Category: Stock Market

The Lithium Australia NL (ASX: LIT) share price is starting Friday morning with a bang following a positive announcement from the lithium company.

At the time of writing, Lithium Australia shares are up 10.34% to 16 cents apiece. In comparison, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is up 0.3% to 7,882 points.

What did Lithium Australia announce?

Investors appear to be excited about the company’s latest developments, sending Lithium Australia shares to a new 8-month high.

According to its release, Lithium revealed it has filed two new international patent applications to the Australia Patent Office.

Submitted under the Patent Corporation Treaty, the applications related to Lithium Australia’s 90% owned subsidiary, Envirostream Australia’s technology. The patent refers to the company’s recycling process for lithium-ion batteries and the recovery of electrode materials.

The first patent titled, “Process for recovering values from batteries”, describes the selective separation process for recovering electrode material from lithium-ion batteries. This includes mixed metal dust that comprises both cathode and anode powders.

The next patent, titled “Process for recovering values from process liquors” explains the process for selective recovery of mixed metal sulphates. This is performed when the leaching of mixed metal material is recovered from lithium-ion batteries.

Lithium Australia managing director, Adrian Griffin commented:

The Lithium Australia group is acutely aware of its environmental footprint and that of the society within which we live and operate. We can no longer afford to discard any products to landfill, let alone those that have a high embedded energy footprint, contain critical materials, or – in the case of lithium-ion batteries – both.

We have developed unique processes to deal with battery waste and invite like-minded industry participants to work with us in improving the sustainability of our consumer-based society.

Lithium Australia share price summary

Over the last 12 months, Lithium Australia shares have accelerated by more than 170%, with year-to-date gains above 140%. The company’s share price reached a 52-week high of 21 cents in January 2021.

Based on today’s price, Lithium Australia has a market capitalisation of roughly $153.9 million, with 961 million shares on issue.

The post Why the Lithium Australia (ASX:LIT) share price is powering 10% ahead today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Lithium Australia (ASX:LIT) share price powers 6% on new membership

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras 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 Bruce Jackson.

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The Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) share price is on the radar once more due to its potential Digicel Pacific acquisition.

In early trading today, Telstra shares are swapping hands for $4 apiece, a gain of 0.88%.

Building on previous announcements, Telstra CEO Andy Penn added colour on the “incomplete” discussions in the telco giant’s FY21 results yesterday.

Let’s investigate further.

Bit of a refresher on the Digicel acquisition

The Australian federal government originally approached Telstra on 19 July, on the basis Telstra would “provide technical advice” on the acquisition of Digicel.

Telstra views the Pacific telco company, owned by an Irish billionaire, as “an attractive asset”.

As a result, speculative reports hint at a deal between the pair of approximately $2 billion to complete the transaction. The government’s portion is rumoured to be around $1.5 billion of that total.

Penn has stated in the past Telstra would only participate “as a minor portion of the transaction”, and that the government “has its own interests” in Digicel.

Digicel itself is a telecommunications company that owns the majority of 3G and 4G mobile networks across the Pacific.

The government seeks to purchase Digicel to compete with Chinese telecommunications infrastructure, which already has a strong presence in the region.

What’s the latest in the Digicel saga?

Penn has weighed in on the debate again, adding additional flavour on the transaction in Telstra’s FY21 earnings report.

According to Penn, the transaction will be contingent on “meet(ing) certain financial parameters”, in particular, Telstra’s stake “being the minor economic portion” in the deal.

Moreover, Penn stated ongoing discussions are still “incomplete” and there is doubt on the transaction going ahead in the first place.

Furthermore, the company “would own Digicel Pacific”, albeit maintaining a low-risk exposure “with appropriate risk projections”.

Should the deal close, Telstra would consolidate Digicel in its own financial results, as per the release.

Telstra will only go ahead with the acquisition “if it is in the best interests of (its) shareholders”, a point reinstated by both the CEO and chair.

In addition, the government is seeking to purchase Digicel to “block any Chinese transaction”, with “speculation the government has concerns over Chinese interests gaining a dominant position in pacific telco markets”, according to The Australian yesterday.

However, this posture has “led to concerns the government could overpay for the asset, as a result of a faux bidding war with China”, The Australian reports.

