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The Insignia Financial Ltd (ASX: IFL) share price is bucking the broader market sell-off today, currently up 0.78%.

Insignia shares closed yesterday trading at $3.86 and are now swapping hands for $3.89 apiece. However, earlier in the day they were up as high as $3.95.

For comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is down 2.39% at the time of writing.

Below we look at the highlights from the ASX financial services company’s results for the half-year ending 31 December (1H FY22).

This is the first time the company, formerly IOOF Holdings, is reporting under its new name.

Insignia share price gains on improving outlook

• Underlying net profit after tax (UNPAT) of $117.9 million, up 79% from the previous corresponding period
• Net profit after tax (NPAT) was $36.2 million, down 33% from 1H FY22
• Gross margin increased 122% year-on-year to $778 million (includes a 6-month contribution from MLC)
• Interim dividend of 11.8 cents per share, fully franked, up 3% from 1H FY21
• Dividend reinvestment plan introduced with 1.5% discount

What else happened during the half?

Funds under management (FUMA) were $325.8 billion during 1H FY22, up $7.1 billion. Insignia said that growth was driven by strong market returns.

The Insignia share price could be getting a lift after the company noted an “encouraging improvement in net flows during the second quarter”. There was a $2.3 billion quarter-on-quarter improvement in net flows in the Q2 of FY22, with total net outflows falling to $20 million.

With its integration with MLC running ahead of schedule, the company said it achieved cumulative annualised savings of $122 million, with annualised savings of $66 million achieved in 1H FY22.

The decline in NPAT was due to a $35 million increase in integration and funding costs.

The interim dividend is payable on 1 April. Insignia has introduced a dividend reinvestment plan with a 1.5% discount.

What did management say?

Commenting on the results, Insignia’s CEO, Renato Mota said:

The financial results for our first full six-months of MLC ownership are strong, with significant improvement in UNPAT and revenues, and we have executed on our strategic priorities whilst continuing to simplify our business and deliver improved client outcomes.

Our focus over the half has been the integration of MLC, the simplification of platforms, including completion of the migration on to our proprietary Evolve technology, and our reshaping of the Advice business to ensure its long-term sustainability and profitability.

As part of this strategy, targeted product enhancement and repricing is now providing clients a more attractive product suite, while higher adviser education and governance standards and use of new technologies, provides an improved advice offer to our clients.

What’s next?

Looking ahead, Insignia reported it will remain focused on simplifying its operations and enhancing its product and service offerings.

“We are on track to deliver synergies of $100 to $120 million run-rate range by the end of June, and well on track to deliver the total cumulative synergy run-rate of $218 million of synergies by end of December 2022,” Mota said.

Insignia share price snapshot

The Insignia share price is up by almost 7% so far in 2022. It is also up by 13% over the past month and 14% over the past year.

For comparison, the ASX 200 has posted a year-to-date loss of more than 5% and is up almost 4% over the past 12 months.

The post Why the Insignia (ASX:IFL) share price is gaining today while the ASX 200 tanks appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• NextDC (ASX:NXT) share price climbs 5% on record results

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 Bruce Jackson.

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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.

What happened

When investors check their watch lists for daily price action in the crypto world, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH), and Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) are three of the top cryptocurrencies most often looked at for an idea of which direction the winds are blowing on a given day. As of noon ET today, these three top tokens have appreciated 2.6%, 4%, and 2.9%, respectively, over the past 24 hours. 

These strong moves higher are noteworthy for a few reasons. From a macro level, global macroeconomic uncertainty related to geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine remains high. As of noon ET, all three major indexes traded lower on these concerns. However, the crypto market overall has risen dramatically, driven by outperformance from these three top tokens.

Bitcoin received a boost from investor recognition that sanctions may be more limited against Russia than previously thought. Additionally, it appears crypto is receiving a boost from news that Russia may be removed from the SWIFT payment network, a move that could boost crypto transaction volumes in the near term.

Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin all also saw adoption pick up today. Sling TV announced that it would accept these three tokens, among others, for payment. News that a Dubai-based restaurant has opened with a Dogecoin theme also appears to have some investors excited. 

