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ASX retail shares are mixed today after the release of the latest retail sales data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Shortly before market close, the ASX consumer discretionary sector is the third-worst performing of the day, with heavyweights like Wesfarmers Limited (ASX: WES) and JB Hi-Fi Limited (ASX: JBH) lagging the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO).

Elsewhere in the sector, though, Harvey Norman Holdings Limited (ASX: HVN) is trading flat and Temple & Webster Group Ltd (ASX: TPW) is surging almost 3% on the back of share buyback news.

The April numbers revealed a small increase in retail sales for April 2024. Seasonally adjusted, retail trade rose by 0.1% month-on-month and 1.3% compared to April 2023. 

The combination of inflation and high interest rates is squeezing retail spending. Clothing, footwear, and personal accessory retailing saw a decline of 0.7% in April, and food retailing was down 0.5%. Sales of household goods, however, showed a positive trend rising by 0.7%. Department stores also experienced a modest increase of 0.1%, maintaining their positive trajectory over recent months. 

Analysts have predicted sales will remain flat throughout 2024 due to rising living costs, high household debt, and economic uncertainty. This could dampen profit expectations for ASX 200 retail shares. JB Hi-Fi advised earlier this month that sales remained resilient, but cautioned that the retail market was “challenging and competitive”. Other major retailers like Wesfarmers, which owns Kmart and Target, could also be impacted by the insipid outlook.

Online sales accelerate

Overall retail sales may be down, but the portion of sales taking place online is accelerating. Data from the latest NAB Online Retail Sales Index reveals Australians spent $57.14 billion on online retail in the 12 months to April, making up about 13.4% of the total retail trade. The performance of online retail has consistently outpaced broader retail, leading to an increase in the online share of total retail sales.

Retailers with a strong online presence and diversified product offerings have seen substantial benefits from the ongoing shift towards online shopping. Companies like JB Hi-Fi and Temple & Webster have invested heavily in their e-commerce infrastructure and have seen significant share price gains over the past few years.

The accelerated shift to online could arguably further strengthen the market position of companies that have invested in their e-commerce infrastructure and allow them to stay ahead of competitors with less developed online capabilities.

Foolish takeaway

Despite mixed trading in ASX retail shares following modest retail sales growth in April, the accelerating shift to online shopping could present a silver lining. Retailers with strong e-commerce platforms may be well-positioned to navigate the challenging economic landscape and capitalise on the growing online retail market.

The post ASX retail shares mixed amid modest April sales growth appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• ASX investors may choose supermarkets over Wesfarmers shares after ACCC inquiry: broker
• Why did Goldman Sachs just downgrade Wesfarmers shares?
• Why AIC Mines, Fletcher Building, Nufarm, and Wesfarmers shares are dropping
• 2 ASX retail shares just upgraded by brokers (and 1 downgraded)
• Dump ’em! Top broker says sell these 3 ASX retail shares

Motley Fool contributor Katherine O’Brien has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Temple & Webster Group, and Wesfarmers. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Harvey Norman, and Wesfarmers. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Jb Hi-Fi and Temple & Webster Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

You might have seen TechnologyOne Ltd (ASX: TNE) shares pop up on your radar recently. This ASX 200 tech stock reported its latest earnings covering the half-year ending 31 March a week ago today. And they caused quite a stir upon their release.

As we covered last week, these earnings saw TechnologyOne report a 16% year-on-year rise in revenues to $244.8 million, as well as a 21% boost to the company’s annual recurring revenue to $423.6 million.

This all helped TechnologyOne bring in $48 million in profits after tax, a 16% increase over the prior period.

As a result, TechnologyOne was able to deliver a record interim dividend of 5.08 cents per share, partially franked at 65%. That’s a pleasing 10% hike over the 4.62 cents per share payout that shareholders enjoyed this time last year.

Since these earnings results were made public, TechnologyOne shares have exploded higher. The company was going for $16.02 a share on the day before these results came out. But today, those same shares are asking $17.93 each after hitting a new record high of $18.22 last Wednesday.

