Australia

• Reliance Worldwide Corp (RWC AU) has disclosed a binding proposal from Brookfield at US$3.38 (A$4.75), a 31.5% premium to the undisturbed price.
• The required regulatory approvals are low-risk. AusSuper, with a potentially blocking stake, has yet to disclose its voting intentions. This is the primary source of uncertainty for the scheme. 
• RWC’s Go-Shop was built with the Origin precedent in mind. While not neutralising the risk, it makes it harder for AusSuper to argue that the board didn’t test the market.  

• On the 19th May 2026, European Lithium (EUR AU) entered into a reverse Scheme via a scrip deal with ~34.4% held Critical Metals (CRML US).
• CRML initially offered 0.035 new CRML shares for each EUR share. After CRML’s shares cratered post-deal announcement, CRML revised with collared scrip terms.
• The Scheme Booklet is now out, with a Scheme Meeting on the 22nd October, and expected implementation on the 5th November. The IE (Horizon Nexus) concluded “NOT fair BUT reasonable“.

• Following the August 2026 reporting season, we look at key changes to peer consensus estimates, share-price movements and outlook commentary relevant to Ricegrowers Limited, trading as SunRice (ASX:SGLLV).
• In terms of FY27 eps revisions across our selected peer group, we have seen a 17% reduction in (ASX:CBO) estimates and a 24% increase in (ASX:GNC) estimates, which has corresponded with the best and worst share price performances, respectively, over the period.
• The RaaS selected peer average outperformed the ASX200 by 8% over the past three months (+6% versus -2%), with (ASX:CBO) dragging the peer average down.

• Aureka Limited (ASX:AKA) is a junior gold explorer and producer with several projects across current and historically gold-producing regions in Victoria, Australia.
• AKA has signed a binding agreement to acquire High Grade Holdings Pty Ltd (HGH), which would establish it as a small-scale Victorian gold producer, while providing a platform for longer-term production growth.
• AKA had cash of ~$2.3m as of 30 June 2026 and raised $5.65m from its top shareholders to underpin the acquisition, which we think is sufficient to support AKA’s activities and growth initiatives following the integration of the acquisition.

• Neuren Pharmaceuticals (NEU AU)‘s Daybue reported 2Q26 revenue of $125M, up 30% YoY and 24% QoQ, which is the highest quarterly sales since launch, mainly driven by volume.  
• Neuren has raised anticipated royalties for the full year 2026 to a range of $53M to $56M (up 24–33% YoY) from the previous range of $50M to $54M.
• Neuren’s investigational drug candidate, NNZ-2591 progressed to Phase 3 trial in Phelan-McDermid syndrome, which has a larger addressable patient population than Rett syndrome.

• OceanaGold’s A$776 million scrip-heavy acquisition of Ausgold (valuing the company at A$1.36 per share) is driven by the urgent need to bridge a production gap before its Waihi North project ramps up in the early 2030s. The offer represents a 28% premium, which is generally considered full value for a project with an open-pit grade of 1.14 g/t, leaving limited room for competing bids.
• L1 Capital’s post-announcement accumulation to 10.24% represents a key dynamic in the transaction. In an Australian Scheme of Arrangement requiring 75% approval of voted shares, L1’s holding effectively grants them a powerful swing vote. Rather than signaling a hostile counter-bid, this accumulation is likely an arbitrage play to capture gold price exposure through OceanaGold’s scrip.
• Permitting timelines and regional constraints present real execution risks. While the WA EPA authorized the Environmental Review Document for public release in July 2026, critical-path approvals remain. Managing groundwater licensing from local aquifers and addressing regional community objections over the endangered Carnaby’s Cockatoo habitat represent major hurdles for first gold targeted in 2029.

• Select Harvests Ltd (ASX:SHV) is one of Australia’s largest almond growers, processors and sellers, with an extensive orchard footprint (Riverland, Sunraysia and Riverina) and increasing third-party volume processing.
• SHV provided a trading update (8 Sept) prior to the end of its financial year (30 Sept.) indicating additional harvest costs of $7m ($13m total costs) which have impacted in FY26 (initial weather-related costs at H1 indicated $6m).
• SHV also provided commentary on strengthening global pricing, increasing its pool almond price from $10.21/kg to $10.26/kg, and stating a marginally reduced crop range 28,800-29,600 metric tonnes, with processing now complete.