So what

The macro environment is starting to settle down, or at least investors appear to be better able to understand the risk-reward of crypto in the context of these concerns. Perhaps there’s an argument that can be made that economic sanctions could boost the value of these digital payment networks. Sometimes, bad news can be good news. Today, crypto investors appear to be interpreting the geopolitical environment as such.

Continued adoption of crypto via various corporate entities continues to drive a bullish long-term trend for investors keen on holding Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other more speculative tokens such as Dogecoin right now. Should adoption continue to increase, perhaps these near-term market-related headwinds will be an afterthought in short order.

Now what

To be sure, cryptocurrencies are likely to remain volatile assets to hold through these trying times. For top tokens such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, often thought to be among the most defensive cryptocurrencies, this holds true. For Dogecoin, this volatility risk is obviously elevated further. Accordingly, these digital assets remain risk-on trades that many investors may want to be careful with.

That said, the market appears to have an interesting take on the geopolitical issues we’re seeing right now. It’s entirely possible that investors could refocus on the crypto sector as a way for Russia, or other governments, to counteract the centralization in the global payments system. Whether this turns out to be a turning point for the market, or merely a small blip on a longer-term downtrend, remains to be seen. However, today’s price action is certainly intriguing to watch and warrants further investigation from investors. 

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

The post Sanctions are a good thing? Why Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin are recovering nicely today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Chris MacDonald owns Ethereum. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson. 

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

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The Ramsay Health Care Limited (ASX: RHC) share price is gaining after the release of the company’s results for the first half of financial year 2022.

At the time of writing, the Ramsay share price is $64.94, 0.59% higher than its previous close.

Ramsay share price rises despite profits slumping 29%

• Revenue of $6.68 billion – 1.2% higher than that of the first half of financial year 2021
• Earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) of $489.2 million – 16.2% lower
• Statutory profit of $158.9 million – down 29.7%
• Earnings per share (EPS) of 67.7 cents – a 30.1% fall on that of the prior comparable period
• 48.5 cent fully franked interim dividend declared ­– flat with the previous interim dividend

The first half was a rough period for Ramsay Health Care as COVID-19 outbreaks hampered its business.

Its lower profit reflects the impact of movement, isolation, and surgical restrictions.

As a result, the company believes its Australian business fronted $107 million of extra costs.

Additionally, non-recurring costs brought a $34.7 million loss last half, compared to a positive contribution of $43.4 million in the prior comparable period.

However, not including non-recurring items, the company’s profits before tax ended just 1.3% lower than the prior first half.

In the Asia Pacific region, Ramsay’s revenue increased 0.5% to $2.73 billion while its EBIT fell 5.9% to $285.4 million.

It was hit harder in the United Kingdom. There, the company’s revenue increased 6.7% to $512.9 million but its EBIT tumbled 173% to a loss of $35.6 million.

In Europe, the company’s revenue grew 2.8% to around $3.23 billion while its EBIT stayed above water at $239.4 million – a 3.3% increase.

It also put $91.1 million towards its Australian investment pipeline last half. It completed $164.3 million worth of projects including 136 beds, 3 theatres, and 5 consulting suites.

What else happened during the half?

The company announced its acquisition of United Kingdom-based hospital and care home operator Elysium Healthcare last half, though it was completed in January.

The acquisition cost it around $1.4 billion. The Ramsay share price fell 0.9% on the news.

Though, its purchase of Elysium wasn’t the only acquisition talk from the United Kingdom.

In July, Spire Healthcare shareholders voted against Ramsay’s proposed roughly-$1.9 billion takeover.

Despite the disappointing news, the Ramsay share price gained 0.6% on the back of failed acquisition.

What did management say?

Ramsay CEO & Managing Director Craig McNally commented on the company’s first half results, saying:

Our [financial year 2022] interim result has been severely impacted by further waves of COVID which have impeded surgical activity, increased costs, in particular staffing costs due to isolation orders, and resulted in lower non-surgical activity due to movement restrictions. We have continued to provide our facilities and services to governments in our regions to address the impact of the pandemic on the public system and this has been, in Australia in particular, at a significant cost to the business.

