Azzet reports on three stocks with price moving updates today.
Magellan Financial Group soars after confirming merger details ~
Shares in Magellan Financial Group were trading (ASX: MFG) 18.7% higher by 2:10 pm AEDT (3:10 am GMT) after the Australia-based specialist asset manager announced a $1.6 billion merger with Barrenjoey Capital Partners in which it already holds a 36.4% stake.
Following the resumption of trading after yesterday’s trading halt, Magellan’s management confirmed the long-suspected future merger with the homegrown investment advisory shop after acquiring an additional 10% stake from Barclays for $148.9 million.
To acquire the additional 10% economic interest in Barrenjoey, Magellan made an institutional placement which saw it issue15.4 million shares at $8.45.
It’s understood that Magellan will also offer a $20 million non-underwritten share purchase plan to eligible shareholders at the same price, with a maximum application of $30,000 per participant.
Magellan will hold an Extraordinary General Meeting in April 2026 for shareholders to vote on necessary approvals.
Assuming the deal is completed in the second quarter of 2026 as planned, Magellan shareholders will own 58.2% of the group, Placement shareholders 5.3%, Barrenjoey related parties 31.7%, and Barclays approximately 4.9%.
Escrow and vesting arrangements will apply to Barrenjoey employees and affiliates, aligning long-term incentives.
The deal implies total consideration of $903 million for the stake to be acquired at completion and a transaction multiple of 15 times price-to-earnings, based on Barrenjoey’s last 12-month adjusted net profit of $108 million on revenue of $522 million.
Commenting on the proposed merger, Magellan Financial Group Chairman Andrew Formica told the market that the combined group will benefit from improved diversification, a broader client offering, and a stronger balance sheet to support growth.
“We believe we are stronger together – with greater scale, broader expertise and enhanced capacity to create long-term value for clients and shareholders. We are excited to partner with Barrenjoey to pursue the significant opportunities ahead,” he told the market yesterday.
The planned leadership transition will see David Gonski AC as Chair and Brian Benari as Group CEO, aiming for a smooth integration and continued expansion.
The surprise merger follows Magellan’s full-year profit result, which revealed Barrenjoey’s net profit had doubled.
The investment bank delivered $522 million in revenue and $108 million in adjusted profits last year.
For the full year FY25, Magellan reported a statutory net profit after tax of $165.0 million and an operating profit after tax of $159.7 million, with total funds under management (FUM) at $39.67 billion.
The company declared a final dividend of 25.9 cents per share, plus a 21.0 cents special dividend.
Prior to today’s merger update, shares in Magellan were flatlined at $8.09 – meaning they’d gone nowhere since late June last year, despite peaking at over $11 late August.
Magellan Financial Group has a market cap of $1.8 billion; the share price is up 30% in one year and up 26% in the last month.
The stock’s shares appear to be in a downtrend, confirmed by multiple indicators.
Consensus is Moderate Sell.
Solstice Minerals jumps on Nanadie Project update
Shares in Solstice Minerals (ASX: SLS) were trading over 2.5% higher after the WA mineral explorer reported the emergence of a new high-grade copper-gold zone at its flagship 100%-owned Nanadie Project in WA’s Goldfields, following Phase 1 reverse circulation drilling.
On the strength of a string of exceptional, high-grade drilling results at the Nanadie project - which suggest it is taking shape as a standout WA Goldfields copper system - Canaccord has upgraded Solstice to Speculative Buy but refrained from putting 12 month price target on the stock.
Key intercepts from hole NANRC018 at the north-western end of the deposit include 106 metres at 0.86% copper and 0.23 grams per tonne gold from 201 metres to end of hole, with several higher-grade sub-intervals, while assays for eight additional holes remain pending.
Results from holes NANRC018 and NANRC019, together with earlier high-grade intercepts to the south, indicate strong potential to materially expand the existing 40.4-million-tonne Mineral Resource Estimate and define multiple higher-grade positions along strike.
Commenting on today’s update, Solstice Minerals’ CEO Nick Castleden told the market that recent drilling continues to demonstrate that the deposit has the potential for high-grade positions capable of both enhancing grade and adding contained metal to future Mineral Resource Estimates.
“Importantly, several RC drillholes have ended in strong copper-gold mineralisation at the limit of RC operating depth and will now be considered for immediate extension via diamond ‘tails’,’ he said.
