The AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP) share price has been on fire this week. Shares in the Aussie wealth manager are up 6.1% since last Friday’s close and sitting at $1.12 per share.

It’s a bit of positive news in an otherwise bleak run for shareholders. AMP shares have slumped 27.9% in 2021 and have significantly underperformed the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) in recent times.

So, what’s driving the latest gains for the Aussie wealth manager?

Why the AMP share price is up 6% this week

AMP reported its half-year results on 12 August – just over 2 weeks ago today. A 57% surge in net profit after tax to $181 million was a key highlight of the recent update.

The wealth manager’s assets under management (AUM) grew 8% to $121 billion during the year despite net cash outflows of $4 billion.

AMP’s Board of Directors did not pay an interim dividend. The wealth manager remains focused on capital management and turnaround efforts under new CEO Alexis George.

The AMP share price jumped 3.7% following the result before retracing those gains in recent weeks. However, this week has been a good one for shareholders with the wealth management share once again climbing higher.

Context is definitely important in looking at the latest moves. For one thing, the AMP share price closed at $1.12 per share on Thursday – just above its $1.04 per share 52-week low.

Interestingly, there has been no further updates since the release of the results two weeks ago but a broadly positive earnings season and recent market gains have helped boost momentum. There have also been recent results releases from IOOF Holdings Limited (ASX: IFL) and Platinum Asset Management Ltd (ASX: PTM) which have helped put AMP’s results in context versus industry peers.

Foolish takeaway

Despite the AMP share price climbing 6% higher this week, the wealth manager’s market capitalisation has still slid 25% in the last 12 months.

The post It’s been a good week so far for the AMP (ASX:AMP) share price appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Ken Hall 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 Dusk Group Ltd (ASX: DSK) share price will be one to watch today.

This follows the release of the specialty retailer’s full year results this morning.

Dusk share price on watch after tripling profit in FY 2021

• Total sales up 47.4% to $148.6 million
• Like for like sales growth of 32.7%
• Gross profit up 54.4% to $101.3 million
• Pro forma net profit after tax increased 225.5% to $26.8 million
• Final fully franked dividend of 10 cents per share

What happened in FY 2021 for Dusk?

For the 12 months ended 30 June, Dusk delivered a 47.4% increase in sales to $148.6 million. This was driven by 10 new store openings and like for like (LFL) sales growth of 32.7%. The latter comprises 32.9% LFL store growth and 27% LFL online growth. Online sales now account for 7.5% of total sales.

Underpinning this growth was a 49% lift in Dusk Rewards customers to a record 413,000 and a 12% increase in Average Transaction Value (ATV) to $51. Management advised that the latter reflects the continued shift to higher price points in Home Fragrance product and the refinement of its range to offer larger pack size products across the core candle category.

Another positive that could support the Dusk share price is that its Dusk Rewards members continue to spend more, and shop more often than non-members. This bodes well for the future given its rising membership numbers.

Inventory levels are becoming very important in the current environment for retailers. Dusk appears to have hit a sweet spot with inventory broadly in line with plan. And while this is 67% higher than a year ago, it notes that the company was $2.6 million below plan at the end of FY 2020 due to COVID-19 impacts. Furthermore, the increase is concentrated in high turn core SKUs in Candle and Home Fragrance.

What did management say?

Dusk’s Managing Director and CEO, Peter King, said: “Dusk’s strong FY21 results were generated by agile decision making and focused execution over the period. A 225% increase of both NPAT and EBIT vs FY20 despite lockdowns across multiple States points to the resilient teamwork of the dusk organisation and continued execution of its business plan in a challenging trading environment.”

“While COVID-19 has seen a shift in consumption to home related products, it should be noted that Q3 FY21 was the 17th consecutive quarter of LFL Sales and GM$ growth for dusk. December 2020 itself was the 4th consecutive Christmas of record sales and earnings.”

