Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) shares have slumped into the red in Tuesday afternoon trade.

At the time of writing, the supermarket giant’s shares are down around 0.5% and are changing hands at $38.42 a piece.

The shares have come off the boil recently after reaching an all-time high of $40.66 in early August.

Since then, the ASX consumer discretionary shares have slipped around 6%. 

But the latest decline has barely made a dent in the amount of gains Woolworths shares have enjoyed over the past year.

For the year to date, the shares are up around 31%, and they’re 18% higher than 12 months ago.

What’s driven the Woolworths share price rally this year?

It hasn’t been smooth sailing for the Woolworths share price over the past 12 months, and some volatility continued throughout early 2026. But the shares have climbed higher overall.

The business made headlines earlier this year after it posted its third-quarter sales update in April, revealing a 4.5% increase. 

At the time, the company also said underlying trading momentum remained solid, but management noted they had seen “some signs of increased customer caution”. Investors were spooked and quickly offloaded their shares.

Woolworths shares also gained attention in June following media reports about the company’s plans to offshore hundreds of corporate roles. The move is part of a $400 million office cost reduction push to simplify operations and reduce costs.

Since hitting a low in mid-May, Woolworths shares have now risen around 18%.

It looks like the increase was mostly driven by investor confidence that the turnaround is coming to fruition. There is renewed investor confidence that the retailer’s earnings are recovering after a difficult period in late 2025.

Woolworths posted a stronger-than-expected first-half profit in February and continues to pursue cost-cutting initiatives to support margins and earnings over time.

The company is due to announce its FY26 results tomorrow.

Are the supermarket shares a buy, sell, or hold now?

Market experts appear to be reserved about the outlook for Woolworths shares ahead of the company’s results announcement.

TradingView data shows the majority of analysts (eight out of 17) have a hold rating on Woolworths shares. Another three rate the shares as a buy/strong buy, and six rate the shares as a sell/strong sell.

Although after a strong rally, it looks like the shares are now trading above fair value.

The average $37.39 target price implies a potential 3% downside, at the time of writing.

Although some forecast that the shares could drop 10% to $34.60 over the next 12 months. Meanwhile, others think Woolworths shares have the potential to climb 6% to $40.90 per share at the time of writing.

UBS downgraded Woolworths shares to a sell rating earlier this month, but raised its 12-month price target to $39.

The post Are Woolworths shares a buy, sell or hold ahead of its FY26 results announcement? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Samantha Menzies 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.

Profit season gives the analysts plenty to work with when they’re assessing which companies represent a good buying opportunity.

I’ve had a look through the reports Macquarie has put out this week and singled out three which profile companies they think will do particularly well.

Let’s see who they like.

Arena REIT (ASX: ARF)

This listed property trust recently reported a net operating profit of $79.1 million, up 8% on FY25, and boosted its distributions per security by 5.5% to 19.25 cents.

The trust also guided to distributions for the current year of not less than 18 cents.

The company said re the result:

Key contributors to the FY2026 result were income growth from contracted annual and market rent reviews and acquisitions and development projects completed in FY2025 and FY2026. Arena finished the year with a strong balance sheet, with total assets of $2 billion and relatively low gearing of 24.5%.

Managing Director Justin Bailey said it was a strong year, and the trust “continued to improve portfolio quality through disciplined capital allocation, development activity and targeted divestments”.

The trust is dealing with a default from Edge Early Learning, which leases 31 Arena properties representing 14% of Arena’s income.

The trust says it is continuing to engage with Edge and reserves its legal rights.

Macquarie said in a note to clients that they assume Edge will not remedy the situation and will need to be replaced.

But they said the current share price implies an “overly pessimistic outcome”.

Macquarie has a price target of $2.90 on Arena shares compared to $2.45 currently.

Liberty Financial Group Ltd (ASX: LFG)

Macquarie said Liberty’s second-half result was positive, underpinned by stronger margins, while a 15 cent special dividend was also a positive.

They said:

We like LFG’s continued focus on delivering stable margins and returns, which we believe supports ongoing capital management initiatives. This supports return on equity of ~14% over the medium term, based on our forecasts. Despite changes to negative gearing and CGT in the budget, management noted only modest impacts to date on mortgage lending (with peers reporting similar), which has positively surprised us.

Macquarie has a price target of $4.70 on Liberty shares compared to $3.58 currently.

Navigator Global Investments Ltd (ASX: NGI)

Macquarie said this funds manager’s net profit of US$75 million came in at about 8% better than consensus estimates, and the outlook for the current financial year was strong.

The completion of an acquisition during the year “provides for material earnings growth in FY27, with capacity on the balance sheet to fund additional M&A”, Macquarie said.

The broker has a price target of $3.24 on Navigator shares compared to $2.51 currently.

The post 3 ASX shares Macquarie says will return 23% to 49% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Arena REIT postpones FY2026 earnings result as Edge Early Learning seeks rent relief

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

Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) shares are up around 2% in lunchtime trading on Tuesday. At the time of writing, Coles shares are changing hands at $23.19 each.

The increase means Coles shares are now up around 9% for the year to date, and have climbed 12% over the past 12 months.

Today’s increase comes off the back of the company’s FY26 results posted to the ASX ahead of the market open this morning.

Coles announced a 2.8% increase in its group sales revenue, a 9.9% increase in its EBIT excluding significant items, and a 13.7% increase in its NPAT excluding significant items.

The robust result saw management declare a fully-franked total dividend of 78 cents per share for FY26, an increase of 13%.

But, while it’s worthwhile to understand how the supermarket giant and its shares have performed over the past 12 months, investors should also keep an eye on what lies ahead.

For the business itself, Coles said it is ramping up its investment in new stores, renewals, and technology, including accelerated eCommerce and supply chain automation.

This could improve productivity and market share over the longer term, but it also raises near-term capital requirements.

But what about the Coles share price? What can we expect to happen next?

If I buy $5,000 of Coles shares today, what could they be worth in 12 months’ time?

Most experts are positive about the outlook for ASX consumer discretionary shares.

Market Index data shows that the majority of brokers have a buy rating on Coles shares. The $24.28 average target price implies a potential upside of around 5% at the time of writing.

Sentiment is similar on TradingView. The majority of analysts (eight out of 17) have a buy/strong buy rating on Coles shares, and another seven rate Coles shares as a hold. Two experts have a sell or strong sell rating.

The average target price of $24.07 implies a potential 4% upside over the next 12 months, at the time of writing. But analyst forecasts range from a 9% downside to $21 to a 17% upside to $27 over the next 12 months.

Assuming the average target price comes to fruition, that means a $5,000 investment today could be worth around $5,200 to $5,250 in 12 months time.

But if the more bullish expert forecasts are correct, a $5,000 investment today could climb to $5,850 by this time next year.

The post By August 2027, $5,000 invested in Coles shares could turn into… appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Samantha Menzies 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.