At lunch on Wednesday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has followed the lead of US markets and is pushing higher. The benchmark index is currently up 0.2% to 7,487.6 points.

Here’s what is happening on the ASX 200 today:

GUD outlook not so good

The GUD Holdings Limited (ASX: GUD) share price is falling today following the release of its full year results. Although the diversified products company delivered a result ahead of guidance, its outlook for FY 2022 appears to have spooked investors. In respect to the former, underlying earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) was up 24.8% to $101.2 million. This compares to its guidance of $98 million to $100 million. No guidance was given due to volatile trading conditions

Woodside Scarborough update

The Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) share price is pushing higher today despite an update on its Scarborough project costs. Ahead of the final investment decision on the project, the company has completed an update of the capital expenditure requirements for the Scarborough development. It is now expected to cost US$12 billion, up 5% from previous estimates. Despite this, Woodside’s Acting CEO, Meg O’Neill, reaffirmed that the development is a transformational project that will deliver enduring shareholder value.

ANZ board appointment

Australia and New Zealand Banking GrpLtd (ASX: ANZ) announced a new board appointment this morning. According to the release, Christine O’Reilly will join the ANZ Board on 1 November 2021 as a non-executive director, subject to meeting regulatory requirements. The release notes that Ms O’Reilly is one of Australia’s leading non-executive directors and currently serves on the boards of BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) and Medibank Private Ltd (ASX: MPL).

Best and worst ASX 200 performers

The best performer on the ASX 200 on Wednesday has been the Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) share price with a 5% gain on no news. The worst performer on the ASX 200 has been the EML Payments Ltd (ASX: EML) share price with a 3.5% decline. Once again, this is despite there being no news out the payments company.

The post ASX 200 midday update: GUD results, Woodside update, ANZ appointment 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 EML Payments. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended EML Payments. 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 Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) share price is gaining again today despite no news having been released by the company since late last month.

However, the buy now, pay later (BNPL) sector has been having a roaring week’s trade after Afterpay Ltd was handed a $39 billion takeover offer.

Right now, the Zip share price is 3.6% higher than its previous close. Shares in the BNPL provider are trading for $8.04 a piece.

That’s particularly impressive considering the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is just 0.35% higher, while the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) has gained 0.33%.

Let’s take a closer look at how Zip’s shares have been moving this week.

What’s up with Zip?

The Zip share price is among many ASX-listed BNPL shares having a great week.

Afterpay’s takeover offer, proposed by US financial services giant Square Inc, reinvigorated the BNPL sector which had previously been flat or struggling.

In fact, this week is the first time the market has seen large movements from Zip shares since the March tech selloff.

It’s spurred the Zip share price to gain between 7% and 9% every day this week. That’s led to a massive 18.98% boost since Monday.

Additionally, the Afterpay share price is now 32.48% higher than it was at Friday’s close.

At the same time, Sezzle Inc has gained an impressive 10% this week. Openpay Group Ltd is also 12% higher while Splitit Ltd has increased a whopping 26% since Monday.

Zip share price snapshot

The Zip share price’s gains this week have broken it out of an ASX slump.

It is now 40% higher than it was at the start of the year. It has also gained 25% since this time last year.

The company has a market capitalisation of around $4.4 billion, with approximately 562 million shares outstanding.

The post The Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price is zooming higher once more appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Afterpay share price keeps climbing. RBA surprisingly bullish. Scott Phillips on Nine’s Late News
• What happens to my Afterpay shares in the Square takeover?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• ASX 200 drops, Afterpay jumps again, Credit Corp rises
• Top broker gives its verdict on the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price

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. owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO, Square, and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO. 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.

For years, Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) has felt like a must-own stock.

The company has many competitive advantages. It dominates huge industries like e-commerce and cloud computing and it’s become a necessity in modern life for many Americans, especially during the pandemic.

Indeed, buying the stock at almost any point in its history has proven a wise decision. That’s why it was a bit of a shock to see Amazon’s stock price finish down nearly 8% after a seemingly strong second-quarter earnings report. Amazon stock is fallible, it turns out.