“Record signups for dusk rewards in FY21 are a clear signal of future purchase intent into FY22 and beyond. To ensure these customers stay with dusk we will continue the laser like focus on our customers by developing and delivering differentiated dusk branded products that offer great value for money and affordable everyday luxury,” he added.

What’s next for Dusk?

One thing that could put pressure on the Dusk share price today was its poor start to FY 2022.

Unfortunately, due to COVID-19 related restrictions and store closures, the company has lost ~35% of potential trading days.

In light of this, for the first seven weeks of FY 2022, top line sales are down 28% or $4.4 million in dollar terms.

However, it highlights that in stores that are open or have re-opened, the company continues to see strong customer conversion rates and elevated average transaction value.

Dusk share price outperformance

Despite pulling back from recent highs, the Dusk share price is still outperforming the market by a significant margin in 2021.

Since the start of the year, the Dusk share price is up an impressive 50%. This compares to a 12% gain by the ASX 200 index.

The post Dusk (ASX:DSK) share price in focus after tripling profit in FY21 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 recommended Dusk Group 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 NextDC Ltd (ASX: NXT) share price will be on the spotlight on Friday after the company released its FY21 results.

NextDC share price in focus following 23% revenue lift

The NextDC share price could be on the move today after the company reported another year of strategic capital investment and set new benchmarks for financial performance. Key highlights included:

• Data centre services revenue increased 23% to $246.1 million.
• Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) rose 29% to $134.5 million.
• Operating cash flow surged 148% to $133.2 million.
• The number of customers increased by 13% to 1,547.
• Liquidity of $1.7 billion, including undrawn debt facilities of $1.05 billion, at the end of FY21.

What happened for NextDC in FY21?

The NextDC share price is up 8.97% year to date and 13.2% in the past 12 months, underperforming the broader S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO).

Despite the company’s slow-moving share price, NextDC achieved a number of significant milestones and enjoyed a period of strong growth in FY21.

NextDC continued to experience significant growth in the number of customers, customer orders and data centre revenue.

Data centre services revenue for the year increased 23% to $246.1 million, driven by the increased utilisation of data centre services across the business. As at 30 June, the company was billing for 65.3MW of capacity.

NextDC continues to take strides towards profitability, delivering a net loss after tax of $20.7 million compared to a $45.0 million loss in FY20.

NextDC has a strong pipeline of development work to drive its facility capacity and contracted utilisation.

The company cited record development activity in Victoria with 9MW of new capacity built and commissioned on time and on budget at the M2 site. Construction work has now begun for an additional 9MW of capacity, scheduled for delivery during the fourth quarter of FY22.

NextDC said that during FY21, strong demand from customers in NSW and ACT saw the company reach contracted utilisation of 41MW in this region. With its S2 site approaching full capacity, it expects to transition further demand across to S3, which is scheduled to come online during the second half of FY22.

According to NextDC, the company secured critical expansion capacity during FY21 to support the next decade of growth. NextDC secured its single largest landholding to date in Western Sydney for S4 Sydney, targeting a capacity of 300MW. The company also received development approval for M3 Melbourne, securing expansion land for the 150MW campus in West Footscray.

It will be interesting to see how the NextDC share price performs on Friday as investors digest the company’s latest results.

Management commentary

NextDC CEO and managing director Craig Scroggie commented on the FY21 results:

We are pleased to deliver on market expectations, with the Company’s FY21 results coming in ahead of the upgraded guidance provided at the time of NEXTDC’s 1H21 results in February. Today’s results are a testament to the Company’s pursuit of excellence, against a more difficult economic backdrop due to the COVID-19 global
pandemic

What’s next for NextDC?

Another driver for the NextDC share price today could be the company’s forward-looking guidance for FY22.

NextDC said that, based on current operating metrics and expected new customer contracts, it forecasts FY22 to deliver:

• Data centre services revenue between $285 million to $295 million (up 16% to 20% on FY21).
• Underlying EBITDA between $160 million and $165 million (up 19% to 23%).
• Capital expenditure in the range of $480 million to $540 million.

