2% share turnover drives Orion Equities delisting proposal

Orion puts ASX listing to a shareholder vote

Orion Equities Limited (ASX:OEQ) wants to leave the ASX, saying its shares have become too thinly traded and too tightly held to support a meaningful public market. The listed investment company will seek a special resolution at its annual general meeting on 27 November 2026, after which the proposed removal would still require ASX approval.

The board’s case is built on a stark liquidity problem. In the nine months to 30 September, just 296,000 Orion shares changed hands, equivalent to 2% of shares on issue. Annual turnover over the preceding four years ranged from 5% to 9%, while the top 20 shareholders held 90% of the company as at 23 October. Queste Communications (ASX:QUE) alone held nearly 60%.

A discount to assets has not produced a liquid market

Orion’s board also points to the persistent gap between the company’s quoted price and its underlying assets. Its post-tax net tangible asset backing was $0.43 a share at 30 June 2026, compared with a financial-year VWAP of $0.19, a 55% discount. That discount narrowed from 65% a year earlier, but remains substantial.

The company recently completed an unmarketable parcel buy-back, acquiring 23,769 shares from 34 holders for $4,753.80 before expenses. The exercise reduced the number of shareholders with small parcels, but did not alter the underlying structure: 24 holders still had parcels worth less than $500 as at 23 October, while 163 shareholders were recorded overall.

Delisting would cut costs but restrict exit routes

Orion estimates that leaving the exchange would reduce annual overheads by about $41,000, including ASX listing, CHESS, registry, audit, accounting and administration costs. For a company whose quoted securities traded only 87 times in the first nine months of 2026, the saving is material in relation to the scale of the public market it currently supports.

The trade-off is less straightforward for shareholders. If the delisting proceeds, Orion shares would no longer trade on ASX and could generally be sold only through off-market private transactions. The company may investigate a private trading platform to match buyers and sellers, but it gives no assurance that such a service will be engaged or that sufficient liquidity will exist. An intended on-market buy-back may also prove impractical because ASX rules require trading on at least five days in the previous three months, precisely the condition Orion’s thin market may struggle to satisfy.

Profit was lifted by a property revaluation

The delisting proposal arrives alongside a fairly modest FY26 result. Orion reported a $203,862 profit after tax, largely because an independent valuation lifted its Mandurah investment property by $400,000 to $2.5 million. Total revenue fell to $218,129 from $235,302, no dividend was declared, and the company’s NTA backing rose from $0.42 to $0.43 a share.

Cash stood at $3.80 million at year-end, with no external borrowings. Orion also held listed investments valued at $505,138 at 30 June, comprising stakes in Bentley Capital (ASX:BEL) and Strike Resources (ASX:SRK). A later portfolio disclosure showed listed securities valued at $1.28 million at 30 September, following $817,100 invested in ASX-listed securities during July.

The vote determines whether OEQ becomes a private-market security

If shareholders approve the resolution and ASX agrees, Orion anticipates the last trading day could be 29 December 2026, with removal from the official list no earlier than 31 December. Those dates are indicative and remain subject to the shareholder vote and ASX’s determination.

After delisting, Orion would remain a public company and would continue to face Corporations Act obligations, including annual audited accounts and annual meetings. It may also remain an unlisted disclosing entity while it has at least 100 shareholders. The immediate question is therefore less whether Orion can operate without an ASX quotation than whether shareholders are prepared to exchange a visibly discounted, illiquid market for a potentially cheaper company with no regular on-market exit.