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The term “smart money” is often bandied about without self-consciousness in the finance profession. But Marcus Today director Marcus Padley pointed out the concept is horribly condescending to retail investors.

“It is demeaning to individual investors and used by the finance industry to imply they are smart and the rest of you are by implication ‘dumb’,” he wrote on his website last week.

“But a lot of supposedly smart professionals do some very dumb things, and a lot of non-professional investors do some very clever things.”

Padley argued perhaps a more accurate term for institutional investments could be “big money”.

He did admit the professionals do have some advantages, such as access to initial public offerings and share issues.

But there are many privileges retail investors have that institutional investors can only dream of.

How? How can the ‘little guy’ have an advantage over Goliath?

Here are 6 that Padley mentioned:

You don’t have to answer to a client

This is the most obvious difference between retail and professional investors. But how is this advantageous for the little guy?

“You don’t have a mandate controlling what you do. You can do what you want. You can change what you do at any time without reason or explanation. You don’t have to publish an investment philosophy and strategy and stick to it,” said Padley.

“You don’t have competitors screwing with your state of mind. You can walk away without anyone knowing or minding. You can take the day off. You can take a month off. You can take a year off. You can stop managing funds forever without one email asking you why.”

You’re not constantly competing against a benchmark

Funds and fund managers are compared to their benchmark index each month, quarter and year. This means they can’t necessarily take a long-term view of their shares.

The constant benchmarking incentivises short-term moves.

The retail investor doesn’t have to worry about any of that.

“You are not criticised. Reputation doesn’t matter. You don’t lose your job if you underperform… No one is comparing you to a compounding benchmark with no costs.”

If you have some periods of underperformance, you can just ride it out. If you get it wrong you don’t lose investors,” said Padley.

Liquidity doesn’t matter

Retail investors very rarely have to worry about whether buying or selling an ASX share will change the market.

“Liquidity issues don’t matter,” said Padley.

“Moving prices when you decide to buy or sell is a big issue for fund managers. When [retail investors] buy and sell you don’t affect the share price in a counterproductive way. You get better and quicker execution.”

Investment costs are minuscule compared to a professional

Ever wondered why fund managers take such a chunky percentage fee from their clients?

Yes, they are making a decent salary for themselves, but they also have many overheads that retail investors never need to worry about.

“You don’t have any compliance issues burning time and money. You don’t have to publish, let alone comply, with your financial services guide,” said Padley.

“You don’t have to pay for a compliance manager. You don’t have the threat of ASIC turning up at your door with a ‘please explain’. You don’t need an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL). You don’t have the cost of an AFSL. You don’t have the administration of an AFSL.”

Instant diversification is not a failure

The diversification advantages of listed investment companies (LICs) and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are a massive advantage for the average punter.

They are options that institutional investors would not dare touch.

“If you buy an ETF or a LIC and it’s not seen as a ‘failure’,” Padley said. “It is for a fund manager.”

Freedom, sweet freedom

Agility and liberty are some of the best weapons for the retail investor versus the professionals.

And these days, with all the tools available online, punters have similar resources to the pros anyway, according to Padley.

“You don’t have to justify your decisions to a committee. You can react to events almost instantly,” he said.

“You don’t get emails from your investors distracting you from the job in hand… You can use mechanisms like stop losses if you want.”

The post 6 advantages retail investors have against the professionals 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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If you’re looking for an easy way to invest in international shares for diversification, then exchange traded funds (ETFs) could be the answer.

This is because ETFs give investors access to a collection of shares from certain indices, industries, sectors, or themes through just a single investment.

But which ETFs should investors be looking at right now? Listed below are two exciting ETFs that could be worth getting better acquainted with:

BetaShares Global Cybersecurity ETF (ASX: HACK)

The first ASX ETF to look at is the BetaShares Global Cybersecurity ETF. As it names indicates, this ETF gives investors exposure to the leading companies in the global cybersecurity sector.