The tech giant reported revenue growth of 27% to $113.1 billion, missing the analyst consensus at $115.1 billion. On the bottom line, the company delivered another round of soaring growth with earnings per share improving from $10.30 to $15.12, ahead of estimates at $12.22.

However, investors were focused on the company’s slowing growth as it laps the heady months of the pandemic a year ago. For the third quarter, Amazon guided to revenue growth of just 10% to 16%, which was its slowest growth guide in memory. On the bottom line, it only called for operating income of $2.5 billion to $6 billion, below the $6.2 billion it reported in the quarter a year ago.

Historically, Amazon’s guidance, especially on the bottom line, is conservative, but the forecast reveals some real challenges the company is facing. The market response also indicates that many investors thought the pandemic tailwinds would last forever, even as consumer spending priorities have clearly changed in recent months.

CFO Brian Olsavsky provided some insight on the earnings call, noting that Amazon’s revenue growth rate had hovered around 20% before the pandemic and then surged to 40% for much of the last year. By mid-May of this year, as it lapped that strong growth period and its customers began to return to their pre-pandemic routines, revenue growth fell to the mid-teens, which explains the third-quarter guidance at the same pace.

Olsavsky also warned that that pattern would continue for the next few quarters due to difficult comparisons. Beyond that, however, there’s another challenge facing Amazon.

The law of large numbers

Amazon brought in $386 billion in revenue last year, and analysts expect the company to do close to $500 billion in revenue this year. Maintaining its 20% growth rate at that level will be a difficult feat.

Growth rates tend to slow down as businesses get bigger, a rule of thumb known as the law of large numbers, and growing 20% from a $500 billion base would mean adding another $100 billion in revenue in just a year. Amazon did manage to do that last year with the help of the pandemic, but fewer than 30 companies in the U.S. generate that much in revenue annually.

Currently, Amazon is the biggest company in the world by revenue behind only Walmart, and it could pass the retail giant as soon as next year. At $500 billion, Amazon will claim 2% of the roughly $25 trillion in retail sales in the world. Eventually, its growth rate will slow, though it’s a testament to the company’s business strategy and customer-centric approach that it’s been able to grow so much so fast.

The good news

Even if Amazon’s revenue growth falls under 20%, the stock story is shifting to profit growth. After it operated near break-even for much of its history, Amazon’s high-margin businesses like Amazon Web Services, third-party marketplace, and advertising are delivering huge gains on the bottom line. Last year, the company reported $21 billion in net income, and it’s made $15.9 billion in the first half of the year. 

Its profits will ultimately determine the stock’s value, and its profit growth should remain strong, given the momentum in those high-margin businesses. If earnings per share continue to surge, the stock will follow suit as the price-to-earnings ratio has already fallen under 60.

Some perspective

Even with Friday’s sell-off, Amazon’s stock price is still up 80% from the beginning of 2020, representing a gain of close to $1 trillion in market value. That’s a remarkable accomplishment, and many of its FAANG stock peers have done the same thing. That’s a reminder that the pandemic created a highly unusual business environment, which helped Amazon and its big tech peers deliver monster results.

Amazon’s report signals that for most of them, that period is over. While there’s no reason to sell the stock following the Q2 report, investors who had expected last year’s growth rate to continue got a needed reality check. Amazon is still one of the most bulletproof stocks on the market, but it can’t continue to grow 80% every year.

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

The post Amazon investors get a reality check appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Jeremy Bowman owns shares of Amazon. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Amazon. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2022 $1,920 calls on Amazon and short January 2022 $1,940 calls on Amazon. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

 

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

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The Creso Pharma Ltd (ASX: CPH) share price has climbed well into the green in early trade today.

Cresco Pharma shares are now exchanging hands at 11.75 cents apiece, an almost 7% gain from the open.

What is Creso Pharma?

Creso Pharma develops and commercialises pharmaceutical cannabis and psychedelic compounds to treat health and medical conditions.

The company has a wide footprint across Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Colombia and Israel, but realises most revenue from Europe and the Middle East.

Creso Pharma has a market capitalisation of $131 million at the time of writing.

