It is not often that you get such divergent views from stockbroker analysts about a highly traded company, but Zip is a hard stock to pin down.
Paul Rickard has more than 30 years’ experience in financial services and banking, including 20 years with the Commonwealth Bank Group in senior leadership roles. Paul was the founding Managing Director and CEO of CommSec, and was named Australian ‘Stockbroker of the Year’ in 2005. In 2011, Paul teamed up with Peter Switzer and Maureen Jordan to launch the Switzer Report, a newsletter and website for share market investors. A regular commentator in the media, investment advisor and company director, he is also a Non-Executive Director of Tyro Payments Ltd and PEXA Group Limited.
It is not often that you get such divergent views from stockbroker analysts about a highly traded company, but Zip is a hard stock to pin down.
Given the news about Ukraine and media attention on the oil price, it might surprise many to learn that the Australian sharemarket rose in February.
The reaction by the market yesterday to Woolworths' profit result, which saw it add 48c to close at $35.68, was to be expected. It was a small ‘beat’ and certainly not as bad as some analysts had feared.
If you looked at the market’s reaction to CSL’s half year profit result, you would conclude that it was a “surprise” and a definite “beat”. On a day when the ASX rose by 1.1%, CSL soared by over 8.5% to close at $263.69.
With the release of its first-half profit result, Commonwealth Bank (CBA) showed yet again why it is so far ahead of its major bank rivals and deserves to trade at a premium.
There’s a famous saying on Wall Street: “as goes January, so goes the year,” and this adage has more to it than just folk wisdom. When the benchmark S&P 500 has gained in the month of January, it has gone on to close the year higher 86% of the time.
Last week, shareholders voted overwhelmingly to “unify” BHP. This means one company with one primary listing on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX), rather than two companies with two separate listings.
Last November, AGL hit a low of $5.10. For what was once regarded as a ‘blue-chip' company, this was a massive fall from grace. Will Australia's largest baseload energy producer reach its highs of 2017 once more?
2021 was a strong year for the Australian sharemarket. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index rose from 6587.1 to close the year at 7444.6, a gain of 13.0%. When dividends are included, the return topped 17.2%.
Will the share bull market extend into its 14th consecutive year? Well, if you listen to the pundits, that’s the expectation.
One of the more interesting aspects of the current stock market boom has been the relative outperformance of small and mid-cap stocks.
Here's a look at the year to date performances of the main sectors in the ASX, and why property has done so well despite several covid lockdowns.