AU Morning Wrap: BHP leads markets higher after unveiling record dividend

Wall Street Summary
US stocks finished higher as traders bet weak economic data from the US may keep interest rate increases in check. High-growth shares led as treasury yields declined.

The $Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI.US)$ rallied 151 points or 0.45 per cent. The blue-chip average closed above its 200-day moving average for the first time since April.

The $S&P 500 Index (.SPX.US)$ gained 17 points or 0.4 per cent. The $Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC.US)$ put on 81 points or 0.62 per cent.

AU Market Watch
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 is poised to extend its gains at the open after U.S. stocks rose again. ASX futures are up by 0.3%, suggesting the benchmark index will add to its week-opening 0.45% rise. The Reserve Bank of Australia will release the minutes of its last board meeting during the session.

Australian shares opened higher this morning. The $S&P/ASX 200 (.XJO.AU)$ gained 0.50 per cent to 7099.9 as of 10:19 am.

Stocks to Watch
$Challenger Ltd (CGF.AU)$: Challenger reported a near-60 per cent decline in statutory profit for the full year ended June 30 on Tuesday, as the investment manager took a hit from turbulent financial markets, reports.

$Seek Ltd (SEK.AU)$: SEEK reports its net profit from continuing operations soared 130 per cent to $240.8 million on sales from continuing operations up 47 per cent to $1.1 billion in FY 2022.

$Goodman Group (GMG.AU)$: Real estate investment trust Goodman Group grew operating profits by 25.3 per cent to $1.5 billion in the 2022 financial year, while revenues jumped by more than a third to $5.2 billion.

$Sims Ltd (SGM.AU)$: Sims has warned of "soft market conditions" as the new financial year kicked off amid rising interest rates around the world. The warning comes as the metal recycling company reported a 57 per cent jump in full year sales revenue to $9.26 billion for the 2022 financial year as earnings more than doubled.

$Temple & Webster Group Ltd (TPW.AU)$: Online furniture business Temple & Webster has warned of cyclical headwinds in 2023 after reporting a 21 per cent slump in sales for July and a 17 per cent drop over the first half of August.

$BHP Group Ltd (BHP.AU)$: BHP will pay a record dividend after the second-biggest profit in the company's history enabled it to return $US16.3 billion ($23.2 billion) of dividends to shareholders for the year to June. The $US21.3 billion underlying profit and the $US3.25 per share of total dividends for the year were both better than analysts had expected.

$James Hardie Industries PLC (JHX.AU)$: James Hardie reduced its financial 2023 profit guidance to between $US730 million ($1.03 billion) and $US780 million following its first quarter results.

Ex-dividend: $Computershare Ltd (CPU.AU)$, $Dicker Data Ltd (DDR.AU)$, $Genworth Mortgage Insurance Australia Ltd (GMA.AU)$, $GQG Partners Inc (GQG.AU)$, $Plato Income Maximiser Ltd (PL8.AU)$

Dividends paid: $VanEck Australian Banks ETF (MVB.AU)$, $PARTNERSGG UNITS (PGG.AU)$

Commodities
• Iron ore futures fell -2.97% to US$106 a tonne.
• Oil tumbled on China growth fears and an increasingly unlikely deal between US and Iran.
• Gold failed to hold US$1,800 as Treasury yields in higher, the US dollar rebounds and risk appetite remains buoyant.

Source: Dow Jones Newswires, AFR