What’s behind today’s gains?

Creso provided an update on “operational progress” achieved through its Canadian subsidiary, Halucenex Life Sciences.

Halucenex is a research company focused on developing novel psychedelic compounds. These products are then sold to the pharmaceutical markets.

Creso announced that Halucenex has completed all satisfactory requirements for USP 61 microbial enumeration testing.

This is a significant milestone that demonstrates Creso’s psilocybin compound is of pharmaceutical grade and safe from microbial nasties.

Furthermore, the company announced it had “commenced USP 62 protocols”.

That is a similar test that examines pharmaceutical products for the presence of additional pathogens and other microbes.

It is an essential phase of any route to market in the pharmaceutical industry because the product must be deemed fit for humans.

Creso seems confident the test will “deem the company’s products safe for human consumption” if successful.

What else does this mean?

Moreover, if successful, it will progress Halucenex’s clinical trial authorisation (CTA) with Health Canada, helping to move forward its clinical trial pipeline.

Receiving the CTA allows the company to commence its phase II efficacy trial investigating the use of psilocybin in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Creso estimates the PTSD therapeutics market is worth “upwards of US$10.5 billion by 2025” and the company intends to “grow its market share across the sector” in the coming periods.

Market sentiment around clinical trial progress is a major force that drives share price returns in biotech and biopharma companies. That means good news is reflected on the charts for these shares.

In addition, Creso also released its quarterly update on Monday which shot its share price 9% higher on the day.

It stands to reason these two factors are behind the movement in the Creso Pharma share price today.

Creso Pharma share price snapshot

The Creso Pharma share price has posted a loss of 35% since January 1 this year. Over the last month, Creso shares have dipped 13% into the red.

Despite this, Creso shares have still climbed 279% into the green over the past 12 months.

This has outpaced the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO)’s return of around 26% over the past year.

The post Here’s why the Creso Pharma (ASX:CPH) share price is up 7% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Contributor Zach Bristow has no position on 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 Raiz Invest Ltd (ASX: RZI) share price has stormed more than 8% in morning trade.

At the time of writing, shares in the company have backtracked a little to be up 6.11%.

Investors have flocked to buy shares in the fintech company after Raiz released an update earlier this morning.

Here’s what Raiz had to announce.

Raiz share price higher on performance metrics

The Raiz share price is well in the green today, after releasing its performance metrics for July.

Raiz noted that numbers from its recent acquisition of Superstate were included in its key metrics for the first time.

As a result, the company highlighted that Superestate added $71.6 million to superannuation funds under management (FUM) for a 69.8% increase to $181.00m million. In addition, the acquisition managed to add and an extra 6,073 active customers to the Raiz platform.

Overall, Raiz highlighted continued growth in funds under management (FUM) in Australia.

For July, the company recorded a 4.4% increase in total retail FUM to $ $904.82 million.

In addition, Raiz noted a 69.8% increase in superannuation contributions in July.

In the update, Raiz Managing Director and CEO George Lucas noted that; “Superestate’s contribution aside, we were on target to hit our $1 billion FUM by the end of this calendar year”.

The company’s management also noted that operations in southeast Asia remain on track, reporting a 9.9% increase in active customers to 129,574.

More on the Raiz share price

Raiz is an Australian financial technology (fintech) company that provides users with a mobile-focused micro-investing platform.

Raiz charges users a flat monthly investment fee which comprises more than 60% of the company’s revenue. As a result, FUM and active customers are key metrics to the company’s ability to generate recurring revenue.

Earlier this year, Raiz completed a $10.2 million capital raise. Funds from the placement were used in the $9.5 million acquisition and integration of fund manager Superstate.

Raiz cited that the acquisition of Superstate would allow the fintech’s users access to residential property as an asset class.

Overall, the Raiz share price has performed extraordinarily well in 2021. Including today’s price action, shares in the Aussie fintech have doubled since the start of the year.

At the time of writing, the Raiz share price is trading more than 5% higher for the day. Shares in Raiz stormed more than 8% earlier, after hitting an intraday high of $1.95 earlier.

