Last week, we covered how the ASX energy sector has had a year to forget. Massive and rapid changes to how we all move around in 2020 resulted in oil prices falling below zero for the first time ever in May. That meant ASX energy shares did not have the best year.

But the same cannot be said for those companies that dwell in the renewable energy space. Renewables have, in contrast to fossil fuels, had a great year by all accounts. Here’s a summary of how some of the most popular ASX renewable energy shares have performed in 2020:

ASX renewables have a great year

So why have (most) renewables shares been doing so well in 2020? Well, the answer to that question might lie in their very nature. Renewable energy companies have two very desirable characteristics that investors may have found particularly appealing this year: defensiveness and a future-proof nature.

We all need electricity, every day and every night. Demand for energy may fluctuate, but it never goes away. This makes the companies that produce it defensive, and thus, lends them an aura of ‘safety’. And ‘safety’ was a precious commodity in 2020 for obvious reasons.

Secondly, everyone knows renewable energy is the future. Companies that build solar farms, wind turbines and hydroelectric power can enjoy the fact they will not be legislated out of existence in a decade’s time, or else boycotted by investors, banks or super funds because they pollute the environment. The same can’t be said for coal or oil.

So in terms of our list, first up it’s worth noting that the larger ASX renewable energy shares in Tilt, Mercury NZ and Infratil are heavily interrelated. In fact, Infratil is the majority owner of Tilt Renewables, owing an approximate 65.6% stake in the business. Mercury NZ owns another ~20% share. However, Infratil has recently been making some noise indicating it might be looking to offload its Tilt position. That is probably one of the reasons Tilt tops the above table in terms of returns.

A super takeover?

Infratil was the subject of a blockbuster takeover earlier this month. As we reported at the time, superannuation fund AustralianSuper submitted a proposal to acquire all shares of Infratil on 8 December for a price of NZ$7.43 per share. Infratil didn’t take long to reject this offer though, and AustralianSuper was sent running to the hills. It is interesting to note the interest from large superannuation funds like AustralianSuper in renewables companies like Infratil though.

The ‘silver medalist’ of this table, Meridian, also has a rather fascinating ownership structure as 51% of its shares are reportedly owned and controlled by the New Zealand Government. No doubt the New Zealand Treasurer would  have been pleased with the 52.5% appreciation in the Meridian share price so far this year.

On that note, investors clearly appreciated that the volume of electricity sold to Meridian customers increased by 18% in New Zealand and 24% and Australia for FY2020. This helped Meridian to increase its FY2020 dividends by 3%. That is the sort of thing a company got noticed for in 2020.

But perhaps you don’t even need a set of stellar numbers at all for investors to take notice of you in the renewables space. Back in August, Mercury NZ reported electricity generation was down 11%, and revenues by 6% in FY2020. That didn’t stop the shares rising by almost 35% year to date. We saw a similar pattern with Genesis Energy. Its shares are up more than 12% year to date, despite the company reporting a profits drop of 225% for FY2020 compared with the prior year.

Finally, Spark Infrastructure is a company that illustrates the income potential for ASX investors in the renewables space. Despite the Spark share price climbing close to 5% in 2020, the shares still offer a trailing dividend yield of 5.25% on current pricing. That’s a standout figure on the ASX boards these days!

More reading

• ASX 200 up again on Wednesday
• Infratil (ASX:IFT) share price on watch after rejecting AustralianSuper takeover approach
• Why the Infratil (ASX:IFT) share price rocketed 21% higher today
• ASX stock of the day: Tilt (ASX:TLT) share price rockets 17% to new all-time high
• 3 small cap ASX renewable energy shares

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen 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 A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M) share price has slumped to a two-year low of $11.59 (as of Tuesday’s close). Its shares have shed more than 40% in value since its August record all-time high of $20.00. With the market darling falling heavily in recent months, could a2 Milk finally be called a cheap growth stock? 

The a2 growth story so far 

A2’s market leading returns, for the most part, are attributed to its phenomenal growth in earnings. 

