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The Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) share price is falling amid news spiking COVID-19 cases are hampering the airline during one of its busiest periods.

The airline admitted the virus’ spread saw a high number of flights delayed or cancelled last week during the winter school holidays. And the airline’s still battling the impacts this week.

However, Qantas disputes a union’s claim that flight cancellations were related to staff shortages and poor management.

At the time of writing, the Qantas share price is $4.35, 1.36% lower than its previous close.

For comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is currently down 1.69%.

Let’s take a closer look at the latest news from Australia’s national airline.

Qantas struggles through school holidays

The Qantas share price is in the red on Thursday amid news 15% of the company’s domestic flights were cancelled or delayed by more than an hour last week as Australian families travelled in the school holiday period.

The airline said its struggles were born from rising COVID-19 and influenza cases, as well as severe weather in NSW. And while it says conditions have improved this week, cases are still rising among staff.

It’s also preparing to fly 350,000 Australians across the nation over the next four days as school holidays come to an end in NSW, ACT, and WA. In a statement released today Qantas said:

Our on time performance isn’t where it needs to be but we’re continuing to make changes and are confident that we’ll continue to improve and get back to the levels we were pre-COVID.

To do so, it’s using larger planes normally reserved for international routes to carry domestic passengers this weekend. It has also placed more staff on standby.

However, some believe the airline is at fault for the chaos. The Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers’ Association (ALAEA) is said to blame flight cancellations on staff shortages and poor management.

Qantas has hit back at such claims, saying spreading illnesses and a tight labour market are impacting other domestic and international airlines too.

Qantas share price snapshot

The Qantas share price is struggling on the ASX this year.

It has fallen nearly 15% since the start of 2022.

It’s also currently 6% lower than it was this time last year.

The post Qantas share price slips amid COVID’s continuing toll   appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Own ASX travel shares? Here’s the outlook for FY23
• Here are the top 10 ASX shares today
• Here’s why the Qantas share price is taking off today
• ASX 200 travel shares slide amid travel chaos and cancellations
• How did ASX 200 travel shares go in FY22?

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper 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.

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The WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) share price is leaping higher today.

This comes after the company just dropped upgraded its latest release revealing an upgraded guidance for the 2022 financial year.

At the time of writing, shares in the logistics solutions company are up 7.22% at $45.75.

What did WiseTech announce?

The WiseTech share price is on the move today after the company reported a positive update on the ASX.

In its release, WiseTech advised that it expects FY22 revenue to be at the top end of its $600 million to $635 million guidance range. This represents a growth of 18% – 25% on FY21’s revenue of $507.5 million.

In addition, the FY22 EBITDA range received a bump up from its previous guidance of $275 million to $295 million.

Due to strong top line growth and cost efficiencies, FY22 EBITDA is now forecasted to be between $310 million and $320 million.

When comparing against the $206.7 million achieved in FY21, this reflects a sizeable increase of around 50% – 55%.

The company stated that it will release its full year audited results on 24 August 2022.

Management commentary

Richard White, founder and CEO of WiseTech, touched on the company’s result, saying:

We are upgrading our FY22 guidance, with our performance reflecting the resilience of the WiseTech business model and strategy through the cycle.

Our product led approach and focus on our 3P strategy has enabled us to continue to deliver strong top line growth and drive significant operating leverage.

About the WiseTech share price

Over the past 12 months, the WiseTech share price has gained 40% despite moving in circles throughout the year.

Market volatility amid soaring inflationary movements and rate hikes appears to have weighed on the company’s shares.

During June, the company’s shares fell to a near 52-week low of $34.11 before quickly rebounding in the following weeks.

It’s worth noting that WiseTech shares are 30% off their all-time high of $60.40 reached in December 2021.

The company commands a market capitalisation of roughly $13.59 billion.

The post WiseTech share price leaps 7% higher following upgraded guidance appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• What I’d do with 3 ASX shares that have plunged this year: expert
• ‘Pretty attractive’: Expert reveals 3 ASX shares to buy right now
• Has a turnaround already begun for ASX tech shares? Experts reveal the outlook for FY23
• Broker gives its verdict on the WiseTech share price
• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended WiseTech Global. 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 Jumbo Interactive Ltd (ASX: JIN) share price is sinking on Friday morning following the release of the company’s preliminary full-year results.

At the time of writing, the lottery ticket seller’s shares are down 10% to $12.97.

