IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO) shares closed 3.2% lower today at $13.01 apiece. This comes two days after the company released its FY22 results.

Also posting its earnings this week was ASX mining peer Mineral Resources Limited (ASX: MIN). Its share price also finished in the red today, down 1.84% to $62.79.

But how do these two ASX mineral explorer shares compare? Let’s take a look.

IGO FY22 results recap

IGO released a sound set of financial results for FY22, as covered by my colleague Brendon Lau. Revenue rose 34% to $903 million but net profit after tax (NPAT) dropped 40% to $331 million.

The drop in NPAT was due to a tax charge on the sale of the company’s Tropicana asset.

Despite the fall in IGO’s bottom line, it still declared a fully franked dividend of 5 cents per share.

IGO appears to be in a reasonably steady financial position with a cash balance of $367 million and new debt facilities of $900 million.

Current liabilities for FY22 was in the order of $440 million. So, it would seem IGO needs to rely on debt to stay on top of its short-term liabilities because IGO is not free cash flow positive.

On cash flow, IGO recorded operating cash flow of $357.1 million, which is down from $446.1 million in FY21.

The IGO share price climbed 3.79% on the back of these results on Tuesday, and gained another 2.21% yesterday.

How do IGO shares stack up against Mineral Resources?

The FY22 results for Mineral Resources weren’t as good as IGO as revenue fell 8% to $1.02 billion and NPAT declined 72% to $351 million.

My colleague Monica O’Shea covered the results and noted that the fully franked final dividend dropped 42.8% from $1.75 per share in FY21 to $1 per share in FY22.

Net cash from operating activities fell from $1.3 billion in FY21 to $279.8 million in FY22. The big drop was primarily due to an increase in working capital relating to the restart of Wodgina, the ramp-up of Mt Marion production and the conversion of the company’s spodumene concentrate into lithium hydroxide.

I find it interesting that IGO managed to record higher operating cash flow with less revenue. However, it appears the rise in operational expenditure may have been higher than historical levels for Mineral Resources.

Similar to IGO, Mineral Resources is not free cash flow positive.

IGO possesses much more short-term debt at $913.6 million and there is nearly $3 billion in long-term debt sitting on the balance sheet.

Mineral Resources does hold $2.4 billion in cash though.

From a financial strength perspective, it seems like IGO is in a slightly better position.

The Minerals Resources share price fell 1.74% on Monday when the results were announced, but climbed 6.2% the following day. However, it gave up most of those gains on Wednesday, losing 5.87%.

IGO share price snapshot

The IGO share price has risen by 35% in the past year and is 20% higher in the last month. As for the Mineral Resources share price, it has jumped 18% in the last year and has gone up 18% in the past month.

IGO has a market capitalisation of around $9.85 billion. The Mineral Resources market cap is sitting at $11.89 billion.

The post How do IGO shares compare to Mineral Resources following earnings season? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• The Pilbara Minerals share price surged 30% in August. What now?
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Why A2 Milk, Deep Yellow, Healius, and IGO shares are racing higher
• IGO share price moves higher on record earnings
• Mineral Resources share price slides as dividend drops 43%

Motley Fool contributor Raymond Jang has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) share price may have ended the day slightly in the red on Thursday, but it still outperformed the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO).

Telstra shares fell 0.5% today to close at $3.95. However, the ASX 200 fell 2.02% today. For perspective, the S&P/ASX 200 Communication Services Index (ASX: XTJ) slid 1% today.

Let’s take a look at the latest from Telstra.

New CEO

Telstra’s new CEO Vicki Brady has taken over the top job today. She steps up from the role of chief financial officer, a position she held since July 2019. Brady has been working with Telstra since 2016.

On her first day in the new job, Brady said: “I couldn’t be happier or prouder to lead a team with such a special spirit that delivers so much to Australians and increasingly globally.”

Brady’s focus will be on driving Telstra’s T25 strategy. She said, “our best days are ahead of us”, commenting:

We’ve got a lot of work to do: building on the good work we’ve already done to deliver T25, and really making sure that Telstra is a great place for our customers. 

I couldn’t think of a better way to start this day than at Telstra Vantage, where we are bringing together our enterprise customers and our technology partners to explore new ways to innovate and grow in the new world.

Meanwhile, international division head Oliver Camplin-Warner has hinted Telstra may be looking at expanding to Latin America. However, no formal plans have been announced at this stage.

Speaking at a media round table at Telstra Vantage in Sydney, Camplin-Warner said:

We’re currently having conversations around Latin America, potentially. We have local resources on the ground.

Last week I was with a team in America. We have experts that just get that world – they understand the landscape, considerations, the regulatory side. So they’re really great at qualifying new markets, countries, in or out.

On Thursday, Telstra announced Brad Whitcomb will take over as the new executive for consumer and small business on 16 January. Whitcomb will leave NBN Co to work for Telstra. He takes over from Michael Ackland, who is stepping up to chief financial officer.

Andy Penn finished up as Telstra CEO on Wednesday. On his last day, Penn said he was “very sad to leave” but also “very proud of what we’ve achieved over the last seven years”.

He highlighted Telstra is a “very different company today to that which it was previously”, adding:

We have simplified the business, we’ve digitised the business, the number of complaints has more than halved, we’ve improved the financial trajectory of the business, and we are delivering some great technology solutions.

Telstra share price snapshot

The Telstra share price has climbed 1.5% in the past year, while it has shed 5.5% in the year to date.

In the past month, Telstra shares have lifted 1.5%.

Telstra has a market capitalisation of $45.6 billion based on the current share price.