Telstra share price snapshot

The Telstra share price has posted a year-to-date return of 34%, extending the previous 12 month’s gain of 28%.

These results have outpaced the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO)’s climb of around 25% over the past year.

The post Telstra (ASX:TLS) share of Digicel acquisition must be a minority — CEO appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Top brokers give their verdict on the Telstra (ASX:TLS) share price
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• ASX 200 edges higher, Telstra climbs, NAB up
• The ASX reporting wrap-up: Telstra, AGL Energy, Downer
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares this Thursday

The author Zach Bristow has no positions 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 owns shares of and has recommended Telstra Corporation Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) share price is edging higher in early trade, up 0.3%.

Below we take a look at the ASX 200 gold miner’s major funding announcement.

What did Evolution announce?

Evolution’s share price is gaining after the company reported it had successfully priced a US$550 million (AU$753 million) maiden debt private placement in the United States.

The gold miner said it received an investment grade rating, and the placement was “strongly supported” by investors and oversubscribed.

The placement consists of 2 tranches. The first US$200 million matures in November 2028 with a fixed rate coupon of 2.83%. The second US$350 million matures in November 2031 with a fixed rate coupon of 3.17%.

Evolution reported it has hedged against US dollar exposure via cross currency swaps.

Commenting on the funding arrangement, Evolution’s chief financial officer, Lawrie Conway said:

The placement announced today is consistent with our approach of maintaining a strong balance sheet to fund our strategy and enable the business to prosper through the cycle. This transaction also ensures that our debt profile better matches our asset portfolio of long life, high quality operations.

The completion of the placement will further optimise our balance sheet, repay the existing Red Lake Term Loan Facility and provide us with additional capacity to fund existing and future growth initiatives and maintain flexibility around our dividends.

The Red Lake Term Loan Facility is associated with Evolution’s AU$450 million acquisition of Red Lake.

The transaction remains subject to standard closing conditions.

Once those are met, Evolution expects to draw the proceeds in November. The new funding will extend Evolution’s debt maturity profile from 2.7 years to 7.1 years

Evolution share price snapshot

Like almost every ASX 200 gold miner, Evolution’s share price has come under pressure amid a sliding gold price, with the yellow metal down some 12% since this time last year.

Over the past 12 months, Evolution’s shares are down 31%, while the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) gained 25% over that same time.

Year-to-date the Evolution share price has continued to struggle, down 26%.

The post Evolution (ASX:EVN) share price higher on major funding announcement appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday

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 Bruce Jackson.

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The Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) share price has continued its positive run on Friday

In early trade, the telco giant’s shares are up 1% to a new 52-week high of $4.02.

Why is the Telstra share price rising?

The Telstra share price was given a boost today after brokers responded positively to the company’s full year results.

For example, analysts at Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, and Morgans have all retained the equivalent of buy ratings and lifted their price targets this morning.

Credit Suisse has retained its outperform rating and increased its price target to $4.25. Whereas Goldman has a buy rating and new $4.30 price target and Morgans has an add rating and new price target of $4.34.

All three price targets imply that the Telstra share price still has room to climb in the future.

What did Goldman Sachs say?

According to the note out of Goldman Sachs, its analysts were pleased with its full year results and guidance for FY 2022.

The broker commented: “Telstra reported a mixed FY21 with EBITDA/NPAT -1%/+3% vs. GSe, with a strong mobile and cash performance, offset by a weaker fixed result (particularly NAS).”

“FY22 Guidance for underlying EBITDA of $7.0 to $7.3bn was consistent with GSe prior ($7.2bn), when adjusting for the $50mn cost of retail in-sourcing (timing related, will normalize), while FCF [free cash flow] was well ahead (we had assumed a WC [working capital] drag).”

Goldman notes that Telstra is guiding to solid operating earnings growth in FY 2022 despite still facing a sizeable NBN headwind.

It explained: “The mid-point of underlying earnings implies a return to strong full year growth in FY22E of +7%, despite facing the final $350mn NBN headwind. This will be driven by accelerating mobile growth and fixed margin expansion (which will require solid execution).”

Positively, the broker expects this solid form to continue in FY 2023, particularly given how the NBN headwind will have ended.

