+++ MAGNA - Australiens Warren Buffet wird Grossinvestor - Info zu Milliardaer Pratt - 500 Beiträge pro Seite

[Informator]

MAGNA PACIFIC

Australiens Warren Buffett, Richard Pratt, kauft knapp 20% an Magna.

Pratt ist der zweitreichste der Multimilliardaere Australiens (AU$ 3,8 Mrd.) und der aktivste und erfolgreichste Privatinvestor in Australien, mit seinem Vehikel “Thorney Holdings”.

Kerngeschaeft von Pratt ist die Visy-Gruppe, der weltweit groesste nicht boersennotierte Hersteller von Verpackungen, Recycling-Papier und Wellpappe.

Thorney’s Investment-track record ist extrem erfolgreich, Artikel weiter unten geben einen Ueberblick des Portfolios, der Thorney-Strategie, und heben einen Aehnlichkeiten mit Magna aufweisenden Fall hervor, Funtastic (FUN.AX), dessen Aktie seit 2002 um mehr als 500% gestiegen ist.

Ziel des Investments: “Magna ist bisher stark organisch gewachsen (d.h. ohne Akquisitionen), wir untersuchen nun strategische Initiativen, um das Wachstum weiter zu beschleunigen”.

Ein Pratt-Vertrauter wird vermutlich die Chairmanship uebernehen. Clive McKee, der als Chairman Magna von einer kleinen Videothekenkette zum groessten DVD-Unternehmen gefuehrt hat, wird wohl zum “normalen Direktor”, so dass Pratt entscheidenden Einfluss nehmen kann.

Thorney erwirbt 9 Millionen neue Aktien zu 38 cents und 9 Millionen Optionen mit Strike 48 cents (fuer 2 cents pro Option), und wird mind. 9 Mill der alten Optionen ausueben, falls die derzeitigen Optionshalter dies wider Erwarten nicht tun sollten.

Magna fliessen also 4 Mio sofort zu, weitere 4.5 Mio nach Optionsausuebung der neuen Optionen. Ca. 15 Mio kommen Anfang 2004 wohl durch die alten Optionen (WKN 552486) herein, dazu kommt der Cash-Bestand von 6 Mio, insgesamt sind dies knapp 30 Mio.

Magna waere wohl fuer ca. weitere 30 Mio LBO-Kredit gut, wenn man sich den Cash-Bestand, die gute Ertragslage, und Pratts Standing im Markt ansieht.

Ich vermute, dass Magna zum Medienarm Pratt’s augebaut werden soll. Ob Magna 500% macht, wie Funtastic, ist offen, aber dass Magnas Kurs neue Dimensionen sehen wird, halte ich fuer ziemlich sicher.

Magna: WKN 901889, Optionen: 552486)

HIER EINE ARTIKELSAMMLUNG:

1. Pratt Nr. 2 im Australien-Milliardaers-Ranking

2. “The Master Class”, Artikel vergleicht 3 Milliardaers-Investment-Vehikel, mit Portfolioperformance (aus 2002). Auch Thorney’s aktive Investmentphilosophie wird beschrieben: Zitat des Thorney-CEOs und Pratt Schwiegersohns Waislitz: "We know this market," Waislitz says. "We can be a catalyst for change (within these companies)."

3. “The Money Men” ueber erfolgreiche Privatinvestoren, insbesondere Pratt.

4. Info zu Visy (Flaggschiff-firma von Pratt)

5. Info zur Akquisition von FUNTASTIC, einem Fall, der an Magna erinnert.

ARTIKEL 1:
Richard Pratt: Zweitreichster Multimilliardaer rueckt naeher an die Nr. 1 Australiens, Kerry Packer, heran:

22 May 2003
Dow Jones International News

SYDNEY -(Dow Jones)- Kerry Packer`s personal fortune has shrunk around A$400 million in the last year, but the 65-year-old Australian media and entertainment mogul remains the country`s wealthiest individual, according to BRW magazine`s annual "Rich 200" edition.
BRW estimates Packer`s wealth at A$5.5 billion, giving him a comfortable lead over Richard Pratt, Melbourne`s "cardboard box king", whose fortune is put at A$3.8 billion.
Frank Lowy, the head of the Westfield property group, has slipped to third place from second, his wealth dropping to A$3.7 billion from A$4.2 billion on account of a weak stock market, said the magazine.
The top 10, and the primary source of their wealth, is listed as follows:
Kerry Packer (media and entertainment)
Richard Pratt (paper and packaging, investments)
Frank Lowy (shopping centers)
John Gandel (shopping centers)
David Hains and family (investment)
Harry Triguboff (property)
Kerry Stokes (industrial equipment and media)
Bob Oatley and family (wine)
John Roberts (construction)
Marc Besen (clothing)
BRW said the combined wealth of Australia`s richest 200 people is A$63.2 billion, down from A$64.9 billion a year ago. Some 98 listed members increased their wealth and 64 saw their wealth fall.
Property helped many defy the fall in the stock market, with 48 of the Rich 200 in that industry.
Most on the list are self-made millionaires or billionaires.
And many are in their 60s or 70s, and still go to work each day, the magazine said.