Table: author’s own, Data source: a2 Milk full year results 

The company’s most recent earnings update, however, points to its first ever negative year-on-year growth in earnings. It forecasts group revenue for FY21 to be in the range of $1.40 billion to $1.55 billion, which represents a decline of 10.5% to 19%. 

Slump in infant nutrition sales 

Infant nutrition sales, particularly through its daigou and cross border ecommerce (CBEC) channels, has been the centrepiece for the a2 growth story so far. In FY20, infant nutrition sales accounted for 61.5% of the group’s revenue. 

In its first half FY21 and FY21 guidance update, the company flagged that the recent sales performance in the daigou channel has not been as strong as previously expected, and a2 Milk now considers the recovery throughout the remainder of the fiscal year to be slower.

It expects that reduced travel between Australia and China through the remainder of FY21 will continue to negatively impact the seller channel, with grim prospects of a return of a significant number of international students and tourists to Australia during the period. 

As a result, the company forecasts both the daigou and CBEC channels for the remainder of FY21 to be materially lower. 

Smaller revenue segments performing well 

Notwithstanding the significant disruption to its channels noted above, the company advised its recent research again highlighted positive trends in China in lead indicators such as brand awareness and intention to purchase. 

Its China label Mother & Baby Stores (MBS) has remained very strong with an anticipated revenue growth in the first half of above 40% on the prior corresponding period. To add some perspective, its China label achieved $337.2 million of the group’s $1.73 billion revenue in FY20. 

Furthermore, it also noted that its liquid milk businesses in Australia and the US have performed well through the first half, with both businesses posting strong first half FY21 growth as compared to the first half of FY20. 

Broker responses mixed 

Big brokers were surprised with the magnitude of a2’s earnings downgrade and were reserved with their new price targets. On 21 December, Citi retained its sell rating with a price target of $9.50, while Morgan Stanley lowered its price target from $12.40 to $11.00.

More reading

• 2 of the best ASX 50 shares to buy today
• Why a2 Milk, Adacel, Dusk, & Nuheara shares are charging higher
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy next week
• These were the best performers on the ASX 200 last week
• 2 ASX growth shares to buy when the market reopens

Motley Fool contributor Lina Lim has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended A2 Milk. 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 Limited (ASX: REA) share price has been a very strong performer in 2020. 

Since the start of the year, the property listings company’s shares have stormed a sizeable 43% higher.

Why is the REA Group share price storming higher in 2020?

Investors have been fighting to get hold of REA Group’s shares in 2020 due to its resilient performance in FY 2020, its solid start to the new financial year, and its positive long term outlook.

In respect to FY 2020, REA Group was faced with a 12% reduction in national listings because of the pandemic. However, thanks to the resilience of its business, the company only reported a 6% decline in revenue to $820.3 million and a 5% decline in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to $492.1 million.

Positively, listing volumes have been improving and were down only 2% just the first quarter of FY 2021 compared to the prior corresponding period.

Combined with a sizeable reduction in its operating expenses, this led to REA Group’s EBITDA returning to growth during the quarter. The company delivered an 8% increase in EBITDA over the prior corresponding period to $123.8 million.

And with listings volumes continuing to recover early in the second quarter, REA Group appears well-placed to deliver a solid half year result next year.

What else gave REA Group’s shares a boost?

In addition to its strong operating performance, investors responded positively to a broker note out of Morgan Stanley.

Its analysts are particularly positive on the company’s prospects due to their belief that its earnings growth will be strong in the coming years due to improving property listing volumes, larger than normal price increases next year, and relatively flat costs.

The led to Morgan Stanley putting an overweight rating and $150.00 price target on its shares. Though, it is worth noting that its shares have now surpassed this and closed at $150.23 on Tuesday.

More reading

• 3 of the best ASX shares to buy in January
• The most crazy ASX chart of 2020
• REA Group (ASX:REA) share price on watch after acquisition update
• Why the REA Group (ASX:REA) share price just hit a new record high
• 3 ASX growth shares to add to your portfolio in 2021

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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 Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) share price has been the gift that keeps on giving in a year when most buy, now pay later (BNPL) shares ran out of steam in the second half of 2020. As the Afterpay share price surged more than 275% this year, here’s a little of what investors can look forward to in 2021. 

