Cardinal (ASX:CDV) increases takeover offer for Nordgold: Aus shares 0.3% lower at noon

The Australian share market opened lower and continued this down trajectory for the first part of the session. Just over half of the sectors are trading lower this morning. Energy however, has managed to buck the trend, rising 1.7 per cent as the iron ore price edged higher.

The S&P/ASX 200 index is 23 points down or 0.3 per cent lower at 6,661. On the futures market the SPI is 25 points lower.

Broker moves

Morgan Stanley rates South32 (ASX:S32) as Overweight, increasing its price target to $2.95. Morgan Stanley expects a global v-shaped recovery, bolstered by the recent covid vaccine discoveries. The broker expects inflation to return in late 2021, leading to a weaker USD and in turn supporting commodities. Shares in South32 (ASX:S32) are trading 1.5 per cent lower at $2.57.

Company news

Nordgold has increased its takeover offer for Cardinal Resources (ASX:CDV). The all cash offer price under the unconditional on-market takeover offer has been increased from $1.00 to $1.05 per share. The Offer will remain open for acceptance until the close of trading on 23 December 2020. This follows the drawn out takeover bidding war between Russian miner Nordgold and China’s state-owned Shandong. Shares in Cardinal Resources (ASX:CDV) are trading 1.4 per cent higher at $1.08.

Meal delivery company, Marley Spoon (ASX:MMM) believes consumers' behaviour of switching from offline to online shopping in the category is still in its early phase. It projects ongoing growth for many years to come. It recently took possession of its third Australian manufacturing centre in Perth, WA and launched its budget brand Dinnerly in the region this month. The Company is scheduled to take possession of its new custom-built Sydney manufacturing centre in Q2 of next year, tripling its Sydney manufacturing footprint. Shares in Marley Spoon (ASX:MMM) are trading 5.2 per cent higher at $2.61.

IPOs

Western Australian company, Kingfisher Mining (ASX:KFM) started trading today. It issued shares at $0.20 and started trading on the ASX at $0.32 and is currently trading at $0.32.

Best and worst performers

The best-performing sector is Information Technology, adding 1.8 per cent, while the worst performing sector is Healthcare, shedding 2.3 per cent.

The best performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 is IGO (ASX:IGO), rising 27.5 per cent to $6.43, followed by shares in Whitehaven Coal (ASX:WHC) and Western Areas (ASX:WSA).

The worst performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 is Breville Group (ASX:BRG), dropping 3.4 per cent to $23.94, followed by shares in Lynas Corporation (ASX:LYC) and CSL (ASX:CSL).

Commodities and the dollar

Gold is trading at US$1,838 an ounce.
Iron ore price rose 4.3 per cent to US$156.58.
Iron ore futures are pointing to a rise of 7.3 per cent.
One Australian dollar is buying 75.47 US cents.

Source: Finance News Network