ARTIKEL 2:
RICH 200 Today

The Master Class

By James Thomson
At the end of each year, Alex Waislitz, the head of the Pratt family`s investment company Thorney Holdings, throws a party for members of the investment community. Some of Australia`s leading stockbrokers and investment bankers attend, and Waislitz awards a gift, such as a vintage Ferrari or a luxury speedboat, to the person who has given Thorney the best advice during the year. It may seem like an extravagant gesture, but it is a measure of the importance many Rich 200 members place on their stockmarket success. ALEX WAISLITZ: "We can be a catalyst for change" Image: FairfaxAlthough most members of the Rich 200 have made the bulk of their fortunes in specific industries - the Pratt family operates the paper and cardboard manufacturer Visy Industries and the Millner family is best known for its involvement in the pharmaceutical retailer Washington H. Soul Pattinson - some have also become master investors. Examining the investment strategies and philosophies of the Pratt family`s Thorney Holdings, the Darling family`s Caledonia Investments and the Millner family`s publicly listed investment vehicle, Choiseul Investments, is a valuable exercise for any investor looking for stockmarket success. In 2001, the stockbrokers and bankers missed out on Thorney`s prize for excellent advice. Instead, the chief executive of the snack-food and biscuit manufacturer Snack Foods, Simon Rowell, took home a 30-foot Scarab speedboat, worth about $100,000. Thorney owns 30.3% of Snack Foods, which includes brands such as Samboy, Thins and Cheezels, and the rise in its share price in the year to May 1 from 94 cents to $1.52 increased the value of Thorney`s stake by about $22 million, to $57.7 million. Waislitz formed Thorney in 1991 with seed capital of $1.15 million in the form of a parcel of shares given to him by his father-in-law, Richard Pratt. Thorney`s portfolio is now worth an estimated $300 million. The company has a staff of 10 and three departments: a share trading division, a property development business and a strategic investment division, the largest and most important division. Thorney`s investment strategy is simple. Waislitz looks for a senior executive team that is desperate for success and willing to work hard. "People who are setting the direction and rolling up their sleeves and actually doing the work," he says. Thorney will then acquire between 5% and 30% of the company, and work with its management to improve the performance of the business. All of Thorney`s investments are in listed companies with market capitalisations under $200 million. "We know this market," Waislitz says. "We can be a catalyst for change (within these companies)." Thorney`s investments include the traffic management technology company Redflex Holdings, the homewares manufacturer McPherson`s, and Centennial Coal. Waislitz is more interested in picking good stocks than having a balanced portfolio. "I don`t really care how the All Ordinaries does." He does not demand a standard return on capital, preferring to assess each company according to the industry it is in and the stage of its growth. Thorney attempts to develop a regular dialogue with the board and senior management of the companies in which it invests. This may include taking a seat on the company`s board (Waislitz sits on the boards of Snack Foods and McPherson`s). "We try to get out and touch and feel and see what is going on," he says. Waislitz and his team offer advice. He says the companies are not always responsive to his advice, but Thorney`s shareholding ensures it "will get a hearing at least". If its advice is not heeded, Thorney is prepared to flex its muscle. Recent changes to the board at Redflex, which is 5.6% owned by Thorney (a stake that is worth about $1.3 million), were rumored to be the work of the Thorney team. In March, Redflex`s chairman, Barbara Yeoh, was replaced by Phillip Scanlan, and in February this year its chief executive, Russell Baird, resigned. "We were supportive of changes at the board level," says Waislitz. Redflex`s share price has fallen from $1.71 in May 2001 to just 78 cents. Thorney`s investment in Snack Foods is a good example of its strategy. Thorney bought into Snack Foods in 1998 at about 47 cents a share, when the company was called Dollar Sweets and had a market capitalisation of $42.3 million. It supported the company strongly; for example, in 1998, Thorney used its own cash to guarantee the company when it bought some snack-food brands from PepsiCo. Unlike many members of the Rich 200 who have stayed well away from technology companies, Thorney has invested in this sector. In addition to its investment in Redflex, it bought 1.8% of the biotechnology company Cellestis in April last year for $200,000. The company`s share price has since risen from 25 cents to $1.41, and although Thorney sold 57% of its initial investment, it still holds a 0.4% stake, worth $493,500. While Waislitz and Thorney look for small companies in which to invest, the managing director of Caledonia Investments, Ian Darling, concentrates on blue-chip companies, such as Patrick Corporation and Perpetual. Darling is proud of his investment theories. So proud, in fact, that he made a film about them. Woodstock for Capitalists is a 60-minute documentary that follows the journey of Darling and his fellow Caledonia director, Mark Nelson, as they travelled to the United States in 2000 to meet legendary investor Warren Buffett at the