“More broadly, drilling continues to intersect a package of mineralised mafic intrusive rocks hosting disseminated and veinlet sulphide-style copper-gold over significant strike, width and depth, and commencing just below 1-2 metres of shallow soil cover – characteristics that may support future high-volume, low-strip mining scenarios.”
The success of the initial program has already triggered planning for a Phase 2 drilling campaign targeting depth extensions, open high-grade intercepts and geophysical anomalies across the broader Nanadie system.
Beyond the Nanadie Project, Solstice’s core mining projects include:
Yarri Project (Eastern Goldfields): A large gold-focused landholding (~1,645 ) located 150km northeast of Kalgoorlie. Key prospects include:
- Bluetooth: High-grade shallow gold intercepts.
- Edjudina Range: A new 1km+ gold mineralised trend.
- Statesman Well: Features oxide gold mineralisation and historical workings.
- Bunjarra: An exploration property near the Apollo Hill gold development.
Kalgoorlie Project / Ringlock Dam: Prospective for both gold and nickel. It includes the GSP Nickel Prospect, which has recorded high-grade nickel sulphide drill results (e.g., 1.81m @ 18.1% Ni).
Ponton Project: An early-stage "frontier" gold exploration opportunity located 200km northeast of Kalgoorlie at the margin of the Yilgarn Craton.
The miner has around $15.0 million in cash.
Solstice Minerals has a market cap of $126 million; the share price is up 483% in one year and down 5% in the last week.
The stock is in a strong bullish trend confirmed by multiple indicators.
Consensus does not cover this stock.
Lindian Resources jumps on acquisition update
Shares in Lindian Resources (ASX: LIN) were trading 25.5% higher - touching fresh all-time highs of $0.69 - after announcing a strategic acquisition that effectively pivots the company from a concentrate producer to a high-value rare earths processor.
What ignited market excitement in the stock today - which resumed trading after imposing a halt on 27 February - were revelations that it has secured downstream processing capability through a binding deal to acquire a 51% stake in a fully built rare earths processing facility (SARECO MREC) in Kazakhstan (the SARECO plant) for US$15 million.
The remaining 49% interest in the JV will be held by the miner’s in-country partner, RA Group LLP.
It’s understood that the asset could support commercial MREC production late in FY26.
Underpinning the deal is the deferral of US$12 million of the purchase price until three months after the plant reaches efficient commercial MREC production, which reduces the up-front funding pressure while tying most of the consideration to performance.
Lindian – which plans to retain control over product placement - expects to supply about 12,500 tonnes per annum of Kangankunde Stage 1 monazite concentrate to the JV from Q4 FY26.
This outcome will position Lindian as an integrated producer across concentrate and MREC, with the ability to shift product allocation in response to market conditions, customer demand and pricing.
Commenting on today’s update, Lindian Resources’ executive chairman Robert Martin told the market that the acquisition of the SARECO Mixed Rare Earth Carbonate facility is a defining step for Lindian.
“It fast-tracks our transition from a concentrate producer to an integrated rare earths company with downstream capability, materially enhancing margins, commercial flexibility and long-term strategic value,” he said.
“This transaction positions Lindian to be one of the very few non-Chinese companies globally producing both rare earth concentrate and MREC.”
What makes this transaction particularly compelling, adds Martin, is the capital efficiency.
In other words, securing a fully constructed, operational cracking facility for US$15 million - compared to over half a billion dollars typically required for greenfield downstream development - allows Lindian to avoid years of development, construction, permitting and balance sheet risk.
To the uninitiated, Lindian Resources is an Australian-based company with rare earths and bauxite assets in Malawi and Guinea.
Lindian holds extensive bauxite interests in West and East Africa, totalling over 1 billion tonnes of high-quality resources.
It also has a strategic partnership with Iluka Resources (ASX: ILU) for funding and offtake, aiming to supply rare earth concentrate to Iluka's Eneabba refinery in Australia.
The stock has a market cap of $1.1 billion; the share price is up 631% in one year and up 59% in the last week.
The stock appears to be in a long-term uptrend confirmed by multiple indicators.
Consensus does not cover this stock.
This article does not constitute financial or product advice. You should consider independent advice before making financial decisions.