NextDC share price snapshot

The NextDC share price closed Thursday’s session 1.82% lower at $13.48. The company’s shares reached a 52-week high of $14.10 during intraday trading on 9 November last year.

Based on the current NextDC share price, the company has a market capitalisation of around $6.1 billion.

The post NextDC (ASX:NXT) share price on watch after record FY21 performance appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Kerry Sun 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 Nearmap Ltd (ASX: NEA) share price has been out of form over the last 12 months.

Since this time last year, the aerial imagery technology and location data company’s shares have lost 30% of their value.

Is the weakness in the Nearmap share price a buying opportunity for investors?

According to a recent note out of Morgan Stanley, its analysts were pleased with the company’s results in FY 2021.

In response, the broker retained its overweight rating and $3.20 price target.

Based on the latest Nearmap share price of $2.16, this implies potential upside of 48% over the next 12 months.

What happened in FY 2021?

Nearmap was on form in FY 2021 thanks largely to a record performance by its North American operations. For the 12 months ended 30 June, Nearmap delivered a 26% increase in annual contract value (ACV) to $128.2 million.

This was underpinned by incremental ACV growth of $21.8 million (or $27.4 million in constant currency), which was driven by a combination of growth in subscriptions and its average revenue per subscription metric.

Another positive from the result was the narrowing of Nearmap’s loss. Thanks to operating leverage, the company recorded a loss after tax of $18.8 million for the year. This was almost half the $36.7 million loss it recorded in FY 2020. This left the company with a cash balance of $123.4 million at the end of the period.

And while no guidance was given with its results, management spoke positively about the future. Nearmap’s Chief Financial Officer, Andy Watt, commented: “Our track record of successfully executing on our growth initiatives gives me the confidence we can successfully capitalise on the strong momentum in our business into FY22 and beyond.”

What did the broker say?

Morgan Stanley highlights that this FY 2021 result was in line with guidance.

And while it notes that no guidance was provided for FY 2022, the broker is confident on its prospects and is expecting its cash burn to reduce.

Its analysts also remain confident that the Nearmap share price could re-rate to higher multiples in the near future once further clarity is gained for its ACV growth and operating leverage.

In light of this, it believes the Nearmap share price is trading at a very attractive level currently.

The post Top broker names Nearmap (ASX:NEA) share price as a buy 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 Nearmap Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Nearmap 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 Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) share price will be on watch on Friday.

This follows the release of the conglomerate’s full year results this morning.

Wesfarmers share price on watch after delivering strong profit growth

• Revenue from continuing operations up 10% to $33,941 million
• Earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) from continuing operations up 18.8% to $3,776 million
• EBIT (after interest on lease liabilities) up 20.7% to $3,550 million
• Net profit after tax rose 16.2% to $2,421 million
• Operating cash flows down 25.6% to $3,383 million
• Fully franked full year dividend of 178 cents per share, up 17.1% year on year
• Proposed $2.3 billion or $2.00 per share capital return to shareholders

What happened in FY 2021 for Wesfarmers?

Wesfarmers was a very positive performer in FY 2021, delivering a 10% increase in revenue and an 18.8% jump in EBIT from continuing operations. This appears to be in line with expectations, which could bode well for the Wesfarmers share price today.

The key drivers of this growth were its Bunnings and Kmart Group businesses. For the 12 months, Bunnings delivered a 19.7% increase in earnings to $2,185 million and Kmart Group achieved a 69% increase in earnings to $693 million. This was supported by a 7.6% increase in Officeworks earnings and offset slightly by a 2.5% earnings decline by the WesCEF business.

Management advised that Bunnings’ strong growth reflects continued execution of its strategic agenda, the resilience of its operating model, and its capacity to adapt to changing customer needs

Whereas Kmart Group’s positive performance was underpinned by the conversion of Target stores into Kmart stores, higher sales, lower clearance costs, and improvements in the cost of doing business.