But this ASX 200 tech stock is due for a share price pullback this week. How do we know? Well, because TechnologyOne is scheduled to trade ex-dividend for this latest interim dividend this Thursday, 30 May.

Should we rush out and buy TechnologyOne shares before Thursday?

Yep, the ex-dividend date has been set for Thursday, which means that anyone who doesn’t own TechnologyOne shares as of Wednesday’s market close will not be eligible to receive said dividend. if one buys this company’s shares from Thursday onwards, they will miss out on this latest payment.

As such, we should see a drop in the price of TechnologyOne shares on Thursday morning, reflecting this inherent loss of value.

So should you get in and secure some shares of this ASX 200 tech stock before then?

Well, probably not if you are just trying to grab a freebie. Buying a company’s shares before or after they trade ex-dividends in order to secure a financial gain is usually a fool’s errand. When a company trades ex-dividend, its share price normally falls by almost exactly what that dividend is worth.

Upon TechnologyOne’s return to trade on Thursday, its share price is almost certainly just going to be 5.08 cents lower than where it otherwise would be trading.

So you can buy the more expensive shares on Wednesday and nab the rights to the dividend, or wait until the shares are a little cheaper on Thursday and miss out. In all likelihood, it will be a zero-sum game – two paths leading to the same financial endpoint.

As such, if you wish to invest in TechnologyOne as a long-term investment, it probably won’t make a lick of difference whether you buy on Wednesday or Thursday.

ASX brokers say buy

On that note, many ASX experts are telling investors to consider buying TechnologyOne shares in light of its recent results.

Last week, we covered the views of ASX broker Bell Potter. Bell Potter slapped TechnologyOne with a buy rating. That was alongside a 12-month share price target of $19.

We also took stock of what another broker in Morgans had to say. Morgans was also delighted by TechnologyOne’s results. It gave the tech stock an ‘add’ rating, as well as a share price target of $20.50.

The post Should I buy TechnologyOne shares before they trade ex-dividend on Thursday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 4 ASX growth shares to buy to supercharge your portfolio in June
• Here’s how the ASX 200 market sectors stacked up last week
• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy now
• 2 ASX 200 shares trading ex-dividend next week
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Technology One. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Technology One. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Around half of Australia’s top 500 listed companies are in the red today. However, none are doing it quite as tough as this ASX All Ords share.

A trading update has prompted the Peter Warren Automotive Holdings Ltd (ASX: PWR) share price to shift into reverse. A 0.2% retreat across the S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is less than ideal… but how about an 11% drop? That’s the punishment being administered to shareholders of this automotive dealership operator.

Shares in this company have now set a new record low, hitting $1.85 apiece. The undesirable milestone means the Peter Warren Automotive share price has cascaded 38% since its 2021 ASX listing.

So, what’s the exact cause of this deep laceration?

Expected profits lose some horsepower

Peter Warren Automotive may not achieve the earnings mileage expected by the market in FY24.

Revenue is apparently not an issue, continuing to grow. However, underlying profit before tax is a different story. Several impactful factors have forced the company to adjust the market’s view of how the full-year results should look.

The company’s full-year FY24 underlying profit before tax is now anticipated to be between $52 million and $57 million. For context, estimates already had down Peter Warren Automotive to generate $68.8 million in before-tax earnings.

At the midpoint, the new guidance reflects a 20.8% downgrade from consensus expectations. Evidently, this is not doing any favours for this All Ords share today.

Three key contributors were referenced as causes for the reduction, as follows:

• More competition between dealerships due to increased supply from car manufacturers, weighing down on new vehicle gross margins
• Subdued demand among customers for new vehicles in light of cost-of-living pressures
• Higher interest rates producing increased interest costs compared to the prior year

Despite the knock to earnings expectations, Peter Warren noted some positive items. These include growth in the number of vehicles sold and an increase in service and parts revenue.

Finally, Peter Warren Automotive highlighted initiatives to reduce the pain of pressured margins. For example, the company is limiting its inventory levels, leaning on growth in its service, parts, and used car segments, and controlling costs.

