Tag: Motley Fool Australia

It was a strong week for ASX shares as the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) surged 4.22% higher last week to close just shy of 6,000 points.

The benchmark Aussie index finished the week at 5,998.70 points and was led higher by many Aussie blue chips including the banks.

Last week I was watching Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Ltd (ASX: BEN), Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) and St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM).

The Bendigo share price was one of last week’s biggest moving as it rocketed 19.02% higher including a 4.72% gain on Friday. Flight Centre shares also surged, gaining 17.66%, while St Barbara shares were sold-off in the bullish ASX 200 share market and closed the week down 3.85%.

After a big week for last week’s top picks, here are 3 shares I’ll be watching in the week ahead.

3 ASX 200 shares to watch this week

I always like to watch some of the biggest movers from the previous week. That means Stockland Corporation Ltd (ASX: SGP) is in my sights.

The Stockland share price rocketed 10.92% last week and is up another 4.04% at the time of writing. The Aussie real estate investment trust (REIT) seems to be climbing thanks to investor optimism.

Stockland has interests in retail, office and residential real estate. There are a lot of factors at play in all of those areas right now. I think this ASX 200 REIT could be set to recover further if the re-opening of the economy continues at a cracking pace.

Another ASX 200 share I’ve got my eye on is SkyCity Entertainment Group Limited (ASX: SKC). SkyCity operates a number of hotels and wagering businesses that are starting to see eased restrictions.

That could be good news for SkyCity earnings in FY20 and FY21. The entertainment share is up a whopping 8.96% in morning trade so far and will be well worth watching this week.

I also think it’s hard to ignore the ASX banks right now. The Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price is one I’m watching this week.

The big four bank’s shares have some strong momentum after rocketing 9.12% higher last week. Westpac shares have shot out of the gates this morning to be up more than 5% at the time of writing.

I’d expect investors to continue buying high-quality shares this week. Westpac shares are still down 22.45% for the year and could have further to go in 2020.

Foolish takeaway

These are just a few of the ASX 200 shares I’m watching at the moment. It’s important to focus on the long-term investment horizon rather than getting too caught up in daily or weekly moves.

There might be tactical buying opportunities on offer from time to time. However, I believe a buy and hold strategy is still the ticket to long-term wealth.

More reading

• 2 ASX 200 biotech shares to consider buying today
• Is the Webjet share price a cheap buy today?
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX bulls crash through 6,000 points
• ‘Westpac share price undervalued’, says analyst
• Cheap ASX 200 retail shares to buy today

Motley Fool contributor Ken Hall has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Flight Centre Travel Group Limited and Sky City Entertainment Group Ltd. 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.

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The share price of Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) will be on watch this morning after it provided the market with a retail trading update for its performance in 2H20 so far.

The group revealed today that it has witnessed particularly strong demand from both its Bunnings and Officeworks stores.

The Wesfarmers share price has bounced back strongly since late March. The group’s share price has risen from $31.02 on 23 March to close at $41.71 last Friday. That’s an impressive increase of 34.5%.

Bunnings and Officeworks sales grow strongly

Compared to sales in the first half of the year (1H20), sales for Bunnings have risen very strongly so far in the current half (2H20). Bunning’s sales have risen 19.2% since the beginning of the year. This compares to only 5.8% during 1H20.  For the FY2020 year-to-date, sales have also risen strongly for Bunnings. They were up by 11.3% compared to the prior corresponding period.

As a result of the coronavirus crisis, Australians have continued to spend more on goods to assist them in working and learning in a home environment.

The performance of Officeworks was also very strong. Sales were up by 27.8% for 2H20 to date, compared to only 11.5% in 1H20. FY2020 sales to date were also strongly up by 19.3% for Officeworks.

I believe that the strong performance of both Bunnings and Officeworks has made a significant contribution to Wesfarmers’ recent strong share price growth.

Pure online retailer Catch sees sales surge

The star performer for Wesfarmers in recent months has been its pure online offering in Catch.

Online sales for Catch have risen by a massive 68.7% in the half-year to date. This compares to only 21.4% in 1H20.

There has been a recent surge in online sales due to the coronavirus. All of Wesfarmers’ retail businesses witnessed massive combined total online sales growth of 89% for the half-year to date.

Wesfarmers’ online offerings have seen strong growth over the past few years.