“In FY23E, with the NBN headwinds finished, the improving mobile revenues and fixed margin expansion drive our +8% EBITDA growth to $7.7bn (vs. $7.5-$8.5bn target) implying 8.1% ROIC,” it added.

Based on the current Telstra share price, Goldman’s price target implies potential upside of 7% before dividends. This stretches to approximately 11% including them.

The post Top brokers give their verdict on the Telstra (ASX:TLS) share price appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• ASX 200 edges higher, Telstra climbs, NAB up
• The ASX reporting wrap-up: Telstra, AGL Energy, Downer
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares this Thursday
• 3 ASX 200 dividend shares lifting to 52-week highs

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 owns shares of and has recommended Telstra Corporation Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Perpetual Limited (ASX: PPT) share price is pushing higher on Friday.

In morning trade, the fund manager’s shares are up 1% to $39.82.

Why is the Perpetual share price rising on Friday?

Investors have been bidding the Perpetual share price higher today following the release of an update on its significant items.

Late last month, the company released its fourth quarter update and revealed that it expects to report significant items of $48 million.

This comprises $45.6 million of transaction and integration costs, and non-cash amortisation of acquired intangibles, and $2.1 million of fair value movements associated with the Barrow Hanley accrued incentive compensation liability.

In addition, it provided guidance of unrealised gains of $11.3 million (before tax), resulting in total significant items of $39.8 million.

What’s the latest?

According to today’s release, Perpetual’s transaction and integration costs and non-cash amortisation of acquired intangibles components remain in line with its original guidance. However, the methodology used in the calculation of the Barrow Hanley accrued incentive compensation liability has been amended to align with the treatment of similar schemes within Perpetual.

This change effectively brings forward fair value movements associated with the vesting of incentives that would otherwise have come through significant items in the FY 2022 and FY 2023 financial years.

As a result, the associated fair value movement is now $10.2 million after tax, an $8.1 million increase from the $2.1 million figure previously provided. Furthermore, the unrealised gains on financial assets are now lower at $6.7 million after tax. This compares to previous guidance of $7.9 million after tax ($11.3 million before tax).

This means that its total significant items for FY 2021 will be $49.2 million, up 23.6% on its previous guidance of $39.8 million. And while this looks bad initially on paper, it is worth noting that it has only pulled forward items that would have been recorded in future periods. As a result, valuation models are unlikely to have been impacted by the change.

The Perpetual share price is up 14% year to date.

The post Why the Perpetual (ASX:PPT) share price is pushing higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Perpetual (ASX:PPT) share price struggles despite ‘strong performance’

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 Bruce Jackson.

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This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood seems to have taken the investing world by storm. In 2020, Wood’s flagship ARK Innovation ETF (NYSEMKT: ARKK) outperformed the greater market by nearly 9x — 149% versus 16% — and earned her Bloomberg News designation as best stock picker that year.

With a focus on disruptive technology, it makes sense that ARK’s exchange-traded funds would embrace crypto, but the strong conviction ARK’s investments are showing to the sector is still a bit shocking. Last year, Wood assigned a $500,000 per coin price target for Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), one of the most ambitious predictions on Wall Street! Unsurprisingly, ARK is well on its way to creating a Bitcoin-focused ETF.

With the crypto bear market starting to show a rebound, you don’t have to wait for ARK’s new ETF to get in on the positive returns. Here are three growth stocks Wood owns that are active in crypto’s adoption and stand to benefit.

1. Robinhood: Derided as a meme stock, but it has a bright crypto future

Despite being on the public markets for only a short time, upstart online brokerage Robinhood Markets (NASDAQ: HOOD) has made a splash. The first week saw whiplash-inducing volatility, with a disappointing debut, a massive rally that saw share prices more than double in a few trading days, and a correction-level price drop after the company announced a massive follow-on share offering. The app that contributed heavily to the meme-stock trend appears to be a meme stock itself.

Robinhood’s envious user growth has partly been due to its tremendous success among younger traders. At one point, the company disclosed that nearly 80% of its user base was under age 35, a highly coveted demographic for financial services firms as these investors have most of their earning and investing lives ahead of them.

