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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) closed 1.67% higher this week, a great outcome given the sharp sell-offs experienced by the broader equity market on Monday and Tuesday.

Leading the charge this week is a red hot sub-sector within the S&P/ASX Materials (INDEXASX: XMJ) sector.

Lithium.

ASX 200 shares in the lithium sector surged to either multi-year or all-time record highs this week.

Underpinning this performance is higher lithium spot prices and upbeat quarterly results.

Top performing ASX 200 shares this week

Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS)

The Pilbara Minerals Ltd share price rallied to a new record intraday high of $1.74 on Friday. It finished the session up 1.78% at $1.72.

Shares in the lithium miner bounced back strongly this week after tumbling 9.15% to $1.44 by Tuesday.

Since its Tuesday low, the Pilbara Minerals share price rallied an extraordinary 20% in three days.

The lithium sector has been surging lately. The Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF (NYSEARCA: LIT) skyrocketed 16.38% this month and 23.32% year-to-date.

The ETF is comprised of companies involved in the full lithium cycle. This includes mining and refining the metal through to battery production and electric vehicles.

The lithium ETF reached a record high closing price of US$81.76 on Friday. This signals that it isn’t just Pilbara Minerals rising but the broader emerging sector as well.

Pilbara Minerals is expected to release its June 2021 quarterly activities report next Thursday, 29 July.

Orocobre Ltd (ASX: ORE)

Orocobre Limited is another ASX 200 share hitting record highs this week.

The Orocobre share price rallied 9.39% this week to a close of $7.69 on Friday.

Its performance is similar to Pilbara Minerals, with the company’s shares tumbling on Monday and Tuesday.

The Orocobre share price jumped 9.91% on Thursday following the release of the company’s June quarterly results.

The results highlighted improved production figures and expansion plans, but more importantly, much higher lithium prices.

The company said the average realised price for its lithium carbonate during the quarter was US$8,476/tonnes free on board (FOB). This is up 45% quarter-on-quarter.

The post Guess which sector this week’s top performing ASX 200 shares come from appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• ASX 200 edges higher, Crown falls, Pointsbet rises
• These ASX 200 shares were the most heavily traded today
• ASX 200 travel shares slide as New Zealand closes travel bubble
• How is the ASX 200 performing against the FTSE 100 in 2021?
• Electro Optic Systems (ASX:EOS) share price up 9% on quarterly report

Motley Fool contributor Kerry Sun 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 S&P/ASX 50 index is home to 50 of the largest listed companies on the Australian share market. This means the index hosts many of the highest quality and most well-known companies that the ANZ region has to offer.

While not all the shares on the index are necessarily in the buy zone, three that could be are listed below. Here’s what you need to know about them:

CSL Limited (ASX: CSL)

The first ASX 50 share to look at is this biotherapeutics company. Its CSL Behring and Seqirus businesses have been growing at a solid rate in recent years thanks to their leading therapies and vaccines, and lucrative research and development pipelines. And while CSL is battling plasma collection headwinds at present, which could weigh on its near term performance, the future remains very positive due to the aforementioned growth drivers. UBS is positive on the company. The broker currently has a buy rating and $330.00 price target on its shares.

Goodman Group (ASX: GMG)

Another ASX 50 share to look at is Goodman Group. It is a leading integrated commercial and industrial property company with $52.9 billion of total assets under management globally. Among its portfolio are warehouses, large scale logistics facilities, and business and office parks. At the end of the third quarter, the company’s occupancy rate stood at 98% and its net property income was up 3.3% over the prior corresponding period. Management notes that this reflects the strong demand for its properties. Positively, it has a significant development pipeline that looks set to drive further growth in the coming years. Morgan Stanley is a fan of the company and believes it is well-placed for growth. It recently put an overweight rating and $23.00 price target on its shares.

Xero Limited (ASX: XRO)

A final ASX 50 share to consider is Xero. It is a leading provider of a cloud-based business and accounting solution to small and medium sized businesses. Xero currently has 2.74 million subscribers globally. This comprises 1.56 million in the ANZ region and 1.18 million internationally. While this is a large number, it is still only a small portion of its global addressable market. Combined with price increases and its burgeoning app ecosystem, this provides the company with a significant runway for growth over the next decade. Goldman Sachs is very positive on the company’s prospects. It has a buy rating and recently increased its price target to $165.00.