Despite the complex operating environment we have remained focused on pursuing our strategic vision, investing in growing, modernising and leveraging our world class hospital network and moving purposely into new and adjacent services.

What’s next?

The remainder of financial year 2022 might be tough for Ramsay, but it’s expecting better things for the future.

Business activitity over the second half is expected to stay volatile while costs are predicted to remain high. At the same time, COVID-19’s spread and staff vacancies will likely impact activity levels.

The company believes January brought $48 million of additional costs to its Australian business due to the Omicron outbreak.

Costs for additional staffing and PPE due to the pandemic are predicted to begin to drop over the coming months but remain in place in financial year 2023.

Additionally, a backlog of elective surgeries and services is expected to benefit the business.

In Australia, a ban on elective surgeries in Victoria and New South Wales over January and part of February will likely impact the company’s full year results. Similar restrictions are set to be put in place in Western Australia next month.

Cancellations due to the availability of staff, doctors, and patients might dampen the company’s United Kingdom business in the second half.

The company is continuing to focus on its investment in brownfield expansion and the reconfiguration of its existing facilities.

It expects total spend on its Australian development pipeline to be between $190 million and $230 million in financial year 2022.

Additionally, its full year results will include 5 months of contribution from Elysium.

Ramsay Health Care share price snapshot

2022 so far has been rough on the Ramsay share price.

It has fallen 9% since the start of this year. Though, it’s still 2% higher than it was this time last year.

The post Ramsay (ASX:RHC) share price gains as earnings ‘severely impacted’ by COVID appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 recommended Ramsay Health Care Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The NextDC Ltd (ASX: NXT) share price is in the green today on the back of the company’s half-year results and upgraded guidance.

At the time of writing, NextDC’s shares are swapping hands at $10.70 apiece, a 4.9% gain. In comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is down 2.21%.

Let’s take a look at what the data operator reported today.

NextDC share price jumps as revenue, profit lifts

Highlights of the company’s half-year (H1 FY22) results include:

• 19% increase in data centre services revenue on the prior corresponding half (pcp) to $144.5 million
• 29% boost in underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to $85 million
• Operating cash flow hiked 9% to $69.5 million
• Net profit after tax (NPAT) of $10.3 million, a 158% improvement on the $17.8 million net loss in the pcp
• Liquidity of $2.1 billion, including $1.4 billion of undrawn debt facilities.

What else happened in the half?

NextDC achieved this result due to a number of metrics including a 10% boost in customers on the pcp to 1,569. Interconnections also grew by 14% to 15,879, accounting for 7.3% of recurring revenue.

The company improved its contracted utilisation by 14% to 81 megawatts. Billing utilisation surged 25% to 71 megawatts.

In the first half of FY22, NextDC invested $260.7 million in capital development projects. The company also completed a $2.5 billion senior syndicated debt facility with better terms, extended tenor, and a lesser cost of debt.

NextDC continued to invest in its AXON customer connectivity platform. NextDC was named as one of just a few Amazon Web Services direct-connect high-capacity service delivery partners in the world.

The company reported a total of $2.9 billion in assets. This includes data centres in Melbourne, Sydney, Sunshine Coast, Darwin, Brisbane, Perth, and Canberra.

Management commentary

Commenting on the results boosting the NextDC share price, chief executive officer and managing director Craig Scroggie said:

We are pleased to deliver another record result in 1H22, with strong metrics across the business that now positions the company to provide upgraded earnings guidance for FY22.

NextDC’s leading national digital infrastructure platform continues to demonstrate strong growth and critical resilience as it continues to mature.

What’s next for NextDC?

NextDC has upgraded its guidance for FY22. The company predicts data services revenue between $290 and $295 million, up from $285 to $295 million.

Underlying EBITDA has also been upgraded to between $163 and $167 million, up from $160 to $165 million.

And capital expenditure has been upgraded to between $530 million and $580 million, up from $480 to $540 million.

Commenting on the future outlook, Scroggie added:

As a result of the strong 1H22 performance, the company is able to upgrade its FY22 guidance as well as accelerate project investments in 2H22.

With liquidity of over $2 billion, combined with record operating cash flow, NextDC is in an outstanding position to take advantage of current and future customer opportunities and to press its advantage into new regions and edge location.

