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Two of Australia’s buy now, pay later giants – Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) and Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) reported earnings for the 2021 financial year yesterday. Unfortunately for shareholders, the metrics did no favours for the respective share prices of the two on the day.

Often it can be worthwhile to compare between companies in the same industry to gain a sense of market position between peers. Although Afterpay’s earnings are considerably larger, the comparison can still provide some insights into how the two stack up.

So, let’s take a closer look at the financials.

Afterpay earnings failed to impress

If you didn’t have a chance to catch up prior, here are the highlights from Afterpay’s full-year results.

• Underlying sales grew 90% (or 102% in constant currency) to $21.1 billion
• Total income up 78% (or 89% in constant currency) to $924.7 million
• EBITDA down 13% to $38.7 million
• Active customers increased 63% to 16.2 million
• Active merchants up 77% to 98,200
• Square-Afterpay transaction on track to complete in Q1 of calendar year 2022

Following the release of its earnings, the Afterpay share price fell slightly. This is likely attributable to the payment company falling short of some investor and analyst expectations. As covered by my colleague, James, Afterpay fell short of broker Ord Minnett’s expectations. Analysts at the broker anticipated an underlying EBITDA of $75.4 million. However, Afterpay posted less than half of this expectation with $38.7 million.

How does this compare to the Zip earnings result?

Zip released its own FY21 result on the same day as Afterpay. Although the two companies vary drastically in terms of scale, both operate in the same industry and measure success through very similar metrics. In fact, it is possible that the two even share an overlap in customers.

For that reason, here’s a closer look at Zip’s earnings highlights for comparison:

• Total transaction volume grew 176% to $5.8 billion
• Revenue of $403.2 million, up 150% year on year
• Cash EBTDA loss of $22.9 million compared to $3.5 million profit in prior year
• Active customers at 7.3 million, up 247.5%
• Active merchants at 51,300, up 109.4%

Evidently, Zip is growing its customer and merchant base at a faster rate than Afterpay. Although, it is worth keeping in mind that Zip is operating from a lower base. However, that doesn’t mean we should completely dismiss this rapid growth.

The smaller BNPL contender now boasts an active customer base that is nearly half the size of Afterpay’s. This is despite Zip holding a market capitalisation that is roughly one-tenth that of its larger rival.

Likewise, we can see from comparing with Afterpay’s earnings that Zip is processing roughly one-fourth as much as Afterpay in the way of sales.

The post How does Afterpay (ASX:APT) earnings result compare to Zip? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• ASX 200 rises, WiseTech soars, Zip drops
• The Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price is down despite revealing major global growth
• Why Bravura, Nine, Reece, & Zip shares are sinking today
• Got Afterpay (ASX:APT) shares? Here’s what to look out for in FY22
• How does the Afterpay (ASX:APT) result compare with broker expectations?

Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO. 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 S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is having a bit of a pullback this Thursday. At the time of writing, the ASX 200 is down 0.62% to 7,485 points. But rather than dwelling on that statistic, let’s instead check out some of the heaviest trading ASX 200 shares on the share market today.

The 3 heaviest trading ASX 200 shares on Thursday

Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN)

The Flying Kangaroo is our first ASX 200 share to check out today. At the time of writing, we have seen a hefty 21.38 million Qantas shares change hands so far. This follows the national airline’s FY2021 earnings report which the company gave to us before market open this morning. This earnings report also announced that the company plans to restart international flights in December this year.

The response from investors has been enthusiastic, and the Qantas share price is currently up a healthy 3.3% to $5.03. This movement is likely behind the large volume of Qantas shares we are seeing bought and sold today.

IDP Education Ltd (ASX: IEL)

IDP Education is our second ASX 200 share this Thursday. Today we have seen approximately 22.09 million IDP shares trade so far. Although IDP hasn’t had anything to say today, we did receive the company’s own FY21 earnings report yesterday.

After an initial wobble, IDP Education ended up finishing up 2.3% for the day yesterday. And today has seen investors pile on, pushing the shares up another 2.3% to $29.03 a share. It’s likely this strong buying pressure that has resulted in so many IDP Education shares finding new homes today.