This strong form allowed the Wesfarmers Board to declare a fully franked final dividend of 90 cents per share. This brought its full year dividend to 178 cents per share, up 17.1% year on year.

But the shareholder returns aren’t stopping there. Potentially giving the Wesfarmers share price an additional boost today was news that the Board is recommending a return of capital of 200 cents per share to shareholders.

The company notes that this distribution will ensure a more efficient capital structure for the company while maintaining balance sheet capacity to take advantage of value-accretive opportunities as they arise.

What did management say?

Wesfarmers’ Managing Director, Rob Scott, commented: “While COVID-19 had a significant impact on operations during the year, the Group’s businesses maintained their focus on building deeper customer relationships and trust.”

“Bunnings, Kmart Group and Officeworks delivered strong sales and earnings growth for the year. While customer demand remained resilient, sales growth in Bunnings, Officeworks and Catch moderated from mid-March as the businesses began to cycle elevated demand following the onset of COVID-19 in the prior year. Pleasingly, sales growth from mid-March remained strong on a two-year basis across all of the Group’s retail businesses.”

Mr Scott also revealed that its online businesses performed strongly during the year, with online sales now accounting for almost 10% of sales.

He said: “Investment in data and digital capabilities accelerated, and the Group commenced the development of a data and digital ecosystem that will enable a more seamless and personalised customer experience across the retail businesses. Digital engagement across all businesses continued to increase and total online sales across the Group, including the Catch marketplace, increased to $3.3 billion.”

What’s next for Wesfarmers?

One thing that could weigh on the Wesfarmers share price today was its softer start to FY 2022.

The company notes that Bunnings’ sales financial year to date have declined 4.7% on the prior corresponding period. This reflects solid growth from commercial customers, offset by a decline in consumer sales as the business cycled elevated demand in the prior period.

It is a similar story for the Kmart Group business, with combined Kmart and Target sales down 14.3% financial year to date. This reflects the significant impact of COVID-19 restrictions, including government-mandated temporary store closures across a number of regions. It notes that since the beginning of the year and in mid-August almost 50% of stores were closed due to lockdowns. The Catch business has also seen gross transaction value decline 8.5% thus far in FY 2022.

Finally, Officeworks has been a relatively better performer with sales down just 1.5% financial year to date.

No guidance has been given for the year ahead, but management remains positive on the company’s long term prospects.

It commented: “The Group’s strong balance sheet and portfolio of cash-generative businesses with market-leading positions make it well positioned to withstand a range of economic conditions and deliver satisfactory shareholder returns over the long term.”

“The Group will continue to develop and enhance its portfolio, building on its unique capabilities and platforms to take advantage of growth opportunities within existing businesses and to pursue investments and transactions that create value for shareholders over the long term,” it concluded.

Wesfarmers share price performance

The Wesfarmers share price has been in fine form in 2021. Since the start of the year, the company’s shares are up 24%. This is double the return of the ASX 200 over the same period.

The post Wesfarmers (ASX:WES) share price on watch after strong profit growth and $2.3bn capital return 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 owns shares of and has recommended Wesfarmers 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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ASX growth shares have beaten value shares for a decade now.

The only exception was a short period earlier this year when value stocks were in favour due to post-COVID inflation fears.

So have growth shares run too hot for too long now? Are they overly expensive and can only go down from here?

The older folks would certainly remember what happened in the early 2000s when the dot-com bubble exploded. That ended in tears for many people.

Is 2021 the same as when the dot-com bubble burst?

BetaShares chief economist David Bassanese set out to answer this question this week.

He used the NASDAQ-100 Index (NASDAQ: NDX), which includes many of the US technology multinationals, as a proxy for growth shares in his analysis.

“The NASDAQ-100 index has performed very strongly in recent years. Looked at from a return perspective alone, this strong relative performance is akin to that seen during the ‘dotcom bubble’ 20 years ago,” he said on the BetaShares blog.

“This time around, however, this solid performance has been well supported by underlying fundamentals, namely strong relative growth in earnings.”

