The Superloop Ltd (ASX: SLC) share price is rocketing higher today, up as much as 22.56% to an intra-day high of $1.195 per share. This surge is on the back of a trading update released to the market this morning, in which Superloop detailed strong sales momentum and affirmed FY20 guidance.

About Superloop

Superloop operates in the telecommunications space, providing independent connectivity services designing, constructing and operating networks in the Asia Pacific region.

The company owns and operates around 900 kilometres of carrier-grade metropolitan fibre networks in Australia, Singapore, and Hong Kong, connecting key data centres and commercial buildings.

Superloop’s customer base includes leading multinational companies like Morgan Stanley, Citibank, eBay and Cisco.

Q3 trading update

Superloop announced strong third-quarter core fibre connectivity sales, which included multiple high-capacity services contracted on its Indigo cable system. The company also highlighted an uptick in demand for its cybersecurity services as education providers turn to remote learning solutions amid COVID-19.

Third-quarter connectivity sales totalled $5.6 million on an annualised basis, a strong result compared to the $7.8 million recorded in the first half of FY20. The company also continues to see improvements in its book-to-bill cycle due to greater focus on “on-net” services, which allow Superloop to deliver and invoice services quicker.

In addition, Superloop has been experiencing a significant rise in demand for its Internet/IP network over the last few months. This has been driven by the changing traffic profile and volume in response to the shift towards work from home arrangements, video conferencing, and streaming services. As a result, Superloop experienced more than 30% growth in traffic across its global network within a matter of weeks.

The company noted there is still significant spare capacity on most of its international routes, providing further room for it to grow this business segment without a meaningful increase to costs.

FY20 guidance

Due to its strong third-quarter result and the initiatives undertaken by its cost-saving program ‘Project Vulcan’, Superloop is in an operating cash flow positive position and continues to operate comfortably within its debt facility headroom.

The company previously downgraded its earnings guidance upon announcing its first-half FY20 results back in February. Due to the downside risk of COVID-19, Superloop revised its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation guidance to $12 million to $15 million for the full year. This morning, Superloop confirmed it is tracking towards the midpoint of this guidance.

Today’s update was certainly well received by the market, causing Superloop shares to open 12.82% higher. At the time of writing, the Superloop share price is sitting 17.95% higher for the day at $1.15.

More reading

• ASX small-cap sector rallies strongly during April

Cathryn Goh has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of SUPERLOOP FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The post Small-cap ASX telco rockets 23% higher on strong sales momentum appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

from Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3bHhDgI

With so many shares to choose from on the Australian share market, it can be hard to decide which ones to buy.

The good news is that brokers across the country are doing a lot of the hard work for you.

Three top shares that leading brokers have named as buys this week are listed below. Here’s why they are bullish on them:

Aristocrat Leisure Limited (ASX: ALL)

According to a note out of Goldman Sachs, its analysts have reaffirmed their buy rating and lifted their price target on this gaming technology company’s shares to $30.00 ahead of its half year update. The broker appears confident that its Digital business will have performed very strongly in the first half and offset weakness in the poker machines business. It expects Digital revenues to increase 30% to $1,067 million, whereas Land-based revenues are forecast to fall 10% to $1,116 million. I agree with Goldman Sachs and believe Aristocrat Leisure would be a great long term option.

Breville Group Ltd (ASX: BRG)

Analysts at UBS have retained their buy rating and lifted the price target on this appliance maker’s shares to $22.50. According to the note, the broker was pleased to see Breville deliver strong sales growth between January and April. And while it suspects that some sales could have been brought forward by the work from home initiative, it remains positive on its future growth. Especially given the company’s plan to expand into new markets. I think UBS is spot on and this quiet achiever could be a decent option for investors.

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P)

A note out of Morgans reveals that its analysts have retained their add rating and lifted the price target on this buy now pay later provider’s shares to $3.40. According to the note, the broker was pleased with Zip Co’s performance in April. And while it notes that its sales growth has slowed and its bad debts have lifted, these were still positive results given the pandemic. It has revised its earnings forecasts higher and its price target accordingly. I think Morgans has made a good call and Zip Co would be worth considering.

More reading

• Why Aristocrat Leisure, Newcrest, Santos, & Zip Co shares are charging higher
• These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares
• What to watch on the ASX 200 next week
• Broker tips 10 ASX 200 shares for a post-coronavirus recovery
• ASX 200 drops 1.7%, Xero reports a profit

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 ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The post Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

from Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/2ZawWfv

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) edged 0.25% higher last week, with the ASX miners’ strong performance offsetting falls in other sectors.

Higher commodity prices saw miners lead last week’s gains, with iron ore prices seeing a sustained rise since the start of the month as Chinese production resumes. 

While the mining sector was enjoying gains, these 5 ASX shares didn’t fare so well, coming in as the biggest fallers last week.

Corporate Travel Management Ltd (ASX: CTD)

Corporate Travel Management led the fallers last week dropping 11.8% to $10.53. The company provides travel solutions spanning corporate, events, leisure, loyalty, and wholesale. Understandably, it has been hit hard by coronavirus travel restrictions. 

