Hello and good afternoon. I’m Holly reporting live from Kalkine Studio, and you’re
watching ‘The Mid-Market Pulse’.
Today, Australian shares were trading near the day’s low by afternoon session amid
looming fear that the central bank may raise interest rate well ahead of its guidance.
The positive cues from Wall Street failed to lift market sentiment, and correction in
commodity prices also weighed on mining and gold companies. By the afternoon trade,
the ASX 200 index was down by 28.70 points or 0.39%. The benchmark index opened
marginally higher today, following overnight gains in US stocks, but soon reversed gain. On
the sectoral front, eight of the 11 sectoral indices were trading lower, led by telecom,
financial and utilities space. The telecommunications services sector declined the most, falling 0.65%
by lunchtime. It was followed by 0.6% loss in financial sector and 0.4% drop in utilities space.
Among others, consumer staples, consumer discretionary, A-REIT, energy and material sectors also witnessed
selling pressure. Bucking the trend, health care sector was the best performing sector
with a 1.2% gain, followed by industrial, which gained 0.2%. The tech sector also traded higher
with marginal gains, following overnight gains in US counterpart, NASDAQ Composite.
Now for a look at the top gainers and losers by mid-session trade.
Corporate bookmaker PointsBet extended fall for the second day and topped the losers’
chart with an 8.3% loss. Some of the other worst performers were real estate business
Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, gold producer Chalice Mining, software business Megaport, and miner
Perseus Mining. On the gaining side, plumbing business Reece was the top performer with
an 8.9% gain. The other notable gainers were automobile parts maker GUD Holdings, health
care firm ResMed, lithium producer Pilbara Minerals, and diversified financial group
Janus Henderson.
On this note, let’s move on to stocks that created a buzz on the ASX today.
Shares of Origin Energy were trading 0.8% lower after it released September quarter
earnings report. Power and gas retailer posted 69% year-on-year growth in revenue from its
share in the Australia Pacific LNG project. The revenue was boosted by rebound in global
commodity prices. The company said that production and sales volume was stable compared to June
quarter despite planned downstream shutdown during the period. Electricity sales volumes
rose 3% as compared with corresponding 2020 quarter, while gas volumes declined 7%, from
prior year period. During the July-September quarter, the energy company signed deal to
sell 10% of Australia Pacific LNG to EIG Global Energy Partners for AU$2.12 billion.
Shares of ResMed surged nearly 7% after medical equipment company announced result for the
first quarter of financial year 2022. The digital health company reported 20% rise in
revenue during the quarter ended September 30, 2021. Income from operations increased 21%,
while net income jumped 14%. The revenue was driven by rise in demand for its sleep and
respiratory care devices, partially offset by decreased COVID-19 related demand for ventilators.
Shares of Marley Spoon plunged over 33% after the food delivery business downgraded its
earnings guidance. The company has lowered full-year revenue growth between 26-28%, compared
to previous guidance between 30-35%. The company, a global subscription-based meal kit provider,
reported 14% growth in revenue at 79.2 million pound in the third quarter of 2021, compared
to the prior corresponding period.
Shares of Macquarie Group entered trading halt, pending an announcement. The investment
bank plans to raise over AU$1.5 billion in equity to invest in business opportunities
and meet tougher capital requirements. The capital will be raised from institutional
investors through a placement. It will also launch a share purchase plan to allow retail
investors to chip in. The capital raising comes after Macquarie’s share price has
been on a tear, rising to a record high of more than AU$200 earlier this week before
closing at AU$197.83 on Thursday. The company has also declared an ordinary dividend of
AU$2.72 per share, representing a payout ratio of 50%.
Shares of Crown Resorts traded marginally higher after Australia's largest gaming and
entertainment group signed an agreement to settle a class action against the company.
The casino operator has reached an agreement to settle the shareholder class action commenced
against it on 4 December 2017 in the Federal Court of Australia, referenced as Zantran
v Crown Resorts. The total settlement amount is AU$125 million inclusive of interest and
cost.
Well, that’s a wrap in the show. Keep watching kalkine tv for more trending market updates
from Australia and around the world.