The post 3 ASX 50 shares named as buys appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

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• What is the outlook for the CSL (ASX:CSL) share price?
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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 CSL Ltd. and Xero. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Xero. 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) went up by 0.1% to 7,394 points.

Here are some of the highlights from the ASX:

Crown Resorts Ltd (ASX: CWN)

The Crown share price went down around 2% after it was announced that Star Entertainment Group Ltd (ASX: SGR) was stepping away from its takeover offer.

Star was initially attracted to the “significant” potential strategic and value accretion benefits for shareholders of both companies, including estimated cost synergies of between $150 million to $200 million per annum. There was also the potential to create significant value from a sale and leaseback of an enlarged property portfolio.

To date, Star has had limited engagement from Crown about the takeover bid. It also said that issues raised at Victoria’s royal commission into Crown Melbourne have the potential to materially impact the value of Crown, including whether it retains the licence to operate its Melbourne casino or the conditions under which its licence is retained.

The ASX 200 share still believes there’s a lot of substantial benefits that could be unlocked by the merger, but there’s so much uncertainty about Crown that it can’t continue with its current offer.

However, Star said it remains open to exploring opportunities with Crown.

Star remains focused on its growth initiatives including its multi-billion Queen’s Wharf Brisbane integrated resort due to open in late 202 and its Gold Coast masterplan.

Pointsbet Holdings Ltd (ASX: PBH)

The Pointsbet share price went up 2.5% after announcing some US news.

Its New Jersey subsidiary has been authorised by the New Jersey Department of Gaming Enforcement to commence iGaming operations and it has launched the platform in that state. This follows the launch of iGaming in Michigan on 5 May 2021.

The ASX 200 share was pleased to reveal a lot of growth of iGaming, it said:

iGaming revenues in the United States have grown exceptionally since the repeal of Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act in May 2018. Across New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and West Virginia – all states in which Pointsbet has iGaming market access. iGaming revenues reached nearly US$900 million in the June 2021 quarter which if annualised would equate to greater than US$3.5 billion per annum.

Pointsbet also announced the appointment of Scott Vanderwel as the new CEO of Pointsbet Canada.

Myer Holdings Ltd (ASX: MYR)

The Myer share price fell around 2% today after revealing it had secured a 10-year lease on a new 40,000sqm facility in Victoria which will act as its new national distribution centre for both its stores and online fulfilment.

This move follows enhancements to its online operations that were undertaken last year and changes to international freight arrangements earlier this year.

It will be a new state-of-the-art facility that has over 100,000 stock keeping units (SKUs). Myer said it will lead to new widespread customer benefits and efficiencies anticipated for both the stores and online businesses. It will benefit from several automated solutions.

Myer expects around 70% of its online fulfilment will be performed by this new distribution centre. It’s expected to lead to a reduced cost per order, whilst stores will be important for click and collect options as well as last mile deliveries in some areas.

Construction of the site is underway. It’s expected to be able to start using the facility from August 2022.

The post ASX 200 edges higher, Crown falls, Pointsbet rises appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• These ASX 200 shares were the most heavily traded today
• ASX 200 travel shares slide as New Zealand closes travel bubble
• How is the ASX 200 performing against the FTSE 100 in 2021?
• Electro Optic Systems (ASX:EOS) share price up 9% on quarterly report
• ASX 200 midday update: Crown-Star merger talks end, Evolution jumps

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 Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Pointsbet 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 Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) share price has finished the week lower.

On Friday the $21.51 billion oil and gas giant slipped 1.06% to $22.34 a share. This is despite oil prices climbing higher overnight.

There are no official announcements from the company today. However, reports from ABC News reveal Woodside plans to lay waste to an oil facility. The interesting aspect is the intention to create an “artificial reef” by doing so.

Is it so ‘rig-diculous’ of an idea?

The proposal involves Woodside’s Nganhurra oil facility which was decommissioned from service in 2018. While the company initially planned to tow the production and storage vessel back to shore shortly after ceasing operations, a design flaw stopped this occurring.

