Montana battle resumes spot on centre-stage

By ELLEN READ markets writer

The long-running battle for control of winemaker Montana regains its stockmarket centre-stage position this week after Friday's news that Lion Nathan must sell part of its controlling stake.

A stock exchange committee ordered Lion Nathan to sell 19 per cent of Montana as punishment for breaching stock exchange rules during its takeover bid of the winemaker in February.

The decision cuts Lion's holding from 62 per cent to just over 43 per cent. British liquor giant Allied Domecq holds 27 per cent of Montana and wants full control.

Lion has one month to complete the sale, which must be to an independent party or parties.

Brokers said that with little news scheduled and no official missive expected on the other headline attraction - the future ownership of Air New Zealand - at least the struggle for Montana would provide some focus.

That aside, they predict a quiet week, with the market continuing to tread water, stuck as it is between reporting seasons.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand's official cash rate review on Wednesday is unlikely to provide any boost as chances of the 5.75 per cent cash rate being cut are considered to be slim.

Items on the diary are scant but include Northland Port's annual meeting this afternoon in Whangarei.

In May the company reported an 80 per cent fall in net profit for the year to March 31, reflecting a loss from the disposal of its engineering business.

Auckland Airport also has the potential to be in the news, with a draft Commerce Commission report due today on airport pricing.

The report looks at airports' pricing policy for landing charges and other things and whether they reap monopoly returns.

So, brokers say, the first week not only of the new financial year for many companies but also of the beefed-up takeover rules is likely to be subdued, with little reason for many investors to move.

The pending arrival of the new code has seen increased takeover activity in recent months, with deals being brought forward to beat the tougher rules.

Despite this, two cases - Alliant, Infratil and AGL's haggle for control of energy retailer TrustPower and Lion Nathan and Allied's stoush over Montana - remain unresolved.

The new code forces bidders to make the same offer to all shareholders when their stakes in target companies exceed 20 per cent.

The NZSE-40 capital index ended last week at 2086.05, up from 2050 the previous Friday.

Turnover for the week was 295 million stocks, valued at $474 million.