Continued global expansion 

Afterpay launched in Canada in August 2020 with a number of large merchants now live, integrating or signed. Canada represents a significant opportunity with the country’s retail sales totalling approximately CAD$615 billion in 2019. To add some perspective, in 2019 Australia’s retail turnover was A$329.6 billion while UK retail sales totalled 394 billion pounds sterling.

Afterpay’s acquisition of Pagantis in Europe is pending approval from the Bank of Spain, but represents a key step in the company’s efforts to become a truly global business. Pagantis will provide Afterpay the opportunity to launch into Spain, France and Italy immediately, and creates a glidepath to other countries in the European Union. Its teams are busy developing integration plans to ensure that Afterpay is ready to launch as soon as the acquisition and approvals are completed. 

Afterpay’s plans in Asia are in their early days with a base now established in Singapore. This will drive the development of a strategy for the South Asia market. 

Cross border trade further enables and builds Afterpay’s global expansions by enabling its merchants to offer their products to customers across the world. Specifically, all Afterpay merchants can now open their e-commerce sites to Australian, British, Canadian and New Zealand shoppers. Next year, global merchants will also be able to sell to consumers in the United States.

Broader tailwinds for BNPL 

At Afterpay’s 2020 annual general meeting, the company brought to our attention the dramatic shift to online and shift away from traditional financial products like credit cards. This has been, in large part, driven by Afterpay’s core customer base, and retail’s next generation of consumers – Millennials and Gen Z. 

Afterpay revealed that Gen Z and Millennials represent 36% of the total retail spend in Australia. By 2030, that is expected to grow to 48% as more of Gen Z enter the workforce. In the US, that share of retail spend will increase from 32% to 48%, and in the UK it will grow from 25% to 39%. The spending by younger generations has also recovered faster than older generations since the start of COVID-19.

BNPL is trending up across all generations in Australia, rising by 60% for the year while credit spend has decreased by 10%. But it is the younger generations leading the charge for growth in BNPL with Gen X spend up 47% since January, Millennial spend up 48% from a much higher base and Gen Z up 80% in Australia.

A similar narrative is taking place elsewhere in the US and in the UK. From a population perspective, Millennials and younger generations will soon outnumber older generations across Afterpay’s markets. In Australia, by FY24. In the UK, by next year. And in the US, they already do. 

More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• ASX 200 rises 0.5%
• ASX 200 up 0.65%: Big four banks rise, tech shares charge higher, Flight Centre jumps
• Why these ASX shares have smashed the market in 2020
• 10 incredible quotes that sum up investing in 2020

Motley Fool contributor Lina Lim has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of 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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It’s been a pretty ordinary 2020. But Australian investors have every reason to be optimistic, according to multiple experts.

Notwithstanding the current COVID-19 resurgence in NSW, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) chief economist Stephen Halmarick said the country had dealt with it well.

“Australia has done a better job than just about any other nation in controlling the spread of the virus,” he said.

“The human toll of the sharp rise in the unemployment rate has been very real. But the outlook for Australia is improving.”

The coronavirus undoubtedly impacted financial markets and consumer confidence — but the effect ended up being less than originally feared.

2020 will still end up being the weakest year for the global economy since World War II. But according to Halmarick, good times will arrive next year.

“We do expect a solid recovery in 2021, with global growth forecasts at 5.2 per cent – led by the US and China.”

BetaShares chief economist David Bassanese is also bullish for the coming year.

“We saw a collapse in earnings expectations earlier this year as the pandemic hit. However, earnings expectations have since held up remarkably well in recent months,” he said.

“We are looking at 15 per cent growth in forward earnings by end [of] 2021 if current expectations hold up.”

Australia has managed to avoid some potentially horrific outcomes triggered by the pandemic, reckons Bassanese.

“In terms of all the various scenarios we had prepared for, it’s turning out that we have close to a best case scenario with a lot of positives to consider,” he said.

“It’s an encouraging backdrop as we head into 2021.”

Reserve Bank can’t easily back out now

The pandemic forced the federal and state governments to spend up big to avoid a potential economic calamity. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) then chipped in with a near-zero cash rate and quantitative easing to cheaply finance all this spending.