• On the 13th August, EQT proposed taking Australia’s largest garbage and waste disposal play Cleanaway Waste  (CWY AU) private, via a Scheme, at A$3.13/share, a 32.1% premium to undisturbed. 
• EQT was afforded nine weeks of exclusive DD; and announced yesterday nothing had arisen in its review that was likely to cause it not to proceed on the same terms.
• All good? Mostly. There’s some pushback in the market CWY’s management’s backing an (exclusive) Offer as the Iran war suppressed CWY’s share price. I’m not a buyer into that narrative.

• The European Lithium (EUR AU) IE considers that Critical Metals (CRML US)’s scheme offer is NOT fair but reasonable. At preferred values, the consideration is 9% below the assessed value.
• For the deal to be fair, the CRML 20-day VWAP used to determine the exchange ratio would need to be between US$7.86 and US$8.81 per share (CRML’s close was US$6.46).
• Despite the IE’s opinion, the scheme vote should pass as the sole substantial shareholder is not an activist and no disinterested shareholder holds a blocking stake. 

• Takeover premiums are driven by strategic synergies rather than financial arbitrage, with the A$4.65 revised non-binding proposals from ORIX and Sumitomo valuing FleetPartners (FPR) at A$982.1 million. While SG Fleet’s A$4.55 bid presents a domestic consolidation opportunity, it faces significant regulatory risk from the ACCC due to a combined trans-Tasman fleet size exceeding 320,000 vehicles.
• The phased wind-down of the Australian Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) exemption on electric vehicles (EVs)—as outlined in the May 2026 Statutory Review of the Electric Car Discount—will pressure future novated leasing volumes starting April 2027. However, grandfathering clauses protect existing leases, and the A$75,000 cap in Phase 2 shifts the competitive focus toward lower-priced EV models rather than a sudden volume cliff.
• FPR’s execution of the A$31.5 million “Accelerate” IT transformation program has delivered the promised A$6 million in annualized cost-out savings, but the transition compromised near-term customer service. While the standalone business has normalized back to a net cash position of A$28 million in late 2025, the current executive incentive structures and the recent A$31.4 million Remunerator acquisition indicate management was building standalone scale, though they will ultimately recommend a sale if bids exceed A$4.80.

• Context: This Insight follows up on previously highlighted relative value opportunities, using a statistical methodology based on mean-reversion to identify opportunities in paired securities.
• Highlights: In Australia, currently five pair trade opportunities persist across four sectors.
• Why read: Statistical analysis offers a unique perspective on relative value. Gain insights into actionable statistical pair trade opportunities and monitor performance of previously highlighted pairs.

• Ingenia Communities rejected Warburg Pincus’s A$4.75/share takeover proposal, citing it as too low, with potential for further negotiations.
• INA’s acquisition of Peet for A$1bn is viewed as risky, impacting share price and shareholder sentiment negatively.
• Warburg Pincus has a significant presence in Asia Pacific real estate, expressing interest in Australian land-lease communities.

• FleetPartners Group (FPR AU) has disclosed that SG Fleet, Orix Corp (8591 JP) and Sumitomo Corp (8053 JP) have revised their NBIOs to A$4.55, A$4.65 and A$4.65, respectively. 
• Element Fleet Management (EFN CN) has dropped out. Sg Fleet (SGF AU) is also likely to drop out, as its revised offer already factors in substantial synergies.
• One of the Japanese strategics will win, as FleetPartners is a relatively small, strategically adjacent bolt-on. A final binding offer around A$4.90-A$5.00 per share is possible.

• Back on the 4th February 2026, Abacus Group (ABG AU) announced preliminary discussions with 19.7%-held Abacus Storage King (ASK AU) concering the potential internalisation of ASK’s management functions.
• A binding agreement followed in May and completion on the 1st July. ASK (now known as storage King Group [SKG]) was subsequently reclassified as a financial investment. 
• In April this year, Charter Hall (CHC AU) announced a 5.837% stake. Ahead of Abacus’ FY26 results, Charter Gall bumped to 7.04%.  Abacus is currently trading at a decade-plus low.