Jumbo share price tumbles after results miss expectations

Here’s a summary of how it performed during FY 2022 (unaudited):

• Total Transaction Value up 36% to $660.1 million
• Revenue up 27% to $103.8 million
• Underlying EBITDA up 14% to $54.0 million
• Underlying NPAT up 16% to $31.6 million

How does this compare to expectations?

While this looks pretty good on paper, as you might have guessed from the Jumbo share price performance, this was short of expectations.

For example, consensus estimates reveal that the market was expecting revenue of $107.01 million, EBITDA of $56.41 million, and net profit of $33.29 million.

Management commentary

Jumbo’s CEO and founder, Mike Veverka, was pleased with the company’s performance in FY 2022. He said:

We are very pleased with the strong growth that we have achieved in FY22 off the back of an improved jackpot cycle. FY22 has been a pivotal year for Jumbo as we build the foundations to successfully execute on our global growth strategy. Lottery Retailing is exceptionally well positioned to benefit from the ongoing shift to digital and the new OzLotto game launched in May 2022 while the integration of Stride and StarVale will help us build scale in our Managed Services and SaaS segments globally.

The domestic jackpot environment remains supportive with 43 Powerball/OzLotto jackpots greater than or equal to $15 million in FY22, compared to 38 in FY21, with the average value of these jackpots up 28%. 2H22 benefitted from a $120 million Powerball jackpot in February 2022, the first jackpot greater than $100 million since September 2019. This however was followed by significantly lower jackpot activity in March and April 2022, with peak monthly Jackpots of $20 million, before increasing to $80 million and $60 million in May and June respectively.

FY 2023 outlook

While no guidance has been provided for FY 2023, management has given the market an idea of what lies ahead.

This includes an increase in its cost of goods sold due to its Lottery Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLC) service fee rising from 2.5% to 3.5%.

Excluding this, underlying operating cost growth is anticipated to moderate, with Jumbo targeting an increase of 20% to 22%. This compares to 32% growth in FY 2022. This is expected to lead to its underlying EBITDA margin falling slightly to 48% to 50% from 52% in FY 2022.

In respect to sales, as always, jackpots remain a significant driver of Lottery Retailing ticket sales. As a result, there is uncertainty as to the exact number and aggregate value of large jackpots and thus its sales.

The post Jumbo share price sinks 10% on FY22 earnings miss appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 2 appealing ASX All Ords growth shares getting discounted today
• Players gonna play: 3 ASX shares set for a strong reporting season

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 Jumbo Interactive Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Jumbo Interactive Limited. 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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If you’re searching for dividend shares to add to your income portfolio, then the two listed below could be top options.

Analysts have rated these dividend shares as buys and are forecasting attractive yields in the coming years. Here’s what you need to know about these dividends shares:

Accent Group Ltd (ASX: AX1)

The first ASX dividend share to consider is Accent. It is the owner of a growing portfolio of footwear focused store brands including Athlete’s Foot, HYPEDC, Pivot, Platypus, Sneaker Lab, and Stylerunner.

It has unfortunately been a tough year for Accent due to lockdowns and now rising living costs and softer consumer spending. This has seen investors sell down the company’s shares, leaving them trading close to their 52-week low.

The team at Bell Potter appears to see this as a buying opportunity. Its analysts believe investors should focus on the long term due to its “dominant market share in the Australian footwear retailing industry and growth outlook in the youth focused sports apparel.”

The broker currently has a buy rating and $2.20 price target on the company’s shares.

In respect to dividends, Bell Potter has pencilled in a fully franked dividend of 5.8 cents per share in FY 2022 and then 10.7 cents per share in FY 2023. Based on the current Accent share price of $1.39, this will mean yields of 4.2% and 7.7%, respectively.

Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES)

Another ASX dividend share that could be in the buy zone is this conglomerate.

Wesfarmers is the company behind a range of businesses such as Bunnings, Catch, Covalent Lithium, Kmart, Officeworks, and Priceline.

Although inflation and rising living costs are likely to be putting pressure on its retail businesses, the team at Morgans remains very positive. In fact, its analysts are optimistic the company will be able to navigate the tough retail environment due to its value offering. The broker thinks “Kmart is well-placed to benefit with the average price of an item at around $6-7.”

In light of this, its analysts have put an add rating and $58.40 price target on its shares.