In addition to zero-commission trading, Robinhood’s crypto capabilities helped the company win this demographic. Robinhood is in high-growth mode. The company disclosed that 2020 full-year revenue grew 245% over the prior year to $960 million. A significant portion of that growth was connected to cryptocurrency trading. The company followed that up with a massive first quarter that saw revenue increase 309% from the prior period to $522 million.

Although Robinhood’s opportunity is vast, there are increasing risks in its primary stock trading business. A series of high-profile operational failures — including trading outages during the GameStop frenzy and data breaches — have placed the brokerage in the crosshairs of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Additionally, its primary monetization model of payment for order flow is now being copied by incumbent brokers with larger asset bases, educational materials, and customer support. Robinhood’s embrace of cryptocurrency functionality is quickly becoming the true differentiator versus traditional stock brokerage firms, and the company is wise to focus on building out its crypto functionality.

2. Square: Using Bitcoin to improve its flywheel

The ARK Innovation ETF stock has sold off from recent highs, but you can’t blame its stake in Square (NYSE: SQ). Shares of the digital payments company have advanced nearly 90% in the last year.

Traditional banking continues to avoid cryptocurrency, which has created an opportunity for financial technology, aka fintech, companies. Square has been aggressive on this front, adding the ability to buy and sell Bitcoin in 2018 through its peer-to-peer financial network Cash App. Bitcoin has been instrumental is helping Cash App’s flywheel effect, in which added services increase user engagement.

In the short run, however, it could be Square’s other business that powers the company higher. Last year Square’s seller ecosystem was decimated by COVID-19. The company’s host of card readers and POS systems are popular with smaller business owners like restaurants, coffee shops, nail salons, and bars, which bore the brunt of pandemic lockdowns.

Despite that, Square was able to help its vendors quickly build out their online presence and grow card-not-present transactions. At year-end, seller gross payment volume (GPV) was flat despite significant headwinds. In the most recent quarter, GPV jumped 86% over the prior year, helping to power total revenue growth of 87% (minus Bitcoin).

However, CEO Jack Dorsey has high expectations for Bitcoin, proclaiming it would be the world’s “single currency” within 10 years in 2018. He continues to lead by helping to form the Crypto Council for Innovation with Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) and Fidelity. Square will be instrumental in increasing Bitcoin adoption.

3. Coinbase: Looking to further institutional Bitcoin adoption

Out of the three companies, Coinbase is more tethered to the underlying price of crypto. Coinbase operates multiple crypto-based currency exchanges, so it indirectly benefits from rising crypto prices, as it serves as a form of marketing for new users looking to trade. Directly, Coinbase uses percentage-based transaction fees, which benefit from higher revenue per transaction when crypto prices are higher.

While crypto has been in a bear market lately, that isn’t always a bad thing. As a broker, Coinbase also benefits from crypto crashes (at least short-term). Exchanges tend to do well whenever volatility is high, because fast-moving markets are the biggest driver of transactions. Although prices might be lower, transactions and engagement will increase from people looking to buy dips and “paper-hands” looking to lock in profits or prevent deeper losses.

However, Coinbase is leading efforts to expand the cryptocurrency ecosystem and create more revenue sources than retail trading by increasing institutional adoption. Coinbase recently acquired Bison Trails, now known as Coinbase Cloud. The IaaS platform allows institutions to quickly integrate blockchain infrastructure into their operations. As of the first quarter, Coinbase had more than 8,000 institutions on its platform that conducted 64% of its total trading volume.

With that deep (and still growing) institutional userbase, it’s likely Coinbase will be on the vanguard of Bitcoin adoption.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post Cathie Wood loves these 3 crypto stocks appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

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Jamal Carnette, CFA owns shares of Bitcoin. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Bitcoin and Square. 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 Bruce Jackson.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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The PointsBet Holdings Ltd (ASX: PBH) share price is racing higher on Friday morning.

At the time of writing, the sports betting company’s shares are up 4% to $11.58.

Why is the PointsBet share price racing higher?

The catalyst for the rise in the PointsBet share price on Friday has been the release of a positive announcement relating to its US operations.

According to the release, PointsBet has received regulatory approval from the West Virginia Lottery Commission and has now launched online sports betting operations in West Virginia.

The release explains that the launch in West Virginia marks the seventh operational state for PointsBet’s premium sports betting product. This follows successful launches in Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, and New Jersey. PointsBet also currently operates iGaming in New Jersey and Michigan.