three-day annual general meeting of his investment company, Berkshire Hathaway. Darling and Nelson are Buffett fans, and the documentary is a tribute to his no-nonsense investment style. Buffett, who bought his first stock at the age of 11, tries to find companies with low overheads, high growth potential, strong market share and a low price/earnings multiple. He advises investors to ignore stockmarket trends and the recommendations of analysts, and concentrate on analysing companies. Caledonia, like Berkshire Hathaway, tries to keep things simple. Nelson says in the film: "It`s a reaffirmation of common sense. And I think you`ve got to admit there`s no substitute anywhere for common sense in investing. It`s one or zero, it`s black or white. Don`t faff around with discount rates and saying `is it sort of half good or better than the last thing?` or whatever. It`s either good or bad, and if it`s bad, don`t worry with it. Just leave it alone. Get rid of it. Go for good." Caledonia bought into Patrick Corporation in 2000 when its share price was about $9.90. The price has since increased rapidly, jumping 51.7% to $16.61 in the 12 months to May 1, valuing Caledonia`s 1.7% stake at $45.5 million. Other Caledonia investments also did well last year. Shares in United Group, an engineering company, increased 57%, to $3, during 2001, lifting the value of Caledonia`s stake from $3 million to $5.2 million. There are some opportunities for regular punters to invest alongside members of the Rich 200. Choiseul Investments - which began in 1911 as Choiseul Plantations, operating coconut plantations on the islands surrounding Papua New Guinea - is one such way. Choiseul became a listed investment company in 1987; it has a market capitalisation of $269 million and assets of $261.3 million. Robert Millner, the nephew of renowned Australian investor Jim Millner, chairs the company. Jim Millner made his name as the chairman of Washington H. Soul Pattinson and the related company Brickworks. His canny ability to pick stocks has prompted comparisons to Warren Buffett. "I aim to get a 20% return," he has said. "I`m not in Buffett`s league but I do have a similar philosophy. He is in for the long haul and he is very conservative." Jim has now passed the running of the business to Robert and his cousin and fellow Choiseul director, Michael Millner. Together, the three men own about 40% of Choiseul, a shareholding that is worth $105 million. Choiseul`s investment strategy is simple. Robert Millner says: "We buy for the long term and we rarely sell. We look for good Australian companies that all pay a dividend." Choiseul is not a speculative investor and capital profits are re-invested. Banks account for 39.6% of Choiseul`s assets, with investment and financial services companies representing 19.3%, and insurance companies 5.3%. Its largest holding is a $44.3 million stake in National Australia Bank. Choiseul has an $18.5 million investment in Washington H. Soul Pattinson, where Robert Millner is chairman and Michael Millner is deputy chairman. JIM MILNER: "I`m not in (Warren) Buffett`s league, but I do have a similar philosophy" Image: Stuart DavidsonChoiseul has continually outperformed the accumulation returns of the All Industrials index and the All Ordinaries index. Over 10 years, Choiseul`s compound annual return to shareholders has been 14.7%, compared to the 11.6% return of the All Ordinaries and 12.8% from the All Industrials. Over the past year, Choiseul has returned 23.5%, compared to 9.1% from the All Industrials and 10.5% from the All Ordinaries. Each year for the past four years, the company has paid dividends in excess of 50 cents (including special dividends). Although most investors do not have the capital to make the big stockmarket plays that Waislitz, Darling and Millner can make, their strategies offer some valuable lessons. Always invest in businesses that are easy to understand and where the growth potential is obvious. Always try to pay a bargain or fair price. If in doubt, invest in conservative, blue-chip companies such as banks and financial services companies. And always remember Warren Buffett`s two golden rules: "Rule one: never lose money. Rule two: always remember rule one." On the radar screenWhere are the private investment companies of members of the Rich 200 planning to spend their money this year? Alex Waislitz, who runs Richard Pratt`s Thorney Investments, is looking at the life sciences industry. The biotechnology sector has been hot this year and Thorney has invested in PanBio (which makes diagnostic kits for detecting infectious diseases), Cellestis (which has a patented technology that is used to detect tuberculosis) and Optiscan Imaging (which develops high-magnification flexible endoscopes, used to view internal parts of the body). Thorney will also expand its property division this year, and has about $100 million of developments "in the pipeline". The company is particularly keen on retirement villages and has started developing a site in the Melbourne suburb of Burwood. Robert Millner, who helps control large investment portfolios at Washington H. Soul Pattinson, Brickworks and Choiseul Investments, says he is not sure how to read the current market. "I think the market is very hard to predict and it`s very hard to buy long term." He says banking stocks still look good. "They have more than outperformed the market over the past 10 years."


The money men
By James Kirby
From Australia`s BRW Thursday, 13 February 2003.