As for dividends, Morgans is forecasting fully franked dividends per share of $1.65 in FY 2022 and $1.81 in FY 2023. Based on the current Wesfarmers share price of $45.51, this will mean yields of 3.6% and 4%, respectively.

The post Why analysts say these excellent ASX dividend shares are buys appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• How much have Wesfarmers shares paid in dividends over the last 5 years?
• Broker names 2 more blue chip ASX 200 shares to buy in July
• What’s the outlook for the Wesfarmers share price over the rest of 2022?
• Does the FY23 outlook make ASX retail shares look like bargains?
• 2 top ASX dividend shares that analysts rate as buys

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 positions in and has recommended Wesfarmers Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Accent Group. 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 AVZ Minerals Ltd (ASX: AVZ) share price was scheduled to return to trade on Friday after being suspended for over two months.

However, once again, the lithium developer has requested that its shares remain offline.

What’s going on with the AVZ share price?

The AVZ share price has been out of action since 9 May while it sorts out an ownership dispute relating to the Manono Lithium Project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

It is battling a proceeding relating to what it describes as the “meritless claim that La Congolaise D’Exploitation Miniere SA (Cominière) has transferred a 15% interest in Dathcom Mining SA (Dathcom) to Jin Cheng.” Dathcom is the owner of the mining licence for the Manono Lithium Project.

There are concerns that AVZ could be left owning 60% of Dathcom if things don’t go to plan. But that’s before the proposed sale of a 24% stake to Suzhou CATH Energy Technologies. If that also goes ahead, the company could end up with just a 36% interest in Dathcom and the Manono Lithium Project.

What are they fighting over?

The Manono Lithium Project is located 500km north of Lubumbashi in the south of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is home to the Roche Dure Mineral Resource, which is believed to be one of the largest undeveloped hard rock lithium deposits in the world.

Despite being a long way from any decent infrastructure, the company believes it is strategically positioned as a clean, sustainable source of lithium. Management also believes it could significantly contribute to the green energy transition and feed the global lithium-ion battery value chain.

Once operational, initial production is expected to be 700,000 tonnes per annum of lithium spodumene concentrate with 6% lithium oxide content (SC6) and 46,000 tonnes per annum of primary lithium sulphate.

As a comparison, Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) is targeting production of 373,000 to 377,000 dmt of spodumene concentrate in FY 2022.

What’s the latest?

This morning the company requested that its suspension continue until 29 July. It commented:

The Company regrets that the voluntary suspension period has lasted longer than was intended. During this period, the Company has been actively engaged with the highest levels of the Government with respect to the grant of the Mining Licence and an update regarding its exploration rights for the Manono Project.

Whilst the Company remains confident of a positive outcome, it will be necessary to continue the period of voluntary suspension as the subject of the initial trading halt request remains incomplete.

Drilling resumes

In other news, AVZ revealed that diamond drilling is recommencing at the Manono Project with the objective of significantly increasing lithium resources and reserves at Roche Dure.

AVZ’s Managing Director, Nigel Ferguson, said:

Given the imperatives around sourcing battery minerals for the global green-energy transition and in line with our February 2022 announcement of funding of a drilling program as part of our Early Works Program, I am pleased to confirm that drilling has recommenced at Roche Dure.

Drilling at the north-east end of the known orebody, in areas previously inaccessible due to surface water, is aimed at significantly increasing the known lithium-rich ore resources in this area. This will underpin our future plans to extend the stated mine life at Manono, should this drilling campaign prove to be successful.

The post What’s going on with the AVZ share price? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• Why did the AVZ share price thump the market in FY22?
• Guess which 2 ASX shares were the best and worst All Ordinaries performers of FY22
• The AVZ Minerals share price went nowhere in June. Here’s why
• ASX 200 midday update: Regis Resources jumps, BHP and Rio Tinto drop

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.

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Despite falling 16.5% so far in 2022, the JB Hi-Fi Limited (ASX: JBH) share price has gained modest value over the past five years — up by almost 65%.

The retailer’s shares hit an all-time high of $56.85 on 30 March but have since tumbled due to extreme market volatility and negative sentiment.

Investors have expressed their concerns about a possible recession due to high inflation levels and rate hikes by the Reserve Bank.

For context, the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) is down by 21% this year.

Nevertheless, while the JB Hi-Fi share price trades near 52-week lows, have the dividends been worthwhile over the long term?