When the crisis hit, Corporate Travel Management embarked on a comprehensive cost reduction program. The cost base has been reduced to $10–$12 million a month, down from $27–$27 million a month. This has been achieved through a combination of retrenchment, temporary stand downs, government initiatives such as JobKeeper, the elimination of non-essential expenditure, and reduced capex. 

Corporate Travel benefits from its business model in which a high proportion of costs are variable. With a small physical footprint, the business saves on rent, with about 70% of its costs being people-related. This enabled a swift resizing of the business. The travel agent is one of the few that has not yet raised capital to shore up liquidity. 

Domestic travel restrictions are likely to ease prior to international restrictions. This will benefit Corporate Travel, which is leveraged to the domestic market – about 60% of its total transaction volumes are domestic in nature. Domestic activity is highly profitable for Corporate Travel, particularly in Australia/New Zealand and Europe. 

Challenger Ltd (ASX: CGF)

Shares in Challenger fell 10.9% last week to finish the week at $4.24. Challenger shares remain down 59% from their February high as the financial services company continued to feel the effects of the market sell-off in March. 

Total assets under management decreased 8% to $79 billion in the March quarter, with performance reflecting the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on investment markets and consumer activity. Annuity sales declined during the period reflecting ongoing advisor disruption and the impacts of the pandemic. 

The challenges faced by financial advisors in the wake of the Royal Commission have been exacerbated by the pandemic, impacting the ability to onboard new customers and effectively engage existing customers. This confluence of disruptive events is expected to continue to impact sales in the near term, and it is unclear what the impact on 4th quarter sales will be.

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (ASX: URW)

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield shares dropped 10.4% last week to close the week at $3.79. The shopping centre operator has suffered due lockdowns in Europe, which have impacted its properties in the region. 

Lengthened lockdowns mean conventions and exhibitions remain on hold, and foot traffic at shopping centres is down. Unibail’s convention and exhibition business in France has been affected, alongside retail activity in parts of Europe. 

COVID-19 had a limited effect on the group’s March quarter turnover as rents are paid quarterly in advance in most of Europe and monthly in the US. The impact of the epidemic will be felt in the current quarter although at this stage it is too early to reliably estimate its extent. 

Through to 29 February, Unibail’s tenant sales were up 2.8%, consisting of 3.3% in Europe and 1.6% in the US. Unibail’s turnover for the first 3 months of the year was up 1.8%, largely due to property development and project management revenues. This was partially offset by disposals completed in 2019 and mandated cancellation of major events in March. 

Jumbo Interactive Ltd (ASX: JIN) 

Jumbo Interactive shares closed last week down 9.8% at $11.86. Prior to last week, Jumbo Interactive shares had climbed 18% during May, so last week’s result may have been a result of profit taking. 

Jumbo Interactive is a digital lottery retailer with over 2 million customer accounts. Its flagship service, Oz Lotteries, processes over $150 million in lottery ticket sales per annum. There hasn’t been a lot of news out of Jumbo Interactive of late. Interruptions from COVID-19 have been relatively minor thanks to the virtual nature of online lottery sales. 

Prior to the onset of the COVID-19 crisis, almost 74% of Australian lottery tickets were sold via retail channels. With the push to working, spending, and learning online during the crisis, Jumbo Interactive is well placed for an increase in lottery demand. 

Trading performance for FY20 includes forecast total transaction values of $335 to $341 million. Revenue is predicted to be $68.5–$69.9 million, up from $65.2 million in FY19. Profit is estimated to be in the range of $24.4–$25.3 million, down from $26.4 million last year. 

Incitec Pivot Ltd (ASX: IPL)

Shares in Incitec Pivot fell 9.6% last week to finish the week at $1.98. The fertiliser company announced a $600 million equity raising last Monday with shares issued at $2. The company also decided not to pay an interim dividend for the half year. 

Incitec Pivot said the raising was “pre-emptive” and aimed at increasing resilience in the current environment. Funds will be used to repay drawn balances of syndicated facilities. The fertiliser producer reported a 54% increase in profits in 1HFY20, which came in at $65 million. Demand for fertiliser is currently strong following good rainfall across eastern Australia. 

CEO Jeanne Johns said, “although COVID-19 has not had a significant impact on our business operations to date, global economic uncertainty is likely to impact customer demand and heighten the risk to recovery in commodity prices.”

Nonetheless, Incitec Pivot says the long-term demand fundamentals of the mining and agricultural sectors remain compelling. 

More reading

• Is the Mirvac share price about to soar?
• ASX 200 up 1.35%: Gold miners and Fortescue rocket higher, big four banks tumble
• Meet the ASX 200 company that just posted a 90% surge in profit
• These 5 ASX shares were last week’s biggest gainers
• 3 ASX 200 shares to watch this week

Kate O’Brien 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 Jumbo Interactive Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Challenger Limited and Corporate Travel Management Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Jumbo Interactive Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The post The 5 ASX shares that were last week’s biggest fallers appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

from Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/2Tfwedf