Hunted becomes hunter – Centrepoint flags acquisitions

Mike Taylor

Managing Editor/Publisher, Financial Newswire

29 June 2023

Barely a year after it was the subject of a takeover bid by its competitor Diverger, financial planning licensee, Centrepoint Alliance, has flagged a 5.6% in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to $7.6 million.

In an earnings update provided to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) the company made clear that the forecast excluded LTI awards, one-off costs and asset sales and said it reflected improved business performance achieved through operating at scale.

The ASX update also flagged further growth stating that the company had retained mid-market specialist adviser Allier Capital to help the board “evaluate potential merger and acquisition opportunities currently under consideration”.

The announcement also appears to reflect the substantial bedding down of the transaction which saw it acquire ClearView Wealth.

The announcement said that as of the end of May, Centrepoint’s cash balance stood at $14.4 million, taking into account the payment of an interim ordinary dividend of 0.5 cents and a special dividend of 0.5 cents in March, 2023.

The announcement also referenced the fact that there are 512 authorised representatives operating under Centrepoint licenses and 200 self-licensed practices involving 771 advisers.

It said Centrepoint’s strategy to expand its lending business was progressing well following the successful launch of Lending as a Service in October last year.

Competitor publicly-listed financial planning licensee, Diverger, last year made a $63.5 million cash and scrip bid for Centrepoint which was withdrawn after Centrepoint made clear that the offer did not “adequately reflect the firm’s value”.

In rejecting the Diverger bid, Centrepoint pointed to its own growth agenda and the fact that, at the time, the company had $12.5 million in the bank.