Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) has raised at least $1 billion (with more planned) to fund some investment opportunities.
Macquarie Group is Australia’s largest investment bank with operations spread throughout North America, Europe, Middle East, Asia and Australia. Unlike a traditional ‘retail’ bank, like most investment banks Macquarie makes a large chunk of its profit by operating in the investment markets and managing ‘assets’ for individuals and organisations. As of 2018, Macquarie had reported a profit for 49 years in a row.
Macquarie’s $1 Billion Capital Raising
Macquarie announced that it was going to (and now has completed) a $1 billion institutional capital raising at a share price of $120 per new share, which was a 2.8% discount to the last closing price.
Macquarie CEO Shemara Wikramanayake said: “We are pleased with the success of the placement and the strong support from institutional shareholders. We are investing in growth, while ensuring that we retain a strong capital position. The capital raised provides flexibility to take advantage of the opportunities that each of Macquarie’s businesses are working on.”
What Opportunities Are Macquarie Chasing?
Macquarie has been investing in most regions, particularly by Macquarie Capital.
The target sectors has been renewables, technology and infrastructure. Two significant investments that it has made recently is in a UK offshore wind farm and further investment in a Taiwanese wind farm.
Macquarie is also anticipating more investing by Macquarie Asset Management and Macquarie Capital.
The idea of the capital raising is that Macquarie can continue to invest whilst maintaining an appropriate level of capital in light of ongoing regulatory changes.
Is The Macquarie Share Price A Buy?
Eligible Macquarie shareholders will be able to buy up to $15,000 of new shares at the lower of $120 or a 1% discount to the average share price of the five days before the offer closes.
Macquarie said it expects the first half of FY20 profit to be 10% higher than the first half of FY19, but FY20 is still expected to show a lower profit than FY19.
The global investment bank is my preferred pick to most other financial companies like Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA). But, I’m not sure if now is the best time to buy shares – a global downturn could be more opportunistic.
Therefore, the reliable and consistent businesses revealed for free in the report below could be better ideas.
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