The 10 best-paid chief executives in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) have been revealed, as investors wonder whether they deserve their massive salaries.

The latest research from the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (ACSI) did show that the COVID-19 pandemic had an impact on executive pay packets.

Within the S&P/ASX 100 (ASX: XTO), 31% of chiefs received $0 of performance bonuses for the 2020 financial year. Even among those who received something, the relative median amount almost halved.

“The research shows that boards have responded positively to more than a decade of active investor engagement and are now better aligning short and long term pay with investor outcomes,” said ACSI chief Louise Davidson.

“Newly appointed CEOs almost always now start on a salary base significantly lower than their predecessors and bonuses are becoming not just harder to achieve, but more often paid in equity rather than cash.”

How much the ASX 200 top 10 took home, and how their shares fared

But at the top end, chief executives still did pretty well. 

For the first time in 20 years of the ACSI study, a CEO’s take-home pay topped the $40 million mark. CSL Limited (ASX: CSL)’s Paul Perreault took home $43 million, up from $30.5 million the previous year.

CSL’s share price has been flat in the past 12 months. However, it did rise about 38% over the 2020 financial year.

Perhaps reflective of rising commodity prices last year, 5 of the top 10 bosses headed mining or energy companies.

Rank	Chief executive	ASX 200 company	Realised pay	Stock performance past 12 months
1	Paul Perreault	CSL	$43 million	(0.39%)
2	Bill Beament	Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST)	$31.8 million	(30.77%)
3	Greg Goodman	Goodman Group (ASX: GMG)	$26.9 million	40.72%
4	Shemara Wikramanayake	Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG)	$16.4 million	28.64%
5	Jake Klein	Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN)	$15.8 million	(24.14%)
6	Brad Banducci	Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW)	$12.7 million	17.45%
7	JS Jacques	Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO)	$11.9 million	28.86%
8	Michael Clarke	Treasury Wine Estates Ltd (ASX: TWE)	$11.3 million	8.53%
9	Kevin Gallagher	Santos Ltd (ASX: STO)	$11.04 million	35.73%
10	Sandeep Biswas	Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM)	$10.99 million	(21.92%)
Source: ACSI, stock performance and table created by author

In recent years there’s been a trend for ASX companies to reduce the cash proportion of chief executive remuneration in favour of equities.

“ACSI has been engaging with companies on executive remuneration to improve outcomes for its members,” said Davidson.

“Boards have worked to ensure remuneration is aligned to the value delivered to investors over the long-term.”

Davidson urged companies to keep an eye on inflated CEO pay in the post-COVID era.

“As the impact of the pandemic subsides, boards will need to keep assessing whether performance hurdles and the value of shares being awarded are appropriate to ensure any new incentives align with gains made by investors.”

The post Are the 10 highest paid ASX 200 CEOs worth their paypackets? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• ASX 200 rises, API soars, Wesfarmers up
• Why is the Mineral Resources (ASX:MIN) share price up 4% today?

Motley Fool contributor Tony Yoo owns shares of CSL Ltd. and Macquarie Group Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Macquarie Group Limited and Treasury Wine Estates 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 Incitec Pivot Ltd (ASX: IPL) share price is soaring during morning trade following a manufacturing and business update.

At the time of writing, the industrial chemicals company’s shares are up by 8.02% to $2.62.

What did Incitec Pivot announce?

Investors are buying up Incitec Pivot’s shares after the company revealed it is implementing changes to its manufacturing model.

According to its release, Incitec Pivot is switching its manufacturing model from a global to a regional structure. This will allow the company to improve its manufacturing excellence strategy and support operations, while international travel is restricted.

As a result, Incitec Pivot president of global manufacturing and health, safety and environment Tim Wall will be leaving the company.

A global search is underway to find a new manufacturing lead. In the interim, regional manufacturing vice presidents will report to the heads of the Americas and Asia Pacific regions.

Incitec Pivot CEO and managing director Jeanne Johns commented:

I would like to thank Tim for his considerable contributions to IPL. Tim’s tireless efforts are deeply appreciated as well as his support with our transition to a regional manufacturing model.

Incitec Pivot noted additional resources have been allocated to the Americas manufacturing team to assist with the transition to a regional model.

