OZ in $125m Sandfire sell-down

OZ Minerals has sold its 19.2 per cent shareholding in copper miner Sandfire Resources in a transaction worth $125 million.

Melbourne-based OZ sold its 29.9 million shares to a range of investors at a price of $4.20 per share.

That is a small 1.75 per cent discount to Sandfire’s last trading price before it went into a trading halt earlier today.

However, like many mining companies, its current share price is well down from where it was trading last year, with the stock trading above $6.50 last July.

Macquarie Securities is understood to have handled the sale, which will bring to an end recurring speculation OZ would launch a full takeover.

The sale comes nearly five years after OZ acquired a stake in Sandfire, which at the time was in the early stages of developing its DeGrussa copper mine.

It acquired most of the shares (25.8 million) in July 2010 at a price of $3.84 per share.

Since then, it has acquired more stock to maintain its holding at around 19 per cent.

In a statement today, OZ said it was in the midst of a whole-of-business strategic review, which had already led to a decision to shift its head office to Adelaide.

OZ said it has “concluded that it will not be developing a more involved business relationship with (Sandfire).”

Sandfire’s other big shareholder is Korean conglomerate POSCO.