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#Business Model/Strategy
stale
Added 2 years ago

What appears to be on the back of an export contract announcement yesterday, shares were up over 8%...but, this makes up only a small piece of the drop of near 40% from recent highs, and don’t look further back to 2019.

A couple of week ago the company announced a “Board Renewal and Strategic Review” both those themes worry me. especially as this is on the back of a new CEO, although not as much as the H1/22 update. The update in their own words had a lot of red ink on the page.

Are things broken, and if so, are they repairable? 

Trading was down in H1 with lower Chinese demand on the back of mill closures following power interruptions.

The second half seems to be a better proposition with around 90% of volume committed, and prices of export chips stabilising. Likely the market is expecting the same with the bounce from the export announcement. 

The company is in the process of offloading assets which the funds used to repay debt as well as buy back trees and fund expansion. 

I’m not convinced the strategy of increasing of increasing current capacity (by selling land assets) is going to generate returns when they are not making money at current capacity and have not done so for the last couple of years. 

Q&A following the results presentation revealed much more than the update itself. They are in a prime position with the location of operations and assets are in place to capitalise on the market, but much of the market opportunity is based on, and I hate to say it, hope rather than how. 

They also admitted there are remaining issues with staffing.

It is clear the management team and board have a lot on their plate, with the largest being a return to profitability and second being the debt pile.

This looks like a possible takeover with the shares trading at 30 something below net asset value.

So I have I come to the conclusion if its repairable or not? I think it is, but there are so many variables that the outcome may be a coin flip.


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##ASX Announcements
stale
Added one year ago

Some good long term news for MIdway today, especially the prospect of paying down all large corporate debt, 19.5c dividend (well picked @ValueDownunder) and some long term management contracts. (Held IRL).

Here is the text from the announcement:

MIDWAY LIMITED (ASX: MWY)

5 October 2022

FIRB approves the sale of plantation land in south-west Victoria

The Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) has approved the sale by Midway

Limited of 17,000 hectares of existing brownfield hardwood plantations in south-west

Victoria to a special purpose vehicle managed by MEAG, a wholly owned subsidiary

of Munich Re, for an estimated A$154.1 million.

The FIRB has also approved the proposed acquisition by MEAG of an additional $200

million of agricultural land in south-west Victoria to establish greenfield hardwood

plantations that will be managed by Midway.

FIRB approval was the only material condition for the transaction, the first tranche of

which will settle on 18 October 2022. FIRB approval was subject to commercially

satisfactory conditions on the nature and location of the land to be acquired and the

amount of land to be acquired over the next five years.

Completion of the sale process will trigger several related transactions, including:

• the phased repurchase over the next two years of the ‘Strategy’ hardwood trees

on the existing Midway plantation estate as part of the sale to MEAG;

• repayment of all long-term corporate debt by Midway; and

• intended payment of a fully franked special dividend to Midway shareholders of

approximately 19.5 cents per share in the first half of calendar 2023 (subject to

conditions including settlement of subsequent tranches).

Midway Managing Director, Tony McKenna said all the operational details of the

project had been finalised and there would be a seamless transition to the new

ownership and management arrangements.

“Plantation management and offtake agreements between Midway and MEAG are in

place that will generate management revenue and long-term hardwood woodfibre

supply for our export business,” he said.

“The transaction provides significant carbon sequestration opportunities in Victoria,

generates valuable carbon credits for MEAG and demonstrates a successful model for

future carbon management projects by Midway with domestic and global investors.”

This announcement has been approved by the Midway Board of Directors.

For further information contact:

Michael McKenzie Rob Bennett

Chief Financial Officer Company Secretary

T: +61 405 760 703 T: +61 438 556 145

E: mmckenzie@midwaylimited.com.au E: rbennett@midwaylimited.com.au

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