On a different note, the company revealed its Waggaman ammonia plant in Louisiana reached full production last month. Its capacity is 800,000 metric tonnes of ammonia.

Furthermore, its Moranbah ammonium nitrate plant in Queensland is running smoothly, and FY21 planned turnarounds are complete.

Incitec Pivot said it will release a trading update on 29 July 2021.

About the Incitec Pivot share price

In 2021, Incitec Pivot shares have lifted by 14%, and are up by almost 40% over the past 12 months. In addition, the company’s share price has a 52-week range of $1.81 to $2.98.

Incitec Pivot has a market capitalisation of around $4.7 billion, with close to 2 billion shares outstanding.

The post Why the Incitec Pivot (ASX:IPL) share price is racing 8% higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• The Incitec Pivot (ASX:IPL) share price has gained 20% in the last 12 months

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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In late morning trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record another solid gain. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 0.5% to 7,368.5 points.

Four ASX shares that are climbing more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are storming higher:

Nearmap Ltd (ASX: NEA)

The Nearmap share price has jumped 15% to $2.28. Investors have been buying the aerial imagery technology and location data company’s shares after it provided an update on its performance in FY 2021. According to the release, Nearmap expects its annual contract value (ACV) to finish at $133.8 million on a constant currency basis for FY 2021. This will be a 26% year on year increase and ahead of its previously upgraded guidance of $128 million to $132 million. This strong growth was underpinned by a record performance in the United States.

PolyNovo Ltd (ASX: PNV)

The PolyNovo share price is up 3% to $2.45. This follows the release of a sales update this morning which revealed strong growth in the fourth quarter of FY 2021. For the three months ended 30 June, US Biodegradable Temporizing Matrix (BTM) revenue came in at a record of US$4.9 million. This led to PolyNovo’s US BTM revenue increasing 49% in US dollars for FY 2021. Management also spoke very positively about its prospects in FY 2022.

Select Harvests Limited (ASX: SHV)

The Select Harvests share price has stormed 15.5% higher to $7.50. This morning the almond producer revealed that it expects its crop volume for the 2021 harvest to be 28,250 million tonnes. That represents a 22% increase on the 23,250 million tonnes harvested in 2020. The company also revealed that growing almond demand has supported strong prices.

Youfoodz Holdings Ltd (ASX: YFZ)

The Youfoodz share price is rocketing 78% higher to 90.7 cents. Investors have been fighting to buy the ready-made meals company’s shares after it received a takeover approach from meal kit delivery company HelloFresh. HelloFresh has offered 93 cents cash per share, which the board is recommending shareholders accept. While this is an 82% premium to its last close price, it is a 38% discount to Youfoodz’ December IPO listing price of $1.50.

The post Why Nearmap, PolyNovo, Select Harvests, & Youfoodz shares are storming higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why the Select Harvests (ASX:SHV) share price is soaring 15% today
• Why the Nearmap (ASX:NEA) share price has risen 10% this morning
• Youfoodz (ASX:YFZ) share price rockets 80% after HelloFresh takeover offer
• PolyNovo (ASX:PNV) share price jumps 8% on strong update
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: COVID wobbles ASX as shares retreat

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. and POLYNOVO FPO. 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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WAM Leaders Ltd (ASX: WLE) provides investors with exposure to ASX 200 shares, focused on “compelling fundamentals, a robust macroeconomic thematic and a catalyst”.

This morning, WAM Leaders announced its fund delivered a strong outperformance in FY21, translating to an increase in fully franked dividends and record profits.

WAM Leaders delivered a FY21 operating profit before tax of $318.1 million, compared to a $1.2 million loss in FY20. It’s also notched a record operating profit after tax of $228.9 million.

The WAM Leaders board declared a fully franked final dividend of 3.5 cents per share. This brings its full-year dividend to 7.0 cents per share, a yield of about 4.5% at today’s prices.

Let’s take a look at which ASX 200 shares helped WAM Leaders achieve its record result and generous dividends.

Which ASX 200 shares does WAM Leaders hold?

WAM Leaders’ portfolio is concentrated towards the banking and financial sector, accounting for 34.1% of its holdings.