Of Australia`s three richest people - Kerry Packer, Frank Lowy and Dick Pratt - only Lowy has not emerged as an investor in life sciences. Pratt, the most active investor among the super-rich, makes his investments through Thorney Holdings, a private-equity company run by his son-in-law, Alex Waislitz.
JOE SHAW: "To succeed, you have to make alliances, you have to get into bed with elephants" Image: Paul Jones
Thorney Holdings has holdings in a string of life sciences companies including the drug researcher Amrad, the medical testing company Kinacia and Ambri, which makes medical devices.
Separately, the Victorian Government has asked Pratt (who made his fortune through recycled paper), Lindsay Fox (transport) and Frank Costa (fruit and vegetables) to find a way to recycle much of Melbourne`s sewage water. Within that project there are plans to use nanotechnology to monitor water quality though biosensors and, ultimately, to search for an answer to the salinity problem.
But it is through Thorney Holdings that Pratt and Waislitz have enlivened the life sciences sector. Waislitz is a star of the Australian private-equity market. Starting with $1.1 million given to him by Pratt in 1991, he has built a portfolio of about $300 million, stretching from hardware to confectionery.
Asked why he is willing to enter the high-risk world of life sciences investments, Waislitz says: "As an investor, you must concentrate on today, but you also have to look forward at what tomorrow`s investments will be.
"Right now in life sciences you are getting a convergence of computer power and emerging technologies like nanotechnology. When you get this combination there is bound to be a tremendous amount of opportunity and as an investor you want to be in there.
"Of course, there are problems with management and with loose discipline in capital expenditure, but I am thinking about the upside. I think the bigger issues for the sector right now are to do with management. First we have to get life sciences out of the university environment. Then we have to get professional management into the life sciences companies. If these companies are still run by the scientists who founded them you get many problems, especially when it comes to making priorities with certain science projects," he says.
One of the top people in Waislitz`s portfolio is Joe Shaw, chief executive of Ambri. A spin-off from the Pacific Dunlop conglomerate, Ambri specialises in critical-care devices that can be used in various locations.
Shaw, an outspoken American who has spent his career with NASDAQ-listed companies, is the antithesis of a scholarly scientist. "This is a tough market at any time," he says, "and to succeed you have to make alliances, you have to get into bed with elephants. When you work at that level, management has to be able to deal at international level."
Ambri signed a joint venture with "big pharma" in November when Dow Corning, in conjunction with Genencor International, agreed to take a combined 7% stake in the company and to test some of its devices.
Kerry Packer`s engagement with life sciences has been more erratic. He has been associated with a string of companies, notably Leon Serry`s Circadian Technologies, a life sciences portfolio investor. Last year, as part of a post-One.Tel withdrawal from diversified investing activities, Packer quietly quit the Circadian share register. However, he remains a shareholder in Syngene, a genomics company within the Circadian group, and he is on the share register of the unlisted drug delivery company Acrux.
Business establishment figures in the swim with Packer at Acrux are a good indicator of the changing investment attitudes towards the life sciences market. Acrux, which specialises in technology for applying drug doses directly to the skin, has the chairman of the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX), Maurice Newman on its share register. Newman, chairman of Acrux for the past three years, is about to be replaced by a former chief executive of Carlton and United Breweries, Nuno D`Aquino. Acrux is also a new life sciences investment for Melbourne poker-machine entrepreneur Bruce Mathieson. Behind the float is board member Ross Dobinson, who was once head of corporate advisory at Dresdner Australia.
In August 2002, the Perth animal science company Imugene got on to the ASX via a backdoor listing. The share register includes the unlikely figure of Harold Clough, chairman of the listed engineering company Clough.
In January, the Smorgon family became investors in the peptide manufacturer Peptech through the private-equity company Escor. Commenting on Escor`s investment strategy, its chief executive, Andrew Maxwell, says: "We are in the business of creating value through private investments. We are always looking for new opportunities, especially where the company has moved beyond the start-up stage. But there is still a very strong potential for further growth." Joining the Smorgon family in the Peptech placement were ING and AMP.
Superannuation funds and other institutional investors have been concerned about the mixed record of Australian life sciences and have been slow to enter the sector. One exception is the Queensland Government`s Queensland Investment Corporation (QIC), which has a $260 million portfolio, including holdings in two pre-float companies, Acrux and Proteome Systems.
Neil Colledge, head of research at QIC, says: "Investors are going into this area because the talent and track records are here. Global companies can emerge from Australia like ResMed and Cochlear, that started from nothing. It is very different to the dot-com era, I can`t stress that enough. This is long-term investing. We are the least excitable people in the world."
Despite claims to the contrary, life sciences can be a speculator`s dream. Although life sciences companies have long lifelines, they can enjoy huge price increases when various milestones, such as clinical trials, are achieved. An indicator of increased speculative activity is the arrival in the industry of survivors of the minerals boom and the dot-com boom. Among this group is Bryan Frost, executive chairman of investment company Peregrine Corporate.
In the 1990s, Frost was riding the dot-com boom as executive chairman at Trans Global Interactive, an internet gaming company. Over the past two years, he has been making investments across the life sciences sector, notably at the biotechnology commercialisation company Prima Biomed and alongside the Liberman family in the Alzheimer`s drug company Prana Biotechnology. (The Liberman family, through Jagen Investments, is also an investor in the drug delivery researcher Eiffel Technologies.)
On January 23, a Frost company, Select-Tel, signed a joint-venture agreement to commercialise vaccine science at the Macfarlane Burnet Institute for Medical Research and Public Health in Melbourne. Frost, a director of Select-Tel, says: "There has been a lot of new money going into the life sciences in the past two years. Private investors and institutions are looking for a big upside here.
"We understand the market and we understand management, the science is understood by the scientists. I`ve been involved in speculative investments since the 1970s and the mining boom. I`ve also been through the whole dot-com cycle. Let me tell you, the rules are the same.
"In mining, you always make sure you have four holes running. You can`t just depend on one. But, as in mining, the big companies will not take the risks in life sciences that smaller companies are willing to take. So there is a process where the smaller companies make the discoveries and then they sell those discoveries at a big profit. Life sciences is extremely similar, and, as far as I can see, Australia is only just being discovered."