This All Ords share is not alone

While the Peter Warren Automotive share price is copping the brunt of selling pressure today, other consumer discretionary shares are also feeling the pinch.

In afternoon trading, the consumer discretionary sector is faring the worst on the ASX, down 0.79%. It might have a little to do with April retail trade data hitting the headlines.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics showed a 0.1% month-on-month increase in retail trade last month. Unfortunately, the market expected a 0.2% strengthening after a shocking 0.4% slump in March.

Investors may have interpreted it as another tough month for ASX retailers, including for our All Ords share, Peter Warren Automotive.

The post Guess which ASX All Ords share is diving 11% to record lows today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why Boss Energy, Elders, Peter Warren, and Serko shares are sinking today

Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler 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 Scott Phillips.

Investors tend to consider ASX 200 bank shares as dividend payers rather than growth investments, with two exceptions — Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) and Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG).

And there’s good reason for those exceptions, too.

Which bank delivers more capital growth than dividends?

At the recent ASX Investor Day in Sydney, investment strategist Marc Jocum from exchange-traded fund (ETF) provider Global X presented the following data on ASX 200 bank shares.

Source: Global X investor presentation, ASX Investor Day, Sydney

As you can see, Macquarie shares are the only ones that delivered more capital growth than dividend income among ASX 200 bank shares over the decade to 31 March 2024.

The Macquarie share price rose 244.7% and dividend returns were 230.8%, providing a total 10-year return of 475.6%.

When selecting shares for investment, Jocum emphasised the importance of a ‘total returns approach’ that takes dividend returns into account. This is important because they offset poor growth periods.

According to his presentation:

Most of the largest Australian banks have had negative capital returns. Dividends can add as an important source of returns and help cushion drawdowns.

CBA shares delivered the second-best capital growth, but it was a sliver of Macquarie’s at just 56.1% over 10 years. However, a 150.7% dividend return contributed to a solid total 10-year return of 206.8%.

What’s happening with ASX 200 bank shares today?

Today, ASX 200 bank shares are lower amid the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) losing 0.27% in value.

• The Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) share price is down 1.11%
• Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) shares are down 0.79%
• The Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Ltd (ASX: BEN) share price is down 0.32%
• Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) shares are down 0.27%
• The National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB) share price is down 0.18%
• The Bank of Queensland Ltd (ASX: BOQ) share price is down 0.17%
• Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ) shares are down 0.035%

Should you buy Macquarie shares?

After Macquarie reported its FY24 full-year results earlier this month, top broker Goldman Sachs retained its neutral rating on the ASX 200 bank share and reduced its 12-month price target to $178.74.

The broker noted that Macquarie’s better-than-expected FY24 performance was driven by a lower-than-expected tax rate rather than revenue growth. But it remains optimistic on the ASX 200 bank share.

Goldman said:

Despite this, we remain optimistic on the business’s medium term outlook, given i) an improving macro backdrop (we note GS now expects the rate cutting cycle to commence in November), and ii) MQG is well positioned to benefit from the global push towards decarbonisation, further infrastructure investment, and interest rates reaching their peak levels.

Yesterday, Macquarie announced that Fitch Ratings has upgraded the long-term issuer default rating (IDR) of Macquarie Bank Limited.

The long-term ratings of Macquarie entities are now A+ for Macquarie Bank Limited (up from A) and A for Macquarie Group Limited.

The post Only 1 ASX 200 bank share delivers more capital growth than dividends. Which bank? (Clue: Not CBA) appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• How you could retire rich by investing like Warren Buffett with ASX shares
• ASX 200 bank shares: How dividends offset poor capital growth over 10 years
• Macquarie ups the ante on fees with new ASX ETFs
• Why Credit Corp, GUD, Race Oncology, and Spartan Resources shares are rising
• Why ANZ, Fletcher Building, Macquarie, and Sayona Mining shares are dropping today

Motley Fool contributor Bronwyn Allen has positions in Anz Group, Commonwealth Bank Of Australia, and Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Goldman Sachs Group and Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Bendigo And Adelaide Bank and Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Are you looking to add some growth shares to your investment portfolio in June?