This is a sector that has been tipped to grow strongly over the next decade due to the ongoing shift to the cloud and the increasing threat of cyber attacks. Among the companies you’ll be buying a slice of are cybersecurity leaders Accenture, Cisco, Cloudflare, Crowdstrike, Okta, and Splunk.

Over the last five years, the index the BetaShares Global Cybersecurity ETF tracks has delivered a return of 23.7% per annum. This would have turned a $10,000 investment in 2016 into almost $29,000.

VanEck Vectors Video Gaming and eSports ETF (ASX: ESPO)

Another exciting ETF for ASX investors to look at is the VanEck Vectors Video Gaming and eSports ETF. This ETF gives investors access to a portfolio of the largest companies involved in video game development, hardware, and esports.

This means you’ll be owning shares in companies such as Nvidia, Take-Two, and Electronic Arts. These companies are well-positioned to benefit from the increasing popularity of video games and eSports.

The index the VanEck Vectors Video Gaming and eSports ETF tracks has generated an average return of 32.7% per annum over the last five years. This would have turned a $10,000 investment five years ago into just over $41,000 today.

The post 2 exciting ETFs for ASX investors in August 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. owns shares of and has recommended BETA CYBER ETF UNITS. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended BETA CYBER ETF UNITS. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended VanEck Vectors ETF Trust – VanEck Vectors Video Gaming and eSports ETF. 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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Property prices are booming in most places in Australia, including the commercial market. Some ASX shares are benefiting from this.

There are a group of real estate investment trusts (REITs) that are reporting large valuation increases in the recent financial year.

Here are two that are benefiting from that trend:

Charter Hall Long WALE REIT (ASX: CLW)

This REIT recently reported its FY21 result. Within that, the business experienced a $523 million net valuation uplift, representing a 12.1% increase for FY21.

At the end of the financial year, it had a diversified portfolio across multiple property types with an occupancy rate of 98.3%. Major tenants provide reliability, tenants include government entities, Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS), David Jones, Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) and Endeavour Group Ltd (ASX: EDV).

The portfolio is worth $5.6 billion across 468 properties with a long weighted average lease expiry (WALE) of 13.2 years. Management say this provides long-term income security.

Not only is the valuation increasing, but its operating earnings per security (EPS) is also rising. It grew 3.2% to 29.2 cents per unit in FY21, with expectations of an increase of at least 4.5% in FY22. The business has a distribution payout ratio of 100%, so investors receive all of the net rental profit each year.

Management say the REIT’s characteristics provide investors with a growing income stream and capital growth, whilst also providing the REIT ASX share with significant insulation from market shocks.

Charter Hall Long WALE REIT is currently rated as a buy by the broker Citi. The broker thinks Charter Hall Long WALE REIT has a FY22 distribution yield of 6.1%. The Citi price target is $5.68 over the next 12 months.

Centuria Industrial REIT (ASX: CIP)

Centuria Industrial REIT is another business that is experiencing sizeable increases in the valuation of commercial properties.

This one is Australia’s largest domestic pure play industrial REIT. In FY21 it experienced a $587 million valuation uplift, which was an increase of 25% in percentage terms. However, this actually led to a 36% rise of the net tangible assets (NTA) per unit to $3.83.

Centuria Industrial REIT said that valuations were being driven by heightened competition and investment demand for industrial and logistics assets with elevated transaction volumes setting new benchmarks for major asset and portfolio sales.

At the end of FY21, the ASX share had 62 properties worth almost $3 billion with an occupancy rate of around 97%. Its weighted average lease expiry is 9.6 years and the weighted average capitalisation (rental) rate was 4.54%.

In FY21 the REIT generated 17.6 cents per unit of funds from operations (FFO) and paid a distribution per unit of 17 cents.

In FY22 it’s expecting to generate FFO per unit of 18.1 cents and pay a distribution of 17.3 cents. At the current Centuria Industrial REIT share price, it has a forward distribution yield of 4.5%.