According to the company’s top 25 holdings, it has positions in Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB), Suncorp Group Ltd (ASX: SUN) and Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC).

The financials sector has been a strong performer this year, with the S&P/ASX 200 Financials (INDEXASX: XFJ) rallying 17.77% year-to-date and 33.7% in the last 12-months.

In second place, the company has allocated 18.8% of its funds to ASX 200 shares in the materials sector.

Its top 25 holdings contain household names including BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), Oz Minerals Ltd (ASX: OZL), Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO) and South32 Ltd (ASX: S32).

In the company’s most recent investment update, the fund increased its holding in CSL Ltd (ASX: CSL) and added Computershare Ltd (ASX: CPU) and Challenger Ltd (ASX: CGF) to the portfolio.

The post Which ASX 200 shares helped deliver record profits and a 4.5% dividend? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here’s what has been moving the ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price in 2021
• Why this leading fundie is bullish on the Westpac (ASX:WBC) share price
• 2 excellent ASX 200 dividend shares that could be buys
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
• Why is the Mineral Resources (ASX:MIN) share price up 4% today?

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. owns shares of and has recommended CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Challenger 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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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.

You’ll often hear that a diverse investment portfolio could be the ticket to growing wealth. Plus, the more diverse your portfolio, the better protection you buy yourself in the face of market volatility.

But assembling a diverse portfolio is easier said than done when you don’t know the first thing about picking stocks. The good news, though, is that you don’t need to be an expert to put together the right investment mix. All you really need to do is focus on one specific type of investment.

Get broad market exposure without breaking a sweat

Some people build diverse portfolios by researching companies individually and then buying up several dozen individual stocks across a variety of market segments (for example, some tech stocks, some energy stocks, and some healthcare stocks). That’s a strategy that may seem overwhelming to you if you have no idea what you’re doing.

But fear not, because if you don’t know much about investing, index funds can come to the rescue — specifically, S&P 500 index funds.

Index funds are passively managed funds whose goal is to perform as well as the market indexes they’re associated with. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 is one specific index that’s comprised of the 500 largest publicly traded stocks today.

The benefit of investing in S&P 500 index funds is that you get immediate diversification without having to do a lot of research. Or, to put it another way, if you buy shares of an S&P 500 index fund, you’ll effectively get to own 500 different stocks without actually having to go out and buy every single one.

Of course, this isn’t to say that S&P 500 index funds carry no risk. When the broad market experiences a crash, the value of your portfolio is apt to decline.

But one thing you should know about the S&P 500 is that it has a long history of recovering from downturns and rewarding investors who stick with it for the long haul. As such, if you load up on S&P 500 index funds today and hold them for 20 or 30 years, you might accumulate enough wealth to meet your various financial goals, whether they involve retiring early or buying a second home.

Now you may be wondering if there’s a downside to buying S&P 500 index funds, and, well, there is. In addition to the general risk that comes with owning stocks, one negative you might grapple with is having no say over your investments. If there’s a company that’s part of the S&P 500 that you specifically don’t want to own because it doesn’t align with your values as an investor, well, you unfortunately don’t get that choice.

But if you can get past that, you may find that S&P 500 index funds do a great job of helping you attain a nice level of diversity in your portfolio. And if you’re brand-new to investing or don’t have the time or patience to learn more about how to choose stocks, then they’re definitely an option worth looking into.

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

The post How to build a diverse portfolio with zero investing experience whatsoever appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why the JB Hi-Fi (ASX:JBH) share price is down 7% this month
• Why the Select Harvests (ASX:SHV) share price is soaring 15% today
• Why I’d rather invest in ‘working from home’
• Here’s what has been moving the ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price in 2021
• Why the Plenti (ASX:PLT) share price is rocketing higher today

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.

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

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The JB Hi-Fi Limited (ASX: JBH) share price is having a month to forget. Since 30 June, shares in the electronics and home appliance retailer have fallen 6.84%. The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is up 0.27% over the same period.

While the company hasn’t made any announcements to the share market since May, and no price-sensitive ones since April, there have been a few goings-on that may be factors playing on the JB Hi-Fi share price movement.

Let’s take a closer look.

Why is the JB Hi-Fi share price underperforming?

