• GDI Property Group launches 5% buyback driven by liquidity boost

    Man analysing data on his laptop.

    The GDI Property Group (ASX: GDI) share price is in focus today after the company announced an on-market buyback of up to 5% of its stapled securities, supported by increased available liquidity of $90 million and a continued distribution of 5.0 cents per security.

    What did GDI Property Group report?

    • On-market buyback of up to 5% of stapled securities announced
    • Available liquidity has grown to $90 million post balance date
    • Board reaffirmed 5.0 cents per security through-cycle distribution
    • Buyback to be funded from cash reserves and undrawn debt facilities
    • Over $100 million of non-core assets identified for potential sale

    What else do investors need to know?

    The announced buyback is fully discretionary, meaning GDI retains flexibility over the volume, price, and timing of any purchases. The board will regularly assess market conditions and capital priorities when deciding how much of the buyback to proceed with.

    GDI noted that completion of the full 5% buyback may depend on proceeds from the sale of more than $100 million of non-core assets. These sales could also fund other initiatives, depending on the board’s ongoing assessment of priorities. An Appendix 3C outlining the details of the buyback will be lodged separately with the ASX.

    What’s next for GDI Property Group?

    Looking ahead, GDI’s board will balance the benefits of the buyback against potential investments in its property portfolio and maintaining distributions to securityholders. The upcoming Stage 1A of the Mill Green Development remains a key focus, and asset sales could provide further flexibility for capital management initiatives.

    GDI maintains its cautious approach and will adjust its capital allocation in response to market conditions and the success of future asset sales.

    GDI Property Group share price snapshot

    Over the past 12 months, GDI shares have declined 13%, trailing the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO), which is flat over the same period.

    View Original Announcement

    The post GDI Property Group launches 5% buyback driven by liquidity boost appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in Gdi Property Group right now?

    Before you buy Gdi Property Group shares, consider this:

    Motley Fool investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and Gdi Property Group wasn’t one of them.

    The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.*

    And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that may be better buys…

    * Returns as of 1 August 2026

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    Motley Fool contributor Laura Stewart 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. This article was prepared with the assistance of Large Language Model (LLM) tools for the initial summary of the company announcement. Any content assisted by AI is subject to our robust human-in-the-loop quality control framework, involving thorough review, substantial editing, and fact-checking by our experienced writers and editors holding appropriate credentials. The Motley Fool Australia stands behind the work of our editorial team and takes ultimate responsibility for the content published by The Motley Fool Australia.

  • EVT Ltd posts profit jump and pivots focus to hotel growth in FY26 results

    A smiling woman looks at her phone as she walks with her suitcase inside an airport.

    The EVT Ltd (ASX: EVT) share price is in focus today as the entertainment, ventures, and travel group posted FY26 results showing a 6.3% rise in normalised revenue to $1.31 billion and a 41.3% jump in normalised profit after tax to $54.3 million.

    What did EVT Ltd report?

    • Normalised revenue of $1,314.9 million, up 6.3% year on year
    • Normalised EBITDA of $174.4 million, up 8.4%
    • Normalised profit after tax of $54.3 million, up 41.3%
    • Reported net profit after tax of $50.7 million, up 51.9%
    • Final fully franked dividend of 23 cents per share

    What else do investors need to know?

    EVT’s hotels division delivered record results, with revenue up 5.1% and EBITDA up 1.0%, underpinned by strong RevPAR. Entertainment also rebounded, growing revenue by 7.7% and EBITDA by a notable 45.8% despite a smaller venue footprint.

    The company has identified about $800 million in non-core property assets for divestment over the next three years, with the proceeds set to support further hotel growth and possible special dividends. An independent review of the group’s structure, overseen by Rothschild & Co, is underway to maximise the value of hotel opportunities and return for shareholders.

    What did EVT Ltd management say?

    Commenting on the results, EVT’s CEO, Jane Hastings, said:

    Hotels are our primary future growth platform, and momentum continues across our two growth pillars, EVT Hotels & Resorts and Connect Hospitality. We have identified approximately $800 million of non-core property for divestment on a value-first basis to support hotel growth while the Board will also consider potential special dividends. Management has developed options for the future Group structure to support our hotel growth ambitions and long-term shareholder value, and Rothschild & Co has been engaged to independently assess those options under the oversight of an Independent Board Committee.

    What’s next for EVT Ltd?