• Abacus Storage King’s (now Storage King Group, ASX: SKG) internalisation completed on June 30, 2026, represents a structural loss of high-margin recurring fee streams for Abacus Group (ASX: ABG), offset only by a modest $24.0 million cash payment. While the transaction is 6.0% accretive to SKG’s Funds From Operations (FFO) due to $7.0 million in annual fee savings, it leaves ABG as a pure-play commercial landlord holding a highly illiquid 19.8% passive stake in SKG (valued at approximately $340.0 million). This stake now represents roughly 40% of ABG’s entire $809.0 million market capitalisation, illustrating the deep discount the market is applying to ABG’s core office portfolio.
• Charter Hall’s (ASX: CHC) creeping stake in ABG—which was recently increased to 7.04%—is a highly calculated strategic play on ABG’s deep valuation discount. Given that ABG trades at a 46% discount to its $1.73 Net Tangible Assets (NTA), Charter Hall is positioning itself for either a cheap, opportunistic buyout or a forced asset play to seize full control of key co-owned premium assets, specifically the 201 Elizabeth Street office tower in Sydney.
• ABG’s management has historically prioritized Asset Under Management (AUM) accumulation over Net Asset Value (NAV) growth, leaving the group exposed to severe capital recycling bottlenecks. The transition of the core head trusts (Abacus Trust and Abacus Income Trust) to Managed Investment Trust (MIT) status on July 1, 2025, was a delayed but necessary regulatory fix to lower withholding tax for foreign capital. However, severe local development approval bottlenecks of 18 to 24 months continue to stall SKG’s 101,000 square metre development pipeline, capping organic growth velocity.

• Empyrean Energy has signed a binding Heads of Agreement to acquire a 10% economic interest in the GOLD Cluster Area in Austria, in exchange for funding the drilling and testing of the GOLD‑1 well.
• The required investment is EUR 555,400.
• Empyrean will also pay EUR 50,000 (non‑refundable) for an exclusivity period running until 16 October, during which final funding arrangements and documentation will be completed.

• Artrya fell -21% last week and at one point, was down another -8% today.
• At today’s close, the shares are down -50% from their all-time high of $6.49 set just three months ago on the 6th July.
• The pullback is partly a result of disappointing 4Q26 results (see ‘Valuation downgrade but market overreaction is a buying opportunity’) compounded by 1) last Tuesday’s rejection by the FDA of EchoIQ’s EchoSolv HF submission; and 2) the ongoing delay in Salix Coronary Flow FDA submission.

• The full fiscal year 2026 results update from IREN presents a company focused on addressing structural constraints in the AI infrastructure ecosystem, particularly on the physical infrastructure side encompassing data centers, power, and land.
• IREN operates across three integrated layers: physical data centers and supporting infrastructure; compute hardware such as GPUs and networking; and software and managed services, exemplified by its Mirantis division.
• This vertical integration aims to capture value across the stack and enhance the customer offering.

• There are 44 adds, 1 delete and 2 listing changes for the VanEck Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF (GDXJ US) in September. There are capping and float changes too.
• Estimated one-way turnover is 15% resulting in a round-trip trade of US$3.2bn. There is a lot of stock to buy in the inclusions.
• There are a number of adds in Asia that will have same-way flow from passive trackers of other local and global indices on the same day.

• The MV Global Defense Industry Index represents the performance of companies in national defense industries.
• There will be one ADD and two DELs for the MV Global Defense Index in September 2026. There will be small changes to the index otherwise.
• The capping of PLTR US and RTX US is expected to drive the majority of the flows.  

• Australia’s ASIC releases the aggregated short position data four business days after the reporting day. Data in this insight is up to 7th September, published on the 11th September.
• The largest industry net increase in the past week was A$1.1bn into “Banks“; the largest industry net decrease was A$0.3bn out of “Diversified Metals“. Net shorts iincreased A$1bn week-on-week.
• Companies mentioned in this regular weekly report include: CBA (CBA AU), Rio Tinto Ltd (RIO AU), Westpac Banking (WBC AU), Sigma Healthcare (SIG AU), and National Australia Bank (NAB AU).

