London’s FTSE 100 index will lose its second-largest company by market capitalization if shareholders back plans by global resource giant BHP Group Ltd. to end its dual listing structure and make Australia its primary stock market.
BHP has previously come under pressure from some shareholders, notably activist investor Elliott Advisors, to simplify its structure, but had said any gains would be less than the cost of change.
Now the discount of London-listed stocks is at its deepest in more than three decades, BHP, which on Tuesday reported its best annual profit in nearly a decade, said it planned to get rid of its London listing.
Shareholders are expected to vote on the unification at meetings in the first half of 2022.
If the plan gets board and shareholder approval, the London Stock Exchange will lose a major player. BHP has £128-billion ($221.97-billion) in market cap, second only to AstraZeneca with around £131-billion, Refinitiv data show.
BHP is the biggest company by market capitalization on the Australian stock exchange.
The value of British stocks versus global peers has been depressed by the combined impact of Britain’s departure from the European Union, a weak pound and a lack of tech stocks, which have been the big beneficiaries of the disruption caused by the pandemic.
London-listed shares are trading at 12.6 times forward earnings, that compares with 17.3 times for the Australian benchmark.
After news of the plan to end the London listing, BHP’s London shares rose 6 per cent by 1352 GMT, outperforming the wider market.
Jamie Maddock, equity research analyst at Quilter Cheviot, said BHP’s departure is bad news for U.K.-focused investors as country index trackers would be forced to sell their shares. The move would also reduce significantly London’s exposure to the mining sector.
David Madden, market analyst at Equiti Capital in London said the London stock market would still be attractive and noted it has attracted a surge of initial public offerings this year.
“The London Stock Exchange’s deep liquidity pool will ensure it remains popular for listings,” he said.
Last year, consumer brands company Unilever, which like BHP had a dual-listing, merged its Dutch and British corporate entities and Unilever NV’s Amsterdam-listed shares ceased trading.
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