A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M)

And our most traded ASX 200 share today goes to A2 Milk. Unfortunately, unlike the above two shares, A2 Milk is likely seeing a spike in trading volumes today as a result of a poor reaction from investors to its own earnings. A2 reported its FY21 numbers this morning, and the reaction has certainly not been kind.

The company’s shares are currently down a nasty 12.3% to $6.01 apiece today. It’s almost certainly this steep slide in A2 that is behind the whopping 24.93 million shares flying around the markets so far this Thursday.

The post Here are the 3 heaviest trading ASX 200 shares this Thursday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why A2 Milk, Appen, Jumbo, & Link shares are sinking
• Own A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) shares? Here’s what the company has planned for FY22
• Why Blackmores, Flight Centre, Kuniko, & Qantas shares are soaring today
• How do the A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) results compare to broker expectations?
• Qantas (ASX:QAN) share price up amid plan to restart international travel

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen owns shares of A2 Milk. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Idp Education Pty Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended A2 Milk. 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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Best & Less Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: BST) shares slipped today after the ASX-newbie released its results for the 2021 financial year (FY21).

At close, the Best & Less share price finished at $2.75, 3% lower than yesterday’s closing price.

Best & Less share price slumps despite 190% profit boost

Investors drove the Best & Less share price lower in spite of the clothing retailer reporting the following key highlights from its FY21 performance:

• $663.2 million of revenue, 6% more than that of FY20.
• Net profit after tax of $47 million, up 191%.
• Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) of $71.6 million – up 165%.

Best & Less beat its prospectus forecasts across all key metrics in FY21.

It saw a gross profit of $279.3 million.

The company ended the period with $35.7 million of cash and received $14.1 million of JobKeeper over the period.

What happened in FY21 for Best & Less?

If you’re keen to know how the Best & Less share price performed during FY21, you may be disappointed. That’s because the Best & Less initial public offering (IPO) occurred after the financial year’s end. Those interested can read all about the company’s ASX debut here.

During FY21, Best & Less aimed to boost its online sales and its strategy appeared to pay off.

The company’s online sales grew by 33.5% in FY21, representing 9.2% of all sales. The increased online sales came after Best & Less introduced click-and-collect and ship-from-store facilities.

Additionally, the company sold nearly 90 million units in FY21.

Best & Less’ loyalty programs grew by over 400,0000 members in FY21. The company’s loyalty programs had around 1.7 million members as of June 30, 2021.

Best & Less also opened 2 new stores, relocated 6 stores, and closed 7 stores. It ended the period with 245 stores.

The company also published its first modern slavery statement during FY21 and made progress on its living wage commitments. During the period, Best & Less conducted 217 factory audits to ensure compliance across its supplier base.

It also initiated a workers grievance hotline to protect those employed in its suppliers’ factories and provide them with a voice directly to the company.

The company also supported 173 different charities through Good360 and partnered with Drought Angels.

What did management say?

Best & Less’ CEO Rodney Orrock commented on the results driving the company’s share price lower today, saying:

Delivering a record profit and exceeding our Prospectus forecasts in all key metrics, with EBITDA and NPAT ahead 18.0% and 18.1% respectively, is an endorsement of our strategy, leadership in the value retail apparel segment, particularly baby and kids’ categories and our omnichannel sales model.

Our strong like-for-like sales growth of 10.8% in FY21 reflects the success of our differentiated customer value proposition of ‘twice the quality at half the price’. The robust performance of our core categories, including baby which grew by over 15%, as well as underwear and sleepwear, further highlights the defensive characteristics of our business…

In this challenging environment the deep retail sector experience of our management team pays off, enabling us to respond effectively to rapidly changing conditions. I would like to thank all of our team members for their commitment to providing excellent service, our suppliers for their support during a challenging period and our customers for their continued loyalty.

What’s next for Best & Less?

Here’s what investors keeping an eye on the Best & Less share price need to know:

The company has been hit hard with COVID-19 restrictions since the end of FY21, with approximately 19.9% of Best & Less’ potential trading days being lost due to government-mandated closures. Additionally, stores allowed to remain open have seen reduced foot traffic.

Between 30 June and 22 August, the company’s total sales are down 25.7%.

However, over the same period, the company’s online sales have grown by 6.8% from FY20 and by 107.5% against the same period 2 years ago.

