annual market return, with dividends reinvested, of 9.5% .
CGI paid regular cash dividends of $0.24 and a special cash capital gains dividend of $1.36 per common share in 2007, representing a yield of 5.65% on the year-end closing market price.
The sector weightings of CGI's investment portfolio at market as of December 31, 2007 were as follows:
Financials 21.3%
Materials 21.2%
Energy 19.9%
Industrials 12.7%
Consumer Discretionary 8.0%
Information Technology 7.0%
Telecommunication Services 3.8%
Consumer Staples 2.8%
Utilities 1.6%
Cash & Cash Equivalents 0.9%
Health Care 0.8%
The top ten investments, which comprised 23.9% of the investment portfolio at market, excluding non-convertible preferred shares, as of December 31, 2007 were as follows:
Research In Motion Limited 4.0%
Urbana Corporation 3.2%
Rogers Communications Inc. 2.6%
TSX Group Inc. 2.3%
Cameco Corporation 2.2%
Labrador Iron Ore Royalty Income Fund 2.1%
BPO Properties Ltd. 2.0%
BMTC Group Inc. 1.9%
Canadian Western Bank 1.9%
Algoma Central Corporation 1.7%
SOURCE: Canadian General Investments, Limited
Canadian General Investments, Limited
Jonathan A. Morgan
President and CEO
(416) 366-2931
(416) 366-2729 (FAX: 5.92, +0.04, +0.67%)
Email: cgifund@mmainvestments.com
Website: www.mmainvestments.com
http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/industries/finance/article/canadian-general-investments-investment-updateunaudited_423469_9.html
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