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Focuses on the disparity between the top 30 companies in the "BRW1000" list and the top 1000 in terms of their performance in return on shareholders' funds (ROSF) in Australia. Importance of ROSF in determining the real status of business enterprises; Speculation for big companies to get even bigger and leave behind the small companies; Association of the use of tangible assets with the return on shareholders' funds.

The article offers insights from experts with regards to equities. George Clapham of Fortis Investment Partners says investors must be more exposed on equities since Australia is on its growth cycle. Joe Bracken of BT Investment Management argues that equities are not good investment. He also cites that bonds have a key part on their strategy. Annette Vlismas of Russell Investments believes that investors who took equity risk will get higher returns in 2010 or 2011.

The article presents the corporate governance mid-year report by AMP Capital Investors, which showed that Australian stockholders are calling for reforms on the remuneration practices due to the discrepancies in the remuneration structures and shareholder interests seen during the economic slump.

The article reports that estimates for net profits after tax of fertilizer company Nufarm Ltd. was downgraded by 15% for the 2009 financial year. It notes that the news has brought negative effect to the company's shareholders who had committed to its $300 million equity raising at $11.25 a share in May 2009. However, JPMorgan analyst Andrew Scott notes that such investor's pain may create a buying opportunity.

The article discusses the benefits of shareholder return when used by chief executives as their guide for making decisions. Portfolio manager Matt Williams of Perpetual Investment stresses that the company's shareholder return can show either the good or poor performances of chief executives. It mentions that Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. is one of the best-performing companies in the Australian Securities with over 100% return within five years.

The article focuses on the capital raising launched by Westfield Group, Wesfarmers Ltd., and Qantas Airways Ltd. Roger Montgomery of Clime Asset Management says that the capital raising of Wesfarmers further reduced the equity of shareholder. Winston Sammut of Maxim Asset Management says that investors of Westfield should wait for the completion of its $8.3 billion raise. It also reveals that Qantas is raising their capital to strengthen their assets and claims.

The article reports that Australian manganese producer and distributor OM Holdings has produced a total shareholder return of more than 800 percent. The manganese producer has produced a return on equity of 48 percent and paid a dividend of two percent, representing dividend growth of 24 percent. The firm's current operations, according to the author, look distinctly healthy.

The article reports that a global study of merger and acquisition (M&A) activity has been completed by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). The study has revealed that too many investment bankers are supporting M&A deals because less than half of them create stockholder value for the company which is acquiring. However, there is a 56 percent probability that stockholder value will be added.

Looks into the correlation between return on shareholders' funds and share-price performance of business enterprises.