44 of the company’s NSW stores opened again yesterday, in line with government restrictions.

Still, to accommodate lost income, Best & Less is undergoing a capital and hiring freeze and its senior management team has voluntarily reduced their salaries by 20% until the end of lockdowns.

The company is also negotiating with its landlords to “appropriately share the burden of the mandated store closures”.

Despite the current struggles, Best & Less expects to achieve its prospectus’ EBITDA and net profit after tax forecasts for the 2021 calendar year. These are $62.4 million and $41.3 million respectively.

Best & Less share price snapshot

Since Best & Less listed on the ASX, its share price has gained 15%. Its shares are also going for 27% more than its prospectus’ offer price of $2.16 apiece.

The post Best & Less (ASX:BST) share price slides despite record profit appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why A2 Milk, Appen, Jumbo, & Link shares are sinking
• Audio Pixels (ASX:AKP) share price storms 7% higher following progress update
• ASX 200 just reached a massive milestone
• AUB (ASX:AUB) share price sinks 7% despite 50% growth in profit
• Own A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) shares? Here’s what the company has planned for 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 Bruce Jackson.

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In late trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to end its winning streak and record a disappointing decline. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down 0.6% to 7,487.5 points.

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

A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M)

The A2 Milk share price has sunk 12% to $6.02. This follows the release of a full year result that narrowly achieved its downgraded (four times) guidance range. The infant formula company reported a 30.3% decline in revenue to NZ$1.21 billion and a 77.6% fall in EBITDA to NZ$123 million. The company also revealed that it has decided against a capital return and warned that FY 2022 would be challenging.

Appen Ltd (ASX: APX)

The Appen share price has crashed 22% to $10.81 after the release of its half year results. Appen reported a 2% decline in revenue to US$196.6 million and a 14.3% fall in EBITDA to US$27.7 million. Although its EBITDA was a touch ahead of the US$27million analysts at Citi were expecting, the broker noted that its estimate was ~20% lower than consensus estimates. This means it fell well short of what the market was expecting. Appen also announced the acquisition of location data provider Quadrant.

Jumbo Interactive Ltd (ASX: JIN)

The Jumbo share price is down 10% to $16.40. This follows the release of the lottery ticket seller’s full year results. Jumbo reported total transaction value (TTV) growth of 37% to $487 million and revenue growth of 17% to $83.3 million. However, softer margins led to underlying net profit after tax growing only 7% to $28.3 million. Jumbo also announced the acquisition of Canada-based Stride Management.

Link Administration Holdings Ltd (ASX: LNK)

The Link share price is down 12.5% to $4.50. Investors have been selling the financial technology company’s shares following the release of a disappointing full year result. Link reported a 6% year on year decline in revenue to $1.16 billion and an 18% decline in operating net profit after tax and amortisation to $113 million.

The post Why A2 Milk, Appen, Jumbo, & Link shares are sinking appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Own A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) shares? Here’s what the company has planned for FY22
• Which ASX shares are leading the ASX 300 today?
• How do the A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) results compare to broker expectations?
• ASX 200 midday update: A2 Milk and Appen sink, Flight Centre rises
• Jumbo Interactive (ASX:JIN) share price slides 8% despite record FY21 performance

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. owns shares of and has recommended Appen Ltd, Jumbo Interactive Limited, and Link Administration Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Appen Ltd and Jumbo Interactive Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended A2 Milk and Link Administration 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 Audio Pixels Holdings Ltd (ASX: AKP) share price is racing higher today following a positive update from the speaker development company.

At the time of writing, Audio Pixels shares are up 7.02% to $27.61. In comparison, the All Ordinaires Index(ASX: XAO) is down 0.58% to 7,764 points.

What did Audio Pixels announce?

According to its release, Audio Pixels advised that it has commenced technological demonstrations of its advanced MEMS-based transducers.

The company is developing the next generation of speakers that will exceed current market performance and design specifications.

Audio Pixels stated that in-person demonstrations have taken place out of the clean room with expert representatives from world leading consumer electronic companies. These industry players have maintained relevant staffing in Israel and have expressed interest in the technology.