A quick way of judging how expensive shares are in relation to other periods is to look at the price-to-earnings (PE) ratio.

“At least up until recently, the NASDAQ-100’s price to forward earnings (PE) ratio had moved broadly sideways and averaged just under 20,” said Bassanese.

“Since the COVID crisis, however, prices have increased relative to earnings such that the PE ratio has increased – reaching an end-month peak of 30 at end-August 2020. As at end-July 2021, it was trading at a forward PE ratio of 27.2.”

So is a PE ratio of 27 expensive?

Maybe, but it’s nothing like the dot-com bubble days, when it reached 70 and 80.

“Since the mid-1980s, the PE ratio has averaged around 25 – though excluding the bubble years from 1997 to 2004, the average has been only 21,” Bassanese said.

“So in that regard the PE ratio today is 30% above its long-run average excluding the bubble years.”

But are ASX growth shares too expensive vs value stocks?

Bassanese also pointed out that while growth shares might be above their long-term price average, that still doesn’t mean they’re much more expensive than value stocks.

“PE ratios in many markets are elevated these days – helped by very low interest rates, and to an extent, an expectation of a continued strong rebound in corporate earnings following their slump last year.”

For example, the MSCI All Country World Index is 27% above its long-term average since the mid-1980s, excluding the late 1990s bubble period. That’s comparable to the NASDAQ-100’s 30% premium.

Additionally, Bassanese reckons growth in earnings will deflate the current PE ratio or push up share prices further. 

“Current consensus estimates suggest forward earnings for the NASDAQ-100 Index will lift 14% between now and end-2022, which remains a bit more than the 11% growth expectation for global stocks overall,” he said.

“All up, so far at least it’s hard to argue growth stocks – as proxied by the NASDAQ-100 Index – are clearly over-valued, given the current still low level of interest rates and relative to similarly above-average global equity PE valuations more broadly.”

The post Is there any juice left in ASX growth shares? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tony Yoo 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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With low interest rates likely to be here for some time to come, it certainly is a difficult time for income investors.

While this is disappointing, investors need not worry. This is because there are plenty of ASX dividend shares that can help you overcome low rates. Two to look at are listed below:

Bravura Solutions Ltd (ASX: BVS)

The first ASX dividend share to look at is Bravura Solutions. It is a leading provider of software products and services to the wealth management and funds administration industries.

Its shares have been sold off this week following the release of its full year results. Although the company achieved the low end of its guidance, its FY 2022 guidance was a touch below expectations. In addition, the shock departure of its long-serving CEO hit investor sentiment hard.

The team at Goldman Sachs believe that this is a buying opportunity. They believe the selloff was overdone and have retained their buy rating with a slightly trimmed price target of $3.70.

The broker is also forecasting dividends per share of 10 cents, 11 cents, and then 13 cents between FY 2022 and FY 2022. Based on the current Bravura share price of $3.10, this will mean yields of 3.2%, 3.5%, and 4.2%, respectively.

Goldman Sachs is positive on the company and believes it is well positioned due to its strong market position, high degree of recurring revenue, and its emerging microservices ecosystem strategy.

Super Retail Group Ltd (ASX: SUL)

A second ASX dividend share to consider is Super Retail. It is the retail conglomerate responsible for the BCF, Macpac, Rebel, and Super Cheap Auto retail brands.

It was a very strong performer in FY 2021. For example, earlier this month Super Retail released its full year results and revealed a 22% increase in sales to $3.45 billion and a 107% jump in normalised net profit after tax to $306.8 million.

This was underpinned by double digit like for like sales growth across all of its brands. Positively, it also revealed that FY 2022 has started strongly, with sales up 15% year on year for the first seven weeks of the financial year.

In response to the result, analysts at Credit Suisse put an outperform rating and $14.40 price target on its shares.

