Judo Capital Holdings Ltd (ASX: JDO) shares are on the slide on Thursday.

In morning trade, the ASX 200 bank stock is down a massive 46% to 82 cents.

Why is this ASX 200 bank stock crashing?

Investors have been selling the small business lender’s shares after it released an update on expectations in FY 2026.

One item which appears to have caught the eye of investors is its FY 2026 cost of risk, which is now expected to be in the range of $116 million to $122 million.

Management advised that this reflects an increase in specific provisions primarily driven by three exposures across different sectors that have recently emerged, as a result of customer-specific developments.

Judo Capital now expects 90-days-past-due (90DPD+) and impaired loans to be approximately 3% of gross loans and advances (GLA) at 30 June.

One positive is that collective provision coverage at 30 June is expected to remain broadly in line with its third-quarter trading update, which was 94bps of GLA or 1.09% of standardised credit risk weighted assets.

It notes that provisioning levels include a management overlay for sectors impacted by the uncertain macroeconomic environment.

Profit guidance

In light of the above, the ASX 200 bank stock revealed that its profit before tax in FY 2026 is now expected to be between $163 million and $169 million or approximately 30% growth on FY 2025.

This is down meaningfully on its previous guidance of between $180 million and $190 million.

Looking to FY 2027, management has provided profit before tax guidance of between $210 million and $220 million. This represents growth of 30% again and takes into account the uncertain macroeconomic and geopolitical environment.

Commenting on the news, the ASX 200 bank stock’s CEO, Chris Bayliss, said:

We continue to see strong underlying momentum in the business. Recent credit outcomes have been driven by a small number of customers, who we are actively working with. These exposures have deteriorated subsequent to the customer-by-customer review undertaken in the third quarter and reflect recent, borrower-specific developments.

While today’s update is partly a result of the macro environment, it is nevertheless disappointing. Regardless, we remain confident in the strength of our underlying business and the quality of the portfolio. We have a proven customer value proposition, are profitable and well capitalised, and have a clear path to achieving a return on equity in the low-to-mid teens.

The post Which ASX 200 bank stock is crashing 46% on profit guidance downgrade? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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.

Ventia Services Group Ltd (ASX: VNT) shares are climbing on Thursday after the company announced a leadership change at the top.

At the time of writing, the Ventia share price is up 0.89% to $6.75.

The stock is now trading close to record highs, with Ventia shares up around 13% since the start of 2026 and 34% higher than this time last year.

Here’s what the company told the market today.

Ventia names its next CEO

According to the release, Ventia has appointed Mark Ralston as its next Managing Director and Group Chief Executive Officer.

Ralston will replace current Managing Director and Group CEO Dean Banks, with the change to take effect on 1 September 2026.

The company said the appointment follows a detailed internal and external succession process.

Ralston is already well known inside the business, having spent 12 years at Ventia. Over that time, he has held senior roles across enterprise strategy, mergers and acquisitions, telecommunications, and more recently defence and social infrastructure.

Ventia said Ralston will work closely with Banks over the coming months to support a smooth handover.

Chairman David Moffatt said Ralston has a deep understanding of Ventia’s business, customers and markets, and has made a strong contribution to the company’s performance and strategy.

Ralston said he was honoured to lead Ventia and pointed to the company’s “strong business, clear strategy and talented team”.

What does Ventia actually do?

Ventia provides infrastructure services across Australia and New Zealand.

Its work covers areas such as defence, water, power, gas, transport, telecommunications, resources and social infrastructure.

That includes maintaining defence bases, looking after roads and transport networks, supporting utilities, managing facilities, and providing services for government and large corporate customers.

Importantly, this gives Ventia a broad contract base across parts of the economy where maintenance and service work doesn’t just disappear when market conditions get tougher.

The business also has plenty of scale, with more than 35,000 employees and subcontractors working across more than 400 sites.

Keeping things steady

Leadership changes can sometimes make investors nervous, especially when a long-serving CEO is moving on.

But today’s share price reaction suggests the market is comfortable with the choice.

That is likely because Ralston is already well known inside the business. He has been involved with Ventia for more than a decade and has held roles across several parts of the group.

And the company’s recent share price performance also helps. Ventia has had a strong year, and the market appears comfortable with the stock moving into its next leadership phase.

The post Near record highs: Why this ASX 300 stock is rising today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras 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.

A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M) shares are in the spotlight on Thursday.

In morning trade, the infant formula company’s shares are up 6% to $7.29.

This compares favourably to the performance of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which is down 0.45% at the time of writing.

A2 Milk shares jump on big news

The catalyst for today’s gain has been the announcement of a special dividend.

According to the release, following the receipt of approval from the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) to transition its two China label infant milk formula product registrations acquired in connection with the a2 Pokeno facility to a2 branded products, the board has decided to return a substantial amount of cash to shareholders.

A2 Milk advised that the board has now declared a NZ$300 million (A$245 million) special dividend that will be both fully franked and unimputed.

The company notes that this will be paid to eligible shareholders on 24 July 2026.

Speaking of eligibility, A2 Milk shares will go ex-dividend for this payout on 8 July. This means that investors need to own the company’s shares before the market close the day before to qualify for it.

The company estimates that the dividend has a value of 41.36 New Zealand cents per share (33.9 Australian cents per share). Based on its last close price of $6.85, this represented a dividend yield of just under 5%.

Commenting on the return, A2 Milk’s chair, Pip Greenwood, said:

With the necessary China regulatory approvals now in place, the Board is pleased to declare a $300 million special dividend. This reflects our commitment to delivering shareholder returns while maintaining disciplined capital management.

Should you invest?

While Bell Potter has yet to respond to this news, earlier this week it put a hold rating on A2 Milk shares with a price target of $6.90.

The broker commented:

This announcement is a positive development with regard to the internalisation of the CL supply chain and growth levers for FY27-29e. The debate at present is more nuanced around the wide FY27e consensus forecast ranges at EBITDA at NZ$296- 415m and NPAT at NZ$189-285m (both consistent on Bloomberg & VA) which is exceptionally wide for a ASX100 consumer stock.

This likely reflects the issues around 2H26e margin, the recent downgrade saw the top end of revenue consistent with the previous range but margin guidance reduced ~300bp in 2H26e, and expectations of additional marketing support in 1H27e. At current share price levels the stock sits at the more expensive side of the consumer sector (on a FY25-28e PEG ratio) and is likely to be materially more volatile given the polarising views on earnings expectations into the August guidance statement. Our forecasts largely split the divide and for this reason our Hold rating is unchanged.

The post A2 Milk shares jump amid $300 million special dividend appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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.