Furthermore, due to the unpredictable nature of COVID-19, the company has prioritised the development of its demonstration systems for third parties outside of Israel. It aims to have these components securely shipped for independent third-party assessments.

The announcement follows a previous update on 28 July, stating that Audio Pixels underwent extensive testing, optimization and fine-tuning on its demo systems.

Quick take on MEMS and transducers

MEMS refers to micro-electromechanical devices which comprise electronic, mechanical, and wireless communication components. This is used in commercial applications such as sensor-driven heating and cooling systems, tiny gyroscopes, barometers, accelerometers and microphones for mobile phones, and disposable pressure sensors for healthcare.

A transducer is a device that converts power from one form to another for purposes of measurement or control.

About the Audio Pixels share price

Over the past 12 months, Audio Pixels shares have gained almost 25% for investors, with year to date 14% higher. This is despite the company’s share price hitting a multi-year low of $18 in May 2021, before quickly rebounding.

Audio Pixels presides a market capitalisation of roughly $792.3 million, with approximately 28.7 million shares on hand.

The post Audio Pixels (ASX:AKP) share price storms 7% higher following progress update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• ASX 200 just reached a massive milestone
• AUB (ASX:AUB) share price sinks 7% despite 50% growth in profit
• Own A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) shares? Here’s what the company has planned for FY22
• FINEOS (ASX:FCL) share price jumps 15% on solid FY21 result
• Why Blackmores, Flight Centre, Kuniko, & Qantas shares are soaring 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 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 exclusive S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) club made history this week.

Investor lobby group Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (ACSI) revealed Thursday that Australia’s 200 largest public companies now all have at least one woman on the board.

The feat was achieved with the appointment of female directors at the last 2 holdouts — Silver Lake Resources Limited (ASX: SLR) and Chalice Mining Ltd (ASX: CHN).

ACSI chief Louise Davidson welcomed the milestone.

“The benefits of having more women in governance roles are well established and are being clearly recognised in boardrooms around Australia,” she said. 

“More diverse boards make for better-governed companies, which is intrinsically linked to long-term shareholder value.”

ASX 200 gender diversity accelerated in 11 years

ACSI first started its campaign for better gender diversity on ASX 200 boards back in 2010. That year, only 8% of board positions were held by women.

In 2015, ACSI set a target of 30% seats to be held by female directors. At that time, there were still 34 companies in the ASX 200 that had all-male boards.

Now 126 businesses out of 200 have achieved the 30% representation goal. Fifteen companies in the ASX 200, as of this week, have boards that are majority female.

According to ACSI, this progress shows how investors, boards and others can work collaboratively to actually achieve diversity.

But Davidson reminded all there is plenty more to do.

“It’s important that we maintain the momentum for change and continue to increase both the number of women and diversity of experience on boards,” she said. 

“There is more work to be done to achieve gender balance, which we define as a minimum of 40% women, 40% men and 20% unallocated to allow flexibility for board renewal. Listed companies should set a time frame within which they will achieve gender balance on their boards.”

Outside the board

Of course, the board is a very small part of large public companies.

There is still a significant lack of diversity at the executive level in ASX 200 businesses.

In October, superannuation fund HESTA launched its 40:40 Vision campaign to reform c-suite positions among Australia’s largest publicly listed employers.

HESTA chief executive Debby Blakey said at the time that, at the current anaemic rate of reform, it would take 80 years before 40% of executive leadership was female.

“We see lack of gender diversity in leadership as a financial risk. Companies that fail to consider 50% of the population for leadership positions risk missing out on the best people, and the performance of the organisation will eventually suffer.”

The post ASX 200 just reached a massive milestone appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Silver Lake Resources (ASX:SLR) share price jumps on FY21 earnings
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: New records just keep coming for the ASX 200
• These were the worst performing ASX 200 shares last week
• Here are 3 ASX 200 shares being heavily traded on Monday
• Here’s why the Charger Metals (ASX:CHR) share price has surged 100% in a week

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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The AUB Group Ltd (ASX: AUB) share price is on the move down during Thursday’s session as the insurance company reported its FY21 earnings.

AUB shares are now changing hands at $23.70 apiece, an approximate 7% drop from the market open.