NextDC share price summary

The NextDC share price has dived 5% in the past 12 months while it is down 17% year to date.

For perspective, the benchmark ASX 200 has returned around 4% over the past year.

NextDC has a market capitalisation of about $4.66 billion.

The post NextDC (ASX:NXT) share price climbs 5% on record results appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 Bruce Jackson.

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The Dusk Group Ltd (ASX: DSK) share price is falling this Thursday morning after the ASX homewares retailer reported its half-year earnings for the six months to 31 December 2021. Dusk shares opened at $2.59 apiece today but have plunged 4.63% at the time of writing to $2.47 a share. 

Dusk share price falls on lacklustre first half update

• Revenue from sales fell 12% over the half to $80 million. That was below the $90.9 million reported for the same half last year (1H20). But still above the $58.6 million recorded for 1H19 
• Pro forma earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) of $21.3 million. Tahat’s down from 1H21’s $28 million.
• Pro forma gross margin of 68%, a rise from last year’s 67.7% 
• Dusk’s online sales rose 2.8%, making up $7.7 million, or 9.7% of total sales 
• Store count up by 6 to 128 stores 
• Net cash of $33.3 million 
• Shareholders to receive an interim dividend of 10 cents per share, fully franked. That is flat on last year’s final dividend, but a 33% fall from the previous interim dividend of 15 cents per share 

What else happened in the first half?

Dusk stated that sales over the half were “adversely impacted” by the government-mandated lockdowns (and subsequent store closures) over the half across New South Wales, Victoria and the ACT. These shutdowns resulted in a loss of 4% of the half’s trading days.

On a positive note, Dusk reported that Dusk Rewards active members grew from 630,000 to 718,000 over the half, with Dusk Rewards members now accounting for 62% of sales, up from 59%.

This was the half where Dusk acquired candle company Eroma for $28 million. This acquisition was announced in mid-December. It saw the Dusk share price shoot meaningfully higher at the time. 

 What did management say?

Here’s some of what Dusk CEO Peter King had to say on these results:

Given the circumstances faced during the half, there is much to be pleased about in the overall result delivered, especially having regard to the fact we cycled exceptional LFL sales growth from the prior corresponding period. 

We remain focused on our customer and strategic priorities, and have made tangible progress on our growth strategies, including continued store roll out in Australia, preparing to commence operations in New Zealand, and the acquisition of Eroma.

What’s next?

Dusk also gave a trading update for the first eight weeks of the second half of FY2022. The company stated that “consumer sentiment continued to be soft and shopping centre foot traffic was sharply down” over this time. However, “our sales conversion rates and ATV remain up vs pcp”. 

For those eight weeks, total sales remain down 11.8% over the same period last year. In saying that, Dusk’s online sales are a pleasingly 19.4% above where they were last year. 

The company says that supply and distribution disruptions remain and that freight costs remain “elevated”, but inventory is healthy and the company is on track to open four new stores by Monther’s Day. 

Dusk share price snapshot

The Dusk share price has had a tough start to 2022 and remains down 22.2% year to date. The company is also down more than 14% over the past year, but up close to 45% since its IPO back in November 2020. 

At the current Dusk share price, this ASX retailer has a market capitalisation of $153.8 million, with a dividend yield of 8.1%. 

The post Dusk (ASX:DSK) share price slumps as revenues plunge 12% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen owns Dusk Group Limited. 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 Dusk Group Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Cimic Group Ltd (ASX: CIM) share price is entering the stratosphere during early morning trade on Thursday. This comes after the company announced a takeover approach from a leading German construction group.

At the time of writing, the Cimic share price is $22.01, up an astonishing 33.47%.

Cimic flys on takeover announcement

According to the release, Cimic advised that its majority shareholder, Hochtief Australia has made an off-market takeover offer.

Headquartered in Sydney, Hochtief Australia operates as a holding company for German construction major, Hochtief AG (FRA: HOT). The group provides construction, services, and concessions/public-private partnerships (PPP) focused on Australia, North America, and Europe.

The takeover offer is an unconditional and final cash offer of $22 per Cimic share that Hochtief does not own. Currently, the German group holds a 78.58% interest in Cimic.