It is quite likely that consumer habits are changing permanently. Many Australians may continue to choose the online channel over bricks and mortar stores in the years ahead due to its convenience and price competitiveness.

Where to now for the Wesfarmers share price?

As already mentioned, the group’s share price growth since late March has been very strong. However, I believe that Wesfarmers will be challenged to keep growing at this pace in the months ahead. Wesfarmers itself acknowledged today that it is uncertain if this sales growth can continue for the rest of the year. As government lockdown measures continue to ease, shopping patterns are likely to continue to get back to normal sooner rather than later.

More reading

• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX bulls crash through 6,000 points
• 3 high quality ASX dividend shares you can buy today
• Want high-paying dividends? Try Wesfarmers shares and these 2 other ASX options
• How to replace your entire wage with dividends
• Is this ASX small cap the best placed to benefit from the $700m HomeBuilder grant?

Motley Fool contributor Phil Harpur has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Wesfarmers 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.

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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.

2020 has been a wild year for investors. The stock market soared to new highs, only to plunge in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. After hitting bottom, markets have soared upward in a quick recovery, and at least a couple of stock benchmarks have reached new records once again.

When the initial phase of the COVID-19 outbreak led to one of the fastest bear markets in history, the best advice investors could follow was not to make any rash decisions with their investments. That advice served those who followed it well, as the bounce has helped many investors recover much or even all of their losses. Staying pat was hard, though, if you felt blindsided by the coronavirus crisis and suddenly became aware that the risk level in your portfolio was too high.

Fortunately, you now have your chance to reconsider your investing strategy calmly and objectively. If the bear market was a wake-up call that you had too much risk in your portfolio, then now that stocks have recovered most of their lost ground, you can adjust your asset allocation  without doing major damage to your long-term financial prospects.

Letting it ride

The 2010s were one of the most successful decades ever for stock market investors. The right strategy to follow was to get money into the market whenever you could, especially taking advantage of periodic dips to add to your positions. With very few extended downward moves in the market, it was easy to think that owning stocks didn’t really involve much risk.

However, the big gains from the 2010s set up some investors for a surprisingly painful shock. Not only did the coronavirus bear market remind investors that big downturns could happen, but it also came at a time when many investors hadn’t rebalanced their portfolios for a long time. As a result, many people’s stock allocations had risen above their past levels, leaving investors even more vulnerable to the stock market downturn.

Add to that the fact that yields on bonds and other fixed-income investments have fallen to such low levels that the income they pay is insufficient for most investors’ needs. That pushed people into dividend stocks, boosting overall allocations to the stock market and further adding to risk.

Avoiding the kneejerk reaction

Many people realized only after the fact that they were uncomfortably overexposed to stocks in their investment portfolios. The worst possible way to respond would have been to sell at the lows. With markets down as much as 30% between mid-February and March, selling out would have meant taking huge losses. Moreover, you would’ve missed out on the nearly 40% gain in some stock market indexes since those lows, repeating a mistake that millions of investors have made in past crashes and bear markets.

If you successfully held your ground and stuck with your strategy, you’ve probably seen a nice recovery in your portfolio. But that doesn’t mean that you should forget about your concerns regarding your risk tolerance. If you now know that you’re not inclined to deal with a drop of the magnitude we saw in early 2020, then you should adjust your investing strategy to be more conservative. Moreover, you can make those adjustments now, because reducing your stock portfolio won’t result in anywhere near the losses that you would’ve locked in just a couple months ago.

2 ways to get your portfolio in line

Investors have a couple of things they can do to adjust their portfolios to reflect their new risk tolerance. For some, it’ll be enough simply to rebalance your investments, getting your allocations to stocks, bonds, and other asset classes back in line with their long-term targets. Even though many stocks haven’t fully recovered their losses from the bear market, you might still find yourself needing to reduce your stock positions to rebalance effectively if it’s been a few years since you last did so.

The more extreme move is to reduce your target stock allocation. That will necessarily involve making sales and exchanges of various investments, with the usual tax and cash flow consequences. For many, the peace of mind you can get from reducing the future volatility of your overall portfolio is worth the losses you’ll lock in — especially since those losses are probably much smaller than they were back in March or April.

Don’t wait

Stocks can do anything in the short run. Waiting to take action could let your portfolio recover further, but it could also leave you vulnerable to another leg lower if it comes.