Centuria Industrial REIT fund manager Jesse Curtis said:

With rising e-commerce, there’s a shift in consumer expectations for rapid delivery times. This creates strong demand from occupiers for assets located in urban infill markets to help manufacture, fulfil or distribute orders quickly, and these markets are a focus for CIP. CIP’s focus centres on building critical mass in key urban infill markets and, through acquisitions, leasing and value-add projects, the REIT aims to deliver long-term sustainable income streams and capital growth to unitholders.

The REIT ASX share is currently rated as a buy by the broker Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) with a price target of $4.

The post 2 leading ASX shares benefiting from booming commercial property prices appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 owns shares of and has recommended COLESGROUP DEF SET, Macquarie Group Limited, and Telstra Corporation 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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Are you looking for some attractive dividend yields to boost your income? Then you want to look at the ones listed below.

Here’s why these dividend shares could be great options for income investors in August:

Aventus Group (ASX: AVN)

The first ASX dividend share to look at is Aventus. It is a property company with a focus on large format retail parks.

Thanks to its high level of exposure to the household goods and everyday needs categories, Aventus has been one of the strongest performing retail property companies during the pandemic. This has led to solid rental income growth and an increase in the value of its properties.

Goldman Sachs has been impressed with its performance and expects it to continue. So much so, it has a buy rating and $3.27 price target on the company’s shares.

And based on the current Aventus share price, it estimates that its shares will provide investors with yields of 5.3%, 6%, and 6.6%, respectively, between FY 2021 and FY 2023.

Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS)

Another ASX dividend share to look at is Telstra. The telco giant’s shares may have just hit a 52-week high, but they are still expected to provide investors with generous yields in the coming years.

Goldman Sachs is also a fan of Telstra. It currently has a buy rating and $4.20 price target on the company’s shares.

Goldman likes Telstra partly due to its leadership position with 5G, which it expects to support growth in its post-paid mobile average revenue per user (ARPU) metric in the coming years. Together with its corporate restructure and potential asset monetisation, the broker believes Telstra’s outlook is positive.

The broker is forecasting fully franked annual dividends of 16 cents per share through to FY 2023. After which, it expects a long-awaited dividend increase to 18 cents per share in FY 2024.

Based on the latest Telstra share price of $3.85, this will mean attractive yields of approximately 4.15% for the next three years.

The post Telstra (ASX:TLS) and this ASX dividend share are rated as buys 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 owns shares of and has recommended Telstra Corporation Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended AVENTUS RE UNIT. 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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There are some high-quality ASX growth shares to think about for an investor’s portfolio.

Businesses that are growing revenue and profit at an attractive rate are giving themselves a good chance of producing pleasing shareholder returns.

Sometimes a business’ value has already taken some of that future growth into account, but growth may be able to help things over the longer-term:

Bapcor Ltd (ASX: BAP)

Bapcor is a leading auto parts business that operates in Australia, New Zealand and Asia.

The business is capitalising on the strange impacts of COVID-19. HY21 saw the business deliver a high level of growth in the first six months of FY21. Revenue grew 25.8% to $883.6 million, pro forma earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) went up 45% to $106.8 million and pro forma net profit after tax increased 54%.

The trade segment, including Burson, saw double digit growth with a 12.3% rise of revenue. But it was the retail segment, which includes Autobarn, that truly delivered big growth – revenue rose 44% and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) jumped 55.8%.

In a recent trading update, Bapcor said that its trade same store sales continued to see double digit growth (up 13%), whilst Autobarn same store sales were up 35% and specialist wholesale revenue was up 31%.

Management believe there are significant opportunities within the ASX growth share to drive operational and financial performance.

Bapcor has a number of growth plans. It wants to grow its existing store sales, increase the number of stores, provide differentiated offerings compared to competitors, grow its e-commerce offering and expand in Asia. The business also wants to supplement market-leading brands with Bapcor’s own brand products. Another focus is leveraging its logistics capability to deliver operational excellence and optimise its supply chain benefits.

According to Commsec, the Bapcor share price is valued at 20x FY22’s estimated earnings.

Betashares Global Cybersecurity ETF (ASX: HACK)

This ASX growth share is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that is focused on the global industry of cybersecurity.