• Under the leadership of Simon Trott, who succeeded Jakob Stausholm as CEO in August 2025, Rio Tinto has pivoted sharply toward intense cost discipline and capital restraint. This is highlighted by the reduction of the group’s decarbonization capital budget from $5-6 billion down to $1-2 billion by shifting spending risks to third-party developers, and targeting $1.8 billion in annualized productivity benefits by the end of 2026.
• The $6.7 billion cash acquisition of Arcadium Lithium, completed on March 5, 2025, represented a major counter-cyclical growth bet. However, to preserve balance sheet strength and fund the heavy capital intensity of Simandou and Oyu Tolgoi, Rio has initiated a plan to release $5-10 billion in capital through cost cuts and opportunistic non-core divestments, including reviews of its titanium and borates businesses.
• Sovereign friction remains a major cash drain, as demonstrated by Oyu Tolgoi paying a disputed $443 million (MNT 1.6 trillion) tax assessment in Mongolia in March 2026. While Rio settled some key pain points in mid-2026 by halving OT’s management fees and adjusting the shareholder loan interest rate, these moves highlight the high cost of securing long-term operational license in complex jurisdictions.

• There is 1 add/delete for the MarketVector Global Uranium and Nuclear Energy Index, and no constituent changes for the MVIS Global Uranium & Nuclear Energy Infrastructure Index in September.
• Boss Energy (BOE AU) is an add, Encore Energy (EU US) is a delete, and there is a listing switch for IsoEnergy (ISO CN). 
• The round-trip trade across both indices is US$824m with capping changes resulting in much bigger flow for the MVIS Global Uranium & Nuclear Energy Index.

• EQ Resources (EQR AU) and Core Lithium Ltd (CXO AU) will be added to the VanEck Rare Earth/Strategic Me (REMX US) at the close on 18 September.
• The constituent changes, float changes and capping changes result in an estimated one-way turnover of 7.7% and in a round-trip trade of US$514m.
• Other passive index trackers will be buying significant size in EQ Resources (EQR AU) and smaller size in Core Lithium Ltd (CXO AU) at the same time.

• Context: The Region Group (RGN AU) vs. Waypoint REIT (WPR AU) price ratio has deviated more than two standard deviations from its one-year average, presenting a potential relative value opportunity.
• Highlight: Going long Waypoint REIT (WPR AU) and short Region Group (RGN AU) targets a 3% return.
• Why Read: Essential for quantitative traders seeking mean-reversion opportunities, with detailed execution framework, risk management protocols, and historical simulation showing the statistical basis for this relative value play.

• Context: The Insurance Australia Group (IAG AU) vs. Medibank Private (MPL AU) price ratio has deviated more than two standard deviations from its one-year average, presenting a potential relative value opportunity.
• Highlight: Going long Medibank (MPL AU) and short Insurance Australia Group (IAG AU) targets a 4% return.
• Why Read: Essential for quantitative traders seeking mean-reversion opportunities, with detailed execution framework, risk management protocols, and historical simulation showing the statistical basis for this relative value play.

• Context: The AUB Group (AUB AU) vs. Steadfast (SDF AU) price ratio has deviated more than two standard deviations from its one-year average, presenting a potential relative value opportunity.
• Highlight: Going long AUB Group (AUB AU) and short Steadfast (SDF AU) targets a 11% return.
• Why Read: Essential for quantitative traders seeking mean-reversion opportunities, with detailed execution framework, risk management protocols, and historical simulation showing the statistical basis for this relative value play.

• BHP Group demonstrated solid operational and financial performance in the 2026 financial year, reinforcing its position as a leading global mining company with a diversified portfolio anchored by Tier 1 assets.
• The company maintained its status as the world’s largest copper producer, achieving around 2 million tonnes of copper output for the second consecutive year, which accounted for over half of its annual EBITDA.
• Operational excellence contributed to record production at Western Australia Iron Ore (WAIO) and upward trends in steelmaking coal via BMA, supporting the overall strong portfolio performance.

• The Chartist reports the technical picture for CBA shares remains supportive in sharp contrast to the bearish voices that continue calling those shares heavily overvalued.