If you now realize your risk tolerance for stocks is lower than you thought it was, now’s the best time to adjust your portfolio to reflect your new needs. That way, you’ll be better prepared to deal with whatever comes next — and more likely to avoid mistakes that could cause long-term damage to your finances.

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

More reading

• Why CSL, Elders, Evolution, & Xero shares are dropping lower
• 2 ASX 200 biotech shares to consider buying today
• 3 ASX 200 shares to watch this week
• Can the Wesfarmers share price continue to rise after its market update today?
• Musgrave Minerals share price jumps 40% after revealing bonanza gold results

Motley Fool contributor Dan Caplinger has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. 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 If you need to protect your portfolio, do this now appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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

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The Musgrave Minerals Ltd (ASX: MGV) share price is starting the trading week off with a bang after the small-cap ASX miner revealed bonanza grades in near surface drilling.

Musgrave Minerals is an active Australian gold and base metals explorer. Its cornerstone project is the Cue Gold Project in the Murchison Province of Western Australia. The company also has a big footprint in the Musgrave Province, one of the least explored exploration frontiers in the country.

For a bit of background, the Cue Gold Project hosts total resources of 6.45 million tonnes at 3.0 grams per tonne (g/t) gold for 613,000 ounces. This includes the Break of Day deposit (868,000 tonnes at 7.2 g/t gold for 199,000 ounces of contained gold) and the Lena deposit (4.3 million tonnes at 2.3 g/t gold for 325,000 ounces of contained gold).

Why the Musgrave Minerals share price is surging

This morning, Musgrave reported assay results for a further 7 reverse circulation (RC) drill holes from the current program at the new Starlight gold discovery.

This follows the announcement of assay results for the first 12 RC drill holes last week which sent the Musgrave share price flying.

Significant intercepts from today’s announcement include:

• 42 metres at 77.3 g/t gold from 30 metres, including:
  • 18 metres at 179.4 g/t gold from 30 metres
• 61 metres at 12.7 g/t gold from 76 metres, including:
  • 6 metres at 44.6 g/t gold from 76 metres
  • 21 metres at 23.6 g/t gold from 106 metres
• 22 metres at 21.0 g/t gold 2 metres, including:
  • 9 metres at 49.2 g/t gold from 8 metres
• 9 metres at 16.5 g/t gold from 225 metres, including:
  • 3 metres 47.6 g/t gold from 225 metres
• 4 metres at 48.2 g/t gold from 85 metres
• 2 metres at 37.7 g/t gold from 74 metres

The Starlight link-lode is located at the Break of Day deposit within the Cue Gold Project. The intersections in all drill holes sit outside, but in close proximity to, the current resource at Break of Day.

The drilling is focused on infilling and extending the new high-grade lode where mineralisation has been intersected over a strike of more than 115 metres.

Commenting on the results, managing director Rob Waugh said:

“These are amazing gold grades to see in near surface drilling. Our deepest holes to date are still in high-grade mineralisation at 200 vertical metres where Starlight remains open down dip. The bonanza grades near surface will have a significant positive impact on future development at Break of Day.”

The current reverse circulation drilling program at Break of Day is now approximately 80% complete and consists of more than 36 holes for around 7,000 metres.

Assays have been received for 19 holes to date, with further assays expected within 2 weeks.

In addition, a diamond drilling program at Starlight to test depth extensions to the Starlight mineralisation is due to commence this week.

After flying 45.83% at the open, the Musgrave Minerals share price is currently sitting 39.58% higher at 33.5 cents per share. This takes its market capitalisation at the time of writing to around $155 million.

More reading

• Why the Musgrave Minerals share price has skyrocketed 93% today

Motley Fool contributor Cathryn Goh has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. 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.

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At the weekend I looked at how investments of $20,000 in a number of ASX shares fared over the last 10 years.

Given the success of these investments, this morning I thought I would look at a few shares which I feel investors ought to consider investing $20,000 into today for the next decade.

Here why I think these three ASX shares could provide strong returns for investors:

Altium Limited (ASX: ALU)

I think this electronic design software platform provider could be a great place to invest $20,000 with a long term view. This is due to Altium’s exposure to the Internet of Things (IoT) boom. This rapidly growing market should drive strong demand for its offering in the future as the majority of these devices require software like Altium Designer during the design process. Management appears confident in its outlook and is aiming for 100,000 subscriptions by FY 2025. This compares to the 50,000 subscriptions it is targeting this year. Combined with its other growing businesses, such as the Octopart search engine, I believe the future is bright for Altium.