Hochtief also lodged a copy of its bidder’s statement with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). This document, detailing all the information about the offer, is expected to be dispatched to Cimic shareholders about 9 March.

In response to the offer, the Cimic board has appointed an Independent Board Committee (IBC) to evaluate and respond to the takeover bid. Once a decision has been made, the IBC will update Cimic shareholders in due course. This will include an independent expert’s report on whether the offer represents good value for the company.

Cimic stated that its shareholders do not need to take any action at this point in time.

Cimic share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Cimic shares have been mostly tracking sideways until today’s takeover proposal announcement. Since then, the company’s shares have skyrocketed back to February 2021 levels.

Currently, the Cimic share price is 2% up on this time last year. But it’s more than 30% higher year-to-date due to today’s announcement.

Based on today’s price, Cimic presides a market capitalisation of $5.13 billion.

The post Cimic (ASX:CIM) share price explodes 33% higher following takeover approach appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 Bruce Jackson.

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The Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) share price is under pressure on Thursday.

In morning trade, the travel agent’s shares are down over 5% to $19.01 following the release of its half year results.

Flight Centre share price down after posting another large loss

• Total transaction value (TTV) up 112.9% over the prior corresponding period to $3.26 billion
• Revenue up 98.1% to $315.7 million
• Underlying EBITDA loss increased 18.3% to $184 million
• Underlying loss after tax up 4% to $188 million
• Balance sheet remains strong with $1.5 billion of cash and investments

What happened during the first half?

Flight Centre delivered a much-improved top line result during the six months ended 31 December. The travel agent more than doubled its TTV to $3.26 billion and almost doubled its revenue to $315.7 million.

Management notes that this reflects a significant rebound in sales immediately after the Delta spike in late August and early September, which led to COVID-period record gross TTV of $859 million in November. This rebound was short-lived, though, with the emergence of the Omicron variant hitting demand in December.

A highlight was its corporate business, which contributed about 60% of first half sales and organically increased TTV by almost 150% to $2.04 billion.

However, despite its solid top line growth, Flight Centre continues to post sizeable losses. In fact, its losses have increased year on year, with the company reporting an 18.3% increase in its EBITDA loss to $184 million. Management advised that this was driven partly by the prior corresponding period benefiting from $65 million of government subsidies.

Management commentary

Flight Centre’s Managing Director, Graham Turner, appears optimistic that the worst is now behind the company.

He commented: “After two years of lockdowns and heavy restrictions, we are now seeing the strongest indicators of a return to normalcy. Borders are now generally open and some governments, particularly in Europe, are starting to treat the virus as endemic.”

“Changes are happening at pace – we are seeing positive new developments relating to travel every day. Confidence in the recovery is building and momentum is taking off globally, as we are clearly seeing right now in both the corporate and leisure sectors and particularly in the three regions that materially drive our results – EMEA, the Americas and Australia.”

“There is, of course, some uncertainty around future variants and government responses to them, so we will continue to monitor developments,” he concludes.

Outlook

Management remains confident with the company’s pre-Omicron return to profit timetables and is continuing to target a return to monthly profitability in corporate and leisure during FY 2022.

Mr Turner commented: “The corporate business is now targeting profit in March-April and a return to PC [pre-COVID] TTV levels on a monthly basis during FY23, assuming client activity increases to circa 60-75% and with a significant contribution from our new accounts.”

“The global leisure business is expected to return to profit later in the FY22 2H, when its core product of international travel is likely to be back in a more meaningful way.”

“We are not yet able to provide specific FY22 profit guidance, given the lack of visibility around the likely timeframes for – and extent of – recovery and government reactions to future variants. In many ways, we are entering uncharted waters after two years of unprecedented restrictions,” he concluded.

The post Flight Centre (ASX:FLT) share price tumbles after posting $188m half year loss 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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Flight Centre Travel Group Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Life360 Inc (ASX: 360) investors are abandoning the US software provider after it revealed heavy losses in its results for the 2021 calendar year.

After the first 20 minutes of trade on Thursday, the Life360 share price had plunged a whopping 26% to $4.99. It closed Wednesday at $6.57.