Now the company’s ‘ingenious’ plan is to sink the 83-metre-long riser to the bottom of the ocean. This consists of 325 tonnes of iron ore slurry. In the process, the company hopes to create an artificial reef. However, this route does not come without its issues either.

The National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPESEMA) is investigating Woodside for potentially breaching the law by allowing the rig to degrade, leading to the inability of disposing of it on land.

Additionally, the facility proposed for dumping contains an estimated 65 cubic metres of polyurethane foam. This was approved by NOPESEMA due to the safety risks posed by attempting to remove it.

However, there now seems to be confusion over whether the oil and gas company will remove the foam or not. This could have weighed on the Woodside share price on Friday.

The reason why this plan is drawing eyeballs is the potential cost savings if Woodside’s approach is approved. A study from the National Energy Resources Australia (NERA) points to a $50 billion exercise in decommissioning and removing facilities in the coming decades.

In the study, NERA concluded that half of those costs could be eliminated by leaving most of the materials in the ocean.

Woodside share price snapshot

The Woodside share price has experienced an underwhelming past 12 months. During the period, the company’s share price has climbed a paltry 6%, compared to the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) which delivered a 22.8% return.

The post Woodside (ASX:WPL) share price struggles following rig dumping proposal appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Santos (ASX:STO) share price jumps on record quarterly sales
• What’s happening with ASX 200 oil shares this week?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday

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 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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Over the last five years, the healthcare sector has been a great place to invest. During this time, the S&P/ASX 200 Health Care index has almost returned 100% for investors.

As a comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is up almost 33% over the same period. That’s triple the return of the ASX 200.

The good news is that with demand for healthcare products and services expected to continue to rise in the future due to ageing populations, better technologies, and increased chronic disease, there’s a possibility that this side of the market will continue to outperform over the next five years.

With that in mind, I have picked out two ASX healthcare shares which have been tipped as buys recently. They are as follows:

Healius Ltd (ASX: HLS)

The first healthcare ASX share to look at is Healius. It is one of Australia’s largest pathology and diagnostic imaging providers. Healius has been a strong performer in FY 2021, reporting a 16% increase in first half revenue to $953.5 million and a 190% increase in profit to $75.6 million. This was driven by a very strong performance from its key pathology business, which reported a 22% increase in revenue to $711.4 million and wider margins. Positively for the company, demand for COVID-related pathology services looks set to remains stronger for longer due to the Delta strain. This bodes well for its near term growth.

One broker that is bullish on its future is Macquarie. The broker currently has an outperform rating and $4.85 price target on its shares.

Nanosonics Ltd (ASX: NAN)

Another healthcare ASX share to consider is Nanosonics. It is a leading infection prevention company behind the popular trophon EPR ultrasound probe disinfection system. This system protects an estimated 80,000 patients from the risk of cross contamination each day. Nanosonics is also busy researching and developing a number of new products which are due to be launched in the coming years. One of these has just been revealed and is AuditPro. It is a digital platform that has been designed to improve traceability, reporting, and compliance of infection prevention measures for medical devices.

Morgans remains positive on the company and has an add rating and $6.57 price target on its shares.

The post 2 ASX healthcare shares that analysts think could beat the market appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Brokers using the lockdown to upgrade earnings forecasts on these ASX 200 shares
• 3 ASX shares to snap up before reporting season: expert
• ASX 200 rises, API soars, Wesfarmers up
• Healius (ASX:HLS) share price higher on acquisition and rebrand news
• The 5 best ASX 200 healthcare shares of financial year 2021

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 Nanosonics Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Nanosonics 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 S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has ended the trading week on a rather flat note. At the closing bell, the ASX 200 was up, but only just, having gained 0.11% to finish on 7,394 points.

So let’s take a look at some of the ASX 200 shares that are being most heavily traded today.

3 ASX 200 shares most heavily traded today

We have a rather unusual situation today, with all 3 top trading shares being ASX gold miners:

Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST)

Gold miner Northern Star is our first ASX 200 share to look at today. A total of 17.39 million Northern Star shares swapped hands today. This is almost certainly the result of the Northern Star share price, which finished down a nasty 6.23% to $10.09 a share.