Pushpay Holdings Group Ltd (ASX: PPH)

Another company which I think has a very bright future is Pushpay. It is a growing donor management platform provider for the faith and not-for-profit sectors. Pushpay has been growing at a rapid rate over the last few years thanks to the increasing adoption of its platform by churches in the United States. The good news is that management expects its strong growth to continue in FY 2021. It recently revealed that it expects to double its operating earnings in FY 2021. But it doesn’t expect its growth to stop there. The company is aiming to capture 50% of the medium to large church market in the future. This is a US$1 billion revenue opportunity and many multiples of its current revenue.

Ramsay Health Care Limited (ASX: RHC)

A third ASX share to consider investing $2o,000 into is Ramsay Health Care. I think the leading private healthcare company would be a great long term option due to the quality of its global business and its positive long term outlook. The latter is thanks to the ageing populations tailwind, which is expected to drive very strong demand for healthcare services over the next couple of decades. And while trading conditions are tough right now, I believe it is worth dealing with the short term pain for the potential long term gains.

More reading

• How I would invest $50,000 into ASX shares right now
• 10 ASX 200 shares that are fit for the Queen
• Building a $100,000 portfolio with Afterpay shares and 3 other ASX companies
• What ASX shares should you invest in during a bull market?
• 3 of the best ASX 200 tech shares for your watchlist

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 Altium and PUSHPAY FPO NZX. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended PUSHPAY FPO NZX and Ramsay Health Care 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.

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The Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) share price rocketed 8.45% last week and has opened higher today. But will the Aussie travel share continue to head higher in 2020?

Is the Webjet share price a cheap buy?

It was a good week for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) which climbed 4.22% higher to 5,998.70 points.

Webjet was just one of many ASX 200 shares to climb higher as investors piled into shares. 

There’s growing optimism about ASX travel shares like Webjet as coronavirus restrictions continue to ease. 

It looks like there will still be some tough times ahead. However, many Aussies have been cooped up and are looking towards their next getaway.

Whether that is domestically or overseas, it’s good news for the Webjet share price. The ASX travel share is still down nearly 50% in 2020 which is a healthy discount. In contrast, the S&P/ASX 200 Index has fallen just 7.67% lower at the time of writing.

That could mean the Webjet share price is a bargain. However, it’s far from certain that we’ll see a quick share price recovery in 2020.

While airlines are starting to ramp up their flight numbers, capacity is still well down on where we started the year. 

There’s also another issue: demand. Just because there’s the ability to travel, many Aussies have fallen on hard times during the pandemic. 

There could be a couple of ways this plays out for the Webjet share price. There could well be a surge in demand as people take advantage of the ability to travel.

On the other hand, we could see more Aussies saving their cash and being conservative. There could also be some skepticism about travel safety despite more options being made available.

All these unknowns say to me that the Webjet share price could be cheap but it’s a speculative play as to where the travel industry is headed.

Foolish takeaway

The Webjet share price surged higher last week and has some strong momentum behind it in this week’s trade.

However, I feel the ASX travel share is far from a certain buy and I think I’ll wait until I see August earnings figures before jumping in.

More reading

• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX bulls crash through 6,000 points
• Cheap ASX 200 retail shares to buy today
• These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares
• 3 quality ASX 200 shares to buy and hold until at least 2030
• ASX shares could be the best way to grow your wealth in 2020

Motley Fool contributor Ken Hall has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Webjet Ltd. 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.

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The G8 Education Ltd (ASX: GEM) share price has been a strong performer this morning and is trading notably higher.

At the time of writing the childcare centre operator’s shares are up over 6% to $1.10. This compares favourably to an impressive 3.1% gain by the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO).

Why is the G8 Education share price outperforming?

The catalyst for this outperformance has been an announcement this morning in response to one by the Federal Government on Monday.

The latter announcement revealed that the government intends to end its free childcare scheme in July and reintroduce the Child Care Subsidy (CSS). It will also bring to an end its JobKeeper payment for workers in the sector next month.

