MARCUS END OF DAY - Thursday, 28 August

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The ASX 200 has finished the day up 19.5 points or 0.22%. Little change all session as traders tried to predict how Wall St will react tonight to Nvidia’s numbers. Safety took priority. Defensive names mostly in the green. Financials on top. Big Four banks all in the green but varied. CBA and NAB (broker upgrade may have helped) best. Both up over 2%. Insurers mixed. Excellent numbers from GDG not enough to bring NWL and HUB with it. XYZ flat. REITs close behind. Lower bond yields providing a boost. Two biggest names GMG and SCG up over 1%. Industrials grinding higher thanks to TCL and BXB. QAN results giving a boost. VGN (+6.1%) got taken along for the ride. Staples sound after one of its most volatile few days ever. COL up another 2.8%. Now up 16% in three sessions. No bounce from WOW. Broker commentary negative.

Resources modestly in the red. BHP and RIO down. FMG up. Lots of results in the sector. S32 (miss), MIN (miss), SFR (miss), IGO (miss), WGX (beat). Lithium and uranium down while gold stocks held onto most of their recent gains. EVN down 0.1%. NST down 0.3%. Tiny bounce from TLS after going ex-dividend yesterday. REA still down but not as bad as the week to date. Tech down 1%. WTC managed a small rally but still finished off 2.2%. TNE (-2.3%) the worst of the big names. MAQ off 8.2% on a far from bullish outlook. Health Care weak. CSL, PME and RMD all down. TLX crashed 18.8% on another FDA setback. Energy deepest in the red. No stocks in the Top 20 managed to move ahead. WDS down 93c vs its 53c dividend.

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STORIES

• Telix Pharmaceuticals (TLX -18.8%) – Down 15% this morning. Not related to the subpoena issues. Was a hard decision to sell in Growth but getting slightly vindicated today.
• South32 (S32 -7.2%) – Revenue from continuing operations up 17% YoY to US$5780m. Unlike results from the iron ore giants, S32 benefitted for a net year of rising commodity prices yet the share price is down YoY.
• Macquarie Technology Group (MAQ -8.2%) – Share price getting dumped 12%. Revenue and profit met expectations but the outlook is poor. 
• Eagers Automotive (APE +12%) – Half year results. The stock has been on a huge run this year so expectations were high. Underlying pre-tax profit has beaten expectations. No specific guidance but outlook is positive. Opening update: Up 17%! Punching the air.
• Generation Development Group (GDG +6.8%) – Expectations were high and management have delivered. Revenue a 4% beat. Underlying profit a 14% beat. Record highs are back in its sights. Opening update: Up 7%!
• Medibank Private (MPL -2.5%) – Full year underlying profit has grown 8.5% but slightly missed expectations. Dividend in line. Good enough. Will see what the market thinks. Opening update: Down 2.5%.
• Wesfarmers (WES +0.4%) – Results have met expectations. Strong growth from both Bunnings (+3.8%) and Kmart (+9.2%), offsetting negative growth in WesCEF. Opening update: Share price flat.
• Smartgroup Corporation (SIQ +0.5%) – Half year revenue up 7% thanks to higher novated leasing settlement volumes and salary packaging customer numbers.
• UBS has upgraded its lithium price forecasts on longer than expected Chinese supply disruptions.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

• Dicker Data (DDR +4.5%) – Good result. Half year profit up 11% to $39.4m. Full year guidance implies 10-13% revenue growth. Share price has been in steadily uptrend since mid-June.
• Web Travel Group (WEB +2.1%) – Trading update from AGM. 1H26 total transaction value on track to rise 19% to $3.1bn. Margins on track to fall slightly from 6.7% to 6.5%.
• Ramsay Health Care (RHC -10.5%) – Mixed result for the private hospital, surgical centre and day clinic provider. Revenue of $17.8bn in line. Underlying profit beat expectations but share price being hit hard on issues in its UK-based Elysium mental health segment and EU hospitals segment.
• Sandfire Resources (SFR -1.5%) – Underlying earnings up 45% to $528m YoY. Profit a slight miss. Copper equivalent production ‘materially’ in line with guidance despite weather and power disruptions. 2% production increase guided for FY26. OpEx expected to rise 10%.
• Mineral Resources (MIN -1.6%) – Full year net loss of $112m. H2 underlying profit of $84m. Most of the loss coming for $632m post-tax impairment charges (previously announced). Weak iron ore and lithium pricing. Revenue down 15% YoY.
• TPG Telecom (TPG -0.6%) – Half year earnings up 1% to $813m, slightly ahead of expectations. Guidance reaffirmed. Pro Forma earnings expected to fall between $1605 to $1655m.
• Qantas (QAN +9.1%) – Underlying profit up 15% to $2.39bn. CapEx up 22%. EPS of 110c up 25%. Dividends not just resumed but a $150m special dividend announced taking the full interim amount to 26.5c (3% gross yield). Tricky share price to get right. Always in the headlines for the wrong reasons. Oil price down 22% in FY25 helps. Positive outlook. Strong travel demand expected going into FY26.
• IGO (-4.7%) - Lithium, nickel, cobalt, copper miner. Loss of $955m. Revenue down 37%. Underlying EBITDA loss $53m v $581m profit. A number of impairment charges. Cash costs up, production down 19%. No dividend. 

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