The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) dropped 0.14% to 6,111 points.
There were plenty of reports and other updates from the ASX today:
A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M)
A2 Milk announced today that it is engaged in discussions with Mataura Valley Milk (MVM), a New Zealand dairy nutrition business, to explore options for A2 Milk to participate in manufacturing at MVM's facility in Southland, New Zealand.
After some discussions, A2 Milk advises that it made a non-binding indicative offer to acquire a 75.1% interest in MVM for a total consideration of approximately NZ$270 million, based on an enterprise value of around NZ$385 million.
MVM has now agreed to provide A2 Milk a period of exclusivity to conduct confirmatory due diligence and negotiate definitive transaction documentation.
The ASX 200 share explained that the exclusivity arrangements are being supported by MVM's current majority shareholder.
A2 Milk CEO Geoff Babidge said: "As previously announced, due to the increasing scale of our nutrition business, we have been assessing participation in manufacturing capacity and capability. The potential investment Mataura Valley Milk's recently commissioned facility, alongside China Animal Husbandry Group, aligns with this strategic objective as we look to complement and build upon our current strategic relationships with Synlait Milk Ltd (ASX: SM1) and Fonterra Shareholders' Fund (ASX: FSF) which remain in place. Our intention would be to invest further to establish blending and canning capacity at Mataura's facility to support the establishment of a fully integrated manufacturing plant for infant nutrition."
The A2 Milk share price went up 1%.
Suncorp Group Ltd (ASX: SUN)
Suncorp reported its FY20 result today.
The Australian insurance division saw net profit fall by 33.9% to $384 million. The banking & wealth profit dropped by 33.5% to $242 million. New Zealand profit after tax was flat at $245 million.
Total profit after tax from ongoing functions dropped 26.8% to $871 million and cash earnings fell 32.8% to $749 million.
However, total net profit for the ASX 200 share jumped to $913 million thanks to a large after-tax profit from the sale of the Capital SMART and ACM Parts businesses.
Suncorp decided to pay a final dividend of $0.10 per share, bringing the full year dividend to $0.36, down 48.6% from last year.
Suncopr is maintaining a conservative stance during this period and it has increased its allowance for natural hazards by $130 million to $950 million as well as purchasing aggregate excess of loans reinsurance cover.
The Suncorp share price went up 11%.
BWX Ltd (ASX: BWX)
Natural beauty business BWX reported that its net revenue rose by 26% to $187.7 million. The gross margin increased to 58%.
Sukin revenue increased by 55% to $81.7 million. Andalou Naturals sales rose by 10% to $53.3 million. Mineral Fusion sales went up 16% to $28.4 million. Nourished Life sales went up 15% to $24.1 million.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 30% to $27.5 million and statutory net profit jumped 59% to $15.2 million.
The BWX board decided to declare a final dividend of 2.6 cents per share.
BWX's net debt improved over the year from $42.8 million last year, to $32 million at the end of FY20.
BWX said it's well positioned to capture further market share with an expanded offering and a protected supply chain as it core business continues to support essential services (such as pharmacies and supermarkets) whilst meeting changing demand trends.
The company is aiming to achieve ongoing growth in revenue and EBITDA of at least 10% in FY21 and said it remains well positioned for long-term, sustainable growth.
BWX also said its outlook has been further boosted by a $4.5 million one-off benefit to FY21 following agreement on the final consideration payable under the Egide Compensation Plan to the sellers of the Andalou Naturals business, with no impact on the carrying value of Andalou Naturals.