As for dividends, Credit Suisse is forecasting dividends per share of 51.6 cents in FY 2022 and 50 cents in FY 2023. Based on the current Super Retail share price of $12.07, this will mean fully franked yields of 4.3% and 4.1%, respectively.

The post Analysts name 2 ASX dividend shares to buy now 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 Bravura Solutions Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Bravura Solutions Ltd and Super Retail Group 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 EML Payments Ltd (ASX: EML) share price is rated as a buy by multiple brokers, suggesting it could be a smart buy. 

Which brokers like the EML Payments share price?

The payments business recently released its FY21 result and a few different brokers decided it’s a buy after seeing that report.

UBS is one of the brokers that likes EML, it has a buy rating on the business with a price target of $4.80. That means the broker thinks the EML Payments share price could rise by around 15% over the next 12 months.

The brokers at Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) also believe the EML Payments share price is a buy, with a price target of $4.55. That means Macquarie thinks the business could see a rise of around 10% over the next 12 months.

What are the brokers looking at with EML Payments?

There were two factors that brokers focused on: the FY21 result itself and the issues with the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI).

Both Macquarie and UBS thought the FY21 result was good.

EML Payments reported a number of financial measures that increased by strong double digit numbers.

Gross debit value (GDV) went up 42% to $19.7 billion, helping revenue rise by 60% to $194.2 million. Underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased 65% to $53.5 million. The underlying profit (NPATA) rose by 54% to $32.4 million. Operating cashflow grew by 121% to $48.8 million. The cash at the bank also rose by 19% to $141.2 million.

The revenue for two of its segments – gift and incentive, and virtual account numbers – were largely flat.

The general purpose reloadable (GPR) segment saw substantial growth. GPR is used for things like banking as a service, software as a service, neo lending, multi-currency, government and non-government organisations.

GPR revenue grew from $41.9 million to $113.5 million and the yield increased from 99 basis points to 117 basis points. PFS was consolidated into the group results for a full 12 months, contributing $78.3 million. EML contributed $35.3 million of revenue, representing growth of 34% year on year. Gaming payout programs grew in all markets and revenue rose 87%.

CBI’s impact on the EML Payments share price

On 19 May 2021, the business told investors that the regulator CBI raised significant regulatory concerns about its Irish regulated subsidiary, PFS Card Services. The concerns related to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing, risk and control frameworks and governance.

That correspondence stated that “CBI is minded to issue directions”. EML warned that these directions could materially impact the European operations of the PFS business, including potentially restricting its activities under the Irish authorisation. EML estimated that approximately 27% of EML’s global consolidated revenue was derived from Irish authorisation.

The EML share price fell 46% in response to this news. But it has risen 47.5% since then.

UBS noted that it seems that EML is going to keep its licence after the company’s update and the progress it has made is a plus point for the business.

EML has “incurred or provided” for $11.4 million of costs in relation to professional fees, remediation and other potential costs with resolving this matter. EML expects the remediation plan to be substantively complete by the end of the 2021 calendar year.

The post The EML Payments (ASX:EML) share price is rated as a strong 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. owns shares of and has recommended EML Payments. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended EML Payments and Macquarie Group 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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On Thursday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) ended its winning run and dropped lower. The benchmark index fell 0.55% to 7,491.2 points.

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

ASX 200 expected to fall

The Australian share market looks set to end the week in the red. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 8 points or 0.1% lower. This follows a poor night on Wall Street, which saw the Dow Jones fall 0.55%, the S&P 500 drop 0.6%, and the Nasdaq tumble 0.65%.

Wesfarmers full year results

The Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) share price will be one to watch today when it hands in its full year results. According to Morgans, its analysts are expecting the conglomerate to report a full year earnings before interest tax (EBIT) growth of 18% to $3,481 million. This compares to the analyst consensus EBIT estimate is $3,632 million. Morgans’ expects Wesfarmers result to be driven largely by Bunnings EBIT growth of 20% and Kmart Group growth of 62%.