The post Here’s why the Raiz (ASX:RZI) share price is storming 8% higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Nikhil Gangaram 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 Kalium Lakes Ltd (ASX: KLL) share price can’t decide which way to go in morning trade today. At the time of writing, it’s up and down between its price of 23.5 cents at yesterday’s close and a 2% gain to 24 cents apiece.

Below we take a look at the latest update from the ASX resource share.

What did Kalium report?

The Kalium lakes share price is seeking direction today after the company provided a commissioning update on its Beyondie SOP Project in Western Australia.

According to the release, Kalium has pumped mor than 113,000 tonnes of contained SOP (sulphate of potash) as at end July 2021. It also has 90,000 tonnes of potassium salts stockpiled, which corresponds to some 9,000 tonnes of SOP production.

With harvesting operations running uninterrupted and on track, Kalium expects first production of SOP in late September.

The ASX resource share also reported that costs to complete construction and commissioning activities are within its capital expenditure budget.

Commenting on the progress, Kalium CEO Rudolph van Niekerk said:

Having installed a robust network of brine supply and evaporation ponds, we continue to reap the bounty of large volumes of potassium salts above the plant feed cut-off grade, which are harvested and delivered to the ROM pad. With this ample supply of potassium salts, we have expanded our stockpile area and will soon be ready to move from commissioning to production.

Kalium reported that the potassium salt – including what’s already been harvested and what’s ready for harvest – accounts for around 6 months of SOP production during the ramp-up period.

Niekerk added, “We are entering the final phase of the project and, with several areas of the plant ready for water commissioning, there are only a couple of months to go before commencement of SOP production.”

Kalium Lakes share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, the Kalium Lakes share price has gained 68%, well outpacing the 26% gains posted by the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO).

Year-to-date, Kalium Lakes shares have continued to outperform the benchmark, up 18% in 2021.

The post What’s happening with the Kalium Lakes (ASX:KLL) share price? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here’s why the Creso Pharma (ASX:CPH) share price is up 7%
• Here’s why the Raiz (ASX:RZI) share price is storming 8% higher today
• ASX travel share Serko Ltd (ASX:SKO) higher on COVID business update
• GUD Holdings (ASX:GUD) share price down 2% following FY 2021 results
• Own REA (ASX:REA) shares? What to look out for this reporting season

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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ASX travel share Serko Ltd (ASX: SKO) is edging higher in morning trade, up 1.2% to $6.75 per share.

Serko focuses on the provision of online travel booking and expense management technology.

Below we take a look at the company’s latest business update.

What update did Serko report?

Like most every ASX travel share, Serko’s business model is facing hefty headwinds. This comes as the Delta variant of COVID-19 has sent much of New South Wales into an extended lockdown. And now other states, including Queensland, are impacted as well.

However, Serko’s share price has held up well and is gaining in intraday trade today.

This morning Serko released an update on its current trading conditions and Booking.com for Business platform migration. It noted that trading conditions remain volatile with continued pandemic-related travel restrictions.

The ASX travel share reported that its New Zealand travel bookings are still strong. However, its Australia travel bookings are well down.

June bookings in New Zealand were at 166% of the June 2019 levels (prior to the onset of COVID). While July figures came in at 137% of the July 2019 levels.

Australian numbers went the other way. Domestic booking fell to 56% of 2019 levels in June and 35% of the volumes for July.

Commentary from management

Commenting on the update, Serko CEO Darrin Grafton said:

We planned for further lockdowns to occur in our core markets during the current financial year as vaccination programs progressively roll out. We have factored these disruptions into our capital management plans.

As such, we continue to target an average monthly cash burn of between $2 million and $4 million despite the persistent Australian lockdowns. We remain optimistic that Australasian travel bookings will revert to the levels seen at their peak in April 2021 once the travel restrictions in Australia lift, based on previous recovery trends.

Serko also reported solid progress with the migration of companies to its new Zeno powered Booking.com for Business platform. It said there are now more than 150,000 existing businesses activated on the platform.

The ASX travel share said the migration phase is being extended by two months beyond the original end date of 31 July.