JB Hi-Fi dividend history

Regardless of the company’s recent share price weakness, the JB Hi-Fi board has continued to increase its dividends to shareholders.

Below, we take a look at the past five years’ worth of dividends from JB Hi-Fi.

• September 2017 – 46 cents (final)

• March 2018 – 86 cents (interim)

• September 2018 – 46 cents (final)

• March 2019 – 91 cents (interim)

• September 2019 – 51 cents (final)

• March 2020 – 99 cents (interim)

• September 2020 – 90 cents (final)

• March 2021 – $1.80 (interim)

• September 2021 – $1.07 (final)

• March 2022 – $1.63 (interim).

Calculating the above JB Hi-Fi dividends since 2017 gives us a total figure of $9.59 for every share owned. That’s almost a quarter of the value of JB Hi-Fi’s last traded share price – $40.77.

Even without factoring in the 63.7% capital gain delivered to investors since 2017, the JB Hi-Fi dividend has shown its worth – particularly since 2021.

JB Hi-Fi share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, JB Hi-Fi shares have lost 15% following tough macroenvironmental conditions.

JB Hi-Fi has a dividend yield of 6.62% which is one of the highest yields for an ASX 200 company.

In terms of market capitalisation, the company is valued at approximately $4.45 billion.

The post Has the JB Hi-Fi dividend been worthwhile in the past 5 years? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Does the FY23 outlook make ASX retail shares look like bargains?
• Why did the JB Hi-Fi share price fall more than 20% in FY22?
• Down 16% in June: What put the JB Hi-Fi share price on sale?
• Why are ASX 200 retail shares getting bought up today?
• How did ASX 200 retail shares perform in June?

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

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The Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) share price will be on watch this morning.

This follows the release of the mining giant’s second-quarter production update.

What did Rio Tinto report?

For the three months ended 30 June, Rio Tinto reported iron ore shipments of 79.9Mt. This was up 5% over the prior corresponding period and 12% quarter on quarter.

The good news for the Rio Tinto share price is that this was ahead of expectations. For example, Goldman Sachs was expecting quarterly iron ore shipments of 78.7Mt and the consensus estimate was for 79.3Mt.

This took Rio Tinto’s first-half iron shipments to 151.4Mt, which is down 2% over the prior corresponding period. This was driven by skilled labour supply constraints, COVID-19 disruptions, first quarter delays of mine replacement projects, and significantly higher than average rainfall in May.

What else?

Rio Tinto also reported a 4% quarter on quarter increase in bauxite production to 14.1Mt, a 1% lift in mined copper production to 126kt, and a 1% decline in aluminium production to 731kt.

This is a mixed result compared to Goldman’s forecast of 13.8Mt, 137kt, and 755kt, respectively.

Guidance

Despite warning that it is currently experiencing elevated levels of unplanned absences at its Pilbara operations due to COVID-19 case spikes in Western Australia, the mining giant has left its FY 2022 iron ore shipments guidance unchanged at 320Mt to 335Mt.

It has also left its bauxite production guidance unchanged at 54Mt to 57Mt and its copper production guidance unchanged at 500kt to 575kt.

However, it has been forced to downgrade its alumina production range to 7.6Mt to 7.8Mt (from 8Mt to 8.4Mt) and aluminium production by 0.1Mt to 3Mt to 3.1Mt.

Positively, the company’s Pilbara iron ore 2022 unit cost guidance of US$19.5 to US$21 per tonne remains unchanged. As does its copper C1 unit cost guidance of 130-150 US cents/lb.

Though, it has warned that higher rates of inflation have increased its closure liabilities and impacted its underlying earnings. In the first half, this resulted in increased charges of approximately US$400 million pre-tax within underlying earnings compared with the first half of 2021, including a US$300 million increase in amortisation of discount, with the remainder impacting underlying EBITDA.

Management commentary

Rio Tinto’s chief executive, Jakob Stausholm, appeared pleased with the quarter. He commented:

We strengthened our operational performance at a number of sites, which we will now replicate across the portfolio.

We made progress against our four objectives during the first half and we are determined to further strengthen Rio Tinto while investing to grow in the commodities needed for the energy transition, decarbonise our portfolio, be a partner and employer of choice, maintain our tight capital allocation and continue to pay attractive dividends.

