AU Morning Wrap: ASX Flat, Star, Nick Scali Skyrocket
G'day, mooers! Check out the latest news on today's stock market!
• US stocks inch up after mild inflation data
• ASX flat
• Stocks to watch: News Corp, Newcrest, Allkem
- Moomoo News AU
• US stocks inch up after mild inflation data
• ASX flat
• Stocks to watch: News Corp, Newcrest, Allkem
- Moomoo News AU
Wall Street Summary
U.S. stocks edged higher Thursday after fresh data showing cooling inflation boosted investor optimism about the likelihood of the Federal Reserve pausing its interest-rate increases.
The $S&P 500 Index(.SPX.US$ gained less than 0.1%. The $Dow Jones Industrial Average(.DJI.US$ added 0.2%, or roughly 50 points. The $Nasdaq Composite Index(.IXIC.US$ rose 0.1%.
AU Market Watch
The $S&P/ASX 200(.XJO.AU$ traded flat early on Friday, taking a Wall Street lead after a Federal Reserve official kept alive the prospect of higher interest rates even though inflation came in lower than expected last month.
Energy and materials stocks weighed on the main index.
$BlueScope Steel Ltd(BSL.AU$ dropped 4.5 per cent. It signed off on a $415 million expansion of its coated metal products factory in Sydney.
Star vaulted 19 per cent after securing a tax reprieve from the NSW government.
Baby Bunting slumped 3.8 per cent after slashing profit and dividend.
Nick Scali leapt 11.1 per cent following a record net profit of $101.1 million.
$REA Group Ltd(REA.AU$ edged up 0.3 per cent despite a drop in national real estate listings and a lower for the full year.
$Fonterra Shareholders Fund(FSF.AU$ rallied 1.1 per cent on plans to deliver FY2023 earnings and dividends at the top end of its forecast range.
Stocks to Watch
$The Star Entertainment Group Ltd(SGR.AU$: The Star casino has secured a lifeline on a proposed poker machine tax increase from the NSW government, which has slashed the tax plan by two-thirds in a move Treasurer Daniel Mookhey says will save the struggling business.
$Allkem Ltd(AKE.AU$: Allkem boosted the output of its Canada-based James Bay lithium project by 173 per cent to 110.2 million tonnes.
$Nick Scali Ltd(NCK.AU$: Sofa and furniture retailer Nick Scali's 2023 full-year sales rose 15.1 per cent to $507.7 million, with earnings surging double digits, helping the company to post a record net profit after tax (NPAT) of $101.1 million.
The retailer said the double-digit gain in top-line sales was underpinned by increased deliveries and supply chains normalising, helping to reduce the order book wait time. The year also was boosted by 12 months of revenue contribution from Plush Think Sofas, which was acquired in November 2021.
$Baby Bunting Group Ltd(BBN.AU$: BBN's sales for the first six weeks of the new financial year fell 4 per cent continuing the pull back seen at the end of the financial year as cost of living pressures dented demand.
In July the prams and baby goods retailer cut its guidance following the poor performance of a key "Storktake" sales period in June.
It also flagged gross margin pressure, now showing gross margins over 2023 were squeezed 118 basis points to 37.4 per cent.
Full year 2023 sales inched up 3.4 per cent over with its bottom line net profit slashed by nearly 50 per cent to just $9.9 million.
Comparable store sales fell 3.6 per cent. Online sales of $103 million, now represent 20 per cent of sales -- about double pre-COVID levels.
A fully franked dividend of 4.8c per share was flagged, cut from 7.5c a year ago.
$News Corp(NWS.AU$: News Corp has suffered a 75 per cent decline in its annual income to US$187 million ($268 million) from US$760 million, with revenue for the 2023 financial year falling 5 per cent to US$9.8 billion.
But the Rupert Murdoch-owned company, which owns newspapers in Australia, the UK and the US, as well as REA Group and Foxtel, posted annual earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation of US$1.4 billion, which chief executive Robert Thomson said was the second highest ever.
Listing: None
Source: Dow Jones Newswires, AFR
Disclaimer: Moomoo Technologies Inc. is providing this content for information and educational use only.
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