Looking ahead, Grafton commented:

Following completion of the migration we will move into an engagement phase. This will be timed with an expected return to travel by businesses following the European summer break and supported by the widespread global vaccination programs.

In line with expectations, the majority of revenue to be generated in FY22 from the new Zeno powered Booking.com for Business platform will be back-ended to the second half of the financial year.

How has this ASX travel share been performing?

Unlike most ASX travel shares, Serko’s share price is now well above where it was trading before the onset of the pandemic. Shares are up around 46% from 21 February 2020.

Over the past 12 months Serko’s share price has gained 123%, compared to a gain of 26% on the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO).

Year to date the ASX travel share has continued to outperform the benchmark, up 25%.

The post ASX travel share Serko Ltd (ASX:SKO) higher on COVID business update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Serko Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Serko 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 GUD Holdings Limited (ASX: GUD) share price is under pressure on Wednesday following the release of its full year results for FY 2021.

In morning trade, the diversified products company’s shares are down over 2% to $11.84.

GUD share price down despite beating guidance in FY 2021

• Revenue jumped 27.2% to $557 million
• Organic revenue increased 15.2% to $504.4 million
• Underlying earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) up 24.8% to $101.2 million versus $98-$100 million guidance.
• Underlying net profit after tax rose 32.7% to $64 million.
• Earnings per share up 33% to 67 cents.
• Fully franked final dividend of 32 cents, lifting full year dividend by 54.1% to 57 cents.

What happened in FY 2021 for GUD?

The GUD share price is trading lower today despite the company delivering an underlying EBIT result slightly ahead of its guidance of $98 million to $100 million.

This strong result was driven predominantly by its Automotive business, which reported a 34.1% increase in revenue. This was underpinned by an 18.2% increase in organic growth and the benefits of acquisitions.

GUD’s Water business delivered growth despite operating in a very challenging environment. It reported a 5.8% increase in revenue for the 12 months.

What did management say?

GUD’s Managing Director, Graeme Whickman, was pleased with the way the company navigated a number of challenges in FY 2021.

He commented: “The financial year has been very demanding but ultimately pleasing. We navigated well through a broad range of COVID‐19 related challenges. The COVID‐ 19 ‘defence and offence’ strategy has played out as expected and our willingness to run far higher inventory levels has served the Group well.”

“Our COVID‐19 employee support programs contributed to achieving record levels of employee engagement in a year where our people have also risen to the challenge of supporting the strong revenue growth. The commitment and application of the GUD team cannot be under‐estimated, and I wish to acknowledge their contribution,” he added.

What’s next for GUD?

The reason the GUD share price isn’t rising today is likely to be its outlook for FY 2022.

Although management spoke very positively about demand in the automotive aftermarket sector, it warned of some near term challenges.

Mr Whickman said: “Short term challenges remain. Volatile trading conditions returned in July and have continued into August 2021. Looking through the lockdowns, and as we cycle a record sales performance in the prior year, our expectation is that automotive organic growth will moderate and normalise over time.”

“We anticipate that a mix of organic growth, the full year contribution for the acquired business, and focused margin management will be the key profit growth drivers in FY22 although volume growth may continue to be impacted by COVID‐19 lock‐downs and mobility restrictions,” he added.

In light of this uncertainty, GUD advised that it was unable to provide guidance at this stage. Instead, it hopes to be in a position to do so at its annual general meeting in October.

Following today’s decline, the GUD share price is now up just over 1.5% since the start of the year.

The post GUD Holdings (ASX:GUD) share price down 2% following FY 2021 results appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The REA Group Ltd (ASX: REA) share price has held up surprisingly well in light of recent lockdowns across Australia.

The global real estate digital advertising company is expected to deliver its full-year FY21 results on Friday, 6 August.

With a potential catalyst for the REA share price right around the corner this reporting season, here’s what investors might want to keep an eye out for.

A strong fourth quarter finish

In REA’s third-quarter update on 7 May, the company said that the residential property market was gathering momentum with “increased levels of buyer enquiry underpinned by low interest rates, improving consumer confidence and healthy bank liquidity”.