Oil prices fall

Energy producers such as Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) could end the week in the red after oil prices dropped overnight. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is down 0.75% to US$67.85 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is down 1% to US$71.57 a barrel. COVID concerns were weighing on prices.

Ramsay rated as buy

The Ramsay Health Care Limited (ASX: RHC) share price is in the buy zone according to analysts at Goldman Sachs. This morning the broker responded to the private healthcare company’s full year results by retaining its buy rating and $74.00 price target on its shares. It commented: “In our view, valuation of 8.5x NTM EV/EBITDA is not demanding for a defensive asset leveraged to improving vaccine rates, with a favourable growth profile (+8% EBITDA CAGR FY21-24E GSe) and material balance sheet optionality.”

Gold price rises

Gold miners Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM) and St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) will be on watch after the gold price edged higher overnight. According to CNBC, the spot gold price is up 0.15% to US$1,793.90 an ounce. The price of the precious metal has been volatile this week due to the ongoing US Federal Reserve event at Jackson Hole. Fed Chair Jerome Powell will be making a speech tonight.

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

More reading

• Santos (ASX:STO) share price slumps amid misleading emissions lawsuit
• ASX 200 drops, A2 Milk sinks, Appen plummets
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares on Thursday
• ASX 200 midday update: A2 Milk and Appen sink, Flight Centre rises
• St Barbara (ASX:SBM) share price falls 3% on $177 million loss

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 Wesfarmers Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Ramsay Health Care 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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It certainly has been a disappointing week for the Bravura Solutions Ltd (ASX: BVS) share price.

Since this time last week, the financial technology company’s shares have lost 19% of their value.

This means the Bravura share price has given back all its 2021 gains and a touch more.

Why is the Bravura share price falling heavily this week?

Investors have been selling down the Bravura share price this week following the release of its full year results.

Although the company delivered a result largely in line with expectations, its guidance was modestly lower than consensus estimates.

Though, perhaps the biggest drag on the Bravura share price was the surprise and sudden (next week) departure of its CEO, Tony Klim, after a decade at the helm.

Is this a buying opportunity for investors?

According to a note out of Goldman Sachs, its analysts believe the weakness in the Bravura share price is a buying opportunity.

This morning the broker retained its buy rating but trimmed its price target slightly to $3.70.

Based on the latest Bravura share price of $3.10, this implies potential upside of 19% over the next 12 months.

What did the broker say?

Goldman believes the post-results selloff has been overdone and feels it has left the Bravura share price trading at a very attractive level. The broker also has confidence in the company’s new CEO, Nick Parsons, who has been with the company for 14 years.

Goldman said: “BVS has guided to solid mid-teen FY22 NPAT growth; seasonality should be slightly 2H weighted but far less pronounced than FY21. In our view the share price reaction today (-16%) may be overdone. The mid-point of guidance implies only 2% downgrade to consensus NPAT (Bloomberg); we downgrade our FY22/FY23E EPS by -1.9%/-5.5%.”

“The departure of CEO Mr. Tony Klim may have come as a surprise; he has been CEO for 10 years and has been replaced by Mr. Nick Parsons. Mr. Parsons has been with BVS since 2007, appointed as CTO. He has undertaken a range of senior leadership roles in the business, most recently as Global COO.”

“Our updated forecasts imply +12% 3-yr EPS CAGR. The stock is trading at a 29% discount to the FY22 Small Industrials Index, which we think makes the stock a compelling investment in the current environment,” it concluded.

Overall, this could make it worth considering when the market reopens on Friday.

The post Broker says Bravura (ASX:BVS) share price selloff is a buying opportunity appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• The ASX reporting wrap-up: WiseTech, Bravura, Seven Group
• Why Bravura, Nine, Reece, & Zip shares are sinking today
• Bravura Solutions (ASX:BVS) share price plunges 17% on FY21 earnings
• How did the Bravura (ASX:BVS) share price react last earnings season?
• 2 ASX dividend shares named as buys in August

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 Bravura Solutions Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Bravura Solutions 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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