A rally on Wall Street overnight – which saw it snap a six day losing streak – helped foster buying sentiment in the local sharemarket, as the ASX 200 rose by 1.44 per cent or 93 points to 6555 – its strongest gain in three months. The Energy sector rose by 2.8 per cent, boosted by a lift in oil prices overnight. Coal miners New Hope Corporation (NHC) & Coronado Global Resources (CRN) once again ranked amongst the top performing stocks, pushing the
broader Mining sector 2.2 per cent higher. The Big 4 banks advanced and supported a 1 per cent climb in the Financials sector. For the 11th time this year, all sectors finished in positive territory. Around 84 per cent of stocks in the ASX 200 rose.
In company news, Premier Investments (PMV) lifted by its most since March 2020, after releasing better-than-expected annual results. The global retailer said that its sales rose by 5.2 per cent over the year to $1.5 billion. It also recorded a 6 per cent increase in its gross profits, and a strengthening of its gross and EBIT margins. PMV also announced an on-market share buy-back of ‘up to $50 million’, and a special dividend of 25 cents-per-share,
bringing the total final dividend amount to 79-cents-per-share. PMV was the best performer on the market today after it rose by 14.6 per cent.
IRESS (IRE) tumbled 17.3 per cent (worst performer on the market) & hit 2½ year lows after it downgraded its full-year earnings guidance. IRE reduced its full-year segment profit estimates by 6.7 per cent to $166 million – $170 million, and slashed its net profit forecasts by 17 per cent. The software provided says that the ‘primary contributor to reduced 2H FY22 profit’ is ‘extensions to sales cycles’, which resulted in revenues being ‘pushed into 2023’. It also noted higher than expected costs, partly driven by a weaker Aussie dollar.
AGL Energy (AGL) finished flat despite announcing its FY23 earnings guidance and a review of its strategy. AGL expects its underlying EBITDA to be between $1.25 billion – $1.45 billion, and its underlying profit to be between $200 million – $320 million. The utilities company also said that it targets an exit from coal-fired energy generation ‘by the end of FY35’, and has flagged that its growth ambitions will ‘require significant capital investment’ (estimate: $20 billion).
On the economic front, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) announced an early release of its consumer price index indicator. It eased from an annual growth of 7 per cent in July, to 6.8 per cent in August, largely driven by a decrease in petrol prices. The inflation readings were made available ahead of Tuesday’s Reserve Bank (RBA) Board meeting, where policymakers are expected to raise the cash rate to a 9-year high.
Top Australian Brokers
- eToro - market-leading social trading platform - Read our review
- IG - Extensive product array and user-friendly platforms - Read our review
- IC Markets - experienced and highly regulated - Read our review
- Avatrade - powerful trading tools - Read our review
Today, 3.2bn shares were traded, worth $7bn. 920 stocks rose, 446 fell & 387 finished unchanged.
Originally published by Divik Nigam – (Author), CommSec