While you might imagine this to be a negative, it won’t actually be for G8 Education. This is because there will be a three-month transition period that aims to support the early learning sector during a period of reduced occupancy levels.

According to G8’s announcement, early learning and care providers, including G8, will receive a transition payment equal to 25% of each centre’s fee levels prior to the impact of the pandemic. This is based on fees received in the fortnight prior to 1 March 2020.

Management revealed that this equates to approximately half of the amount received under the relief package, but will be paid in addition to the normal CCS and co-parent payments. Though, this transition payment is conditional on early learning and care providers maintaining average gross employment levels during this period.

Another positive is that the Federal Government will ease the activity test requirements that determine a family’s access to the CCS. Management expects this to make early learning more accessible and affordable to certain families. This includes those whose employment has been impacted due to the pandemic.

G8 Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Gary Carroll, commented: “The transitional arrangements announced today are welcome as they provide operators with increased flexibility to support families as the economy recovers. We look forward to continuing to engage with government and other stakeholders to ensure the right settings are in place to support our families and team members.”

What will be the financial impact?

Management notes that the revised government support packages are structured in a way that means G8 expects to be in no worse a position relative to the prior support measures.

This is even if occupancy levels become more subdued than they currently are.

Occupancy levels update.

The company also revealed that its booked occupancy rate is currently ~65%. However, physical attendance is approximately 52%, as some parents continue to choose to keep their children at home despite having a booking at a centre.

During May, physical attendance improved ~20 percentage points off the April low of ~30%.

More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
• ASX childcare shares unlikely to receive support beyond June
• These 10 ASX 200 shares have fallen the most over the last year

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. 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.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) continued its recent form with another stunning lot of gains last week. The ASX 200 capped off its sixth week of straight gains with a 4.2% surge last week, which (briefly) pushed the index over the psychologically-important (although practically irrelevant) 6,000 point threshold on two occasions over Thursday and Friday.

Although the ASX 200 didn’t end up finishing over the 6,000 point mark on Friday afternoon, it’s still a momentous milestone in this new ASX bull run we have seen over the past two months. The ASX 200 is still around 16% off its all-time highs that we saw in February – but also more than 30% above the lows we saw in March. Perhaps it’s a goldilocks rally for investors right now; not too hot, not too cold.

Almost every sector on the ASX was in the green last week, but it was once again the ASX blue chips that provided the momentum. All 4 of the major ASX banks were up big last week, as were other blue chips like Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) and Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES). ASX miners like BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) and Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) also continued their recent run of good form.

And it wasn’t just ASX 200 shares that were in party mode last week. The Aussie dollar had one of its best weeks in recent times, smashing through the US70 cent mark for the first time since early January.

Coronavirus success drives ASX 200 shares

The main factors behind this rapid recovery in ASX 200 shares seem to be the ongoing success story that is the Australian and New Zealand response to the coronavirus pandemic. Restrictions continue to ease, and New Zealand announced over the weekend that it is now ‘COVID-free’ for the first time since the pandemic began.

ASX travel shares such as Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) were standout performers during the week as speculation mounted that Qantas would be able to return to 40% of its domestic pre-pandemic flight levels by the end of July. As such, most ASX travel stocks had a great week, with Qantas shares up more than 16% by Friday’s close.

How did the markets end the week?

In spectacular fashion, to put it lightly. The ASX 200 opened the week at the symmetrically pleasing 5,755.7 points and closed on Friday at 5,998.7 points – a weekly gain of 4.22%.

We had a clean run of gains last week, with a 5-day winning streak propelling the ASX 200 to its current high. Monday and Wednesday were by far the strongest days, with a 1% and 1.8% gain respectively. Tuesday saw 0.3% up, whilst Thursday gave us 0.8%. Friday was threatening a loss for a while but squeezed out a 0.1% gain to leave us on the precipice of 6,000 points as we start a short week this week.

Meanwhile, the All Ordinaries (INDEXASX: XAO) also had a great week, starting off at 5,872.2 and finishing up at 6,116.5 points for a weekly gain of 4.16%.

Which ASX 200 shares were the biggest winners and losers?