This all adds up to a bizarre situation that Australia has never experienced before. But the RBA can’t just back out now.

“It is going to be a long time before the RBA can retreat from providing significant support to the economy,” said Halmarick.

“The recession, the rise in the unemployment rate, the global economic environment, and the expectation that inflation will remain below the 2 to 3 per cent target range for years, has seen monetary policy in Australia enter unconventional space for the very first time.”

And this is all excellent news for share markets, said Bassanese.

“Central banks are promising to keep rates low for 1 to 2 years, which is supporting the economy and financial markets and also provides a ramp for equity prices.”

The big risks in 2021

Both Bassanese and Halmarick pointed out the fortunes of and between the world’s biggest economies, US and China, would be critical for 2021.

“In the US, there remains a number of political risks ahead,” said Halmarick.

“But, assuming Joe Biden is sworn in as the 46th President of the United States on 20 January 2021, we expect him to focus on a few key policy priorities that should support the US economy throughout 2021 and beyond.”

Thankfully, the trade embargoes China has placed on Australia so far have had minimal impact to the Australian economy, according to Bassanese.

He said the products most affected — beer, wine, barley and coal — only consist of 12% of exports to China and about 1% of the Australian gross domestic product.

“That said, an escalation of trade tensions is clearly one of the big risks for our economy heading into the new year.”

Which shares will do best in 2021?

Bassanese predicted the recent resurgence of value shares would be short-lived.

“I see this as largely a temporary unwind of extra underperformance of value – and outperformance by technology – caused by the COVID shutdowns,” he said.

“Once the dust settles next year, I suspect growth areas like technology will again reassert themselves.”

On the ASX, Bassanese forecast that the finance sector was due for a comeback.

“We expect that resources and financials will do reasonably well over the coming months,” he said.

“Although in terms of thematics, what we believe will outperform will be infrastructure as we get through the COVID-19 pandemic.”

More reading

• ASX 200 up 0.65%: Big four banks rise, tech shares charge higher, Flight Centre jumps
• 2 star stocks for your ASX retirement portfolio
• 8 issues that will impact investors in 2021: experts
• Forget savings accounts and look at these quality ASX dividend shares
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX hits new post-March high

Motley Fool contributor Tony Yoo 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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If you’re a growth investor, then you’re in luck. This is because there are a number of companies on the Australian share market that have been growing at a rapid rate in recent years.

Two that have been tipped to continue this positive form over the long term are listed below. Here’s what you need to know about them:

Appen Ltd (ASX: APX)

This machine learning and artificial intelligence data services company has been a strong performer in 2020. During the first half of FY 2020, the company reported a 25% increase in revenue to $306.2 million. This was driven by its key Relevance segment, which provides annotated data to be used in search technology for improving the relevance and accuracy of search engines, social media applications, and e-commerce websites. The Relevance segment delivered a 34% increase in revenue to $273.9 million, which offset weakness in its Speech & Image segment. The latter reported a 20% decline in revenue to $31.9 million.

While the pandemic has impacted demand for its services this year, management remains confident that new projects will commence once the crisis passes.

Macquarie appears to agree and remains positive on the company’s prospects. It has an outperform rating and $43.00 price target on its shares.

Kogan.com Ltd (ASX: KGN)

This ecommerce company has been a very strong performer in 2020 thanks to the accelerating shift to online shopping.  The COVID-19 pandemic has sent millions of consumers online for their shopping, many for the first time, much to the delight of online retailers like Kogan.

While FY 2020 was strong, Kogan’s growth has gone up a level early in FY 2021. For example, during the month of August, the company reported gross sales growth of more than 117% and adjusted EBITDA growth of more than 466%. This was driven by the addition of 152,000 new customers to its platform during the month, bringing its total to 2,461,000.

No further updates have been provided since then, but based on many of its online peers, the market appears confident this exceptional form has continued through to today. In addition to this, the company has acquired online retailer Mighty Ape for NZ$120 million and furniture retailer Matt Blatt for $4.4 million. These additions should give its second half performance a boost.

Credit Suisse is positive on Kogan. It recently put an outperform rating and $20.60 price target on its shares.

