Rex profits flying back
Regional Express' unaudited management accounts for October show the airline's new capital city jet operations swinging to a $2 million pre-tax profit and also a slight profit in September for the first time.
However, its mainstay regional Saab turboprop services in the bush were still in the red in October, which Rex management blamed on "predatory actions" of national carrier Qantas, which targeted regional routes to maintain cash flow during the pandemic.
Rex's annual general meeting was told regional operations were tipped to be back to profitability in the first few months of next year and the group expected to emerge from the 2022-23 financial year posting an overall profit.
Rex is Australia's largest independent regional airline with 61 Saab 340 and seven Boeing 737-800NG aircraft flying to 58 destinations and recently became half owner of fly-in-fly-out and charter operator National Jet Express.
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Ridley board pay rise
Shareholders with livestock feed producer, Ridley Corporation, have approved a $150,000 increase in the board remuneration pool to $850,000, to split between the company's non-executive board members.
It's the first increase in 19 years.
Although the Australian Shareholders Association opposed the pay rise, saying its research suggested public company directors were generally overpaid, November's annual general meeting granted the rise, to be shared by the six elected directors as they determine.
The AGM also confirmed new independent director and accountant, Julie Raffe, the national president of the Finance Executives Institute of Australia and a director of Latitude Holdings and off road vehicle accessories company, Ironman 4x4.
She replaces the departed David Lord, who joined Ridley's board in 2016 after running Saputo Australia's dairy business and Warrnambool Cheese and Butter for five years.
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Namoi gets STAM's man
Following its recent peace deal with major shareholder, Samuel Terry Asset Management, Namoi Cotton, this week welcomed new director James Davies to its board room.
Mr Davies, nominated by the STAM investment fund group, is the executive chairman of the Kangaroo Island forestry and agriculture company Kiland, where STAM is also the majority shareholder.
Mr Davies, originally a computer science graduate from the University of New England, has a London Business School Masters of Business Administration and is a director with New Energy Solar and board chairman of the listed Eildon Capital.
In August STAM demanded Namoi call a special shareholder meeting in a bid to get Mr Davies elected to the board, in defiance of the wishes of existing directors.
However, in September both camps backed down after discussions, with STAM also re-thinking its position on Namoi's business strategy and opting to back the company's capital raising to help fund its Ord River gin construction plans.
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Heritage-Peoples Choice merger
Southern Queensland-based mutual lender Heritage Bank and South Australia's Peoples Choice have been given the green light to merge, creating Australia's ninth biggest bank and the largest mutual banking group.
Members have voted in favour of the merger, which will help the new group streamline technology costs and give it more bargaining power in the mortgage broking market.
The new institution, expected to be trading as a combined entity in March, will have a loan book worth $23 billion, and a likely new national trading name by late next year.
Heritage chief executive officer, Peter lock, will lead the business, including almost 100 branches serving 720,000 customers, for its first 18 months, then hand over to Peoples Choice CEO, Steve Laidlaw.
The merger follows closely behind former Hunter Valley-based building societies, Greater and Newcastle Permanent, also getting membership approval for their merger.
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Incitec site bidders emerge
Fertiliser industry speculation puts the Norwegian giant, Yarra International, as a front-runner to buy Incitec Pivot's new Waggaman nitrogen plant in the US, if the Australian company goes ahead with plans to sell.
Yarra's interest in Incitec operations started when the local fertilier and explosives business looked at selling the entire fertiliser division in 2019, but opted to not to go through with a divestment auction when the global COVID-19 pandemic hit.
The Waggaman ammonia facility in Louisiana is part of Incitec's Dyna Nobel explosives business, but 70 per cent of its production is sold to other players.
Incitec Pivot has received purchase offers for the facility, primarily because it offers clean energy prospects if converted to produce "green" ammonia.
North American farm inputs giant, Nutrien, has also been touted as a logical suitor for the ammonia plant to make use of its fertiliser production capacity.
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Noumi boss stays longer
Dairy, nutritional products and plant-based beverages processor Noumi has extended the term of its emergency managing director, Michael Perich, who was parachuted into the role after the sudden resignation of Rory Macleod 2020.
Mr Perich, who previously managed the dairy farming business for his family, which is also Noumi's majority shareholder, was due to end his term in March next year, but will extend his time to December 2024.
He has declined any short or long term performance incentives, but is receiving a base remuneration, including superannuation, of $768,600.
Noumi's board noted Mr Perich had successfully led the business through its transformation program against a backdrop of challenging economic and COVID-19 circumstances, providing necessary leadership stability.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court of Victoria has agreed legal firms Slater and Gordon and Phi Finney McDonald, can split any settlement in class action proceedings against Noumi and its auditor, Deloitte, giving group members 78 per cent of the payment and 22pc to their solicitors.
The class action wants damages for shareholders on grounds that Noumi (then trading as Freedom Foods) misrepresented its true financial position to the market in 2020 due to accounting errors that overstated its performance.
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Rabo research recruits
Rabobank has appointed two new analysts to its Australia and New Zealand food and agribusiness research division, RaboResearch, Vitor Pistoia and Edward McGeoch.
Analyst, Mr Pistoia has moved from Brazil where he qualified as an agricultural engineer and agronomist, to cover farm inputs, including fertiliser, crop protection products, agricultural technology and farmland.
Mr McGeoch, an honours graduate in agricultural science who previously worked with software company Agriwebb, has been appointed associate analyst covering cotton, wool and sheepmeat.
RaboResearch's ANZ general manager, Stefan Vogel, said the two new recruits brought a mix of international experience and local knowledge to the local arm of the agribusiness bank's highly-regarded global food and agricultural research division.
"Vitor joins us with a strong international background in farm inputs and agronomy, while Edward has been fully immersed in Australian agriculture, not only professionally but through a lifelong family involvement in farming in southern NSW," he said.
RaboResearch has nine specialist agri commodities analysts in Australia and NZ, who are part of a network of 75 research analysts worldwide.
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