The update highlighted that national residential listings were up 98% year-on-year, driven by a 127% increase in Melbourne and a 116% increase in Sydney.

REA Group Chief Executive Officer Owen Wilson commented on the strong rebound saying, “This momentum, combined with strategic investments made throughout FY21, positions REA for a strong finish to the year.”

While the third-quarter update only witnessed a 0.5% increase for the REA share price on the day of the announcement, the company’s shares would steadily grind higher to a record high of $173.11 by 18 June.

Can REA connect the dots?

With the Australian property market continuing to go from strength to strength, the question is whether or not the REA share price can take full advantage of the housing boom.

In the RBA’s August monetary policy minutes, it highlighted that “housing markets have continued to strengthen, with prices rising in all major markets. Housing credit growth has picked up, with strong demand from owner-occupiers, including first-home buyers. There has also been increased borrowing by investors.”

Looking at REA’s half-year results, the company noted that its realestate.com.au platform was the “clear number one in online real estate”.

In 1H21, the website achieved 12.3 million visitors each month on average, up 39% year-on-year with a record 13 million visits in November 2020.

From a financial perspective, the company’s third-quarter results for the three months ended 31 March 2021 highlighted a 13% increase in revenue and a 10% increase in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) compared to a year ago.

REA share price snapshot

Shares in the online real estate platform edged 4.36% lower in July but still up a relatively healthy 12.19% year-to-date.

At the time of writing, the REA share price is trading 0.43% higher to $166.83 and not far away from its all-time high of $173.11.

The post Own REA (ASX:REA) shares? What to look out for this reporting season 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 recommended REA 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 Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) share price has been caught in turbulence lately.

And it’s no surprise. With shock lockdowns in Brisbane and Southeast Queensland, restrictions coming and going in Victoria and South Australia, and Sydney still battling COVID-19‘s Delta strain, Flight Centre — along with most of the travel sector — is feeling the heat.  

The Flight Centre share price has fallen 5% over the last 30 days. However, its gained 4% since this time last week.

At the time of writing, the travel company’s shares are trading for $15.01 apiece, 0.79% lower than yesterday’s close.

So, let’s take a look at what could be affecting the Flight Centre share price.

Is COVID-19 impacting Flight Centre?

The Flight Centre share price has been on a rollercoaster lately, as have many states battling COVID-19 outbreaks.

The travel agency spent most of last month falling as Sydney, Victoria, and South Australia each locked down at various times. In fact, Flight Centre’s shares fell 7.8% between July 5 and July 27.

Fortunately, Flight Centre spent a few days in the green over the last week amid changes to Australian lockdowns.

Victoria and South Australia successfully contained outbreaks of the virus and regained normalcy on Wednesday last week. However, Southeast Queensland entered a surprise lockdown on Saturday.

The Flight Centre share price has gained 3% since this time last week.

Could this drive Flight Centre forward?

In a much-needed breath of fresh air, the Federal Government released modelling for Australia’s road out of the pandemic and, potentially, into Flight Centre shopfronts, yesterday.

The Government is following Doherty Institute modelling that found the vaccine rollout needs to be shifted to focus on young Australians.

It also found Australia’s on track to have 70% of Australians vaccinated by early November.

When that figure is reached, it expects lockdowns will be less necessary, with Australia able to slow the virus’ spread using restrictions.  

The government had previously outlined a map back to international travel using vaccination rates as the catalyst. However, only a future increase in the number of returning travellers is mentioned within the new modelling.

In less favourable news, Qantas Airways (ASX: QAN) landed a blow on its own share price and, likely, confidence in the travel sector yesterday by standing down 2,500 crew members.

Flight Centre share price snapshot

The Flight Centre share price has been struggling lately, as have many Australian travel bugs.

Right now, Flight Centre shares are swapping hands for 6.5% less than they were at the start of 2021. However, they have gained 49.9% since this time last year.

The company has a market capitalisation of around $3 billion, with approximately 199 million shares outstanding.  

The post The Flight Centre (ASX:FLT) share price has been struggling. Here’s why 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 recommended Flight Centre Travel 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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