Hello and good afternoon. I’m Sage reporting live from Kalkine Studio. It’s lunchtime here in Sydney, and time for ‘The
Mid-Market Pulse’. In today’s show, we’ll take a look at the overall Australian share market performance
by the mid-session trade. We will also explore the biggest winners and losers of the day such as Crown
Resorts, Altium, Treasury Wine, Nanosonics, ALS, Wisetech Global, and others. Lastly,
we’ll focus on stocks such as Spark Infrastructure, Altium, Treasury Wine Estates, WiseTech Global,
Janus Henderson, and many more that have grabbed headlines today. So, without further ado,
let’s get started.
Australian shares traded flat by afternoon trade as gains in consumer staples and health care
stocks were offset by losses in tech and telecom companies. The market struggled for direction
in absence of any major event on the domestic or global front, while persistent concerns
over inflation kept investors sidelined. The mixed cues from Wall Street further dampened
market sentiment. By the afternoon trade, the ASX 200 index was up by just 3
points. The benchmark index opened flat today, but soon gained momentum and rose as
much as 0.3% during the day’s trade so far. On the sectoral front, six of 11 sectors
were trading higher. The consumer staples was the best performer with nearly 1% gain, followed
by 0.8% rise in the health care space. Among others, energy, financial, and A-REIT sectors
also traded higher with modest gain. On the flip side, information technology sector
was the biggest loser with a 0.9% loss. It was followed by 0.7% fall in telecommunication
services, while industrials, utilities, materials, and consumer discretionary sectors also reeled
under selling pressure.
In our next segment, let’s focus on the top gainers and losers by mid-session trade.
The top performer on the ASX pack was Australia’s largest gaming and entertainment group Crown
Resorts, which rallied over 16% on receiving a takeover offer. Some of the other notable
gainers were software firm Altium, winemaking and distribution business Treasury Wine Estates,
health care equipment manufacturer Sonic Healthcare, and mining infrastructure services provider
Mineral Resources. On the losing side, health care equipment manufacturer Nanosonics topper
the chart with a 4.4% loss. The other worst performers were professional technical services
provider ALS, software business Wisetech Global, health care firm Polynovo, and gold miner
St Barbara.
On this note, let’s move on to stocks that created a buzz on the ASX today.
On the IPO front, Cadence Opportunities Fund, an Australia-based investment company,
traded flat on its debut on the ASX today. The stock commenced trading on the ASX after
the company raised AU$15.5 million at an offer price of AU$2.77 per share in its IPO. Cadence
is an investment company, currently with approximately 200 shareholders. It has been operating
as an unlisted investment company since January 2019.
Shares of gaming and entertainment group Crown Resorts surged over 16% after it received
a fresh takeover proposal from Blackstone. The casino operator informed its shareholders
this morning that it has received a non-binding proposal from a company on behalf of funds
managed and advised by Blackstone Inc. and its affiliates. The transaction value of the
deal is AU$12.50 cash per share. Previously, Blackstone had offered a bid of AU$11.85 cash
per share in March this year, which was further upgraded to AU$12.35 cash per share on 10
May 2021.
And now, we take a small break. Stay tuned on
Kalkine TV.
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Hello and
welcome back. Let’s move on to more stocks that created a buzz on the ASX today.
Spark Infrastructure’s shares traded marginally lower after it unveiled plan to pay a special
distribution. The company proposed that if the acquisition of Spark Infrastructure by
Pika Bidco become effective, it will pay a special distribution of 12 cents per share
from the Spark Infrastructure Trust. The Australian firm, which invests in regulated utility infrastructure
globally, said the payment of the special distribution is subject to approval by the
Spark Infrastructure Board.
Shares of Altium extended gain for the second day and rose over 5% after the software company
reaffirmed its earnings guidance for 2022 financial year. The company’s CEO, Aram
Mirkazemi, on Thursday told investors that the company was on track to achieve its guidance
in 2022. The company has committed to achieve 16-20% growth in revenue and an underlying
EBITDA margin of 34-36%, Mirkazemi said while speaking at the AGM.
Shares of Treasury Wine Estates also continued gaining streak for the second day after announcing
its acquisition of Frank Family Vineyards on Thursday. The global winemaking and distribution
business has reached an agreement to acquire Frank Family Vineyards in the United States
for US$315 million. The deal would be financed through a combination of debt and cash, including
proceeds from recent US asset divestments. The transaction is expected to be completed
in December 2021.
Shares of WiseTech Global dropped 0.5% after it reaffirmed its revenue and earnings guidance
at its AGM today. CEO Richard White said the company expects to report revenue growth of
18-25%, and EBITDA growth of 26-38% in 2022 financial year.
Janus Henderson, a global asset management group, traded 2.7% higher by mid-session.
The company in an exchange filing said its CEO Dick Weil will retire after 12 years in
the job, effective March 31, 2022. The company’s board has initiated an internal and external
search process with the assistance of an executive search firm to identify a successor.
Well, that’s a wrap in the show. Keep watching kalkine tv for more trending market updates
from Australia and around the world.