The post Rio Tinto share price on watch after stronger than expected iron ore shipments appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• Own Rio Tinto shares? The company’s leaning into demand for this high-value metal
• These ASX 200 mining shares are bolstering the market today
• Why did the Rio Tinto and BHP share price struggle today?
• Here’s the outlook for the Rio Tinto share price in FY23

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.

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What a rollercoaster it has been for the Zip Co Ltd (ASX: ZIP) share price.

After hitting a record high of $14.53 in February 2021, shares in the embattled buy now, pay later (BNPL) company are down big time.

Just last month, investors shook their heads in disbelief as the Zip share price hit a multi-year low of 43.5 cents. To put that into perspective, it’s a 95% loss from the same time last year.

Since then, the company’s shares have recovered some ground to finish at 54 cents at yesterday’s market close.

Investors appear to have liked the decision not to proceed with the Sezzle acquisition, with the Zip share price up 8% since the announcement on Tuesday.

Zip share price volatility amid market turmoil

Extreme volatility on the back of inflationary movements and rate hikes has put selling pressure on the Zip share price.

For context, the S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) has shed almost 10% in 2022 following the broader sell-off.

A perfect storm of the above macroenvironmental factors is causing havoc with investors running for the hills.

It appears there are particular concerns about Zip’s books and whether there is an upside for the BNPL industry.

In the company’s FY22 first-half results, management reported a staggering loss before tax of $214.2 million for the period.

This was despite revenue increasing by 89% to $302.2 million, underpinned by growth in transaction volumes.

However, the spotlight on Zip’s bad debts and credit losses seems to be weighing down investor sentiment.

This metric stood at $148.3 million compared to the $29.5 million written off in H1 FY21 – a 402.7% increase.

Cash on hand also dwindled by 19% to $266.8 million.

Whether or not management can turn around the company’s fortunes remains to be seen.

Some experts are anticipating that the BNPL sector will fall further this year as tighter regulation looms.

The Australian Government wants to treat BNPL products the same as other credit products.

If adopted, this would likely put a financial strain on Zip’s balance sheet as extra lending checks would need to be ticked off.

What do the brokers think?

Despite the current economic climate and possible regulation, some brokers believe the Zip share price is undervalued.

According to ANZ Share Investing, Morgans cut its price target by 32% to 86 cents apiece on the BNPL’s shares.

On the other hand, Jefferies had a more bearish outlook, massively chopping its rating on Zip by 62% to a share price target of 38 cents.

Factoring in the above, while Zip shares have slightly rebounded for now, further falls could be on the way. Especially if the government’s plan to close the loophole in the national credit code succeeds.

The post Has the Zip share price finally hit rock bottom? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Is the Zip share price going to take off?
• What’s the outlook for ASX BNPL shares in FY23?
• Sezzle shares plunge another 16%, now down 60% in a week
• ASX 200 midday update: ANZ confirms MYOB talks, energy shares fall
• Are falling BNPL shares pushing the ASX banks higher today?

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended ZIPCOLTD FPO. 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.

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The Adairs Ltd (ASX: ADH) share price could be an opportunity ripe for the picking, according to experts.

It has been a tough time for the ASX retail share which has lost more than 40% in value over 2022 to date.

However, one expert feels that the fall has been too hard and now the company is an opportunity.

There’s no way of truly knowing what is going to happen next on the share market unless you have a crystal ball. Mine isn’t working at the moment.

But, as investors, we have to decide whether opportunities are good value and worth pursuing, or not.

UBS is a broker that sees substantial upside for the Adairs share price over the next year.

Broker rating on the Adairs share price

UBS rates Adairs a buy with a share price target of $3.70. That implies a possible rise of over 60% if the broker ends up being right.

Why does the broker see so much potential growth? A key part of the investment thesis is the cheap price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio. That’s the multiple of earnings that the Adairs share price is valued at.

At the current Adairs share price, UBS thinks it’s valued at around eight times FY23 estimated earnings.

However, the broker does acknowledge that the wider economic impacts of rising inflation and interest rates could hurt Adairs’ revenue and profit. Profit margins may settle at a lower level.

But, not every expert is convinced. Morgans recently shifted its rating to hold, on expectations of a tough retail environment because Aussies will have less money to spend on the products that Adairs sells.

Even so, Morgans also thinks that Adairs has a low P/E valuation and it could pay a pretty large dividend. Morgans’ numbers put the Adairs share price at seven times FY23 estimated earnings with a potential grossed-up dividend yield of 11.3%.