Visy Industries Profile
www.visy.com.au
http://www.visy.com.au/overview/our_future.asp
http://www.visy.com.au/Downpage/home_main.asp?Content=1
Our Future
As the world`s largest privately owned paper recycling and packaging company, Visy Industries` long-term global strategy is to provide our customers with the world`s best recycling and packaging service.
Visy`s integrated recycling, paper making and packaging system provides and ideal platform from which to achieve this goal.
In the past five years Visy has invested more than $1 billion in its Australian, New Zealand and North American recycling, paper and packaging operations.
By continuing to reinvest in these operations we ensure that they remain efficient and technologically advanced. We also ensure that our customers benefit from continually improving quality, service and innovation.
As Visy enters our second half-century we have identified a number of key areas for future growth.

Richard Pratt, Overview:
Visy Industries was established in Melbourne, Australia in 1948 and has grown to become one of the world’s largest privately-owned paper recycling and packaging companies. In 2001, Visy employs more than 8000 people in Australia, New Zealand, and the USA. Total manufacturing revenues exceed $2.5 billion and total manufacturing assets exceed $3 billion.
During its first 30 years of operations Visy Industries’ activities concentrated on the manufacture of corrugated cardboard boxes.
In 1979 the company made a decision to begin supplying its own packaging paper needs and built its first paper recycling mill. The Visy group now operates eight paper recycling machines – six in Australia and two in the USA. Together these machines produce more than 1.2 million tonnes of 100% recycled packaging paper annually.
In February 2001, Visy acquired Southcorp Packaging, now named VisyPak, adding new products such as PET bottles and jars, aluminium and tinplate cans, paperboard cartons and rigid plastic packaging to its core corrugated packaging business. The acquisition effectively doubled the size of Visy’s packaging operations in Australasia.
With the addition of VisyPak, Visy now operates more than 100 packaging factories and recycling sites across Australia, New Zealand and in the South East and Mid West of the United States.
Visy Industries has four major operating divisions. They are:
Visy Recycling, which collects waste paper and other recyclables for recycling
Visy Paper, which recycles collected waste paper into packaging paper
Visy Board, which makes corrugated cardboard boxes from the recycled packaging paper

VisyPak, which produces a wide range of consumer and industrial packaging including PET bottles and jars, aluminium and tinplate cans, paperboard cartons and rigid plastic packaging.
Visy Industries is committed to recycling and the environment. In 2000 the company won the prestigious Triple Bottom Line Award from the Australian Institute of Engineers (Victoria), and was voted Australia’s leading company for environmental performance in a National newspaper survey.
Visy is currently constructing a $400 million, plantation pine based, unbleached kraft pulp and paper mill at Tumut in New South Wales, Australia. The project, which will produce 240,000 tonnes of unbleached brown packaging paper, is an investment in Visy’s continued ability to recycle well into the 21st century.

THORNEY HOLDINGS

Thorney Holdings is the Pratt family`s investment arm. Established in 1992, Thorney adopts a strategic approach to its investments, typically investing in smaller Australian public and non-public companies which have the desire and potential to grow but lack the capital


FUNTASTIC:

One of many success stories of Pratt/Thorney Investors:

Kid product / TV series merchandising group FUNTASTIC

Until 2002, a growing, profitable business in an interesting market, but small, Investment of Thorney allowed a strategically fitting major acquisition.