The company’s financial year ends on 31 December each year.

What did the company report?

• Statutory net loss for the full-year ending on 31 December was US$33.6 million, more than double the US$16.3 million in 2021
• Underlying EBITDA loss was US$13.1 million, almost doubled from US$7 million in 2021
• US$12.2 million of cash was used in operating activities, compared to US$7.3 million one year prior 
• Revenue was up 40%, hitting US$112.6 million

What else happened in the financial year?

Life360 started as a mobile app that allows parents to track their teeangers’ whereabouts. During 2021, the company made two acquisitions — Tile and Jibit — to broaden out its offering as a “family services” software suite.

COVID-19 continued to disrupt mobility for Americans with the Delta and Omicron variants keeping young and old folks at home.

There was also increasing privacy and stalking concerns about Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL)’s AirTag products, which Life360 chief Chris Hulls admitted was a drag on the whole tracking tech category.

What did management say?

Understandably Hulls was focusing on subscriber and revenue growth, rather than the profitability of the business.

“We achieved accelerating operational metrics across the business, with 3 consecutive quarters of record subscriber additions,” he said.

“We finished the year with annualised monthly revenue of US$135.7 million, a year-on-year increase of 51% and a strong leading indicator of the growth opportunity ahead.”

According to Hulls, Life360 is in a “very strong financial position”, currently holding US$94 million of cash and cash equivalents.

“Global monthly active users increased 34% year-on-year, with the US delivering growth of 39%,” he said.

“Retention and engagement from our users continue to grow, with the proportion of returning monthly active users (RMAU) reaching a new record. Our membership model benefited from improving conversion to paid, with a 97% year-on-year increase in conversion rates, reflecting the investment we have undertaken in the user experience.”

What’s next?

Citing US securities regulations, Life360 declined to provide any guidance for 2022.

“After a strong CY21 performance, we are confident in our ability to drive continued growth, in particular in our core Life360 subscription business,” the company stated.

“We anticipate that we will return to providing guidance as soon as we can do so in ways that do not potentially raise US securities law implications.”

Life360 share price snapshot

Life360 shares were a darling of growth and tech fans for much of 2021, but it has lost half of its value this year so far.

The stock has lost 65% since mid-November. It had gained 248% in just 11 months prior to that.

The post Life360 (ASX:360) share price plunges 26% after bleeding money in 2021 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tony Yoo owns Life360, Inc. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Apple and Life360, Inc. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended the following options: long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple and short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Apple. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Lovisa Holdings Ltd (ASX: LOV) share price is soaring today. 

This morning, the jeweller released its latest half-year earnings for 1H FY22. It reported higher revenues and increased its dividend payment by 85% compared to 1H FY21.

At the time of writing, the Lovisa share price is up 20.54% at $19.95.

Let’s take a deeper look…

What did Lovisa report? 

For the FY22 half-year (ending 26 December 2021), Lovisa highlighted the following financials:

• Revenue up 48.3% to $217.8 million compared to the prior corresponding period (pcp)
• (Statutory) net profit after tax (NPAT) up 70.3% to $36.1 million
• Gross profit up 50.5% to $170.7 million
• (Statutory) earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) up 46.2% to $81.7 million
• Earnings per share (EPS) up 70.3% to 33.7 cents
• Upcoming dividend increased by 17 cents to 37 cents.

At its core, Lovisa aims to bring “brilliantly affordable fashion jewellery to the world”. As such, it continued with its “global rollout strategy” during the half, opening 42 new stores. In total, Lovisa now has 589 stores, with 73% located outside of Australia.

What else did Lovisa report?

The jeweller did experience COVID-19 disruptions and challenges during the period. This included temporary store closures in Victoria and New South Wales, as well as in New Zealand and Malaysia.

All in all, this contributed to “overall trading days lost higher than in prior year”, shipping difficulties, and heightened costs of doing business (CODB) — up 51.8% to sales.

The jeweller said it used this time for “continued investment in team structure to support building the platform for future growth”.

Lovisa sales were up against the pcp. Global sales were up 21.5%, online sales were up 36%, and total sales hit an almost 50% increase, reflecting “strong comps and growth”, the jeweller said.