The post Why did the Telstra share price beat the ASX 200 today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday
• Telstra shares offer a dividend yield over 4% right now. Is this as good as it sounds?
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Monday
• How much income will Telstra shares pay for FY22 after this month’s dividend hike?
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Wednesday

Motley Fool contributor Monica O’Shea has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Telstra Corporation Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The PointsBet Holdings Ltd (ASX: PBH) share price has been having a tough week.

The sports betting company’s shares fell heavily again on Thursday, stretching their week to date decline to over 26%.

This follows the release of PointsBet’s full year results on Wednesday, which revealed even larger losses.

Is the PointsBet share price weakness a buying opportunity?

While the weakness in the PointsBet share price has been disappointing for shareholders, one leading broker believes it could be a buying opportunity for the rest of us.

According to a note out of Bell Potter, its analysts have retained their speculative buy rating and $5.25 price target on the company’s shares.

Based on the current PointsBet share price of $2.44, this implies potential upside of 115% for investors over the next 12 months.

What did the broker say?

Bell Potter was pleased with PointsBet’s performance in FY 2022, noting that its revenue was in line and its sizeable loss of $267.7 million was better than it was forecasting ($314.4 million).

And while the broker isn’t expecting PointsBet to be profitable for several years, it believes the company is sufficiently funded (including its bonus options) to get through to breakeven. It explained:

We continue to forecast positive EBITDA is achieved in FY26. Note we now assume the company exercises the deferred bonus equity option and raises $150m in FY24 at an issue price of $3.00 (so 50m shares are issued). With this raise our forecasts suggest the cash balance remains positive though admittedly it gets tight by the end of FY25.

In light of this, it is focusing more on the company’s strong long term growth potential thanks to its massive opportunity in the United States. It commented:

PointsBet is pursuing a very large opportunity in the sports betting market in North America. The market is still very much in its infancy as, until recently, sports betting was prohibited in the US and Canada and states/provinces across both countries are only now – or recently – introducing legislation which allows a limited number of licensed operators to provide sports betting. PointsBet is aiming to be one of the leading providers (i.e. top 5) of online sports wagering in at least 17 states across the US and one province in Canada over the next two years. The size of sports wagering market in the US alone is estimated to be b/w US$8-10bn in 2025.

All in all, this could make PointsBet one to consider if you’re a patient long term focus investors. Especially with the PointsBet share price now down 76% over the last 12 months.

The post Broker tips PointsBet share price to double appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why BHP, Deep Yellow, Nickel Industries, and PointsBet shares are dropping
• Why is the ASX 200 diving 2% on Tuesday?
• Why DGL, PointsBet, Tabcorp, and Woodside shares are dropping today
• Pointsbet share price tumbles 10% as full-year losses deepen
• Pointsbet share price in focus as FY22 revenue lifts 52%

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M) share price has risen by 16% since the baby formula company released its FY22 results on 29 August.

The a2 milk share price has outperformed the Bubs Australia Ltd (ASX: BUB) share price in the past five days. But the big question is whether a2 milk shares can continue the momentum over the long run.

Let’s put these two infant formula companies toe-to-toe.

FY22 results recap

A2 milk recorded strong results in FY22 as covered by my colleague, James. Revenue grew 19.8% to NZ$1.4 billion and net profit after tax (NPAT) went up 42.3% to NZ$114.7 million.

Earnings from A2 milk’s core geographies of Australia and New Zealand actually fell from NZ$558.3 million in FY21 to NZ$530.5 million in FY22. This is a bit concerning given these are a2 milk’s local markets.

However, sales in China and other Asian countries produced a major uplift, surging from NZ$583.4 million in FY21 to NZ$726.5 million in FY22. It seems the 36.3% increase in marketing to drive brand awareness paid off.

Operating cash flow improved from NZ$89.4 million in FY21 to NZ$203.8 million in FY22.

However, investors should bear in mind that the stronger performance in FY22 was largely due to the 75% acquisition of Mataura Valley Milk. This resulted in a cash outflow of NZ$213.7 million.

Despite a2 milk being in negative free cash flow territory, broker Bell Potter upgraded a2 milk shares to a buy rating. The price target is up by a third to $6.35.

Analysts at Bell Potter believe a2 milk is capable of producing strong earnings growth to FY26.

A2 milk versus Bubs

Despite recording a record result in FY22, the Bubs share price didn’t move all that much. Revenue grew 123% to $104.2 million in FY22 and the net loss was improved from $74.7 million in FY21 to $11.4 million in FY22.

The significant rise in sales was due to a material supply deal in the United States. The biggest reason for the shortage in supply of baby formula was the closure of Abbott Nutrition’s factory in Michigan.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) closed the largest producer in the country due to the discovery of bacterial infections.

Abbott Nutrition’s factory site has been suspended since February but it restarted production in early June under FDA’s watchful eye.

This development is important because it could ultimately mean reduced reliance on overseas infant formula producers like Bubs.

A2 milk is still yet to benefit from the situation in the US as it awaits FDA approval. However, a2 milk is in a much stronger financial position with NZ$887.3 million in cash whereas Bubs holds $16.3 million and is still not yet profitable.

A2 milk share price snapshot

The a2 milk share price has fallen by 1.4% in the past year. But it has rallied strongly in the past month, rising by 16%. It closed Thursday’s session at $5.70, up 2.7% for the day.

In contrast, the Bubs share price has experienced strong growth of 38% in the past year. But it’s down 2.6% in the past month. Bubs finished the session today at 56 cents, down 0.9% for the day.

The market capitalisation of a2 milk is around NZ$4.73 billion.

The market capitalisation of Bubs is around $418 million.

The post How do A2 Milk shares stack up against Bubs post-earnings season? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• These were the best performers on the ASX 200 in August
• Broker says A2 Milk share price can keep rising
• Why Bell Potter is tipping 40% upside for the Bubs share price
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today

The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended A2 Milk and BUBS AUST FPO. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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