The portfolio includes global cybersecurity giants as well as emerging players from across the world. Some of those names in the portfolio include Zscaler, Crowdstrike, Accenture, Okta, Cisco Systems, Cloudflare, Fortinet, Varonis Systems, Splunk and F5 Networks.

Whilst more than half of the holdings are allocated to the segment of ‘systems software’, there are also double digit weightings to sub-sectors like ‘communications equipment’ and ‘internet services and infrastructure’.

As BetaShares says, with cybercrime on the rise, the demand for cybersecurity services is expected to grow strongly for the foreseeable future. In 2017 the global cybersecurity market was US$137.63 billion and by 2023 it’s expected to have grown to US$248.26 billion.

The returns of the ETF have reflected the growth of the underlying businesses. But past performance is not an indicator of future performance. Including the annual management fee of 0.67%, the ETF has delivered an average return per annum of 22.3% since inception in August 2016.

The post 2 top ASX growth shares that might be worth buying appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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. owns shares of and has recommended BETA CYBER ETF UNITS. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended BETA CYBER ETF UNITS and Bapcor. 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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On Tuesday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was on form and pushed higher. The benchmark index ended the day 0.3% higher at 7,562.6 points.

Will the market be able to build on this on Wednesday? Here are five things to watch:

ASX 200 futures pointing higher

The Australian share market is expected to push higher on Wednesday following a decent night on Wall Street. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 19 points or 0.25% higher this morning. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones rose 0.45%, the S&P 500 pushed 0.1% higher, and the Nasdaq dropped 0.5%.

CBA full year results

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price will be on watch today when it releases its highly anticipated full year results. According to a note out of Goldman Sachs, it expects Australia’s largest bank to report a 15% increase in cash earnings from continued operations (pre-one offs) to A$8,342 million. This compares to the analyst consensus estimate of $8,464 million. The broker has also pencilled in a final dividend of 195 cents per share and a special dividend of 200 cents per share.

Oil prices rebound

It could be a good day for energy producers such as Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) after oil prices rebounded. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 2.9% to US$68.41 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is up 2.5% to US$70.74 a barrel. Rising demand in Europe and the United States outweighed concerns over an increase in COVID-19 cases in Asia.

Computershare full year results

The Computershare Ltd (ASX: CPU) share price will be one to watch today. This follows the release of the stock transfer company’s full year results after the market close. Computershare reported an 0.8% decline in full year management revenue to US$2.3 billion and a 7.3% fall in management earnings per share to 52.03 US cents. The latter was better than its guidance for an 8% decline. And while the company is guiding to a stronger year in FY 2022, its guidance has fallen short of Goldman Sachs’ estimates.

Gold price rises

Gold miners Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX: NCM) could have a better day on Wednesday after the gold price pushed higher. According to CNBC, the spot gold price is up 0.2% to US$1,729.50 an ounce. Concerns over rising COVID-19 cases halted the precious metal’s slide.

The post 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday 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 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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Are you looking to add some growing dividend shares to your portfolio this month? Then you may want to look at the ones listed below.

Here’s why they could be top options for income investors:

Accent Group Ltd (ASX: AX1)

The first ASX dividend share to look at is Accent. It is a growing retail group with a collection of footwear store brands including HYPEDC, Platypus, Sneaker Lab, Stylerunner, and The Athlete’s Foot. It has also recently acquired fashion retailer Glue Store and launched a new workwear store brand called 4 Workers.

Given the popularity of its brands, its store expansion plans, and favourable trading conditions, Accent has been tipped to continue growing its earnings and dividend in the coming years.

Bell Potter, for example, is very positive on the company. It has a buy rating and $3.30 price target on its shares.

The broker is forecasting dividends of 11.7 cents per share in FY 2021 and 12.3 cents per share in FY 2022. Based on the latest Accent share price of $2.80, this represents fully franked yields of 4.2% and 4.4%, respectively.

Collins Foods Ltd (ASX: CKF)

Another ASX dividend share to look at is Collins Foods. It is a leading quick service restaurant operator with a focus on KFC restaurants.