It held a cash position of $52.7 million at the end of the period with no debt.

Finally, it declared an interim dividend (30% franked) of 37 cents to be paid to shareholders on 21 April.

What did management say?

Lovisa also transitioned to new leadership during the period, with Victor Herrero taking the reins as CEO.

Herrero said:

I’m thrilled to take over running the Lovisa business in such a strong position and we are very pleased with the performance for the first half despite the ongoing challenges and disruptions we face globally from COVID.

The team have performed very well through this period and have the business well positioned for the next phase of growth, with the strength of our balance sheet putting us in a great position to take advantage of future opportunities as they arise.

Lovisa share price snapshot

The Lovisa share price is down 0.15% this year to date. To compare, the wider S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) has dropped 15%.

Earlier this month, the team at Macquarie pitched Lovisa as a buy due to its “bold expansion plans”.

The company has a market capitalisation of $1.77 billion.

The post All that glitters: Lovisa (ASX:LOV) share price skyrockets 20% on high-profit earnings appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Alice de Bruin 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 Lovisa Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Nine Entertainment Co Holdings Ltd (ASX: NEC) share price is climbing this morning. This comes after the company exceeded previous guidance to report growth across the board for the half-year ending 31 December.

The media company’s share price is up 5.9% to $2.87 in early trade on Thursday. 

Nine share price rises on strong result

• Revenue ($1.3 billion) and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) ($406.3 million) both up 15% for the half ending December
• Net profit after tax (NPAT) up 20% to $225.2 million
• Dividend pumped up 40% year-on-year to 7 cents per share

What else happened in the first half?

Australia’s two largest cities were plunged into long winter lockdowns during the December half, while the Delta variant of COVID-19 wreaked havoc.

It seems Nine made hay while millions of Australians were trapped at home looking for entertainment.

The company revealed growth in all its media — free-to-air television, streaming (Stan), digital newspaper subscriptions, and real estate classifieds (Domain Holdings Australia Ltd (ASX: DHG)).

What did management say?

According to Nine chief executive Mike Sneesby, the 2022 financial year could set a new high mark for the company.

Momentum remains clearly positive, with full-year guidance now of around 25% group EBITDA growth to what would be a record result for Nine.

Importantly, these results continue to be delivered by increasingly diversified, and increasingly digital revenue streams

He added that there were opportunities galore in 2022.

“We have balanced our programming decisions across broadcast and streaming, and carefully invested in and expanded the reach of 9Now, resulting in record total television revenues in calendar 2021, more than any year in Nine’s history.

“At Stan, we are continuing to grow revenues and subscribers while expanding our annual volume of Stan Originals as we take greater control of our premium content pipeline and continue to invest in Stan Sport. 

“In radio, we have been strengthening our underlying business, while building our audiences, and with 23% of our listeners now live streaming our content, there is a real opportunity to further expand our digital revenues. 

“And in publishing, we will continue to invest in the product, ensuring greater audience reach and higher subscriber numbers, of course augmented by the licensing agreements with Google and Facebook.”

What’s next?

Nine has already started the second half strongly, leading TV ratings in “all key demographics” to be more than 10% ahead of its nearest rival for prime time on its main channel for the 25 to 54 age group. It has a 7% lead on a total people basis.

The Australian Open tennis tournament in January no doubt was a huge contributor, as Ash Barty became the first Australian woman to win the singles title in 44 years.

“In total, Nine is now expecting FY22 group EBITDA growth of above 22% on FY21’s $565 million,” the company stated.

“This result continues to highlight the benefits of Nine’s business, with diverse earnings drivers (across advertising and subscription) and a growing portfolio of digital assets.”

Nine share price snapshot

The Nine share price has not lit the world on fire the past 12 months, falling by around 2%. It hasn’t fared much better in recent weeks, losing around 1% for the year so far.

However, it has performed reasonably over the long term. The stock has gained in excess of 170% over the past 5 years, while giving out a dividend yield of 3.87% before Thursday’s announcement.

The post Nine (ASX:NEC) share price lifts 6% on first-half profit jump appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tony Yoo 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 Bruce Jackson.

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