Let’s see which ASX 200 shares were the biggest winners and losers on the week’s Foolish gossip pages. As always, let’s start with the losers:

Worst ASX 200 losers	% loss for the week
Gold Road Resources Ltd (ASX: GOR)	(14.36%)
Nufarm Limited (ASX: NUF)	(8.7%)
Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME)	(8%)
TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPM)	(7.2%)

Gold Road Resources claims this week’s wooden spoon with a near-15% loss. ASX gold miners were smashed across the board last week as the price of the yellow metal drifted below US$1,700 an ounce. Gold can be a favoured asset in troubled times, but positive investor sentiment and increased appetite for risk often see the precious metal left at the altar.

Joining the pity party was Nufarm. Investors have been less than impressed with this chemical manufacturer company of late and sent the shares packing again this week. Perhaps, over concerns, that the company will struggle in a post-COVID world. NUF said.

An interesting and rare appearance by TPG Telecom in the ASX 200 losers column is also worth a mention this week. TPG shares have had a stellar year after its Vodafone merger was approved and the company announced plans of a special dividend for its patient investors a few weeks ago. It’s likely that there were a few investors keen to get some profits off the table last week, as the shares are still up ~17% year to date.

Now the losers have been put out of their misery, let’s have a look at last week’s winners:

Best ASX 200 gainers	% gain for the week
Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS)	38.49%
Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (ASX: URW)	31.5%
Adbri Ltd (ASX: ABC)	27.57%
Perenti Global Ltd (ASX: PRN)	23.53%

Leading the winners last week was lithium miner Pilbara, whose shares shot up an incredible 38.49% last week, with a 22.41% gain on Friday. Despite this dramatic move, there was no real news out of the company last week. This suggests the possibility that a major ASX fundie bet big on Pilbara last week or, perhaps, a major short-seller cashed out their position. Either way, Pilbara shareholders had a nice start to their long weekend.

Also making the list was Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield. This shopping centre operator has benefitted from rising sentiment in recent weeks as shopping centres start to reopen after coronavirus-induced lockdowns.

What is this week looking like for the ASX 200?

It’s looking like another great week for ASX 200 shares this week. New Zealand’s exciting announcement over the weekend that the country has successfully beaten back the coronavirus might give the ASX 200 another boost. Over in the United States, the sentiment is also riding high. Friday night saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average rise more than 3% to crash through 27,000 points for the first time since early March. The US markets have a huge hand in directing our own ASX, so this is likely to add to the goodwill sloshing around Aussie markets if continued.

Before we go, here’s how the ASX 200 blue chips are looking at the dawn of a new week:

And finally, here is the lay of the land for some leading market indicators:

•     S&P/ASX 200 (XJO) at 5,998.7 points
•     All Ordinaries (XAO) at 6,116.5 points
•     Dow Jones Industrial Average at 27,110.98 points
•     Gold (Spot) swapping hands for US$1,683.65 per troy ounce
•     Iron ore asking US$100.26 per tonne
•     Crude oil (Brent) trading at US$42.3 per barrel
•     Crude oil (WTI) going for US$39.55 per barrel
•     Australian dollar buying 69.68 US cents
•    10-year Australian Government bonds yielding 1.09% per annum

Foolish takeaway

Whilst I’m as glad as the next investor to see such strong sentiment on the share market, I’m also not ready to call the end of the volatility that 2020 has brought in spades for ASX 200 shares. Sure, the markets have just notched up five straight weeks of gains with a sixth seemingly already in the spout. But I still think a prudent and cautious approach toward these new highs is certainly warranted.

But until we know for sure with the full benefits of hindsight, stay safe, stay rational and stay Foolish!

More reading

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• ‘Westpac share price undervalued’, says analyst
• Cheap ASX 200 retail shares to buy today
• 3 high quality ASX dividend shares you can buy today
• These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares

Sebastian Bowen owns shares of National Australia Bank Limited, Newcrest Mining Limited, and Telstra Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Pro Medicus Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Macquarie Group Limited, Pro Medicus Ltd., and Telstra Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of COLESGROUP DEF SET, Transurban Group, Wesfarmers Limited, and Woolworths 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 ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX bulls crash through 6,000 points appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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The Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price has risen by over 25% in the two weeks since Monday, 22 May. This has been the share’s longest consecutive rise in value since the market low point on 23 March. In total, the Westpac share price has risen by 33% from that point to last Friday.

With the ASX expected to open strongly after the drop in US unemployment figures, I believe the Westpac share price will continue to improve its year to date performance.  