The company was coming off a relatively high base at the beginning of the month – so any fall would translate into a higher percentage than investors would usually expect to see.

Analyst Credit Suisse slapped a buy rating on JB Hi-Fi in late April, saying it expected the company’s shares to reach as high as $57.39. The market watchers said the company’s strong March quarter and CEO transition were drivers for its upgraded rating.

Broker notes historically have influenced the share price movements of ASX companies.

So why the sudden fall then?

One answer could be the coronavirus spike currently impacting parts of Australia and sending Sydney into extended lockdown.

Retail has suffered in the past when cities have gone into lockdown. According to recent data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 64% of businesses suffered when states have imposed stay-at-home orders to curb the spread of the virus.

As the COVID outbreak in Sydney worsens, we have seen falls not just in the JB Hi-Fi share price, but across the retail sector. Since the end of last month, the Harvey Norman Holdings Limited (ASX: HVN) share price has fallen 3.1%, Premier Investments Limited (ASX: PMV) shares dropped 4.1%, and shares in Super Retail Group Ltd (ASX: SUL) sunk 2.3%.

The post Why the JB Hi-Fi (ASX:JBH) share price is down 7% this month appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 Premier Investments Limited 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 Select Harvests Limited (ASX: SHV) share price is soaring in morning trade, up more than 15%.

Below, we take a look at the ASX agricultural share’s latest crop and market update.

What crop update did the company provide?

Select Harvests’ share price is rocketing higher after the company reported an estimated almond crop volume for the 2021 harvest of 28,250 million tonnes. That’s 22% higher than the 23,250 million tonnes harvested in 2020.

The estimate includes crops from its acquisition of the Piangil almond orchard in Victoria. According to the release, the entire 2021 crop has been delivered to Select Harvest’s processing facility, with more than 60% processed to date.

The company pointed to almonds as an exceptionally strong market, with demand growing across the world, particularly in India, Europe and China, its traditional markets. It said Australian almond exports increased 54% year-on-year, with Europe up 69% and India helping fuel a 200% increase in south-central Asia.

The continuing drought in California indicates almond production from the United States will fall 12.5% from last year’s levels. That’s helped drive almond prices 5-10% higher over the past 6 weeks and is likely helping drive the Select Harvest share price sharply higher today.

Commenting on the crop and market update, Select Harvest’s CEO Paul Thompson said:

Record almond shipments and the worsening Californian drought have led to a recent price appreciation. Demand for almonds, both in their natural form and as a value-added food ingredient, in products such as plant based milks and yoghurts, continues to grow.

Thanks in part to the December 2020 acquisition of Piangil Almond orchard, Select Harvests is set to achieve a record almond crop of 28,250MT in 2021.

Looking to the year ahead, Thompson added, “With good progress being made on the 2022 crop, Select Harvests remains focused on the factors within its control, including almond volume, quality, value adding and operating costs.”

Select Harvests share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Select Harvests’ share price has gained 29%, edging out the 26% gains posted by the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) over that same time.

Year-to-date the Select Harvests share price is up 42%.

The post Why the Select Harvests (ASX:SHV) share price is soaring 15% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Select Harvests (ASX:SHV) share price hits new 52-week high

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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By now, we’re all used to the idea of working from home.

Not that we’re all doing it, of course — even during the worst of the pandemic in 2020 (and in Victoria and Sydney in 2021, unfortunately), plenty of people still ‘went’ to work: our emergency services personnel, medical professionals, construction workers and retail staff among them — but a majority of us have had a taste of working away from the office over the past 18 months.

I’ve had more practice than most — since The Motley Fool opened in 2011, I’ve worked from home. And all of our team, across Australia, have worked from home at least some of the time since then.

As it happens, and maybe not surprisingly, given my experience, I’m a huge fan of workplace flexibility.

I’m much more productive at home than I ever was in an office, not to mention happier, because I get to work flexibly, have no travel time, and feel trusted and respected by my boss.

The alternative? As one mate told me, his boss wanted him and his colleagues in the office so he could keep an eye on them. How’s that for a workplace that builds morale and encourages discretionary effort? I couldn’t think of anything worse.

