AU Morning Wrap: Tech Stocks Lead ASX Higher; Megaport Rockets 40%

Moomoo News AU wrote a column · Apr 27, 2023 19:21

G'day, mooers! Check out the latest news on today's stock market!
• S&P 500 posts second best day of the year, Amazon and Meta rally
• ASX 200 opened 0.17% higher, following a strong lead from Wall Street
• Stocks to watch: Megaport, Mirvac, PointsBet
- Moomoo News AU

AU Morning Wrap: Tech Stocks Lead ASX Higher; Megaport Rockets 40%

Wall Street Summary

Stocks rallied Thursday, after a strong round of corporate earnings helped reverse a selloff earlier this week.

The $S&P 500 Index (.SPX.US)$ rose 2%. The $Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI.US)$ rose 524 points, or 1.6%, while the tech-heavy $Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC.US)$ gained 2.4%.

All three major indexes are on pace to close the week higher.

AU Market Watch

The $S&P/ASX 200 (.XJO.AU)$ opened 0.17 per cent higher on Friday, following a strong lead from Wall Street where solid earnings from technology companies lifted sentiment.

The local technology sector led the way in early trading, climbing 0.9 per cent. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq surged 2.8 per cent.

Megaport rocketed 40 per cent to $5.43 after advising that its expects FY23 earnings to be "materially above" market consensus.

Mirvac dropped 1.7 per cent to $2.29 after cutting its earnings guidance for the 2023 financial year.

Coles eased 0.1 per cent to $18.43 following its quarterly results which showed group sales increased 6.5 per cent on the same period last year.

$Pointsbet Holdings Ltd (PBH.AU)$ jumped 3 per cent to $1.70 as the company revealed it is in talks with multiple parties regarding potential transactions that would involve part or all of its North American business.

Stocks to Watch

$Mirvac Group (MGR.AU)$: Mirvac Group has cut its earnings guidance for the 2023 financial year due to sustained adverse weather conditions impacting residential settlement timelines and delayed settlement expectations at Aspect North into FY24.

The company now expects FY23 operating earnings per share of at least 17 cents a share, from at least 15.5 cents a share previously.

Residential settlements are now expected to be around 2,200 lots, from over 2500 lots previously, with the remaining lots now expected to complete and settle in FY24.

$Oz Minerals Ltd (OZL.AU)$: In its final production report before it is bought by BHP, OZ Minerals said the first quarter has seen solid performance from all operations.

The company reported copper production of 31,362 tonnes and 46,722 ounces of gold, despite a lower feed grade profile at its Prominent Hill operations.

Group C1 costs were higher than the prior quarter due to 14 per cent lower copper production, 15 per cent lower gold production reducing by-product credits, and a stronger average Australian dollar.

$Coles Group Ltd (COL.AU)$: Coles reported total group sales revenue of $9.7 billion in the third quarter, up 6.5 per cent on the same period last year.

The company's supermarkets sales revenue was $8.6 billion, up 7 per cent on the prior corresponding period as the business cycled the impacts of COVID-19, floods in NSW and Queensland, and flooding in South Australia which led to logistics disruptions in Western Australia and the Northern Territory.

Gross retail sales of $8.9 billion increased by 7.9 per cent and comparable sales grew by 6.5 per cent on the same period last year.

Liquor sales revenue increased by 2.6 per cent to $801 million, while gross retail sales rose by 2.4 per cent to $803 million. Comparable sales grew by 1.5 per cent.

$Megaport Ltd (MP1.AU)$: Megaport says that as a result of various initiatives designed to improve the company's operating and financial performance and cash generation, it now expects earnings to be "materially above" market consensus.

Megaport now expects normalised EBITDA in FY23 in the range of $16 million to $18 million, and normalised EBITDA in FY24 in the range of $41 million to $46 million.

That is above market consensus of $9 million in FY23 and $30 million in FY24.

$ResMed Inc (RMD.AU)$: ResMed's revenue increased by 29 per cent in the March quarter to $US1.1 billion, while its income from operations increased 28 per cent.

The company's gross margin contracted by 150 basis points to 55.3 per cent, and its operating cash flow was $US282.6 million.

$Silver Lake Resources Ltd (SLR.AU)$: Silver Lake Resources produced 63,153 ounces of gold and 340 tonnes of copper in the March quarter with sales of 62,852 ounces of gold and 262 tonnes of copper.

They were sold an at average price of $2785 an ounce and all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of $2014 an ounce.

Trading Ex-div: $KKR Credit Income Fund (KKC.AU)$, $Metrics Master Income Trust (MXT.AU)$, $Metrics Income Opportunities Trust (MOT.AU)$