The capital raising coincides with the bank’s first-half earnings guidance for 2020, in which it predicted a 10 per cent increase to earnings compared to the same time last year.
Following the announcement that the financial institution was capital raising, Macquarie called for a trading halt.
In a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX), chief executive officer Shemara Wikramanayake said, “We have continued to identify opportunities to invest capital with the potential for attractive risk-adjusted returns for shareholders over the medium term.”
She said that “raising new capital at this point allows [Macquarie] to maintain strategic flexibility in light of these opportunities”.
According to the announcement, eligible shareholders will be given the opportunity to participate in a non-underwritten share purchase plan with a maximum application size of $15,000 per shareholder.
It was noted that new shares for these investors will be offered at a 1 per cent discount on the value-weight average price of Macquarie shares during the last five days of trading.
The financial institution is seeking to add approximately 8.4 million new shares as a result of the capital raising, which it said will represent approximately 2.5 per cent of total existing Macquarie shares on issue.
Financial year results
The 10 per cent expectation for an earnings increase is despite a concession that profits will be lower in the 2019-20 half year report than they were in the first half of the 2018-19 financial year, where the bank reported a $1.67 billion profit.
In the 2018-19 financial year, the bank reported that it had made just shy of $3 billion, with profits totalling $2.98 billion.
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