In addition, PointsBet advised that it plans to launch its proprietary online casino product in West Virginia by the end of calendar year 2021. This is subject to necessary licensure.

“Another tremendous opportunity”

PointsBet USA’s CEO, Johnny Aitken, commented: “Launching in West Virginia represents further progress for PointsBet and presents another tremendous opportunity we are excited to attack. As always, PointsBet will provide this passionate, sports-loving community with a fast and reliable online sports betting product across every customer touchpoint.”

“We are thrilled to now introduce West Virginian sports bettors to the competitive advantages PointsBet possesses in owning our technology end-to-end, such as our speed and ease of use as well as a deep slate of betting options for every NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, WNBA, and PGA TOUR contest.”

New appointment

The company has also announced the appointment of Aonghus Mulvihill as Vice President of Global Sportsbook Trading. Mulvihill will oversee PointsBet’s global team of sports analysts, devising and implementing the company’s trading risk management strategy and trading product development.

Mr Mulvihill joins PointsBet from Betfair International Sports (part of Flutter Group, the parent of FanDuel) where he was Commercial Director.

The PointsBet share price is up more than 100% over the last 12 months.

The post Here’s why the PointsBet (ASX:PBH) share price is racing higher today 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. owns shares of and has recommended Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Baby Bunting Group Ltd (ASX: BBN) share price is crashing lower following the release of its full year results.

At the time of writing, the baby products retailer’s shares are down 10% to $5.40.

Baby Bunting share price sinks despite reporting strong profit growth in FY 2021

• Total sales up 15.6% to $468.4 million
• Comparable store sales growth of 11.3%
• Online sales up 54.2% and now represent 19.2% of total sales
• Pro forma earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) up 29.2% to $43.5 million
• Pro forma net profit after tax increased 34.8% to $26 million
• Fully franked final dividend of 8.3 cents per share (full year dividend up 34.1% to 14.1 cents)
• FY 2022 same stores sales down 6.4% as of 12 August

What happened in FY 2021 for Baby Bunting?

The Baby Bunting share price is under pressure today after a strong performance in FY 2021 was overshadowed by a soft start to the new financial year.

In respect to the former, for the 12 months ended 30 June, Baby Bunting reported a 15.6% increase in total sales to $468.4 million. This was driven by strong comparable store and online sales. The latter was underpinned by the increasing popularity of Click & Collect with consumers. Click & Collect sales more than doubled and now account for 57% of online sales.

Also supporting its sales growth were its Private Label and Exclusive Products sales. They increased 31.1% to become 41.4% of total sales. Management believes this trend will continue and expects to soon achieve its long term target of 50% of sales coming from this category.

On the bottom line, the company’s pro forma net profit after tax was up 34.8% to $26 million. This was underpinned by gross margin expansion and operating leverage. It is also worth noting that this was achieved without any JobKeeper payments or rent relief.

What did management say?

Baby Bunting’s CEO & Managing Director, Matt Spencer, was very pleased with the company’s performance in FY 2021.

He said: “We have had a tremendous year delivering great growth, both in earnings per share and returns for shareholders. This could not have been achieved without the outstanding efforts of the entire Baby Bunting team. Our team has remained focused on being there for new and expectant parents in uncertain times and supporting them with great service and products to meet their essential needs.”

“Baby Bunting is Australia’s leading maternity and baby goods retailer, and we operate in a less discretionary category with around 300,000 births a year in Australia. Our brand has gone from strength to strength and is now the most recognisable brand in this category and this is converting into stronger brand preference and engagement. As we expand our network of stores and our range and services, we expect our growth to continue.”

What’s next for Baby Bunting?

Weighing heavily on the Baby Bunting share price today was its subdued start to the new financial year.

Comparable store sales as of 12 August were down 6.4% financial year-to-date.

Though, this weakness may be offset a touch with store openings. The company anticipates opening three new stores in the first half. It also has a strong pipeline of leases committed for the second half, plus two in New Zealand.

Matt Spencer concluded: “While the new financial year has started with some disruptions from ongoing lockdowns, our experience has been that any short-term sales impact is recovered quickly once lockdowns have eased. While FY22 may have more surprises, our operating strength in our category and our transformation plans should see us well placed in the period ahead.”