Let’s comb over AUB’s results in a bit finer detail.

AUB share price slides despite strong net profit and earnings growth in FY21

• Underlying net profit after tax (NPAT) of $67.1 million, up 25.7% from the year prior
• Underlying earnings per share of 87.93 cents, a growth of 22% on the year
• Reported NPAT of $70.6 million, a year on year increase of 50.3%
• Fully franked final dividend of 39 cents, which is an increase of 9.9% from FY20
• FY22 guidance: NPAT guidance of $70 million to $73 million

What happened in FY21 for AUB Group?

In a positive for the AUB Group share price, the company grew its reported NPAT 50% year on year to $70.6 million. This came through to give shareholders an earnings per share (EPS) of 87.93 cents, signifying a 22% growth from the year prior.

The company also recognised a 23% increase in underlying NPAT. AUB explained that the growth in NPAT on an underlying and reported basis was due to “strong underlying organic growth, primarily in the Australian broking division”. Profits were also underscored by the “divestment of Altius”, as per the release.

By division, AUB saw strengths in its Australian broking business, where underlying NPAT grew 22% year on year to $72 million. This was underlined by a “strong contribution” from the Experien investment on 1 August 2020.

In its BizCover segment, profit before income tax (PBIT) increased by 190% on the year, due to organic profit “assisted by operating leverage”.

Conversely, in its New Zealand operations, the company’s PBIT actually decreased by 13% to just over $10 million. AUB explained this was due to a change in the accounting treatment of its Software as a Service (SaaS) costs.

AUB’s Australian agencies PBIT gained 14% from FY20 and reached about $15 million, and gained about 1% in EBIT margin to 31.9%.

Finally, the company declared a fully franked dividend of 39 cents per share, a 10% increase from this time last year. This brings the total dividend to 50 cents per share, on par with FY20.

What did management say?

Speaking on the announcement, AUB Group CEO Michael Emmet said:

“FY21 was a year of extraordinary ups and downs. Our clients and our teams continued, as they do today, to face significant personal and commercial stresses given the range of COVID-19 consequences and interventions. I am very proud of the way in which the AUB family has dealt with this. The business continues to demonstrate a remarkable resilience although one we do not take for granted.

Touching on operations, Emmet added:

The transformation of AUB Group has continued at pace during FY21. Our exit from Health and
Rehabilitation Services is complete, the performance improvement in Austbrokers has accelerated,
BizCover continues to grow both revenue and profit at an impressive rate while the remediation of
Agencies is starting to deliver results with both margin and profit improvement during the period. We
are however far from done. Our New Zealand operations are still in the early stages of transformation,
running until FY23.

What’s next for AUB Group?

In another potential positive for the AUB Group share price, it has provided NPAT guidance in the range of $70 million to $73 million. This calls for a 15.7% – 20.7% growth from FY21.

It assumes that premium rates will increase in the range of 5% to 6%, and that “continued small bolt-on acquisitions” are included in the guidance outlook.

In addition, AUB would “provide updated guidance” if “major acquisitions” were to occur, as current forecasts exclude these.

The AUB Group share price has posted a year to date return of 47%, which has outpaced the S&P/ASX 200 index (ASX: XJO)’s climb of about 14% since January 1.

The post AUB (ASX:AUB) share price sinks 7% despite 50% growth in profit appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Own A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) shares? Here’s what the company has planned for FY22
• FINEOS (ASX:FCL) share price jumps 15% on solid FY21 result
• Why Blackmores, Flight Centre, Kuniko, & Qantas shares are soaring today
• Objective (ASX:OCL) share price jumps on profit increase
• Which ASX shares are leading the ASX 300 today?

The author Zach Bristow has no positions 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 Austbrokers Holdings 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 A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M) share price has fallen around 10% after the company’s FY21 result.

FY21 numbers

Management reported that revenue and the earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) margin were within guidance, but down heavily.

Revenue fell 30.3% to $1.21 billion and EBITDA plunged 77.6% to $123 million, including $109 million in stock write-downs and $10 million in Mataura Valley Milk (MVM) acquisition costs.

Net profit after tax (NPAT) dropped 79.1% to $80.7 million.