More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• ASX 200 up 0.65%: Big four banks rise, tech shares charge higher, Flight Centre jumps
• Why these ASX shares have smashed the market in 2020
• 3 ASX growth shares to buy this week
• 3 ASX shares to buy for 2021 and beyond

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 Appen Ltd and Kogan.com ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Kogan.com 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 old way of buying software has changed forever. If you wanted to purchase a piece of software 10 years ago, you had to spend hundreds of dollars in one go for something that could be out of date in just a few years.

Today, software companies have, by and large, shifted to a software-as-a-service (SaaS) business model. Instead of a one-and-done transaction, customers now subscribe to a software product that’s continually updated. This also serves to provide the software company with a reliable stream of recurring revenues.

The coronavirus pandemic has made SaaS shares popular among investors, as many businesses move their operations online – perhaps permanently for some.

On that note, let’s take a look at the five best performing ASX SaaS shares in 2020, and what their prospects might be in 2021.

More reading

• The Xero (ASX:XRO) share price is up 82% in 2020
• 2 ASX tech shares to buy and hold until 2030
• 3 unstoppable ASX shares to buy
• 2 rapidly growing ASX tech shares to buy
• 3 reliable ASX 200 shares that keep growing

Teresa Kersten, an employee of LinkedIn, a Microsoft subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Eddy Sunarto has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and recommends Microsoft. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Objective Limited and Xero. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends FINEOS Holdings plc. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended FINEOS Holdings plc. 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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Are you fed up with the low interest rates on savings accounts? You’re not alone, if you are.

The good news is that the ASX is home to a large number of shares with generous dividend yields.

For example, two dividend shares that currently provide investors with yields that are vastly superior to savings accounts are listed below:

National Storage REIT (ASX: NSR)

National Storage is one of the region’s largest self-storage operators. From over 190 locations across Australia and New Zealand, the company tailors self-storage solutions to residential and commercial customers.

Pleasingly, as large as it network might appear, management isn’t finished with its growth through acquisition strategy. In fact, since the end of FY 2020, the company has completed eight acquisitions totalling $139 million. In addition to this, management advised that its acquisition pipeline is strong and it is working to complete a number of development projects.

Management recently reiterated that it expects to report underlying earnings per share of 7.7 cents to 8.3 cents in FY 2021. It also plans to pay 90% to 100% of its earnings out to shareholders as distributions. Based on the middle of both guidance ranges (8 cents and a 95% payout ratio), this equates to a 7.6 cents per share distribution. With the National Storage share price currently trading at $1.96, this represents a 3.9% yield.

Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF)

Another dividend share to look at is Rural Funds. This real estate investment trust (REIT) owns a diversified portfolio of high quality Australian agricultural assets.

The majority of these assets are leased to experienced agricultural operators. This includes almond producer Select Harvests Limited (ASX: SHV) and wine giant Treasury Wine Estates Ltd (ASX: TWE). The company also enjoys a lengthy weighted average lease expiry of 10.9 years.

In FY 2021 management intends to grow its distribution by its 4% per annum target growth rate. This will mean a distribution of 11.28 cents per share. Which, based on the current Rural Funds share price, works out to be a 4.15% yield.

More reading

• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell next week
• 2 ASX dividend shares to solve your income needs
• 2 ASX dividend shares with big yields
• These 4 ASX REITS are about to go ex-dividend
• Why a2 Milk and these ASX shares have been smashed in 2020

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended RURALFUNDS STAPLED 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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On Tuesday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) followed the lead of global markets and stormed higher. The benchmark index rose 0.5% to 6,700.3 points.

Will the market be able to build on this on Wednesday? Here are five things to watch:

ASX 200 to drop lower.

It looks set to be a much tougher day for the Australian share market on Wednesday. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 30 points or 0.45% lower this morning. This follows a subdued night of trade on Wall Street which late on sees the Dow Jones down 0.35%, the S&P 500 down 0.2%, and the Nasdaq 0.4% lower.

Oil prices recover.

Energy producers including Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) could have a better day after oil prices recovered overnight. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 0.45% to US$47.83 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price has risen 0.3% to US$51.00 a barrel. Oil prices rose on hopes that US COVID stimulus will fuel increased demand.