This move looks to be a combination of reaction to yesterday’s quarterly update, the sale of mining assets (more on that later), as well as negative coverage from a couple of brokers. My Fool colleague Aaron discussed these factors in detail this morning.

Silver Lake Resources Limited (ASX: SLR)

Silver Lake, a fellow gold miner, is our next ASX 200 share today. A hefty 19.90 million Silver Lake shares were traded today.

Silver Lake seems to have been caught up in the woes of the ASX gold mining sector today, and ended the session down a substantial 8.5% to $1.61 a share. This company has a quarterly report of its own to blame here, it seems.

Apparently, investors weren’t too impressed with the gold sales volume the company managed over the period in question.

Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN)

Bucking the ASX 200 gold miner trend today is Evolution, which is also our most traded ASX 200 share today. Unlike the previous two miners, Evolution finished up a healthy 4.42% today to $4.25. This saw an impressive 21.71 million shares change hands on Friday.

This goodwill seems to be stemming from the completion of Evolution’s $400 million institutional share placement that is going towards the acquisition of some of Northern Star’s mines. Clearly, the market thinks Northern Star’s losses are Evolution’s gains here.

The post These ASX 200 shares were the most heavily traded today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why BARD1, Imugene, Northern Star, & Silver Lake shares are sinking
• ASX 200 travel shares slide as New Zealand closes travel bubble
• Why Bigtincan, EOS, Evolution, & Western Areas shares are charging higher
• Why the Northern Star (ASX:NST) share price is sinking 6% today
• How is the ASX 200 performing against the FTSE 100 in 2021?

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen 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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ASX supermarket shares are roaring despite current lockdown restrictions being a drag on the economy.

Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) shares are up 6% in a month, the Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) share price is 9.2% higher, and Metcash Limited is jumping 10.1%. The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is only up 1.64% during this time.

Let’s take a closer look.

Lockdowns, lockdowns, lockdowns

In what feels like a surreal and somewhat sadistic episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show, every state or territory bar Tasmania and the ACT has had some form of lockdown over the past 4 weeks. The most pronounced one is in Australia’s largest city, Sydney.

Today marks 4 weeks since New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian placed the harbour city under stay-at-home orders. While the order is supposed to lift next Saturday, this looks exceedingly unlikely with the state declaring 136 new cases today – 70 of which were confirmed to not be fully isolating.

Victoria and South Australia are joining Sydney in lockdown fun at the moment. All 3 means over half the population of Australia’s movements are restricted.

During Australia’s first lockdown, we saw ASX supermarkets do exceedingly well under the orders.

Take Coles, for example. In its most recent half-year report, revenue for the supermarket jumped 8% to nearly $21 billion. Earnings Before Interest and Taxes (EBIT) spiked 12% to $1 billion. This includes a 14% increase in the supermarket divisions EBIT.

Woolworths saw its revenue leap 10.5% in its half-yearly to $35.8 billion. EBIT increased 9.4% to $10.5 billion. Woolworths management said Australian supermarkets grew above trend.

Metcash too; it saw a 12% increase in revenue for the period to $7.1 billion. Its EBIT rocketed 30% for the six months to $203 million.

The common thread through all 3 earnings reports was the impact COVID had on consumer demand. With supermarkets and bottle shops being some of the only stores allowed to trade during lockdown, these companies profited handsomely.

The share market is an expectations game

As Motley Fool’s own Scott Phillips says, the share price has a lot more to do with expectations than it can do with underlying finances.

While we don’t have any numbers out of these ASX supermarkets yet, we have history. History tells us that when we are all doing it tough in lockdown, the supermarket giants are just fine. Investors may very well expect this to occur again with the current lockdowns across the country. Increased revenues may mean increased dividend payments to shareholders, and that’s an enticing proposition for some.

ASX supermarket shares over the longer term

While all 3 mentioned ASX supermarket shares are flying this month, over the year the story is more mixed.