    Looking ahead, EVT expects further EBITDA growth for FY27, with the Hotels division expected to deliver another record year, supported by major redevelopment projects and strategic initiatives. Connect Hospitality and newly launched venues like QT Auckland are tipped to contribute around $13 million in additional EBITDA.

    Short-term impacts from development works and weaker snow conditions may temporarily affect some divisions, but the company is focused on delivering value with its strong hotel pipeline and improved entertainment slate. Updates on the group structure review and any divestments will be provided as outcomes are achieved.

    EVT Limited share price snapshot

    Over the past 12 months, the EVT Ltd share price has underperformed the S&P/ASX 200 index (ASX: XJO) with a modest 3.5% decline.

    View Original Announcement

    The post EVT Ltd posts profit jump and pivots focus to hotel growth in FY26 results appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in Evt right now?

    Before you buy Evt shares, consider this:

    Motley Fool investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and Evt wasn’t one of them.

    The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.*

    And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that may be better buys…

    * Returns as of 1 August 2026

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    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 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. This article was prepared with the assistance of Large Language Model (LLM) tools for the initial summary of the company announcement. Any content assisted by AI is subject to our robust human-in-the-loop quality control framework, involving thorough review, substantial editing, and fact-checking by our experienced writers and editors holding appropriate credentials. The Motley Fool Australia stands behind the work of our editorial team and takes ultimate responsibility for the content published by The Motley Fool Australia.

  • 2 ASX shares highly recommended to buy: Experts

    Buy and sell keys on an Apple keyboard.

    Analysts are always on the lookout for opportunities on the ASX share market. By responding to share price volatility and regular business updates, investors have a great chance to grab an undervalued stock.

    We’re going to look at two ASX shares that are highly rated by analysts. These businesses haven’t received just one buy rating, but multiple positive ratings.

    When numerous experts think an ASX share is a buy, it could suggest there’s good potential returns on offer.

    Let’s look at two of the most heavily-backed businesses on the ASX.

    Santos Ltd (ASX: STO)

    Santos is an ASX oil and gas share with a market capitalisation of $27 billion.

    According to CMC Invest, there have been eight ratings on the business within the last three months, with nearly all of those coming after the company released its FY26 half-year result. Six of the eight ratings were a buy and two were a hold.

    The ASX share reported first-half production of 45.6 million barrels of oil equivalent (mmboe), which was 3% higher year-over-year.

    It delivered revenue of US$2.6 billion, operating profit (EBITDAX) of $1.6 billion, underlying net profit of $397 million and net profit after tax (NPAT) of $355 million.

    Santos also managed to generate free cash flow from operations from its strong base business performance.

    The Santos board of directors decided to pay an unfranked annual dividend per share of US 11.6 cents per share for a total of $377 million.

    The ASX oil and gas share has been making progress with its projects. Santos said Pikka’s first oil was achieved in May, with continuous production from June and the first crude oil cargo was lifted in August.

    Santos also said that Barossa delivered seven cargoes by the end of June, with another five cargoes delivered since 1 July.

    The company is primed to increase its production in the coming reporting periods, which could help boost earnings.

    Goodman Group (ASX: GMG)

    Goodman is another ASX share that is heavily backed by analysts. It describes itself as a provider of essential infrastructure – the business owns, develops and manages high quality, sustainable logistics properties and data centres in major global cities that are important for the digital economy.

    According to CMC Invest, there have been nine ratings on the business within the last three months, with seven of those being a buy.

    The business had a solid FY26, with its total portfolio reaching $89 billion, which benefited from revaluation gains of $3.1 billion across Goodman.

    It reported portfolio occupancy of 95.6% and like-for-like net property income (NPI) growth of 4%. This helped the business deliver 15.7% operating profit growth of 15.7% to $2.67 billion and 10.1% growth in per-security terms to 129.9 cents.

    The ASX share ended FY26 with work in progress (WIP) of $19.7 billion across 50 projects in 12 countries, with a forecast yield on cost of 8.2%. Data centres currently make up 78% of the development WIP. This could help drive earnings for the foreseeable future.

    Goodman is aiming for operating EPS growth of 9% in FY27, which is a solid growth rate for a real estate business.

    The post 2 ASX shares highly recommended to buy: Experts appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in Goodman Group right now?

    Before you buy Goodman Group shares, consider this:

    Motley Fool investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and Goodman Group wasn’t one of them.

    The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.*

    And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that may be better buys…

    * Returns as of 1 August 2026

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    Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison 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 Goodman Group. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Goodman Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.