ASX 200 down 25 to 7393 (0.3%). Unchanged for the week.

  • HIGH 7438 LOW 7388. Sliding into weekend. Closes on lows.

MAJOR MOVERS:  Winners: LTR, JHG, ADT, RLX, JMS, PNI, EVT Losers: MMM, RBL, SZL, ORG, CUV, GRR, FMG

  • POSITIVE SECTORS: Banks. Big Miners.
  • NEGATIVE SECTORS: Healthcare. Tech. BNPL. Industrials.
  • BIG BANK BASKET: Firmer slightly at $177.81
  • ALL -TECH INDEX: Down 2.3%.
  • GOLD: Rises to AUD $2476.
    BITCOIN: US$39790. Slipping slightly.
  • AUD: Steady at 73.81c. 10-YEAR YIELD:  1.18%
  • ASIAN MARKETS: Japan down 1.7% HK whacked 2.5% China down 1.6%
  • US FUTURES: Dow futures down 134. NASDAQ down 210.

ASX 200 slips 25 points to 7393 (0.3%) as book squaring and Olympics sapped interest. For the week the ASX 200 was unchanged. Some hits in iron ore miners hurting and quarterlies continue. Banks hold firm with the Big Bank Basket celebrating the NAB $2.5bn buyback with a steady $177.81. Elsewhere financials slid slightly with MQG off 0.2% and MFG down 3.6%. Healthcare bushwhacked by CSL falling 0.7% but RMD remained steadfast down only 0.1 %. Industrials were mixed with TCL better up 1.4% and WES falling 0.5%, ALL down 1.4% and tech stocks (really BNPL) fell with APT down 5.3% as SZL reported a disappointing quarterly and fell 11.0%. REITS firm, GMG up 0.6% and SCG up 2.4% despite Sydney CV19 numbers still around 174 roaming around a neighbourhood near you. BLD slipped after the SVW bid lapsed and ORG got smashed on its guidance update. Down 7.9%.

STOCKS ON THE MOVE

  • LTR +9.47% good quarterly.
  • ADT +7.34% RIO moves in Serbia shines light on region.
  • JHG +7.68% broker recommendations.
  • TLX +5.43% production facility update.
  • WSA +3.97% FY22 guidance
  • MMM -21.51% knifed. Quarterly results. Challenging.
  • SZL -10.99% quarterly report and escrow stock released.
  • ORG -7.85% quarterly report.
  • APT -5.28% back in the doghouse. SZL doesn’t help.
  • A2M –4.26% creamed on Mataura Valley completion.
  • FMG -5.29% iron ore falls.
  • GRR -5.59% follows suit.
  • GXY +3.56% ORE +3.38% love for lithium still.
  • LKE +8.14% lithium and bonus shares
  • HAS +5.26% doing well,
  • NMT +8.20% quarterly
  • AXE -5.06% profit taking.
  • DTC -6.67% book squaring.
  • Z1P -4.32% that didn’t last long.
  • WSP -11.35% trading update.
  • Speculative Stock of the Day: 8Common (8CO) +72.73% good volume after returning from suspension and a solution provider for whole of government travel and expense management solution.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

