AU Evening Wrap: Australian Shares Edge Up; Perpetual Drags After Deal Announcement

Australia's $S&P/ASX 200 (.XJO.AU)$ closed up 0.1% at 7804.5, with broad-based gains led by industrial and technology stocks.

While financials finished 0.2% higher, fund manager $Perpetual Equity Investment Co Ltd (PIC.AU)$ was the day's poorest performer after investors questioned the value of its A$2.18 billion deal to sell two of its units to buyout firm $KKR & Co (KKR.US)$. Perpetual closed 7.1% lower. It was a patchy day for the major banks, as investors continued to digest the RBA's view that it isn't ruling anything in or out as it vies to tame inflation. $CommBank (CBA.AU)$ and $ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ANZ.AU)$ rose 0.6% and 1.2% respectively, but $National Australia Bank Ltd (NAB.AU)$ fell 0.5% and $Westpac Banking Corp (WBC.AU)$ closed flat. Still, fund manager $Pinnacle Investment Management Group Ltd (PNI.AU)$ rose 6.7% after reporting increases in its affiliate funds under management. Elsewhere, $Goodman Group (GMG.AU)$ was down 0.4% despite upgrading its earnings outlook.

$Goodman Group (GMG.AU)$ has raised its earnings per share (EPS) growth guidance to 13% for the financial year 2024. The company cited robust demand from the data centre sector, among other factors, for the upgrade in its guidance. Goodman Group's positive outlook reflects the continued growth of the data centre industry, which has become increasingly important due to the rise of cloud computing and digital transformation.