(www.funtastic.com.au).
FUN.AX

Chart since 2002 (24 months) from AU$ 0.32 to AU$ 1.82 (nearly + 500% in 2 years!)
http://www.stockhouse.com.au/comp_info.asp?drawChart=1&origi…

Articles confirming the extremely impressive track record of Billionaire Pratts’ investments:

Thorney Makes Trash Its Treasure As It Hunts Down Investment Opportunities
Ian Porter
8 September 2003
The Age

© 2003 Copyright John Fairfax Holdings Limited. www.theage.com.au. Not available for re-distribution.
Finding sound investments that will produce good returns is a key motivation for Alex Waislitz. Ian Porter reports.
When Thorney Holdings recently popped up on the share register of rubbish and waste operator Baxter group, it looked out of character.
The Visy group`s investment arm has substantial holdings in companies in distribution, technology, financial services and manufacturing, and has even made money in biscuits.
But rubbish looked a bit left field, even though Thorney chief Alex Waislitz says his company will invest in any sector as long as the company is soundly run and has potential.
He has an eye for potential. In the 10 years since father-in-law Dick Pratt established Thorney with a "pretty small capital base" Waislitz has managed to build up Thorney`s corporate portfolio to "several hundred million dollars".
"Primarily, Thorney has invested in a lot of manufacturing, financial services, distribution and industrial services companies," he says.
"In that sense, as an industrial service provider Baxter fits right in."
It fits even better considering the shareholding deal struck by Thorney came with a proposal to form a joint venture between Baxter and Visy Recycling.
One of the rubbish industry`s smallest companies - Baxter is worth around $100 million - had landed a deal with one of the industry giants, which, if its value was made public, would be measured in the billions.
Baxter operates three rubbish dumps in the south-eastern suburbs of Melbourne, one for household waste and two for inert waste such as building materials.
"It has strategically positioned itself in the Melbourne growth corridor and is clearly going to have a growing amount of waste that is going to find its way to the landfill site," Waislitz says.
"It has got a very valuable resource in a strategic location. Those characteristics appeal to us."
What makes it interesting for Visy is that household waste can comprise up to 25 per cent recyclables - paper, plastics, glass, aluminium and other metals.
Visy already collects curbside recyclables from two million households a week, but is always looking for more sources of recyclables, Waislitz says.
The Baxter-Visy joint venture will install advanced sorting equipment - funded by Visy - at Baxter`s dump to sort out the recyclables.
Baxter will still charge the same dumping fee for access to its sites, but will also earn money from the recycling joint venture.
Waislitz sees another benefit for Baxter, which has only a finite volume of dumping capacity - "airspace" - in the landfill.
"Up to 25 per cent of each load can be kept out, so we are extending the life of the landfill, therefore extending the life of the cash flow."
"And the environment is very encouraging as there is more and more pressure on landfill sites. It is likely that tip prices are going to trend upwards."
"That`s a macro growth profile that we love at Thorney."
While Baxter`s assets and balance sheet met with Thorney`s approval, Waislitz stresses that Thorney first and foremost invests in a company`s management team.
"Baxter has characteristics that appeal to Thorney: good management, good leader, potential to expand using their expertise and knowledge base."
"The Baxter management understands the business they are in very well and . . . we would be supportive of growth and expansion if the right opportunity came up."
Visy being Visy, growth opportunities appear to be plentiful for Baxter, as long as the Melbourne recycling venture works.
"Visy Recycling has got a national infrastructure and, if the joint venture proves successful, there is no reason why Baxter cannot take advantage of Visy`s nationwide infrastructure and resources to help it source and manage opportunities interstate."
Preparedness to invest in a company worth less than $100 million sets Thorney apart.
"We are focused on companies that are value propositions, that are undervalued for whatever reason," Waislitz says.
"We always look for value scenarios but we are also expansionist and look for companies with the potential to grow."
And he isn`t afraid to back his judgement by advancing the capital companies need for that growth. He cites Funtastic, McPherson`s, where he is also a director, and Gale Pacific as companies that have grown through acquisitions.
"They represent company-transforming deals and we back the management to achieve the synergies or rationalisation successfully."
Although he has taken a seat on the McPherson`s board, Waislitz tends to work in the background when Thorney has a substantial stake in a company.
But that does not mean he is not an active shareholder.
"We try to play a role in assisting them to grow," he says.
"Thorney can bring that to a lot of companies, particularly industrial and manufacturing companies where, through the Visy network, we have access to a lot of people with a lot of experience.
"We like factories and we like going out and seeing all these organisations. We respect what they have achieved and I think that differentiates us from a lot of other institutional investors.
"We are not just numbers driven. We are driven by the people there. Of course, we do our due diligence on the numbers, but that is not the only thing that will make us invest."