Tech shares on watch.

Australian tech shares including Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) and Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) were on form on Tuesday and charged higher. This helped drive the S&P ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) a sizeable 1.9% higher yesterday. However, a weak night of trade on the technology-focused Nasdaq index could see these shares reverse some of their gains on Wednesday.

Gold price edges higher.

Gold miners such as Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM) and St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) will be on watch after the gold price edged higher. According to CNBC, the spot gold price has risen 0.1% to US$1,881.70 an ounce. A softer US dollar boosted the price of the precious metal.

Iron ore price softens.

BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) shares could come under a spot of pressure today after the iron ore price softened. According to Metal Bulletin, the spot iron ore price has fallen 0.5% to US$163.02 a tonne overnight.

More reading

• ASX 200 rises 0.5%
• Key risks and rewards for ASX share investors heading into 2021
• 2020 was good for investors, will 2021 be even better?
• Why Beach (ASX:BPT) and Cue Energy (ASX:CUE) shares are sinking lower
• ASX 200 up 0.65%: Big four banks rise, tech shares charge higher, Flight Centre jumps

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 Appen Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of 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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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) went up 0.5% today in a pretty quiet day for the ASX.

Here are some of the highlights from the ASX:

Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT)

Afterpay, one of the leading buy now, pay later businesses in the world, has seen its share price reach a new high today.

The Afterpay share price rose another 5.3% today to finish to just over $122. It was among the best performers in the ASX 200. It has risen a long way from the $8.90 on 23 March 2020.

Dusk Group Ltd (ASX: DSK)

The fragrance business gave an update today. The Dusk share price went up 12.8% in reaction to this update.

Management said that strong sales and earnings growth has continued across the months of November and December. Dusk said it also finished the half with a well-balanced inventory position, no drawn bank debt and significant surplus cash. It had $33.5 million of net cash at the end of the first half of FY21.

Dusk said its FY21 half-year guidance for sales is a range of $90 million to $90.5 million, up from $58.7 million in the FY20 first half.

Its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) guidance for the FY21 first half is between $26 million to $27 million, up from $9.7 million in the prior corresponding period.

Peter King, the CEO of Dusk, said: “The results delivered across the first half of FY21 are well ahead of the results delivered in the prior corresponding period despite a significant period of disrupted trade in Melbourne. They build on the strong results delivered across the past three years and further demonstrate the success of our focused strategy and the ability of our team to execute, including in a volatile environment where agility has been key.”

Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT)

The Beach Energy share price was the worst performer in the ASX 200 today after providing an update.

The oil business gave an update about its Ironbark 1 exploration well in offshore Western Australia.

The well was drilled to a total depth of 5,618 metres measured depth, intersecting the primary target of the Mungaroo Formation at 5,275 metres. No significant hydrocarbon shows were encountered in the target sandstone.

The exploration well will be plugged and abandoned, in-line with the pre-drill planning.

Pacific Current Group Ltd (ASX: PAC)

Asset management outfit Pacific, which invests in asset managers, announced it has entered into an agreement to buy a minority stake in Astarte Capital Partners.

Astarte was founded in 2015, it’s a London-based investment manager focused on private market real asset strategies.

Pacific said that Astarte’s model is distinctive in that it provides anchor or seed capital, working capital and fundraising support to operating experts and emerging investment managers to support their growth.

Pacific is going to invest £4.4 million to provide both operating capital and buy out passive shareholders. Approximately 35% of the consideration may be deferred until July 2021. Astarte’s management ownership will increase significantly as a result of this transaction.

In exchange for the investment, Pacific will receive approximately 40% of Astarte’s net income.

Pacific CEO and chief investment officer said: “PAC is pleased to partner with Astarte given its exceptional team and differentiated investment strategy. Stavros and Teresa are true innovators in the private markets space, and we are excited to help them build on what they have already created. We believe Astarte’s business is at an inflection point and we expect 2021 to be a breakout year for the firm.”

The Pacific share price was flat today.

More reading

• Key risks and rewards for ASX share investors heading into 2021
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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of 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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