The Baby Bunting share price is still up 11% in 2021 despite today’s decline.

The post Baby Bunting (ASX:BBN) share price crashes 10% lower on FY 2021 results appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 2 top ASX growth shares that might be worth buying

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 recommended Baby Bunting. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Kathmandu Holdings Ltd (ASX: KMD) share price will be one to lookout for on Friday morning. This comes after the adventure retailer announced a new head for its Rip Curl brand.

After yesterday’s market close, Kathmandu shares sitting at $1.31.

Kathmandu appoints new CEO

In a statement to the ASX, Kathmandu advised Brooke Farris will take on the position of CEO for Rip Curl.

Following a thorough search process involving internal and external candidates, Ms Farris was selected due to her strong track record.

Ms Farris began working for Rip Curl in 2010, where she held a number of various roles. This included running Rip Curl surf events across the globe, executing marketing strategies as the ANZ marketing manager, and more.

Most notably, Ms Farris took on the role of general manager of digital, which led to strong sales growth online.

Ms Farris will assume the Rip Curl CEO position effective from next Monday 16 August 2021.

Kathmandu group CEO and managing director, Michael Daly said:

Brooke has contributed greatly to Rip Curl’s success and growth over the past 11 years with her indisputable commitment to the brand, our product, and our crew. I am confident she will bring this same commitment and leadership in her new role.

Incoming Rip Curl CEO, Brooke Farris commented:

Rip Curl has been threaded throughout my life since I was a teen. I’m honoured to be announced as the new CEO. It’s an absolute privilege to lead our talented and passionate crew across the world and I’m motivated to build on our esteemed 52-year history and capitalise on our continued market success.

About the Kathmandu share price

Since the start of June, Kathmandu shares have been on a continuing decline, down around 15%. However, when looking further back, the company’s share price is up 11% year to date.

Kathmandu presides a market capitalisation of roughly $928.8 million, with approximately 709 million shares on its books.

The post Why the Kathmandu (ASX:KMD) share price will be on watch 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 Bruce Jackson.

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The Bank of Queensland (AS:BOQ) share price will be on watch this morning after the bank’s small business loans were found to be unjust.

The Federal Court made the finding against the bank’s small business contracts yesterday. The issue was first flagged by the Australia Securities Investment Commission (ASIC).

The Bank of Queensland share price finished yesterday’s session trading at $9.57.

Let’s take a closer look at the Federal Court’s ruling.

Federal Court ruling

The Bank of Queensland share price is in the spotlight after the bank was ordered to replace loan contracts.

Bank of Queensland must now work with its small business customers to renegotiate contracts both parties believe to be fair.

The court found in favour of ASIC’s claims Bank of Queensland’s small business loans contravened Australian Consumer Law and the ASIC Act.

The Bank of Queensland didn’t respond to The Motley Fool Australia’s request for comment in time for publication.

The loans’ contracts allowed the bank to change a loan’s terms without notice and default loans without proper evidence.

Small business customers could also face penalties for leaving contracts because of newly implemented terms.

Additionally, customers couldn’t address issues that led the bank to find they had defaulted on their loan.

The Bank of Queensland had also placed a clause in the contract stating whatever they believed the borrower owed was the true amount. If the bank erred, the borrower was responsible for proving their true debt.

Both ASIC and the court didn’t claim the bank had used the unfair terms against any of its small business customers. However, the bank agreed the terms were likely to financially harm its customers.

The court found similar clauses within the bank’s other loan contracts. It ordered the Bank of Queensland to replace all instances of unfair terms with new, fair terms.  

It isn’t the first time an ASX-listed bank had been pulled up on its loan contracts. In 2010, the Federal Court found the Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Ltd (ASX: BEN) had used unfair clauses in its contracts for small business loans.

Bank of Queensland share price snapshot

The Bank of Queensland share price is performing well on the ASX.

It has gained 27% since this time last year. It is also 59% higher than it was this time last year.

The bank has a market capitalisation of around $6.1 billion, with approximately 639 million shares outstanding.

The post Bank of Queensland (ASX:BOQ) share price on watch after ‘unfair’ loans finding appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper 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 Bruce Jackson.

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