Artikel zu Thorney’s Funtastic-Akquisition, kurz nach Kauf in 2002:
Thorney matters can be fun
4 December 2002
The Age
According to our back-of-the-envelope calculations, the Pratt family`s Thorney Holdings is already up a cool $1.5 million on its recent investment in listed toy enterprise Funtastic.
Not a bad effort for two months work.
Beginning in early October, Thorney ventured into the market and came away with 7.16 million Funtastic shares at the cost of $5.95 million, or 83 cents a pop.
Funtastic - which flogs the likes of Spiderman, Bob the Builder, Winnie the Pooh and those infernal Wiggles - closed at $1.04 yesterday, a record high that values the Thorney stake at $7.44 million.
Thorney, a private investment arm of billionaire Dick Pratt`s Visy empire, is run by the cardboard baron`s son-in-law, Alex Waislitz, who has notched up more than a few excellent years (returns of 20 per cent-plus) thus far.
While Funtastic boss David Hendy was trying to take some credit for the recent vestment on Tuesday, saying Waislitz "really liked our story", it seems the Pratt clan know a good deal when they sniff one.
And we don`t just mean its senior members.
Waislitz and wife Heloise have a young son, Jacob, who has very helpfully given Funtastic`s wares a thorough road test.
Leaving aside such doubtful matters as the balance sheet, risk analysis, due diligence, market sentiment and other such boring ways of evaluating an investment, the deal was sealed when Thorney`s most junior adviser gave Funtastic`s merchandise his enthusiastic approval.
A luxury African safari is still a worthy prize
Of course Waislitz has more than a passing interest in toys of all shapes and sizes.
For the past two years he has hosted an-end-of-year bash for local brokers and assorted hangers-on, during which he has handed out a juicy prize for the best tip.
Two years back, D&D Tolhurst heavy-hitter Geoffrey Nash received an early Christmas present when he left the shindig with a classic red Ferrari, worth upwards of $100,000, for putting Thorney into a few good stocks during the year. Last year the brokers missed out.
Simon Rowell, former boss of now taken-over chip concern Snack Foods, scored a speedboat, a Scarab 10-metre worth roughly $100,000, which was later lowered on to the Yarra.
Rowell`s work for the year increased the value of Thorney`s involvement in Snack Foods by $25 million.
Tonight Waislitz is at it again at The Prince hotel in St Kilda, where about 250 broking types are expected to show up for free drinks and nibblies.
No toys this time round though. This year`s winner can look forward to a luxury African safari for two. Given the brutal 12 months many brokers have endured, the prospect of doing battle with the odd crazed lion or hippopotamus might seem like a walk in the park.
Recruiters hoping to find some glitter
A new mining outfit called Golden Kingdom is aiming to breathe some life back into the celebrated carcass of Recruiters Australia, which was once meant to be The Next Big Thing in the recruitment industry.
Gold and technology companies don`t turn up (or in this case backdoor list) everyday; however, Golden Kingdom claims to have four tidy projects up its sleeve.
The company has gold projects in the Philippines and Australia, as well as "technological solutions" for the gold mining industry.
Hopefully management, led by Andrew Firek (who once worked at Pancontinental Mining), can deliver a tad more moolah than the boys at Recruiters.
With managing director Phil Powell in charge, Recruiters enthusiastically raised $26.2 million in October 1999 at $1 a clam, only to sink a mere 17 months after listing.
It was, to say the least, a disappointing outcome for investors who owned 51 per cent of the company.
Still, not everyone lost out: $19.4 million of the $26.2 million raised went to the vendors (including $6.4 million to companies associated with directors), and $3.3 million in float expenses.
But that left only $3.5 million for working capital which became a problem when Recruiters couldn`t bring home the bacon on some lofty forecasts.
Golden Kingdom`s new vendors will hold 60 per cent of the company, leaving Recruiters Australia shareholders with only one-quarter as many shares as previously held.
Golden Kingdom scrip will have to reach $4 before Recruiters shareholders break even on the initial issue price.
Energy policy review no cakewalk
It looks as though Warwick Parer`s energy policy review is not going to be a stress-free affair.
Having got the green lobby offside by suggesting their subsidies be scrapped, the former federal energy minister now has the bureaucrats and state pollies up in arms.
Parer had the temerity to suggest that 13 regulatory bodies could be replaced by one, an idea that interests Federal Industry Minister Ian McFarlane. Predictably, the idea of giving up powers to the feds did not go down so well when a ministerial council on energy met last week. Parer and McFarlane were subjected to a hostile attack from the states, led by NSW and South Australia, who told the minister he was plotting to take away their powers. McFarlane said this was nonsense and that they would be part of the reform process.
However, he did mention that "The Commonwealth clearly has the power to regulate now and to bring (the states) to their knees through national competition policy. But I didn`t put those on the table as options."
Nonetheless, an effective punch or two seems to have been landed. McFarlane was several months ago calling on the rugby league states to sell their power assets like their more virtuous Aussie Rules counterparts. By Friday, however, he had no problem with the states owning the assets as long as they weren`t "judge, jury and executioner as well as owning the courthouse".

