On Friday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) finished the week with a decline. The benchmark index fell 0.45% to 8,665 points.

Will the market be able to bounce back from this on Monday? Here are five things to watch:

ASX 200 expected to edge higher

The Australian share market looks set for a mildly positive start to the week following a strong session on Wall Street on Friday. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 3 points higher. In the United States, the Dow Jones was up 0.95%, the S&P 500 rose 0.5%, and the Nasdaq pushed 0.5% higher.

Oil prices fall

ASX 200 energy shares Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS) could have a subdued start to the week after oil prices pulled back on Friday night. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price was down 2.3% to US$92.41 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price was down 2.15% to US$104.32 a barrel. This was driven by optimism over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

Codan shares upgraded

Codan Ltd (ASX: CDA) shares are in the buy zone according to Bell Potter. This morning, the broker has upgraded the metal detector manufacturer’s shares to a buy rating with an improved price target of $60.00. It said: “We upgrade to Buy from Hold. Notwithstanding potential supply chain constraints in global electronics which CDA is “monitoring”, we expect current rapidly expanding production rates of Group 2 UAS to drive Communications revenue upgrades in 1H27/FY27.”

Gold price rises

It could be a positive start to the week for ASX 200 gold shares including Capricorn Metals Ltd (ASX: CMM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) after the gold price rose on Friday night. According to CNBC, the gold futures price was up 0.55% to US$4,321.2 an ounce. Easing oil prices lowered inflation risks and gave the precious metal a boost.

Buy Mesoblast shares

Bell Potter thinks investors should be buying Mesoblast Ltd (ASX: MSB) shares. This morning, the broker has retained its buy rating and $4.45 price target on the biotech company’s shares. This is more than double its current share price. It said: “MSB has extensive IP around both Ryoncil and Rexlemestrocel-L (aka Revascor). Ryoncil carries Orphan Drug Designation and long life patents. The development of the new TIBA assay further extends the moat around future revenues.”

The post 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Woodside Energy Group Ltd. 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.

The REA Group Ltd (ASX: REA) share price has fallen by approximately 35% in the past year. Not many S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) shares have fallen that far over the same time period.

I get excited when high-quality businesses fall that far because it could be a rare opportunity to buy part of a great business.

REA Group describes itself as a multinational digital advertising business, specialising in property. It operates Australia’s leading residential and commercial property websites – realestate.com.au and realcomercial.com.au, as well as the leading website dedicated to share property, Flatmates.com and the property research website property.com.au.

The company also owns Mortgage Choice, an Australian mortgage broking franchise group, PropTrack, a leading provider of property data services, Campaign Agent, Australia’s leading provider of vendor-paid advertising finance solutions to the Australian real estate market and Realtair, a digital platform providing technology for the real estate transaction process. It also has investments in Simplicity Loans and Advisory, Arealytics, Athena Home Loans and Planitar.

As you can see, REA Group has a strong presence across the real estate sector.

Has recent financial performance been compelling?

The company delivered a solid set of numbers during the FY26 result.

Australian revenue grew 11% to $1.7 billion, Australian operating profit (EBITDA) before associates rose 13% to $1.1 billion, net profit after tax (NPAT) rose 15% to $650 million and earnings per share (EPS) climbed 15% to $4.93.

The company noted a number of highlights for realestate.com.au, with 12.7 million people visiting the portal on average each month. It also said it receives 146.4 million average monthly visits, which is 104.5 million more monthly visits than the nearest competitor on average.

It also noted 2.9 million people visited realcommercial.com.au per month on average, 1.8 million more people than the nearest competitor.

FY27 could be a challenging year for the company amid all of the changes to property-related taxes.

It said that new national buy listings are anticipated to be “flat to down low single-digits” in FY27. July listings were 2% lower and in line with the eight-year average. However, combined Melbourne and Sydney listings declined by 13%, while Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide increased by 13%.

Despite that headwind, the company continues to target operational margin expansion, which I’d say is a positive development.

Management expects a low double-digit controllable residential buy yield, excluding the impact of the geographical mix, driven by an 80% premium price increase and growth in add-ons.

So, whilst the number of listings is challenging, price rises are helping offset the headwinds.

According to Commsec’s projection, the business is now valued at just 25x FY27’s estimated earnings. Commsec forecasts suggest the company could grow its EPS by 13.75% in FY28 and another 15.7% in FY29.

Is the REA Group share price a buy?

According to CMC Invest, there have been 10 analyst ratings on the business within the last three months. Four of those ratings were a buy, five were a hold and one was a sell.

The average price target of those analyst ratings was $188.50, which implies a possible rise of 27% over the next year from where it is at the time of writing. In other words, it could be an underrated opportunity, so it could be one to take a closer look at.

The post Is the REA Group share price a strong contrarian buy? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 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.

The idea of working until 67 before finally enjoying retirement has never appealed to me.

I’d much prefer to build enough wealth to retire earlier and spend more time doing the things I enjoy.

And I think investing in the stock market is one of the best ways to get there.

If I were putting together a portfolio specifically for early retirement, I’d focus on two things: ETFs and individual growth stocks.

Nothing particularly complicated, but I think getting the balance right could make a big difference over time.

Here’s how I’d approach it.

I’d start with ETFs

The first thing I’d do is build a decent position in ETFs.

One that really interests me is the Vanguard Australian Shares High Yield ETF (ASX: VHY).

It holds a diversified portfolio of Aussie companies selected for their generous dividend yields.

And that’s something I’d want in a retirement portfolio.

While I’m still working, I’d reinvest the distributions to buy more units and let compounding do its thing.

Eventually, I’d like those distributions to provide a steady income stream to help cover my living expenses.

I’d also add a growth-focused ETF with international exposure, so I’m not relying entirely on the Australian market.

The idea would be to build a solid foundation that could continue growing while generating income along the way.

I’d also back some growth stocks

Now, while ETFs would make up a substantial part of my portfolio, I wouldn’t stop there.

I’d also want exposure to individual companies that I believe have the potential to become much bigger businesses over the coming years.

Two that interest me are WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) and Ouster Inc (NASDAQ: OUST).

WiseTech operates a global logistics software business through its CargoWise platform, which helps freight forwarders manage complex supply chains.

Meanwhile, Ouster offers exposure to lidar technology, robotics, and physical AI.

Its sensors and software help machines understand their surroundings, with applications across industrial automation, robotics, and smart infrastructure.

Of course, these aren’t risk-free investments, and I wouldn’t be putting all my money into them.

But I’d be happy allocating a portion of my portfolio to businesses I believe have plenty of room to grow.

Time would be my biggest advantage

One thing I wouldn’t do is buy shares and expect them to double in six months.

That’s not how I’d look to build a retirement portfolio.

I’d want at least a three-year investment horizon for my individual growth stocks, though I’d ideally hold them much longer.

And with ETFs, I’d be looking at decades.

I’d also keep investing regularly, especially when the market gives us opportunities to buy quality businesses at more attractive prices.

Ultimately, I’d want a portfolio that combines dividend income with long-term capital growth.

And if I keep investing over the years, I’d hope to retire early and work because I want to, not because I have to.

The post Want to retire early? Here’s where I’d put my money 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 positions in and has recommended WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Vanguard Australian Shares High Yield ETF. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.