If you are, then the four highly rated ASX growth shares listed below could be worth considering.

Here’s what you need to know about them:

Aristocrat Leisure Limited (ASX: ALL)

The first ASX growth share that could be a buy is Aristocrat Leisure. It is one of the world’s leading gaming technology companies. It has a world class portfolio of pokie machines, a lucrative digital business, and a growing real money gaming business.

Analysts at Citi are very positive on the company. Particularly given its strong performance in the first half of FY 2024 and management’s confidence in its outlook.

Citi has a buy rating and $53.00 price target on Aristocrat Leisure’s shares.

Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME)

Goldman Sachs thinks Pro Medicus is a top ASX growth share to buy. It is a leading provider of radiology information systems (RIS), Picture Archiving and Communication Systems (PACS), and advanced visualisation solutions across the globe.

Goldman is very positive on the company’s outlook. It notes that it sees “PME as the clear incumbent technology leader in a growing market with a strong financial profile and significant AI upside.”

The broker has a buy rating and $136.00 price target on its shares.

ResMed Inc. (ASX: RMD)

A third ASX growth share that has been tipped as a buy is ResMed. It is a sleep treatment-focused medical device company.

ResMed has been growing at a strong rate for over a decade. But if you thought its growth was coming to an end, think again. That’s because its industry-leading products have a massive market opportunity. Management estimates that there are 1 billion people impacted by sleep apnoea worldwide, with only ~20% of these sufferers currently diagnosed.

Ord Minnett is bullish on ResMed and has an accumulate rating and $40.00 price target on its shares.

TechnologyOne Ltd (ASX: TNE)

A final ASX growth share for investors to look at in June is TechnologyOne. It is Australia’s largest enterprise software company with locations across six countries. It provides a global SaaS ERP solution that transforms business and makes life simple for users.

Analysts at Morgans were impressed with the company’s half year results this month. In fact, the broker believes that the company’s profit growth is about to go up a gear. Particularly given its successful transition to a software-as-a-service business model.

Morgans currently has an add rating and $20.50 price target on its shares.

The post 4 ASX growth shares to buy to supercharge your portfolio in June appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why Playside Studios, Pro Medicus, Strike Energy, and Winsome shares are charging higher
• 2 no-brainer ASX 200 shares to buy next week
• Here’s how the ASX 200 market sectors stacked up last week
• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy now
• 2 ASX 200 shares trading ex-dividend next week

Citigroup is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Pro Medicus, ResMed, and Technology One. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Goldman Sachs Group, Pro Medicus, ResMed, and Technology One. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended ResMed. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Pro Medicus and Technology One. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The market may be edging lower today but the same cannot be said for the Strike Energy Ltd (ASX: STX).

In afternoon trade, the ASX 200 energy stock is rocketing higher and is up 8% to 22.2 cents.

Why is this ASX 200 energy stock rocketing?

Investors have been scrambling to buy the company’s shares today after it achieved a “significant financial milestone” at the Walyering gas field development.

According to the release, the Walyering gas field in the Perth Basin, which was brought online eight months ago, has now reached payback of its total development capital spend of approximately $30 million (plus operating costs, royalties and taxes incurred to date).

Strike Energy advised that total gross income received to date from the Walyering project is approximately $47 million.

Management notes that this payback profile would be one of the fastest in recent history for a greenfield Australian oil and gas project. It believes this demonstrates the inherent value of the ASX 200 energy stock’s conventional gas play in the Jurassic aged Sandstones within the Cattamarra Coal Measures.

What’s next?

Given the success of the Walyering project so far, investors will be pleased to learn that drilling activities continue on site.

The company advised that Walyering-7 (W7), which commenced drilling 18 days ago, has reached its total planned depth of 4,035 metres (measured depth). This is five days ahead of target and has set a new time/depth record for its drilling performance within the Walyering gas field.