Business - Pratt gets serious about stake in Funtastic.
By Eli Greenblat.
3 December 2002
The Age

A toy company that sells popular branded toys such as Spiderman, Bob the Builder, Winnie the Pooh and Wiggles has won the backing of Australia`s third-richest man, packaging king Richard Pratt.
The listed Funtastic markets a range of toys, housewares, children`s apparel and sweets across Australia.
Mr Pratt is now its fifth-biggest shareholder with a stake of 7.16 per cent.
Funtastic managing director David Hendy is tipping Mr Pratt will boost his holding.
"When we spoke to (Mr Pratt) last month we found that he really liked our story ... and I wouldn`t be surprised if he bought more shares as it`s certainly been the experience that when he goes into a company he goes in quite heavily," Mr Hendy said.
Mr Pratt`s private investment vehicle, Thorney Holdings, said yesterday it had built up the stake at a cost of $5.95 million between early October and late last week.
Thorney now holds 7.155 million shares in Funtastic, bought at an average price of 83 cents.
The lowest price paid was 72 cents a share on October 3 and the highest was 94 cents a share on November 27.
Thorney bought 3.3 million shares in early October as part of a $24 million capital raising by Funtastic, and it is believed Mr Pratt was unhappy with the size of his allocation.
Four days later Funtastic announced its $30 million acquisition of unlisted toy and sweets group JNH Australia, and Funtastic shares rallied to hit a high of 96 cents.
At yesterday`s closing price of 99 cents, Thorney is up $1.15 million on its investment. Thorney director Alexander Waislitz did not return calls from The Age yesterday.
Thorney has a broad portfolio comprising public and private companies, including a 22.2 per cent stake in listed printing and housewares group McPherson`s and a 10 per cent stake in technology and venture capital business Loftus Capital Partners.
Thorney is cashed up from the sale of its 31 per cent stake in Snack Foods to US-based Campbell Soup Co in June.

[Thorpe]

Was für ein erbärmliches Push-Gekrächze!

Kapitalerhöhung zu 0,38 also 20% unter dem aktuellen Aktienkurs. -> Weitere Verwässerung und offenbar glauben weder Firma, noch Investor, daß Magna den aktuellen Marktkurs wert ist!

[CyberTom65]

Was für ein kleiner Miesmacher.

Für dich ist das Glas wohl immer halb leer.

Ist heute schulfrei?

[Informator]

Kraechz-Miesmacher Thorpe soll sich doch einfach die Artikel zu Pratt / Thorney und seinem Warren Buffett-maessigen Track Record ansehen!

die 0,38 sind nur 20% unter dem Kurs, weil der Kurs seit den Verhandlungen so stark gestiegen ist!

Und wenn der Kurs bei 1 ankommt, dann schreit Thorpe dass Milliardaer Pratt die Magna-Kleinaktionaere beschissen hat!!

thorpe versteht es eben nicht.

deswegen sind wir immer reicher und thorpe eben nicht!

ich freue mich auf die Aussie-Presse morgen!!!

und bald auf die Fonds-Einstiege im Kielwasser des Megamoguls Pratt, und auf die Analystenempfehlungen....

jeder cent mehr sind bei mir ueber 14000 DM mehr, bei >700000 Aktien und Optionen!

irgendwann versteht auch thorpe, dass Milliardar Pratt und die australischen Medien und Investmentbanken, sowie der DVD-Boom, nicht von boesen Oesterreichern aus thorpes Nasstraeumen gesteuert werden

[erdede]

ich glaub ich seh nicht recht 0.075-0.085

haben wir uns hier auf eine Put-Option eingelassen oder ist die Dividende auf 3c erhöht worden...

Sauerei! Von anständiger Taxierung keine Spur


erdede

[Thorpe]

Ja, sehr merkwürdig, da scheinen die Verkäufer dieser hunderttausende Optionen nicht an das Kursziel von Informator zu glauben.

[Informator]

diese Verkaeufer sind dumm, da sie mit Abgeld verkaufen.

jetzt werde ich mal schauen, ob ich da noch mehr von ordere...

Option:

Wertansatz 1:

Australien 16,5 = 9,8 Eurocents

Wertansatz 2:

Kurs Aktie in D., minus Strike (0,32AU$ x 0,598):

29-19,2 = 9,8

mit dividende (AU$0,02): 20-19,2-1,2=8,6 (voll abziehen kann man aber dividende nicht, sondern nur Pro Rata, bei 5 Monaten sind das: 1,2*7/12 = 0,7, also fair:

20-19,2-0,7 = 9,1

insgesamt sollte der Kurs von Option 552486 also ueber 9 eurocents liegen.

und das OHNE AUFGELD, dass ja normalerweise immer in Optionen ist!!!!!!

[Thorpe]

Das wird sich noch zeigen, ob die Verkäufer dumm sind.
Wenn die Aktie morgen 15% in Australien fällt, sind die Verkäufer sehr klug!