And, here’s the thing: in a world where the best people can pick and choose where they want to work, and for whom, which option do you reckon they’d take? And if they take the ‘flexible’ option, it stands to reason that the second-tier people will choose — or be stuck with — those ‘command and control’ bosses.

Now, as investors, let’s play it forward.

Do you want to invest in businesses that attract the best people, make them happy and give them room to do their best work? Or the nineteenth-century over-the-shoulder management mobs?

Me? If there was a way to buy the ‘flexible working’ group and short the ‘micromanagers’, I’d make that bet every day of the week and twice on Sundays.

Yes, there will be exceptions in each group. And of course some businesses require physical presence. I’m not talking about those.

But, taken as a group, I’m pretty sure I know who wins, over the long term.

And think about it… If your business model, hiring practices, culture or people require you to keep tabs on their every movement, that’s a pretty flimsy business.

In fact, I’d reckon you’re in the firing line — and maybe at the front of that line — for disruption.

In the old days, value was created one physical widget at a time: production lines, typing pools, bricks laid. Some of that still exists, in one form or another, of course.

But these days?

Value is created not by how much ‘stuff’ you do, but by how much benefit you create for someone else.

Think software. Branding. Marketing. Innovation.

The key difference: scalability of the best solution.

Zoom. Atlassian. Funds management. Yes, even YouTube and Instagram “influencers”.

You don’t have to like it, but, as an investor, you owe it to yourself to understand it.

And here’s a mental model to do it.

Remember, when we pick stocks, not every one will work out.

Our job — mine as well as yours — is to be right as often as we can. But — far more importantly — to make sure that the winners make more than the losers cost us.

And those are two different things.

See, some venture capital firms are right one or two times out of 20.

5% – 10% doesn’t sound like a great strike rate, but if you’re in the business of finding the next Facebook, Tesla or Google, it’s more than enough.

Now, I’m not saying you should only try to be right 5% of the time. My point is that, when you know the game you’re playing, you can set your strategy accordingly.

So, if you’re thinking ‘well, work-from-home might not work in Scenario A, B or C’, that’s fine. But don’t let the presence of a few counterexamples blind you to the bigger picture.

If you’re right on all three, but those are 5%, 10% or even 25% of workplaces, there’s somewhere between 75% and 95% of cases in which it does work.

Which is how we invest.

When we identify risks in an investment thesis, we ask ourselves ‘what can go wrong, and how likely is it?’

The honest answer is that there are possible circumstances that could destroy almost every company on the ASX. If we looked only for risk-free investments, we’d never invest a dollar.

And when some of those risks do come to pass, we might curse under our breaths, but that doesn’t necessarily make our approach wrong — because in more cases, those risks may not come to pass, and we might make a small fortune.

Here’s the simplest example: let’s say you have rigged a $1 coin so that it lands on heads 60% of the time.

If you’re given a 2-to-1 payout on heads, you should play that game all day long… and longer.

But remember, sometimes it’ll land on tails.

Does that mean the game isn’t worth playing?

Not a chance.

See what I’m saying?

Your job — our job — is to read the situation, ascertain the odds, and place our bets.

When the odds are good and/or the payoff is sufficiently attractive, we should make the bet.

Not because it’s guaranteed, but because, if we’re right, we’ll win more often than not, and the average win should be larger than the average loss.

Which takes me back to working from home.

Yes, some workers will slack off. Some bosses will suck at managing a team remotely. Some companies just won’t be cut out for it.

But, if you’re a manager, know that many in your team will happily change companies to one that offers more flexibility.

And, as an investor, it’s a reminder that the combination of culture and business model might just be one of the great differentiators in the twenty-first century.

Invest accordingly.

Fool on!

The post Why I’d rather invest in ‘working from home’ appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here’s what has been moving the ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price in 2021
• Why the Plenti (ASX:PLT) share price is rocketing higher today
• Why the Platinum (ASX:PTM) share price is sinking 7.5% on Tuesday
• Why the Nearmap (ASX:NEA) share price has risen 10% this morning
• 3 great reasons to buy Netflix

Motley Fool contributor Scott Phillips 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 big four banks have been standout performers this year, and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ASX: ANZ) shares are no exception. The ANZ share price has rallied by around 24% year to date, running well ahead of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which is up almost 12% this year.