Pleasingly, the ASX 200 energy stock revealed that the W7 well has passed through multiple sandstone reservoirs within the Cattamarra Coal Measures and has registered positive observations on both mud logs and logging while drilling tools. Management advised that it is now preparing to run a series of wireline logs and specialty tools and will evaluate those results before moving to the next stage of completion.

It adds that the W7 well has been drilled from a surface location co-located with the Walyering gas processing facility directionally to the east into a fault compartment north-east of the producing Walyering-5 structure. The company intends to provide further updates as operations and evaluation concludes at the W7 well site.

Despite today’s strong gain, the Strike Energy share price remains one of the worst performers on the ASX 200 index over the last 12 months. During this time, the ASX 200 energy stock is down approximately 53%.

The post ASX 200 energy stock rockets 8% on ‘significant’ milestone appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why Playside Studios, Pro Medicus, Strike Energy, and Winsome shares are charging higher
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today

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 Scott Phillips.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is having a subdued session on Tuesday. In afternoon trade, the benchmark index is on course to record a small decline. It is currently down 0.25% to 7,768.7 points.

Four ASX shares that are falling more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are dropping:

Boss Energy Ltd (ASX: BOE)

The Boss Energy share price is down almost 10% to $4.82. This follows news that the uranium miner’s CEO and managing director Duncan Craib, chair Wyatt Buck, and director Bryn Jones have sold a significant portion of their personal holdings. In respect to its CEO, Duncan Craib sold 3.75 million shares at an average price of $5.63 per share between Tuesday and Friday last week. The company’s leader received a total consideration of over $21 million for the shares. Insider selling rarely goes down well with investors and is considered to be a bearish indicator by many.

Elders Ltd (ASX: ELD)

The Elders share price is down 3% to $8.21. This has been driven by the agribusiness company’s shares going ex-dividend on Tuesday. Last week, Elders released its half year results and reported a sharp profit decline. This led to the Elders board cutting its interim dividend by 22% to 18 cents per share. Eligible shareholders can now look forward to receiving this partially franked dividend in their bank accounts next month on 26 June.

Peter Warren Automotive Holdings Ltd (ASX: PWR)

The Peter Warren Automotive Holdings share price is down 12% to $1.88. This follows the release of a trading update from the automotive retailer this morning. Peter Warren advised that while revenue has continued to grow, it now expects its underlying profit before tax for FY 2024 to be in the range of $52 million to $57 million. Management notes that this is lower than market expectations and has been driven by a significant increase in vehicle supply, which has led to greater competition between dealerships and lower gross profit margins on new vehicles. In addition, customer demand for new vehicles has fallen due to cost-of-living pressures.

Serko Ltd (ASX: SKO)

The Serko share price is down 5.5% to $2.87. Investors have been selling this travel technology company’s shares following the release of its full year results. This was despite Serko reporting a 48% jump in total income to NZ$71.2 million and a 48% improvement in its net loss to NZ$15.9 million. Looking ahead, management is guiding to revenue of NZ$85 million to NZ$92 million in FY 2025. It also expects to become cashflow positive during the year.

The post Why Boss Energy, Elders, Peter Warren, and Serko shares are sinking today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Guess which ASX All Ords share is diving 11% to record lows today
• ASX 200 uranium stock dives 10% amid $26 million insiders sell-off
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
• 2 ASX 200 shares trading ex-dividend next week
• ASX 200 shares vs. property: Which has performed better since the COVID crash?

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 positions in and has recommended Serko. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Elders. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Are you searching for some ASX income shares to buy this week?

If you are, then you may want to check out the two listed below that analysts think are top buys right now.

Here’s what they are saying about them:

Healthco Healthcare and Wellness REIT (ASX: HCW)

Analysts at Bell Potter think that Healthco Healthcare and Wellness REIT could be an ASX income share to buy. It is Australia’s largest diversified healthcare REIT with a portfolio including hospitals, aged care, childcare, government, life sciences, and primary care and wellness property assets.