It has been a positive performer during the pandemic. For example, in June the company released its full year results and reported a 12.4% increase in revenue to $1.07 billion. This was driven largely by its KFC Australia business, which reported a 13.8% increase in revenue to $900.4 million thanks to new store openings and same store sales growth of 12.9%.

On the bottom line, the company’s underlying net profit after tax from continuing operations growth was even stronger. It was up 18.2% to $56.9 million. This allowed the Collins Foods board to increase its dividend once again.

This went down well with analysts at Canaccord Genuity. Its analysts have a buy rating and $13.35 price target on the company’s shares. The broker is also forecasting further dividend growth in the coming years. It expects fully franked dividends per share of 26 cents in FY 2022 and then 29 cents in FY 2023.

Based on the latest Collins Foods share price of $11.08, this will mean yields of 2.3% and 2.6%, respectively.

The post 2 top ASX dividend shares tipped to grow at a solid rate appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of Collins Foods 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 Accent Group and Collins Foods 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 Computershare Ltd (ASX: CPU) share price will be one to watch on Wednesday.

This follows the after market release of the stock transfer company’s full year results.

Computershare share price on watch after beating its guidance in FY 2021

• Full year management revenue fell 0.8% to US$2.3 billion
• Management revenue excluding margin income (MI) up 3.6% to US$2.2 billion
• Margin income down 47.7% to US$104.3 million
• Management earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) excluding MI up 12.6% to US$336.4 million.
• Management earnings per share down 7.3% to 52.03 US cents per share (compared to guidance for an 8% decline)
• Final dividend flat at 23 Australian cents per share

What happened in FY 2021 for Computershare?

All eyes will be on the Computershare share price tomorrow after it delivered a result slightly ahead of guidance. This was driven by a significant improvement in the company’s operating performance during the second half of FY 2021, with earnings increasing 39% half on half.

Management advised that this was driven by a positive performance from its key operating businesses of Issuer Services and Employee Share Plans. They have been benefitting from higher activity levels and stronger equity markets. In addition, thanks to disciplined cost controls, its margins expanded when excluding the impact of low interest rates, which continue to drag on its margin income.

What did management say?

Computershare’s CEO, Stuart Irving, was pleased with the way the company finished the financial year.

He said: “Computershare has delivered an improved operating performance in the second half of the year, with a 39% increase in earnings compared to the first half. This enabled us to report Management earnings per share (EPS) for the full year in line with the upgraded guidance we provided in February.”

“A highlight of the year was the announcement in March of our agreement to acquire the assets of Wells Fargo Corporate Trust Services, a leading US provider of trust and agency services to government and corporate clients. On track to complete later this year, the acquisition accelerates our scale in the attractive US corporate trust market. It also provides Computershare with greater exposure to long term growth trends in trust and securitisation products as well as the interest rate environment. The business is to be renamed Computershare Corporate Trust (CCT),” he added.

What’s next for Computershare?

Potentially giving the Computershare share price a boost on Wednesday will be its outlook for FY 2022.

Mr Irving expects the company to deliver earnings growth in FY 2022. This is thanks to the positive progress it is making in executing its growth strategies despite the challenges it is facing in some of its business lines.

He said: “Management EPS is expected to increase by around 2% in constant currency, after accounting for the impact of the rights issue. Guidance assumes over 4% EPS growth in our existing business lines. The CCT acquisition is expected to complete in October/November. Accretive on an annualised basis, it should add over 4 cps to earnings in FY22, given its partial second-half weighted contribution to the year. The rights issue will impact us by around 5.6 cps in FY22.”

Computershare share price performance

The Computershare share price is up 13% in 2021. This is roughly in line with the performance of the ASX 200 index over the same period.

The post Computershare (ASX:CPU) share price on watch after FY21 guidance beat appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

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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 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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Tuesday has drawn to a close… it’s the second day of the week and the market is alight with ASX shares reporting earnings. Markets reacted with cheer to today’s big-name results with an acquisition announcement thrown into the mix.