Let’s take a look at what factors might be driving the bullish performance of the ANZ share price this year.

What’s been driving the ANZ share price?

Earnings rebound

ANZ’s March half-year results released on 5 May reported a statutory profit after tax of $2,943 million and cash earnings from continuing operations of $2,990 million. Compared to the second half of FY20, these figures represented increases of 45% and 28%, respectively.

The initial COVID-19 outbreak last year witnessed ANZ earnings plummet, with a 1H20 statutory profit after tax of $1,545 million and cash profit of $1,413 million.

Commenting on the company’s strong half-year results, ANZ CEO Shayne Elliott said:

Following the trends of the first quarter, all parts of our business performed well. Costs were down 2% and we also increased investment in new digital capability that will provide ongoing productivity improvements and better customer outcomes.

Australia Retail & Commercial had another good half, becoming the third largest home lender in the market. Deposits performed well, with retail and small business customers behaving prudently by building solid savings and offset balances through the half.

Despite the company’s upbeat sentiment, the ANZ share price slumped by more than 3% on the days the results were released.

Economic rebound

Another factor that may have been propping up the ANZ share price is the Australian economy’s rapid rebound out of the COVID-19 induced recession.

In the release of RBA’s June monetary policy decision, it said that “the economic recovery in Australia is stronger than earlier expected and is forecast to continue.”

The central bank went on to say, “The labour market has continued to recover faster than expected. The unemployment rate declined further to 5.1 per cent in May and more Australians have jobs than before the pandemic.”

In addition, “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.”

Jump in lending indicators

Earlier this month, the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed a surge in new borrower-accepted finance commitments for housing, personal and business loans.

The value of new loan commitments for housing came in at $32.56 billion in May, a month-on-month increase of 4.9% and a 95.4% increase compared to a year ago.

ANZ also cited “significant demand from customers” in its March half-year results, delivering ~92,000 new home loan accounts and lifting its position to the third-largest home lender in the market.

ANZ share price snapshot

In addition to its solid year-to-date gains, the ANZ share price is also up more than 50% over the past 12 months. Based on the current share price, the big four bank has a market capitalisation of around $80 billion with a dividend yield of approximately 4.6%

The post Here’s what has been moving the ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price in 2021 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Why the Commonwealth Bank (ASX:CBA) share price is beating the ASX 200
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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 Plenti Group Ltd (ASX: PLT) share price is soaring in morning trade, up more than 6%.

Below we take a look at the ASX fintech lender’s trading update for the quarter ending 30 June.

What quarterly update did Plenti report?

Plenti’s share price is gaining after the company reported that loan originations for the past quarter increased 260% year-on-year. The record quarterly loan originations of $216.4 million were up 26% from the previous quarter. The company noted that the big year-on-year leap was in part due to COVID-19 related issues negatively impacting loan originations at that time.

June was also a record month for the fintech lender. June’s $83.4 million of loan originations work out to a “$1 billion annual run-rate”.

Plenti’s loan portfolio grew 96% year-on-year and 23% from the previous quarter to reach $757 million.

Commenting on the record quarter, Daniel Foggo, Plenti’s CEO said:

Reaching a one-billion-dollar loan origination run-rate in June shows we are successfully taking market share and accelerating towards our ambition of achieving a one-billion-dollar loan book during this financial year.

Pointing to the achievement that Plenti had doubled its renewable energy and personal loan warehouse facility in May (from $100 million to $200 million), Foggo also today announced a $100 million increase in Plenti’s automotive warehouse facility.

“This additional $200 million in funding capacity across our three verticals is another important step towards executing on our growth priorities,” Foggo said.

The company also reported that it is progressing towards its “first capital markets asset-backed securitisation of loans from its automotive loan warehouse facility” in the second quarter of the 2022 financial year. Plenti forecast that this will be around a $300 million transaction.

Plenti share price snapshot

The Plenti share price has seen plenty (sorry, couldn’t resist) of ups and downs over the past full year, with shares currently up 9%. By comparison the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) has gained 26% over the last 12 months.

The Plenti share price has picked up some momentum in 2021, up 18% year-to-date.

The post Why the Plenti (ASX:PLT) share price is rocketing higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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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