• When Austal Ltd (ASB AU) confirmed preliminary discussion with Wildcat Infrastructure, I mused this may be a ruse to extract more gruel from Hanwha. I was clearly too cynical.
• A short while ago, Austal confirmed Wildcat has pitched a “non-binding indication of interest” for Austal’s US ops at an EV of US$1.25-1.35bn, a ~12.5% premium to Hanwha’s indicative terms.
• Wildcat is requesting for four weeks of due diligence. Austal is mulling its options. Hanwha has the clout to match and/or exceed Wildcat’s terms.

• Austal Ltd (ASB AU) disclosed a non-binding proposal from Wildcat Resources for Austal USA at an enterprise value of US$1.25 to US$1.35 billion.
• The Wildcat offer’s midpoint of US$1.30 billion is at a 15% premium to Hanwha’s offer’s midpoint of US$1.125 billion. Wildcat is requesting four weeks of due diligence.
• Hanwha is likely to return with a revised offer as the Wildcat offer values Austal USA at a discount to its closest peer, Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII US). 

• Aspen Group’s upcoming investor tour offers a potential share price catalyst, with improving earnings visibility set against cautious macro sentiment towards the housing sector.
• Australia’s housing shortage plays to Aspen’s affordable edge Rental resilience meets an accelerating development pipeline Conservative gearing provides firepower for the next growth phase Adelaide emerges as a key catalyst

• Maritana Minerals Limited (ASX:MRT), is an emerging junior gold producer with 1.9moz of gold resources located around the Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie regions of Western Australia.
• MRT has released several updates over the past month that provide further details on ongoing site development at Black Swan and exploration activities.
• We make several adjustments to our modelling, which results in a modest increase in our valuation to $2.836/share, which represents a premium of 248% to the current share price.

• Deep Value Proposition at a Sizable NTA Discount: Naos Emerging Opportunities Company Limited (ASX: NCC) trades at an attractive Price-to-Book (P/B) multiple of 0.8x and a trailing P/E of 4.7x, offering institutional investors substantial re-rating upside as the share price converges toward its underlying Net Tangible Assets (pre-tax NTA of ~$0.54-$0.60 per share).
• High-Conviction, Catalyst-Driven Micro-Cap Strategy: Managed by NAOS Asset Management, NCC maintains a concentrated portfolio of 10 to 15 emerging Australian industrial companies outside the S&P/ASX 100, utilizing an active, private-equity-style engagement approach to unlock operational and strategic value.
• Attractive 9.03% Dividend Yield Supported by Free Cash Flow: NCC offers a compelling annualized fully franked dividend yield of 9.03%, underpinned by a solid profit reserve buffer and positive operating cash flow generation ($2.91M in FY26), providing consistent income despite historical micro-cap cycle volatility.

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• Public-to-private valuation arbitrage in Australian self-storage is driven by a stark cap rate disconnect, with ASK trading at an implied cap rate in the low-to-mid 6% range, while direct private market transactions and sovereign wealth mandates for institutional-grade portfolios continue to clear in the mid-to-high 4% to low 5% range.
• Abacus Group (ASX: ABG) holds a dominant ~19.9% blocking stake in ASK, meaning any privatization attempt is fundamentally path-dependent on ABG’s strategic intent, capital gains tax liabilities from demerger roll-overs, and its own capital allocation requirements.
• A Scheme of Arrangement under Australian corporations law requires approval by a double majority (75% of votes cast and 50% of voting shareholders present), making register concentration a dual-edged sword where a few institutional block-holders can easily block or facilitate a buyout.

• Cash Converters International (ASX:CCV) is a consumer finance company operating as a service provider, owner and franchisor of second-hand goods and financial services stores in Australia and internationally.
• The company released a strong FY26 result marginally ahead of expectation, with revenue growth of 11% to a record $429.2m (vs. RaaS $424.0m) and operating EBITDA growth of 11% over the previous corresponding period (pcp) to $67.0m (vs. RaaS $62.1m).
• This was despite the deliberate run-off of its legacy lending portfolios.