A2 Milk said actions taken from the fourth quarter of FY21 to address excess inventory are proving effective with channel inventory levels reducing, product freshness improving and market pricing increasing – rebalancing of channel inventory is expected to continue through the first quarter of FY22.

Management said that brand health metrics remain strong overall with some improvements in recent tracking research after a lot of marketing in China.

But what about A2 Milk’s FY22 expectations?

The outlook for a business may influence investor thoughts about the A2 Milk share price.

A2 Milk said that the company is confident in the underlying fundamentals of the business and that the growth opportunity in core markets remains positive.

Management said that the long-term outlook is positive with production innovation, category expansion and new markets, supported by its balance sheet.

The company is expecting that revenue for the first half of FY22 (including MVM) will be marginally lower than the first half of FY21 mainly because of lower English label infant nutrition sales offset by the addition of MVM revenue. FY22 second half recent is expected to be “significantly higher” than the second half of FY21 because of actions taken to rebalance its channel inventory, increase marketing investment and the inclusion of MVM revenue.

A2 Milk’s gross profit margin is expected to be broadly similar to the underlying gross profit margin of FY21. It reflects the annualised benefit of higher infant nutrition prices and the product mix benefit from an overall growth in infant nutrition volume. However, these benefits are expected to be offset by cost of goods headwinds related to increasing milk, ingredient and packaging costs.

The company wasn’t able to give EBITDA outlook commentary. However, it is expecting that depreciation and amortisation will increase by around $20 million because of the inclusion of FY22.

The A2 Milk share price has been challenged by the daigou/reseller channel for its English label products. This is expected to be “prolonged”. It’s adapting the strategy and expects growth to return over time.

However, with its Chinese label infant nutrition, it’s expecting to grow sales in FY22 as well as moderately increasing its market share. A2 Milk is focused on winning new clients and expanding distribution. Inventory levels are reducing and product freshness is improving.

The A2 Milk share price might also have been affected by its final comments:

Recovery in English label channels is expected to be slow and market growth in China will be subdued for some time.

The post Own A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) shares? Here’s what the company has planned for FY22 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• How do the A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) results compare to broker expectations?
• ASX 200 midday update: A2 Milk and Appen sink, Flight Centre rises
• A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) share price crashes 10% on disappointing FY22 outlook
• A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) share price on watch after 79% profit decline and weak outlook
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday

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 A2 Milk. 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 FINEOS Corporation Holdings PLC (ASX: FCL) share price is gaining upwards momentum today.

Investors are buying shares in the insurance software company with ferocity on Thursday after it released its full-year results for FY21.

At the time of writing, FINEOS shares are up 16% to $4.27. As a result, the software company is again trading around levels witnessed in April this year.

FINEOS share price shines on top line gain

• Revenue up 23.3% to €108.3 million (AUD$175.6 million)
• Annual recurring revenue reached €45.7 million at 30 June 2021
• Gross profit of €72 million representing an increase of 23% from FY20
• Proforma earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) down 49.6% to €7.9 million
• Net Loss after tax widened from €227,183 to €12.485 million

What happened in FY21 for FINEOS

The market is certainly exhibiting excitement for the FINEOS share price following its results today. In fact, trading volume for the day so far is roughly two and a half times its monthly average.

According to its release, the software company achieved total revenue of €108.3 million in the financial year. This represents an increase of 23.3% on FY20. Likewise, subscription revenue surged 48.6% to €40.1 million. Such an increase bodes well for the company, as it grows its portion of revenue that is recurring.

It wasn’t by chance that FINEOS managed to up the ante with respect to revenue in FY21. Rather, it was the expansion of its life, accident, and health core systems — reaching over 60 carriers. Intentionally, the United States now accounts for 73% of total revenue, rising from 59% in the previous reporting period.

Furthermore, the successful acquisitions and integrations of Limelight Health and Spraoi during the year contributed to the strong growth. Specifically, Limelight Health added €9.2 million and Spraoi contributed €0.4 million.

Much of this reported growth was from cross-selling and up-selling to FINEOS’ existing customer base. Indicating that the company is not purely ‘buying revenue’ through acquisition, FINEOS reported organic growth of 12.5%.