Coles is down 1.4%, Woolworths is up 21%, while Metcash has soared 47%. It should be noted with Woolworths, its share price took a hit when it demerged from its drinks business. The Endeavour Group Ltd (ASX: EDV) share price is up 7% this month too, a reflection of the fact liquor stores can continue to trade – even though Endeavour owns hospitality venues too.

The market capitalisations of these companies range from $4.1 billion for Metcash to nearly $50 billion for Woolworths.

The post The other side of lockdown – ASX supermarket shares are flying appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Woolworths (ASX:WOW) store closes after staff contract COVID-19
• What is the outlook for the Woolworths (ASX:WOW) share price?
• Has Dry July hit the Endeavour (ASX:EDV) share price?
• Which ASX 200 shares are winning from latest retail trade figures?
• The Woolworths (ASX:WOW) share price is surging to record highs

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. 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 Redbubble Ltd (ASX: RBL) share price has had a rough run in 2021, but today it surged 4.27% to $3.91.

Investors ran for the exit back in April when the ecommerce company unveiled plans to sacrifice profit margins to deliver its ‘aspirational’ $1.25 billion revenue vision.

Such an increase in revenue would represent a doubling in Redbubble’s current annual revenue.

However, since June the company has been crawling its way out of what appears to be a bottoming in the Redbubble share price, with one fund manager seeing the company as a significant opportunity.

Let’s take a look…

Fund manager sees opportunity

EGP Capital is a Sydney-based fund manager that invests in Australian-listed companies with smaller market capitalisations. Typically, the fund holds 25 to 35 stocks, usually with the 5 largest holdings making up 50% of the portfolio.

Redbubble is hovering around the sixth largest position in the EGP Capital Concentrated Value Fund.

According to EGP’s May report, the fund took advantage of the negative sentiment towards the Redbubble share price and added to their position.

Explaining the rationale behind the optimism to investors, EGP said in its report:

RBL is an incredible marketplace, the likes of which are seldom created and even more rarely available at the type of value investors pricing the market is currently ascribing to the business. ETSY has just acquired a business which appears to be meaningfully inferior to RBL for more than twice RBL’s current market capitalisation. If the market does not soon wake up to the opportunity RBL currently presents, it may suffer a similar fate.

EGP appears to be referring to the peer-to-peer social shopping app, Depop.

Depop recorded $650 million in gross merchandise sales and $70 million in revenue in 2020, with a 10% take rate. Etsy Inc (NASDAQ: ETSY) is acquiring Depop for US$1.625 billion.

By comparison, in its Q3 FY21 update, Redbubble reported $577 million in gross transaction value year-to-date. Additionally, the company pulled $456 million in revenue.

Redbubble has a market capitalisation of $1.026 billion based on today’s closing price.

The Redbubble share price is down 34% year-to-date but is up 65% over the past 12 months.

Other Redbubble share price news

The Redbubble share price looks unfazed by the recently announced inquiry launched by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).

The inquiry will examine the practices of online marketplaces such as eBay Australia, Kogan.com Ltd (ASX: KGN), and others. It will particularly focus on the relationships with third-party sellers and consumers and how they affect competition.

Lastly, Redbubble will report its FY21 full year results on 19 August.

Investors will keep their eyes peeled for that one!

The post Redbubble (ASX:RBL) share price climbs 4% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• Why Kogan, Service Stream, Whispir, & Zip shares are sinking
• Kogan (ASX:KGN) share price falls as ACCC launches inquiry
• ASX 200 rises, Altium drops, Kogan falls
• ASX 200 midday update: Kogan FY 2021 update, Altium sinks

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. owns shares of and has recommended Etsy and Kogan.com ltd. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended eBay and has recommended the following options: short October 2021 $70 calls on eBay. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Kogan.com 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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In late afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to end the week with a small decline. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down slightly to 7,385.7 points.

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

BARD1 Life Sciences Ltd (ASX: BD1)

The BARD1 share price is down almost 7% to $1.68. This follows the completion of a placement that raised $15 million at a 14% discount of $1.55 per new share. The proceeds will be used primarily to fund the development and commercialisation of the SubB2M tests for ovarian and breast cancer, and its EXO-NET products.