• Fremantle Community Financial Services Ltd (NSX: FCF) operates the Fremantle Community Bank branch under a revenue-sharing franchise agreement with Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited, serving the Western Australian market with a comprehensive suite of consumer, business, and wealth banking solutions.
• The company delivered robust FY25 financial results, with net profit after tax advancing 90.7% year-on-year to A$187,228 (basic EPS of 25.41 cents), supported by a 14.0% expansion in total banking business (Funds Under Management) to A$225.25 million, driven by strong gains across residential lending (+52.8%) and deposit balances (+18.2%).
• FCF features an exceptionally conservative balance sheet with zero funded debt and A$879,721 in cash reserves (representing 96.6% of net assets), trading at an attractive valuation discount (P/B of 0.32x and P/E of 1.57x) with high fully franked dividend distributions, balanced against structural trading illiquidity on the National Stock Exchange of Australia.

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• Beetaloo Energy Australia Limited (ASX:BTL) is a gas development company, with onshore Northern Territory (NT) gas exploration and development assets, soon to be in production.
• BTL has an extensive tenement position in the highly prospective Beetaloo Sub-basin with greater leverage to the production and growth success case.
• With first gas sales from the Shenandoah South Pilot Project the play has entered the commercial phase with BTL set to join in production from the Carpentaria Pilot Project by end-2026.

• Dicker Data’s record backlog, accelerating AI sales and expanding software business have prompted substantial upgrades to earnings forecasts.
• Dicker Data’s interim result proved much better than forecasts AI And Data Centres Drive Upgrades/Record backlog Rising AI sales contribute to margin pressure Stock is one of scarce AI exposures outside the ASX100

• Ingenia Communities (INA AU) has rejected a non-binding proposal from Warburg Pincus at A$4.75, a 30.1% premium to the last close and a 11.0% premium to the undisturbed price.
• The timing is opportunistic, and the offer is light as it implies no control premium and is below the 52-week high and sell-side price targets. 
• The proposal is conditional on abandoning the Peet Ltd (PPC AU) offer, which is facilitated by a fiduciary-out clause. An offer around A$5.15 is needed to test the Board’s resolve.   

• Back in 2023, asset manager Pacific Current (PAC AU) fielded Offers from Regal and GQG, neither of which gained traction: GQG Mulls Offer As Pacific Current Balks At Regal’s NBIO 
• River Capital, which initially teamed up with Regal, steadily mopped up shares, and currently holds ~43%. Late-August, River and PAC announced a backdoor merger via new shares at A$13/share. 
• ROC Capital pitched an Offer for PAC back in May. Apparently River sat in on negotiations. Roc reckons River used those discussions to its advantage. PAC sees it otherwise.

• The ADDs/DELs for the ASX index family for the September 2026 index rebal event were announced after market close on Friday 4th September 2026.
• There are 24 ADDs and 21 DELs collectively for ASX 20, ASX 50, ASX 100, ASX 200 and ASX 300.
• In this insight, we take a look at our final flow expectations for each of these confirmed index changes.

• Context: This Insight follows up on previously highlighted relative value opportunities, using a statistical methodology based on mean-reversion to identify opportunities in paired securities.
• Highlights: In Australia, currently two pair trade opportunities persist across two sectors.
• Why read: Statistical analysis offers a unique perspective on relative value. Gain insights into actionable statistical pair trade opportunities and monitor performance of previously highlighted pairs.

• In response to an AFR article, Pacific Current (PAC AU) belatedly disclosed that it rejected a non-binding proposal from Roc Partners in May 2026. 
• PAC is currently undergoing a strategic review to consider River Capital’s proposal alongside a sale or delisting/liquidation of holdings.
• Both offers are unattractive. PAC is a cash box (A$9.23 per share) with the boutique portfolio providing option value (boutiques valued at FV P/NAV of 0.27x at last close).

• Mineral Resources’ FY26 profit, a turnaround from an FY25 loss, beat expectations, but the market responded poorly to talk of expanding into another commodity and perhaps geography.
• Mineral Resources’ FY26 performance beat expectations The recommencement of dividends was the major surprise Possible move into copper, maybe offshore, spooked the market One broker’s valuation raises eyebrows

• Wrkr Ltd (ASX:WRK) offers compliance solutions for Australian superannuation contributions and payroll including member onboarding, super payments, messaging and employee validation.
• WRK has released its FY26 result which was recently flagged in a quarterly update with an adjusted EBITDA loss of $5.4m (reported -$6.0m, RaaS was -$4.6m).
• Revenue was a touch higher than RaaS’s estimate at $16.2m, driven by higher Platform product development fees.