The Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) share price will be one to watch on Wednesday following a late announcement by the payment company.

What did Afterpay announce?

After the market close on Tuesday, Afterpay provided investors with an update on the progress it has been making in the UK market.

According to the release, the company’s UK-based Clearpay business now has over 1 million active customers using its platform after one year in the country.

In addition to this, management revealed that its customer purchasing frequency in the UK is outpacing the United States, when compared to the same stage of lifecycle. At the end of the first year, its UK customers are transacting more than 8 times per year. This compares to six times at the same stage in the United States.

This makes Clearpay one of the fastest growing ecommerce payment companies in the European market.

In addition to this, there are more than 1,100 brands and retailers offering, or in the process of offering Clearpay to their customers. Recent additions include Elemis, Bare Minerals, and ISAWITFIRST. They join the likes of ASOS, Marks & Spencers, JD Sports, Urban Outfitters, and Boohoo on its platform.

Strong growth.

As with its ANZ and US business, Clearpay has been a particularly strong performer during the COVID-19 crisis.

Management notes that during the COVID-19 period, it has experienced a strong customer adoption rate in the UK.

In May 2020, Clearpay had more than 3 million app and site visits, and its Shop Directory contributed over 1.5 million lead referrals to its retail partners. This represents a 40% to 50% increase in the weekly run rate from January and February.

Afterpay co-founder, Nick Molnar, appeared to be pleased with the progress the company is making in the UK.

He commented: “The world and the industry are changing at a rapid pace, and during this challenging time consumers are looking for ways to pay using their own money – instead of turning to expensive loans with interest, fees or revolving debt.”

“We applaud our U.K. merchants who support the payment needs of British shoppers – especially as we head into a ‘new normal’ for retail,” he added.

More reading

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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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If you’re a retiree looking to invest in dividend shares, then I think the three listed below would be great options.

This is because, despite these uncertain times, these companies look well-placed to continue paying their dividends as normal. Here’s why I would buy them for income:

BWP Trust (ASX: BWP)

I think BWP is a safe and strong dividend share to buy. I really like the real estate investment trust due to the quality of its portfolio and the fact that the majority of its properties are leased to home improvement giant Bunnings Warehouse. I believe Bunnings is one of the best retailers in the country and the risk of store closures and rental defaults is extremely low. Combined with periodic rental increases, I believe BWP is well-positioned to deliver consistent income and distribution growth over the next decade. At present I estimate that its units offer a forward 4.8% yield.

Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF)

Another dividend share which I think is a safe option for income investors is Rural Funds. Thanks to the quality of its portfolio and its long term tenancy agreements, I believe this agriculture-focused property group is well-positioned to continue growing its distribution during the pandemic and beyond. In fact, Rural Funds recently reaffirmed its distribution guidance of 10.85 cents per share in FY 2020 and then 11.28 cents per share in FY 2021. This equates to yields of 5.4% and 5.65%, respectively.

Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS)

A final safe and strong option to consider buying is Telstra. I think the telco giant is a great option for income investors due to its generous yield and defensive qualities. The latter has been on display for all to see in FY 2020, with Telstra one of only a handful of companies that has been able to reaffirm its guidance during the pandemic. I believe this guidance means the company will be able to maintain its 16 cents per share dividend this year. This equates to a fully franked 5% dividend yield. 

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended RURALFUNDS STAPLED and Telstra Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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 S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) rose by 0.2% today to 5,954 points.

Earlier in the day there were fears that a potential trade deal between the US and China was off the table. But President Trump soon confirmed on Twitter that wasn’t the case.

Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) profit hasn’t grown like its sales

Woolworths announced a number of things today in an update to the market. The Woolworths share price declined around 0.75%.

The ASX 200 supermarket business said that for FY20 it expects to report earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) (post AASB 16 and before significant items) of between $3.2 billion to $3.25 billion. On a comparable basis, FY19’s EBIT was $3.29 billion.

A sizeable part of the disappointing EBIT was the fact that the hotels division is still losing money due to COVID-19 restrictions. FY20 Hotels EBIT is expected to be $160 million to $170 million, compared to $355 million in FY19.

The FY20 fourth quarter sales growth for the ASX 200 business was more impressive. In the 10 weeks to 14 June 2020, Australian food sales grew by 8.6%, New Zealand food sales grew by 15.1%, Big W sales grew by 27.8% and Endeavour Drinks sales grew by 21.4%.

Woolworths plans to transform its NSW grocery supply chain network by developing an automated regional distribution centre and a semi-automated national distribution centre at Moorebank Logistics Park in Sydney. Woolworths will invest $700 million to $780 million in the technology and fitout of the two distribution centres over the next four years and it has signed an initial lease term of 20 years with Qube Holdings Ltd (ASX: QUB). The Qube share price went up 7.8% today.

The decision to carry out this supply chain investment will result in a one-off pre-tax cost of $176 million. This will be counted as a significant item in FY20. The other significant items for FY20 include $230 million for Endeavour Group transformation costs and $185 million for salaried store team member remediation.

Western Areas Ltd (ASX: WSA) share price surges

The share price of ASX 200 resource business Western Areas jumped 16%.

Western Areas announced today it had some highly encouraging results from the first diamond drill hole at the Sahara prospect within the Western Gawler Project in South Australia. It has intersected over 200m of nickel and copper bearing sulphides.

There is an average of 2% to 5% of sulphide content across the entire intrusive body.

Western Areas managing director Dan Lougher said: “This is an excellent result from our first drill hole at the Sahara prospect, intercepting broad widths of nickel and copper bearing mineralisation. We keenly await the assay results, but it is already clear from what we have seen in the drill core, that we have a significant exploration result that merits immediate follow up work.”

Cromwell Property Group (ASX: CMW) share price rises 8%

The Cromwell share price rose 8% to $0.94 today as news came of a proportional takeover offer from large shareholder ARA Asset Management.

ARA has made an off-market offer to acquire 29% of all Cromwell shares not currently owned by ARA for $0.90 per stapled security.

The ASX 200 share’s leadership has advised shareholders to take no action, stating that the offer was unsolicited and opportunistic in nature.

The offer is a 3.4% premium to the last closing price of $0.87. It’s also a 9.8% premium to the 30-day volume weighted average price of $0.82.

AMP Limited (ASX: AMP) finally deliver some good news

Embattled ASX 200 financial services business AMO announced today that the sale of AMP Life to Resolution Life has received all regulatory approvals and confirmed it expects the transaction to complete after the market closes on 30 June 2020.

AMP said it will provide an update to the market on 1 July 2020.

The AMP share price rose by around 8% today.

Challenger Ltd (ASX: CGF) share price drops almost 10%

The ASX 200 annuity business came back to trade after completing the institutional part of its capital raising.

The 55 million new shares were raised at a price of $4.89 per share. This was an 8.1% discount to the last traded price. The placement was “significantly oversubscribed”.

Managing director and CEO Richard Howes said: “We are very pleased with the strong support shown by institutional shareholders for Challenger’s commitment to maintaining a strong capital position while at the same time providing flexibility to enhance earnings.

“This raise supports the business to remain strongly capitalised through this period of ongoing market uncertainty.”

More reading

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Challenger Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Woolworths Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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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