The broker likes the company due its attractive valuation and exposure to a significant addressable market. It explains:

HCW has underperformed the REIT sector last 3 months (-10% vs. +22% XPJ) following bond yield reversion and is attractively priced at 20% discount to NTA (but only REIT to record flat to positive valuation movement at 1H24) with double digit 3 year EPS CAGR given high relative sector debt hedging and ability to grow its $1bn development pipeline via attractive YoC spread to marginal cost of debt. Longer term, HCW has significant scope for growth with an estimated $218 billion addressable market where an ageing and growing population should underpin long-term sector demand.

Bell Potter is forecasting dividends per share of 8 cents in FY 2024 and 8.3 cents in FY 2025. Based on its current share price of $1.15, this equates to yields of 7% and 7.2%, respectively.

The broker has a buy rating and $1.50 price target on its shares.

QBE Insurance Group Ltd (ASX: QBE)

Over at Goldman Sachs, its analysts think that this insurance giant could be an ASX income share to buy.

It likes the company for a number of reasons. This includes its undemanding valuation. Goldman explains:

We are Buy-rated on QBE because 1) QBE has the strongest exposure to the commercial rate cycle. 2) QBE’s achieved rate increases continue to be strong & ahead of loss cost inflation. 3) North America on a pathway to improved profitability. 4) Valuation not demanding. 5) Strong ROE.

The broker expects this to support partially franked dividends of 62 US cents (93 Australian cents) per share in FY 2024 and then 63 US cents (95 Australian cents) per share in FY 2025. Based on its current share price of $17.84, this equates to yields of 5.2% and 5.3%, respectively.

Goldman has a buy rating and $20.90 price target on QBE’s shares.

The post 2 top ASX income shares that analysts love 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 positions in and has recommended Goldman Sachs Group. 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 Scott Phillips.

In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a small decline. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down 0.2% to 7,770.7 points.

Four ASX shares that are not letting that hold them back are listed below. Here’s why they are falling:

Playside Studios Ltd (ASX: PLY)

The Playside Studios share price is up 5.5% to 95 cents. Investors have been buying this game developer’s shares after it upgraded its guidance for FY 2024. Playside Studios now expects revenue of $63 million to $65 million and EBITDA of $16 million to $18 million. The company’s earnings guidance upgrade represents a 42% increase on the midpoint of its previous guidance of $11 million to $13 million and is a huge jump from a $1.7 million loss in FY 2023.

Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME)

The Pro Medicus share price is up over 2% to $115.77. This morning, this health imaging company announced five new contracts with a combined minimum contract value of $45 million. Management advised that the contracts will be fully cloud deployed and are expected to be completed within the next 6 months. The good news is that there could be more contract wins on the way. CEO, Dr Sam Hupert, said: “Despite record new contract signings this year, our pipeline remains strong with a broad range of opportunities both in terms of size and market segments.”

Strike Energy Ltd (ASX: STX)

The Strike Energy share price is up 8% to 22.2 cents. This follows news that the Walyering gas field development has reached payback (inclusive of royalties and production costs) only eight months after start-up. Management believes this demonstrates the value of Strike Energy’s high margin, low-cost conventional Perth Basin Jurassic portfolio. Total gross income received to date from the Walyering project is approximately $47 million. The company highlights that this “payback profile would be one of the fastest in recent history for a greenfield Australian oil and gas project and demonstrates the inherent value of Strike’s conventional gas play in the Jurassic aged Sandstones within the Cattamarra Coal Measures.”

Winsome Resources Ltd (ASX: WR1)

The Winsome Resources share price is up over 4% to $1.29. Investors have been buying this lithium explorer’s shares following the release of a mineral resource estimate update for its flagship Adina Lithium Project in Canada. According to the release, the mineral resource has increased 33% to 77.9Mt at 1.15% Li2O. Management notes that this confirms Adina’s positioning as one of the largest undeveloped lithium deposits in the world.

The post Why Playside Studios, Pro Medicus, Strike Energy, and Winsome shares are charging higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why Appen, Mayne Pharma, Playside, and PYC shares are storming higher
• This ASX 200 healthcare stock just hit an all-time high: Is it too late to buy?
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Pro Medicus. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Pro Medicus. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Pro Medicus. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP) shares are lower amid new figures from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) showing an 18.1% surge in superannuation benefit payments over the past year.