We’ll quickly unpack today’s results and then wrap it back up for tomorrow:

Those that delivered today

Challenger Ltd (ASX: CGF)

Shares in the investment management company increased 1.9% to $5.89. This followed the release of the company’s FY21 results and the announcements of the CEO’s retirement.

The takeaway points:

• Net income down 14% to $682 million.
• Normalised net profit after tax down 19% to $279 million.
• Group assets under management (AUM) up 29% to $110.0 billion.
• Fully franked, full-year dividend of 20.0 cents per share, up 2.5 cents per share on FY2020.
• Managing Director and CEO Richard Howes to step down in March 2022

Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1)

The Megaport share price gained 3.05%, putting it at $17.90 by the close of the ASX today. The move followed the interconnection services company reporting its strong full-year results to the ASX. Additionally, Megaport also announced the acquisition of an AI-powered multi-cloud company known as InnovoEdge.

The takeaway points:

• Revenue increased 35% year on year to $78.28 million.
• Monthly recurring revenue (MRR) jumped 32% to $7.5 million (annualises to $90 million)
• Customers increased 443, or 24%, to 2,285
• Ports grew 1,922, or 33%, to 7,689
• Average revenue per port down $2 to $978
• Net loss of $55 million but cash position of $136.3 million
• US$15 million acquisition of InnovoEdge

James Hardie Industries PLC (ASX: JHX)

Lastly, shares in James Hardie jumped 2.9% to $49.32 today. At one point, the ASX-listed materials manufacturer surpassed the $50 barrier, setting a record high. The price appreciation followed a solid first-quarter result.

The takeaway points:

• Sales up 35% over the prior corresponding period to US$843.3 million
• Adjusted earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) jumped 45% to $180.5 million
• Net income up 50% to US$134.2 million
• Operating cash flow down 3% to US$184.1 million
• Full year net income guidance upgraded

ASX shares reporting tomorrow

Wednesday is set to be a big one with a few more results to be reported by ASX-listed companies. These include Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), Insurance Australia Group Ltd (ASX: IAG), and Mineral Resources Ltd (ASX: MIN).

The post The ASX reporting wrap-up: Challenger, Megaport, James Hardie appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler owns shares of Commonwealth Bank of Australia. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended MEGAPORT FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Challenger Limited and Insurance Australia Group Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended MEGAPORT 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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If you’re wanting to boost your portfolio with some blue chips, then you might want to look at the ASX shares listed below.

Here’s why these ASX blue chip shares are highly rated:

SEEK Limited (ASX: SEK)

SEEK is the leading job listings company in the ANZ region. It also has a number of growing businesses around the globe.

In respect to the former, during the first half of FY 2021, the company was the dominant force in the local market. It was averaging 35 million monthly visits and 160,000 active hirers. This represents almost a third of all placements in the region and is five times greater than its nearest rival.

It is thanks to this dominance that SEEK has been tipped to benefit greatly from Australia’s strong economic recovery from the pandemic. With the unemployment rate tipped to fall materially over the next 12 months, job ad volumes look set to increase and underpin strong top line growth.

Macquarie is positive on SEEK. It currently has an outperform rating and $40.00 price target on its shares.

Sonic Healthcare Limited (ASX: SHL)

Sonic Healthcare is one of the world’s leading providers of medical diagnostics. Over the last few decades it has earned a reputation for excellence in pathology, diagnostic imaging, and primary care medical services across operations in the ANZ, European and North American markets.

Due largely to strong demand for COVID-19 testing services, it is expected to deliver a very strong full year result this month. And with COVID testing unlikely to be going away any time soon, the company appears well-placed to benefit from elevated testing volumes in FY 2022 and potentially even FY 2023.

Combined with the strength of the rest of the business and a balance sheet that would support earnings accretive acquisitions, the future looks bright for Sonic.

Credit Suisse is very positive on Sonic and has an outperform rating and $43.50 price target on its shares.

The post 2 excellent ASX 200 blue chip shares named as buys appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of SEEK 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 SEEK Limited and Sonic Healthcare 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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