  • NAB (NAB) +0.62% Launches on-market share buyback worth A$2.5bn. They expect to start buying shares on market in mid to late August. They talk about continuing to manage their CET1 Capital Ratio at the same time (the buyback knocks 60bp off their Tier 1 capital ratio). Tier 1 capital ratio was 12.15% in the March Q and they have a target range of 10.75% to 11.25%. NAB has a market capitalisation of $84.08bn so this represents buying back 3% of the company. That boosts earnings per share and, depending on what the market is doing at the time, will support the NAB share price. This follows a similar $1.5bn buyback announcement from ANZ on July 19. It also precedes results and an expected $5bn buyback from the CBA (2.8% of its shares). CBA results are on August 11. WBC is also expected to announce a buyback at some point. All this suggests the banks are in a position to normalise dividend payout ratios back to pre-pandemic levels and the CBA results in a couple of weeks should confirm that expectation (or otherwise).
  • Janus Henderson Group (JHG) +7.68% Q2 adjusted EPS US$1.16 vs consensus US$0.95. Revenue US$738.4m vs consensus US$671.1m. Adjusted operating income US$269.3m vs consensus US$220.5m.
  • EML Payments (EML) –2.20% To partner with Mastercard for a major Covid-19-related fiscal stimulus programme to benefit the people of Northern Ireland by disbursing a $273m economic stimulus boost to citizens through Mastercard prepaid cards.
  • AMP (AMP) 2.35%- ASIC commences civil proceedings against AMP in the Federal Court for alleged breaches of historic charging of Plan Service Fees.
  • Mineral Resources (MIN) -0.65% Reports FY iron ore shipments of 17.3M wmt vs guidance 17.4-18.0M wmt. FY production: Iron ore production 19.5M wmt, Spodumene production 485k dmt. Shipments for FY21 increased 23% to a record 17.3M wmt, slightly below the revised full-year guidance of 17.4-18.0M wmt range provided in April as the final three planned shipments from the Kwinana port were delayed, due to port congestion.
  • Zimplats Holdings (ZIM) +3.07% Reports Q4 6E production (oz) 153,643 vs quarter-ago 137,093. Reports Q4: Ore mined (Mt) 1.79m vs quarter-ago 1.75m, head grade (g/t) 3.40 vs quarter-ago 3.39. Total operating cash cost US$99.5m vs quarter-ago US$95.1m, Cash cost of metal produced US$100.6m vs quarter-ago US$97.4m. Operating cash cost per 6E ounce $655 vs quarter-ago $710.
  • Telix Pharmaceuticals (TLX) +5.43% Receives authorisation to decommission the first of two cyclotrons housed at the Seneffe production facility.
  • Sezzle (SZL) -10.99% Reports Q2 UMS US$411.1m, +9.6% on the quarter. Reports Q2: Sezzle Income US$24.1m, 122.6% y/y, Active customers 2.9m. +95.5% y/y and Active merchants 40K, +150% y/y.
  • PWR Holdings (PWR) +1.12% Achieves AS9100 certification.This is an aerospace and defence standard released by the International Aerospace Quality Group, based on the internationally recognised standard, ISO 9001. Management comments: “PWR is well positioned, due its significant investment and experience in manufacturing cooling components for the motorsports industry, to expand its manufacturing capacity for the aerospace and defence industry.”
  • Origin Energy (ORG) -7.85% Provides FY21 update and FY22/23 guidance; expects FY21 post-tax impairment charges $1.6bn and tax expense of $669m. FY21 update: The impairment charges relate to Energy markets goodwill and generation assets. The tax expense relates to a deferred tax liability reflecting explication to increase free cash flow and future distributions from APLNG. Previously issued FY21 guidance remains unchanged.

ECONOMIC NEWS/ BOND MARKETS

  • Producer prices for the June quarter rose +0.7% to be up 2.2% over the year.
  • Private sector credit for June rose 0.9% over the month vs consensus +0.4%, to be up 3.1% over the year.

IN THE NEWS

  • The current Olympic Medal Table – The FT Alternative Table -ranked by the difference to the tally they are expected to achieve, according to an economic model that takes into account their economic, social and political characteristics.

CV19 NEWS

  • Vaccine Tracker: 4.02bn doses. 39m a day.
  • Australia up to 162,953 doses on average. 5 months until Freedom Day!
  • Indonesian President Joko Widodo said the country won’t resort to a full lockdown even as the country tops the world tally of daily deaths.
  • Japan is seeking to extend a virus emergency in Tokyo to the end of August.
  • The delta variant appears to cause more severe illness than earlier variants and spreads as easily as chickenpox, according to the Washington Post.

ASIAN MARKETS

  • One Hong Kong fund manager says he made a mistake in underestimating the impact of educational reforms. Brilliant Partners Fund recorded an estimated loss of more than 12% this month as of July 23.
  • Hong Kong to give shoppers US$600 vouchers. HK second-quarter gross-domestic product rose 7.8% from a year earlier, largely unchanged from the previous three months.

US AND EUROPEAN NEWS

  • Robinhood not looking so good following a lacklustre debut.
  • Scarlett Johansson sues Disney.
  • BNP Paribas has reported a 26% jump in net profits for the Q2. Net income reached EUR2.9bn  over the three-month period ending June. In comparison, analysts had pointed to a EUR2.24bn euro net income .

And finally….

Clarence

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