Why did the Westpac share price rise?

All four of the big banks have seen similar rises. Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ASX: ANZ) has led the charge with a share price rise of 29.8% over the same period. Positive news in relation to the reopening of the economy has helped this rise. However, respected UBS analyst Jonathan Mott also had an impact with a very positive outlook for banks in the near term. 

Noting how bank shares had underperformed, on Friday Mr Mott doubled down on his optimism placing ‘buy’ ratings on both Westpac and NAB. Over the past month, Morgan’s analyst Azib Khan was also very bullish on the prospects for the Westpac share price. As was Nathan Zaia who, on the Nabtrade website, valued Westpac at $25 per share in early May.

This is a 33% premium to Friday’s closing price of $18.79 and would take it past its position on 1 January this year. 

Dark clouds on the horizon

Alan Kohler reported Monday that deferred loans totalled $224 billion or 90% of the equity capital of the four major banks. Current estimates calculate loan impairments for Westpac rising to 0.5% for the next two years. Up from charges as low as 0.1% of loans over the last three years.

Westpac is of course also embroiled in the money laundering scandal. The company released a very unflattering statement to the ASX on 4 June revealing the outcomes of its internal review. Westpac CEO, Mr Peter King said “While the compliance failures were serious, the problems were faults of omission. There was no evidence of intentional wrongdoing,”.

The financial crimes regulator, AUSTRAC, lodged a reply document in court on Friday dismissing Westpac’s defence in May.

Foolish takeaway

Westpac has changed its CEO and Chairman since the money laundering scandal broke last year. The share price has risen by 25% in the past two weeks and I believe it will see an increase in line with the broader market. If you purchased Westpac shares at Friday’s close, you would lock in a price that has a trailing twelve-month dividend yield of 9.26%, although the decision on the dividend payment has been deferred. 

Westpac definitely has some rough road ahead of it however I believe it to be a very sound company with the new management in place. If you are willing to ride through these rough patches, then I feel Friday’s close is a good entry point for an investment over the medium to long term. 

More reading

• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX bulls crash through 6,000 points
• Is the Macquarie share price the best ASX bank to buy?
• Top brokers name 3 ASX 200 shares to buy next week
• Forget term deposits and buy these high yield ASX dividend shares
• ASX 200 closes higher, banks keep rising

Motley Fool contributor Daryl Mather has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. 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 ‘Westpac share price undervalued’, says analyst appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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ASX 200 retail shares have been some of the hardest hit in 2020. The coronavirus pandemic saw many stores shut down as tight government restrictions came into place.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is down 10.91% this year and many Aussie retailers have lost billions in value.

However, there are indications that the tide could be turning. Here are a couple of my top ASX 200 retail shares to watch ahead of a potential recovery in June.

Cheap ASX 200 retail shares to buy today

I think JB Hi-Fi Limited (ASX: JBH) shares could be in the buy zone. JB Hi-Fi has benefitted from the remote working arrangements put in place across much of corporate Australia.

Aussies have flocked to JB Hi-Fi’s online stores to deck out their working from home setups. That means more sales of computers, TVs, monitors and other accessories in 2020.

The ASX 200 retail share is up 5.27% this year but I think it could climb even higher. If we see more companies remain with a remote working model, that could boost JB Hi-Fi’s sales even higher.

I also think Super Retail Group Ltd (ASX: SUL) is worth a look right now. Super Retail is one of Australasia’s top 10 retailers with over 670 retail stores and more than 12,000 team members.

The Aussie retailer owns a number of well-known brands including BCF, Rebel, Macpac, and Supercheap Auto. While sales may have seen a slump, I think the relaxation of restrictions could be a good thing for the ASX 200 retail share.

More Aussies could be looking to get out and about. That might be buying more gym equipment from Rebel or outdoor gear from Macpac and BCF.

The Super Retail share price is down 16.34% this year, but could be set to boom if we see strong earnings in August.

More reading

• These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares
• 3 quality ASX 200 shares to buy and hold until at least 2030
• ASX shares could be the best way to grow your wealth in 2020
• 10 ASX 200 shares that are fit for the Queen
• Is the Macquarie share price the best ASX bank to buy?

Motley Fool contributor Ken Hall has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Super Retail Group 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 Cheap ASX 200 retail shares to buy today appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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