Market Announcements
Market Summary
The New Zealand sharemarket ended firmly yesterday, driven mostly by A2 Milk and significant improvements in selected second-line stocks. The S&P/NZX 50 Index ended up 41.24 points, or 0.32%, at 12,903.08, with 40 million shares worth $169.6m trading. There were 76 rises and 53 falls on the main board. News that ANZ’s Business confidence survey improved by two points in August to a net 50% of respondents expecting better business conditions was taken as a mild positive.
ANZ said the survey was consistent with the Reserve Bank’s updated view that the economy needs a little more support to head off downside risks. “It’s too early to judge the confidence impacts of this month’s shift in stance, but our view is that it will shore up the recovery that is now under way,” it said.
The strongest performer of the day was Hallenstein Glasson, which firmed 45c or 5.6% to $8.52 after announcing an upbeat sales report for the 12 months to Aug 1. The company said its net profit is expected to be within the range of $57.5m to $58.5m, up approximately 11.4% from the prior year. The balance sheet for the group remained strong with record cash reserves and well-maintained stock levels, it said.
Infant formula marketer A2 Milk, which has been on a roll since announcing its result, gained 36c or 3.5% to $10.66.
Air NZ dropped 1c to 59.5c after reporting its result – a $126m net profit down from $146m the year before. The airline stated that its 2025 financial year results reflected a sluggish domestic market, global engine maintenance challenges, and significant cost inflation.
Vulcan Steel gained 7c to $7.30 after successfully completing the first leg of its capital raise to fund its purchase of metal roofing and cladding manufacturer Roofing Industries for $88m.
Retirement village company Summerset gained 12c to $10.65 on big volume after reporting a 26% lift in its net profit to $127.2m, for the first half. Summerset CEO Scott Scoullar said the company had delivered a credible result underpinned by a sustainable growth strategy. “The markets in New Zealand and Australia are both showing signs of improvement, but it’s still a challenging economic environment to operate in. “We are, of course, keeping a wary eye on economic conditions, but we are optimistic we can continue the momentum we’ve seen so far in 2025 with our pipeline of sales moving into the second half of the year well-positioned to deliver,” he said.
Infrastructure company Channel gained 11c or 4.9% to $2.37. Software firm Gentrack rallied 30c to $10.25 on expectations that it will be included in the Australian FTSE small-cap index. Today, results from Port of Tauranga, Delegat Group, Move Solutions and Comvita will cap off what has been a mixed reporting season.
Business Desk
Australian Market Report
Ahead of the local open SPI futures were 30 points lower at 8928.
- close [Morningstar with AAP]: The Australian share market has finished the day in the green following volatile company reporting results in an otherwise lull session as investors await overseas catalysts.
The benchmark ASX200 index ended trading on Thursday up 19.5 points, or 0.22 per cent, to 8,980.0, while the broader All Ordinaries rose 10 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 9,241.1.
Despite a flurry of company reporting on the surface level, not much has happened at home as the US summer holidays enter full swing and slow trading activity trickles into the ASX, Capital.com senior market analyst Kyle Rodda said.
A catalyst for the sluggish activity could arrive on Friday night in the form of PCE Index data, which tracks inflation relative to the US Federal Reserve's target.
"Given the fact that there's a bit of a lull on Wall Street, combined with maybe a bit of caution going into this inflation release, (it could be) another quiet 24 hours in the absence of any other big news," Mr Rodda told AAP.
"That data tomorrow night could be fairly influential because if we do see a surprise, it could cause a potential two-way volatility on Wall Street, and that will eventually trickle down into the ASX."
Six of the ASX's 11 sectors ended Thursday higher and five were lower.
Industrials rose 0.9 per cent on the back of soaring Qantas stock, which rose 9.1 per cent after the nation's biggest airline delivered a $1.6 billion profit, up 28.3 per cent from a year ago.
"For everyone across the Qantas Group, this year has been all about delivery," CEO Vanessa Hudson said.
The financial sector rallied - up 1.1 per cent, with all four big banks finishing higher.
NAB climbed 2.4 per cent, CBA rose 2.1 per cent, Westpac advanced 1.3 per cent and ANZ added 0.9 per cent.
Real estate finished up one per cent after Lifestyle Communities gained 14.9 per cent and Goodman Group stocks rose two per cent.
Energy was the biggest loser, down 2.3 per cent, which Mr Rodda said was related to a global story.
Woodside Energy dropped 3.3 per cent and Santos declined 0.7 per cent.
Health care was another laggard, hampered by Ramsay Health Care losing 11.1 per cent - after the private hospital company posted weaker-than-expected margins in Australia and the UK - and Telix Pharmaceuticals dropping 18.6 per cent.
In the heavyweight materials sector, BHP was down 0.7 per cent and Rio Tinto had dropped 1.1 per cent, while Fortescue added 1.2 per cent.
Others gaining or losing on the back of earnings results included Nine Entertainment, down 12.2 per cent, and South32, which lost 7.2 per cent.
IDP Education rocketed 29.7 per cent to an almost three-month high of $5.89 after the international student placement company said it would engage in a multi-year transformation effort to reduce costs after Australia and key destination markets imposed restrictions on foreign students.
The Australian dollar was buying 65.10 US cents, from 64.87 US cents at 5pm on Wednesday.
ON THE ASX:
The S&P/ASX200 rose 19.5 points on Thursday, or 0.22 per cent, to 8,980.0
The broader All Ordinaries gained 10 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 9,241,1
The NZX 50 added 57.51 points (0.44%) to 12960.59
Companies commencing Ex-Dividend Trading Today (ASX 300):
Ampol Limited
Ansell Limited
Helia Group Limited
Infomedia Limited
Ingenia Communities Group
Integral Diagnostics Limited
Orora Limited
Overseas Market Report
[Morningstar with Dow Jones]:
U.S. stocks ended higher. The DJIA lifted 0.2% to 45,636.90, the S&P 500 rose 0.3% to 6,501.86 and the Nasdaq added 0.5% to 21,705.16.
Among S&P 500 companies, the top three gainers were Datadog Inc DDOG surging 7.02%, Fair Isaac Corp FICO jumped 6.16%, and Agilent Technologies Inc A lifted 5.34%.
The biggest decliners were Hormel Foods Corp HRL which dropped 13.13%, The Cooper Companies Inc COO fell 12.86%, and Brown-Forman Corp BF.B lost 4.93%.
Asia
Chinese shares closed higher. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index lifted 1.1% to 3,843.60 and the Shenzhen Composite Index gained 1.5% to 2,431.32.
Hong Kong shares ended lower. The benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 0.8% to 24,998.82.
Japanese shares ended higher. The Nikkei Stock Average added 0.7% to 42,828.79.
India shares ended lower. The BSE SENSEX declined 0.9% to 80,080.57.
Europe
Stocks in the U.K. finished lower. The FTSE 100 Index dropped 0.4% to 9,216.82. In Europe, shares closed mixed. The Germany's DAX was unchanged at 24,039.92, and the France's CAC 40 climbed 0.2% to 7,762.60