What’s Adairs working on?

The Adairs share price could be influenced by some of the retailer’s business plans for FY23 and beyond.

They recently acquired the Focus on Furniture business, giving Adairs greater access to the bulky furniture category (an $8 billion market). It plans a store rollout, online growth, and category and range expansion.

For the Adairs brand, the company wants to grow its store count and upsize some stores, expand its membership numbers, and broaden its range.

With Mocka, the online furniture business, Adairs wants to increase brand awareness, grow its range, and add a physical presence.

In FY23, Adairs will be cycling against periods of FY22 when there were lockdowns.

What is next?

Unless the business reveals a trading update or something else before earnings season, the next major update should be the FY22 result and probably a trading update for the first few weeks of FY23.

Adairs share price snapshot

Over the past month, the Adairs share price has risen by 33%. This compares with an 0.93% rise in the S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO).

The post Why the Adairs share price could be a bargain in FY23 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Does the FY23 outlook make ASX retail shares look like bargains?
• What were some of the key lessons for ASX investors in FY22?
• What caused the Adairs share price to halve in FY22?
• Why did the Adairs share price fall 18% in June?
• Best ASX shares to buy in July 2022

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison 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 ADAIRS FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended ADAIRS FPO. 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 Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ) share price has dropped by around 15% since 30 May. It closed yesterday’s session down 2.23% to $21.93.

How are things looking for 2023?

The 2022 financial year has just finished for most businesses and individuals, however, ANZ has a different financial calendar that ends on 30 September.

While ANZ’s FY22 may not have finished, it could be a useful idea to think about what could happen in the short to medium term for the bank.

ANZ is one of the big four ASX banks alongside Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB), and Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC).

However, just because it’s a big four bank doesn’t mean that it can’t suffer sizeable share price falls and be impacted by the wider economic environment.

Let’s look at what could happen over the next year.

Acquisition talk 

In just the past few days, ANZ confirmed that it was in discussions with private equity group KKR about potentially buying the accounting software business MYOB. ANZ told the market that it hasn’t reached an agreement yet with KKR and there is no certainty it will proceed.

However, if it did it is possible that it could help ANZ’s business division by working more closely with business customers.

Another acquisition that ANZ is interested in is the banking division of Suncorp Group Ltd (ASX: SUN), according to reporting by the Australian Financial Review (AFR).

ANZ reportedly has a team talking to Suncorp about its banking division, which could potentially be put up for sale. The deal could add “scale at a time when it has struggled to catch up to its larger rivals.”

How much scale? It would add $60 billion in customer loans, with around 80% of that being mortgages. It would also geographically add more exposure for ANZ to the markets of Queensland and NSW.

What’s dragging on the ANZ share price?

ANZ and other banks have seen their share prices drop after the latest moves by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) to increase interest rates.

It may be strange to see that the banks are suffering when lower interest rates were supposedly hurting their profitability.

As Macquarie and other brokers have pointed out, while higher interest rates should help the banks’ net interest margins (NIM), the problem is that if interest rates go too high too quickly, it could lead to rising arrears and bad debts, which would detract from profits.

What are the brokers‘ thoughts on the ANZ share price?

A price target indicates where a broker thinks a share price will be in 12 months from now.

Macquarie currently rates ANZ as neutral with a price target of $23.50. As mentioned, it’s concerned about potential impairments and how higher interest rates will impact growth.

The broker Morgan Stanley is currently equal weight on the big four ASX bank, with a share price target of $24.30. It also recognises that bad debts are likely to increase.

However, Ord Minnett is more positive on the bank with a price target of $28.30. It’s positive about the prospect of a rising NIM.

All of these brokers are expecting sizeable dividends from ANZ.

For example, Ord Minnett has projected a grossed-up dividend yield of almost 10% in FY23.

The post What’s the outlook for the ANZ share price in 2023? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Analysts name 2 ASX dividend shares to buy with 5%+ yields
• Why might ASX-listed ANZ want to snap up MYOB?
• Surprise US inflation pumps the brakes on ASX 200 bank shares
• What’s the outlook in FY23 for ASX 200 bank shares?
• ASX 200 midday update: ANZ confirms MYOB talks, energy shares fall

JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison 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 recommended Macquarie Group Limited and Westpac Banking Corporation. 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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