[miningmx.com] – BHP Billiton shareholders were expected to approve the demerger of asset to create South32, but its listing comes amid speculation about its value in the current market and whether it will be a takeover target, said Reuters.
“I think a focused management team will be able to extract the best value for those assets over time. But if commodity prices are weak, it’s going to be a bit more problematic,” Paul Xiradis, CEO of Ausbil Investment Management, told the newswire.
“A lot of people who own BHP own it for the yield and for some exposure to the sector, and will not want to hold South32,” said Nik Stanjevic, an analyst at British wealth manager Brewin Dolphin.
Given the tough market conditions analysts have speculated South32 will be priced relatively cheaply, but another analyst said it would stabilise and look to acquire. “They’ll be more the acquirer relative to being acquired, just because of their size,” said Anna Kassianos, an analyst at Platypus Investment Management.
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