AMP is one of Australia’s largest retail superannuation fund providers with $111 billion in assets under management (AUM) as of 30 June 2023. The largest provider is AustralianSuper with $300 billion AUM.

The AMP share price is currently $1.10, down 0.9% for the day and up 0.92% over the past 12 months.

There’s no news out of AMP today. Let’s take a look at these APRA numbers and the rising industrywide trend in higher outflows as more baby boomers enter retirement.

Superannuation outflows grow as more baby boomers retire

The APRA data shows greater growth in superannuation outflows than inflows over the 12 months to 31 March 2024.

This is despite an increase in the Superannuation Guarantee — the percentage of wages employers must pay into their workers’ superannuation funds — from 10.5% in FY23 to 11% from 1 July 2023.

In the year to 31 March 2024, $112.9 billion was paid out to superannuation holders, up 18.1% on the $95.6 billion paid out during the year to 31 March 2023.

Inflows in the year to March 2024 totalled $177 billion, up 11.3% on the year to March 2023.

Lump sums and pension payments rise

According to APRA, the bump in outflows represents increased lump sum and pension payments:

This increase was the result of lump sum payments rising by 18.4 per cent to $63.0 billion and pension payments increasing by 17.7 per cent to $49.8 billion.

A separate report by KPMG shows five of Australia’s 13 biggest retail superannuation funds managing assets valued above $50 billion recorded negative net cash flow ratios in FY23.

According to the Australian Financial Review (AFR) today, Mercer, Colonial First State, AMP, BT and Insignia Financial Ltd (ASX: IFL) had combined net outflows of $10.6 billion in FY23.

KPMG partner Linda Elkins told the AFR this represented the start of a “wave” of outflows coming for industry funds.

But she added that the point at which the retirement savings sector’s outflows would outweigh inflows was “not imminent”.

BT had the greatest negative cash flow ratio of the 13 major funds at -5%, followed by AMP at -2.6%.

Meantime, Hostplus, AustralianSuper and REST had the highest growth in cash flow ratios at more than 5% each.

Among the smaller superannuation funds, Hub24 Ltd (ASX: HUB) and Netwealth Group Ltd (ASX: NWL) recorded the highest net cash flow ratio growth at 26.7% and 15.1%, respectively.

AMP shares fell last month after the company released its first-quarter update in which CEO Alexis George noted improvements in the company’s superannuation and investments net cash outflows.

According to the KPMG report:

Insignia, AMP, CFS and Mercer have again experienced net outflows, however they have gained traction from FY22 and decreased the rate of net outflows.

This appears to have been achieved by stemming the flow of rollovers out and focusing on the core aspects of their offerings such as fees and performance.

More people investing in superannuation

The APRA data also shows that more people are voluntarily ploughing money into their superannuation.

Member contributions via salary-sacrificing arrangements or personal contributions totalled $43.7 billion over the year, up 8.2%. Employer contributions totalled $133.3 billion, up 12.4%.

Total superannuation assets in the year to March 2024 totalled $3,862.1 billion, up 11.3% on March 2023. APRA said this growth was due to continued strong contribution inflows and an average 10.9% return on investments.

A recent survey by Findex found that 24% of Australians consider superannuation the most important type of investment for building lifetime wealth.

Older cohorts value it most, with about 40% of baby boomers and 29% of Gen Xers ranking it their no. 1 investment option.

Findex investment relations head Matthew Swieconek offers five key investment actions for Baby Boomers and Gen Xers to take today for an excellent future retirement.

Another recent report found most Australians overestimate how much they need to retire comfortably.

Meantime, my colleague Tristan recently reported on whether AMP shares are a significantly underrated buying opportunity right now.

The post AMP shares lower amid industry ‘wave’ of superannuation payouts to baby boomers appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Bronwyn Allen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Hub24 and Netwealth Group. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Netwealth Group. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Hub24. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.