K64 Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services

Lockdowns and supply chain squeeze to lead to earnings reset

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Original article by Richard Henderson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 13-Oct-21

Many Australian-listed companies withheld earnings guidance during the August reporting season, citing factors such as uncertainty arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Investors will be hoping for greater clarity during the annual general meetings season, but Chris Nicol of Morgan Stanley says they are likely to be disappointed. He cautions that factors such as lockdowns and supply chain problems can be expected to weigh on earnings in the first half of 2021-22.

CORPORATES
MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Investors pump billions into new companies as listings soar

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Original article by Richard Henderson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 28 : 12-Oct-21

Data from Refinitiv shows that 121 companies have listed on the Australian sharemarket so far in 2021, compared with just 84 new listings in 2020. It is the highest level of listing activity since 2007, when 136 companies debuted on the local bourse. Some $6.7bn has been raised via IPOs during 2021, while the proposed floats of Judo Bank and GQG Partners would boost this by around $2bn. IPO activity was subdued earlier in the year, following the fallout from the ill-fated float of Nuix in late 2020.

CORPORATES
REFINITIV AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, JUDO BANK PTY LTD, GQG PARTNERS INCORPORATED – ASX GQG, NUIX LIMITED – ASX NXL

Aussie BNPL usage the best in the West

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Original article by Lachlan Moffet Gray
The Australian – Page: 19 : 17-Sep-21

Sixty per cent of Australians have used a buy now pay later (BNPL) platform, compared to 47 per cent of US or UK respondents. This is according to a survey by card issuing and payment solutions company Marqeta, with a third of survey respondents stating that they had started using BNPL platforms within the last 18 months. Marqeta country manager for Australia and New Zealand Duncan Currie says the high adoption of BNPL in Australia could in part be due to it being the home country of leading BNPL companies Zip and Afterpay.

CORPORATES
MARQETA, ZIP CO LIMITED – ASX Z1P, AFTERPAY LIMITED – ASX APT

Net zero pledges soar after earnings season

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Original article by Richard Henderson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 7-Sep-21

Macquarie Group data indicates that 34 companies in the S&P/ASX 300 have made a commitment to net zero emissions in the first eight months of 2021, compared to 38 for the whole of 2020. Companies that have made net zero emission pledges so far in 2021 include Boral, Ampol and JB Hi-Fi. Their commitments follow a recent report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change which concluded that temperatures could exceed the 1.5 degree increase above pre-industrialised levels within 10 years.

CORPORATES
JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, BORAL LIMITED – ASX BLD, AMPOL LIMITED – ALD, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, INTERGOVERNMENTAL PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE

Investors rewarded with bumper dividends, buybacks

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Original article by John Collett
Brisbane Times – Page: Online : 1-Sep-21

CommSec’s chief economist Craig James is cautious about the outlook for the Australian sharemarket in the wake of the August reporting season. He notes that the recent strong performance of many listed companies has already been priced into sharemarket valuations. Capital management was a key feature of the reporting season, with listed companies announcing some $20bn worth of share buybacks, while investors will receive more than $34bn worth of dividend payments. Peter Warnes of Morningstar says investors should expect lower dividend payouts in 2022.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH SECURITIES LIMITED, MORNINGSTAR PTY LTD

Resources set to drive ASX to 8000 at year’s end

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Original article by William McInnes
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 28 : 9-Jul-21

Mike Aked of global investment manager Research Affiliates says Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index could rise above 8,000 points by the end of 2021. He expects the resources sector to drive the local market higher, on the back of the continued strength of commodity prices. Financial stocks have been the main driver of the local bourse’s recent rally, although the materials sector has surged in the last several weeks amid a rebound in the prices of commodities such as iron ore and copper.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, RESEARCH AFFILIATES LLC

Global equities the big winner

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Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 2-Jul-21

Data from BetaShares shows that Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 gained 27.8 per cent on a total returns basis in 2020-21, including dividends. This compares with a return of 37.4 per cent for the MSCI All Country World Index, which was boosted by technology and financial stocks. The Australian market was in turn bolstered by strong gains from consumer discretionary stocks (up 46.1 per cent), financials (40.6 per cent), technology (39.8 per cent) and resources (29.2 per cent). The S&P 500 gained 40.8 per cent in 2020-21, and it reached another new record high on 1 July.

CORPORATES
BETASHARES CAPITAL LIMITED, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MSCI ALL COUNTRY WORLD INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX

Shares deliver $560bn windfall

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 13 & 20 : 1-Jul-21

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 capped off a stellar recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic by posting a gain in all but one month during 2020-21. The benchmark index’s 24 per cent gain was the best return for a financial year since its inception, and follows a pandemic-induced loss of 11.3 per cent in 2019-20. The S&P/ASX 200 reached a record high of 7,406.2 points in May, having slumped to a low of 4,402.5 points in March 2020 as the pandemic weighed on global financial markets. Utilities is the only sector that failed to post a positive return in 2020-21.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX

Aussie wealth rockets despite virus

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Original article by Cliona O’Dowd
The Australian – Page: 17 : 23-Jun-21

Just under one in 10 Australians are millionaires in US dollar terms, according to Credit Suisse’s latest global wealth report. Credit Suisse found that Australians increased their wealth by more than all other countries except Switzerland during the pandemic, while it estimates that the number of Australian millionaires will rise by 70 per cent over the next five years to three million. Credit Suisse found that Australia topped the list for median wealth per adult in 2020, while it placed fourth in terms of mean wealth.

CORPORATES
CREDIT SUISSE AG

Soul Patts in $11bn LIC merger

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Original article by Cliona O’Dowd
The Australian – Page: 13 & 17 : 23-Jun-21

Shares in listed investment company Milton rose by as much as 16 per cent to $5.80 on 22 June after it was announced it would be merging with investment house Washington H. Soul Pattinson. Soul Patts, which already owns a three per cent stake in Milton, will acquire it in an all-scrip merger that will increase Soul Patts’ market capitalisation to $10.8 billion. Soul Patts owns major holdings in Australian Pharmaceutical Industries, Brickworks, TPG Telecom and New Hope Group, while both it and Milton are chaired by Robert Milner. Soul Patts CEO Todd Barlow says the merger will mean a larger war chest for future investments and increased portfolio diversification.

CORPORATES
MILTON CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX MLT, WASHINGTON H SOUL PATTINSON AND COMPANY LIMITED – ASX SOL, AUSTRALIAN PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES LIMITED – ASX API, BRICKWORKS LIMITED – ASX BKW, TPG TELECOM LIMITED – ASX TPG, NEW HOPE GROUP, NEW HOPE CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX NHC, WAM CAPITAL LIMITED – ASX WAM