Have you checked the $Westpac Banking Corp (WBC.AU)$ share price today? Before you faint at the drastic decline, there's a rather simple and relieving explanation.
Shares in the banking major are 5.5% lower to $26.36 as we head into the afternoon. If it's any consolation, the $S&P/ASX 200 (.XJO.AU)$ is 0.74% worse for wear. Aussie investors are skittish today as numerous ASX retail shares reveal underwhelming sales updates, further demonstrating weakness in consumer spending.
Back to Westpac... what is the catalyst sending this $92 billion bank to the bottom of the barrel today?
Dividend deadline arrives for Westpac shares
Don't worry, it's nothing catastrophic. It's merely the ex-dividend date.
This is when the company's shares begin trading without the claim to the next dividend payment. All shareholders on Westpac's share register yesterday will snag the 90 cents per share fully franked dividend, but anyone added to the list today will not.
As usual, the share price is falling to reflect the absent dividend value.
In this case, Westpac's dividend has a grossed-up value of about $1.29 after franking credits. Yesterday's closing price was $27.89. Take the former from the latter, and you end up with $26.60 — roughly in line with the current Westpac share price.
Shareholders can expect this interim dividend to land in their account on 25 June 2024.
CBA canary in the banking coal mine
There's a chance $CommBank (CBA.AU)$ third-quarter update is also weighing on Westpac today.
Investors tend to use information from other companies in the same industry to shape expectations. If CBA's update is anything to go by, the Australian banking sector might be cooling off.
Australia's largest bank experienced a 5% fall in unaudited statutory net profit after tax in Q3, easing to $2.3 billion. The weaker bottom line resulted from a 1% slip in operating income and a 2% increase in operating expenses.
The big four banks are all in the red day following the news. Westpac shares, though, are the worst of the bunch.
你今天查看過西太平洋銀行(澳大利亞證券交易所股票代碼:WBC)的股價嗎?在你對急劇下跌感到沮喪之前,有一個相當簡單而令人欣慰的解釋。
進入下午,這家銀行業巨頭的股價下跌了5.5%,至26.36美元。如果令人安慰的話,標準普爾/澳大利亞證券交易所200指數(澳大利亞證券交易所股票代碼:XJO)的磨損率爲0.74%。今天,澳大利亞投資者持謹慎態度,因爲許多澳大利亞證券交易所零售股公佈了令人難以置信的最新銷售情況,這進一步表明了消費者支出的疲軟。
回到西太平洋銀行... 促使這家價值920億美元的銀行今天跌至谷底的催化劑是什麼?
西太平洋銀行股票的分紅截止日期到來
別擔心,這不是災難性的。這只是除息日。
這是公司的股票在沒有要求下一次分紅的情況下開始交易的時候。昨天西太平洋銀行股票登記冊上的所有股東都將獲得每股90美分的全額股息,但今天被列入名單的任何人都不會。
與往常一樣,股價下跌以反映不存在的股息價值。
在這種情況下,西太平洋銀行的股息在扣除信貸後的總價值約爲1.29美元。昨天的收盤價爲27.89美元。從後者中取前者,你最終得到26.60美元,與西太平洋銀行目前的股價大致持平。
股東可以預計,這筆中期股息將於2024年6月25日存入他們的賬戶。
CBA 銀行煤礦中的金絲雀
澳大利亞聯邦銀行 (ASX: CBA) 的第三季度更新今天也可能給西太平洋銀行帶來壓力。
投資者傾向於使用來自同一行業的其他公司的信息來塑造預期。如果CBA的更新有待更新,那麼澳大利亞銀行業可能正在降溫。
澳大利亞最大的銀行在第三季度未經審計的法定稅後淨利潤下降了5%,降至23億美元。利潤疲軟是由於營業收入下降了1%,運營費用增加了2%。
消息傳出後,四大銀行都處於紅日。但是,西太平洋銀行的股票是同類股票中最差的。