Imugene Limited (ASX: IMU)

The Imugene share price has fallen 4.5% to 33.5 cents. Investors have been selling the biotech company’s shares following the release of its quarterly update. That update revealed an operating cash outflow of $4.6 million for the quarter. This left Imugene with a cash balance of $29.5 million at the end of the period.

Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST)

The Northern Star share price is down 6% to $10.13. This is despite a number of brokers responding positively to its quarterly update and asset sale announcement. One of those brokers is Credit Suisse, which has retained its outperform rating and $13.00 price target. The broker notes that its June quarter was the strongest quarter of the year and sees the Kundana sale as a positive for its balance sheet.

Silver Lake Resources Limited (ASX: SLR)

The Silver Lake share price is down 9% to $1.61. Investors have been selling this gold miner’s shares following the release of its quarterly update. That update revealed that Silver Lake achieved quarterly production of 62,126 ounces of gold and 445 tonnes of copper. This appears to have fallen short of expectations.

The post Why BARD1, Imugene, Northern Star, & Silver Lake shares are sinking appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• BARD1 (ASX:BD1) share price falls 6% on placement update
• Why the Northern Star (ASX:NST) share price is sinking 6% today
• ASX 200 midday update: Crown-Star merger talks end, Evolution jumps
• Silver Lake Resources (ASX:SLR) share price slides 9% on quarterly results
• Why the Evolution (ASX:EVN) share price is charging higher today

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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The Perpetual Ltd (ASX: PPT) share price has fallen into the red after market open today.

The dip comes after Perpetual released its fourth quarter business update. After the market open, Perpetual shares slid 1.2% into the red, before making a slight recovery to the current market price.

Perpetual shares are now exchanging hands at $38.37 apiece, ~0.25% below the opening of $38.07.

Let’s comb over the financial services provider’s results in a bit finer detail.

Perpetual’s quarterly results

Perpetual recorded a net outflow of funds for the fourth quarter that surmounted to $2.3 billion.

Despite these outflows, its total assets under management (AUM) grew to $98.3 billion, a 3.1% increase from the previous quarter.

Perpetual also reports that underlying expenses for the year will come in at 3% higher than June 2020. This is in line with the previously outlined guidance of 1–3%.

Under its International Asset Management arm, the total expenses will place an additional 31% to the cost base of June 2020, and this comes in above the previous guidance of 28–30%.

The higher cost base is due to “higher costs associated with employee profit share schemes”, a result of outperformance by Trillium Asset Management and Barrow Hanley Global Investors in 2021.

Recall that Perpetual made the acquisition of Trillium in January 2020 and completed the Barrow Hanley transaction earlier this year.

Perpetual stated it was another “record quarter” of capital flows for Trillium, with “$361 million in net flows globally”.

Consequently, AUM for Perpetual Asset Management International grew 2.8% this quarter to ~$74 billion.

Other takeouts

Perpetual Asset Management Australia’s AUM grew 4.2% from the previous quarter, reaching $24.7 billion. This occurred on a backdrop of “positive investment markets and an improvement in the net flows profile”.

Additionally, Perpetual Private’s funds under advice grew 6% with positive inflows of $300 million across the quarter.

In contrast, its Corporate Trust’s funds under administration contracted 2%, which the company claims was “driven by the scheduled close of the RBA’s term funding facility”.

Speaking on the announcement, Perpetual chief executive Rob Adams said:

There has been further positive momentum achieved across all our divisions this quarter with a number of key strategic initiatives delivered, positioning us well for solid growth in this new financial year.

Regarding Trillium and Barrow Hanley:

We are increasingly well-positioned to take the world-class investment capabilities of Trillium and Barrow Hanley to key markets around the world having now established distribution teams in the US, the UK and shortly in Europe.

Foolish takeaway

The Perpetual share price has lagged the S&P / ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) today, even as the broad index dipped into the red in afternoon trading.

Perpetual’s AUM seems to be growing on a cumulative basis, despite choppy flows of investor capital. The firm states that recent acquisitions have been growth levers to the company.

The post Perpetual (ASX:PPT) share price struggles despite ‘strong performance’ appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Perpetual Ltd (ASX:PPT) share price sets new 52-week high

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