Another positive for shareholders, the company appears to have marginally de-risked its client concentration. In FY20, ~74% of total revenue was comprised of the top 10 clients. Whereas, in its latest full-year result, this figure has been reduced to 65%.

Finally, losses widened due to acquisition costs — in addition to increased spend on research and development (R&D). Though, this doesn’t appear to be weighing on the FINEOS share price today.

What did management say?

Commenting on the result, FINEOS Chief Executive Officer Michael Kelly said:

FINEOS’ growth journey continued into 2021 as we grew revenue, clients, headcount and product offering. We’re now positioned as the number one player for group employee benefits in the North American market, measured by revenue, by number of clients and by the end-to-end “quote to claim” product that we provide.

Our primary focus was and continues to be increasing our subsription revenues as we grow FINEOS into the global market leading software-as-a-service platform for life, accident, and health insurance.

Additionally, regarding the company’s acquisitions during the period, Mr Kelly said:

We are pleased with the revenue growth, specifically our higher margin subscription revenue which grew
by 48.6% to €40.1 million. Within this, organic growth was a strong 32.4% with the balance from the two acquisitions we made during the year (Limelight Health and Spraoi). This year’s revenue growth was
attributable to successful client implementations, cloud upgrades and add-on cross sales.

What’s next for FINEOS ?

Heading into FY22, the company is guiding for €125 million to €130 million in revenue. Positively, subscription revenue is expected to increase approximately 30%.

FINEOS management mentioned that these growth projections are supported by a robust pipeline of significant cross-sell and up-sell opportunities with existing clients. These are in addition to some fresh client opportunities also being presented.

Meanwhile, the R&D costs aren’t expected to decrease for the next year. Instead, R&D expenses will continue as the company integrates its acquisitions and works more on product development.

Additionally, the company will be focused on further cloud upgrades in FY22. In particular, several migrations are slated across the United States and ANZ regions during the year.

FINEOS share price snapshot

Although the FINEOS share price is gleaming green today, the past year does not mimic the same performance. Over the past 12 months, the FINEOS share price has fallen 21.5%. For comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has gained 22.3%.

The post FINEOS (ASX:FCL) share price jumps 15% on solid FY21 result appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended FINEOS Corporation Holdings plc. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended FINEOS Corporation Holdings plc. 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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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a disappointing decline. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down 0.7% to 7,481.6 points.

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

Blackmores Limited (ASX: BKL)

The Blackmores share price has jumped 11% to $88.68. This follows the release of the health supplements company’s full year results. For the 12 months ended 30 June, Blackmores reported a 1.3% increase in revenue to $575.9 million and a 51.7% jump in underlying net profit after tax to $25.4 million.

Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT)

The Flight Centre share price is up 4% to $16.99. This morning the leading travel agent reported its FY 2021 results and revealed a 74.2% decline in total transaction value (TTV) to $3,945 million. This ultimately led to Flight Centre reporting an underlying loss after tax of $364 million. However, management stated its belief that it can reach profitability in FY 2022. This appears to have boosted its shares.

Kuniko Ltd (ASX: KNI)

The Kuniko share price is rocketing 230% higher to $2.55. At one stage today, the battery metals explorer’s shares were up as much as 350% amid excitement around its exploration activities in Norway. Kuniko shares were spun out of Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd (ASX: VUL) earlier this week and began trading at just 20 cents.

Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN)

The Qantas share price has risen 3.5% to $5.04. This is despite announcing a $2.35 billion pre-tax loss this morning. However, news that the airline is getting ready for international flights to resume before Christmas appears to have offset this and given the Qantas share price a boost today. This is based on the theory that Australia’s international borders will be cracked open when 80% of eligible Australians are vaccinated against COVID-19.

The post Why Blackmores, Flight Centre, Kuniko, & Qantas shares are soaring today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Which ASX shares are leading the ASX 300 today?
• Qantas (ASX:QAN) share price up amid plan to restart international travel
• Why the Kuniko (ASX:KNI) share price is rocketing 96% higher today
• Flight Centre (ASX:FLT) share price lifts 4% as investors look to vaccinated future
• ASX 200 midday update: A2 Milk and Appen sink, Flight Centre rises

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 owns shares of and has recommended Blackmores Limited. 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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