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Funeral homes and cemeteries operator InvoCare Limited (ASX: IVC) had a rollercoaster year in 2020. The InvoCare share price fell as low as $9.07 in March 2020, after climbing to its 52-week high of $15.79 only a month earlier.

The share price is currently trading 1.3% lower for the day so far at $11.44 – which is still almost 30% off its highs of last year.

Can the InvoCare share price regain its former glory in 2021?

How did InvoCare do in 2020?

For its half year ending 30 June 2020, InvoCare produced revenue of $226 million which represented a 6.2% decline over the prior corresponding period. That resulted in a bottom line net loss of $18 million, compared to a $41 million profit in the same FY19 period.

The key driver in declining revenue was primarily COVID-19 restrictions on the number of attendees at funerals.

The company also said that, ironically, social distancing and increased focus on hygiene in the wake of the pandemic led to a virtually non-existent flu season and significantly lower mortality rates in calendar 2020. This further drove down the company’s revenue.

To keep the business steady in the first half of 2020, InvoCare completed a $274 million equity raising to reduce net debt and increase its liquidity.

Things were starting to look up in the second half however, with the company announcing the acquisition of two pet cremation and after life care businesses worth around $50 million.

Tailwinds for the InvoCare share price in 2021

Death is one of the few certainties in life, and InvoCare dominates the Australian funeral and death care industry.

As the largest provider of funeral, cemetery, and crematorium services, the company has taken a revenue market share of around 36% in Australia and 18% in New Zealand.

While death rates fluctuate from year to year, they tend to converge to a stable average over the long run. This is because mortality rates are a simple function of the population size, average age, and life expectancy of a country.

Given Australia’s ageing population, it is expected that the mortality rate in Australia will be around 2% per year over the next decade. This is expected to accelerate beyond 2030, providing InvoCare with a steady stream of future revenue.

InvoCare believes that conditions in 2020 represent a blip, and that death rates and revenues will return to normal over the near term.

Also underpinning InvoCare’s prospects is the belief that its customers, typically the family of the deceased, are relatively price-insensitive given the highly emotional context surrounding the death of a loved one. This means people are less likely to shop around and compare prices for funeral services than they would be for other services.

How competition might affect InvoCare

As the biggest operator in the industry, InvoCare enjoys considerable bargaining power when it comes to sourcing coffins, cars, flowers, and the other components that typically make up funeral services.

This has allowed the company to operate at a higher profit margin than its next biggest competitor, Propel Funeral Partners Ltd (ASX: PFP).

Propel is aiming to increase its market share through acquisitions, thus potentially presenting InvoCare with increased competition.

In November, Propel announced it had completed the acquisition of The Dills Group and MidWest Funerals, which will add around 800 funerals a year to its revenue stream.

More reading

• Here’s why the InvoCare (ASX:IVC) share price is on the rise today
• These are the 10 most shorted shares on the ASX
• These are the 10 most shorted shares on the ASX
• These are the 10 most shorted shares on the ASX
• 3 little-known ASX dividend shares offering big income

Motley Fool contributor Eddy Sunarto has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended InvoCare Limited and Propel Funeral Partners Ltd. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

The post Can the InvoCare (ASX:IVC) share price reclaim its 52-week high in 2021? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

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

Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN) air cargo ambitions are taking a new flight path after the e-commerce giant announced it was buying, not leasing, 11 used Boeing aircraft from Delta Air Lines and WestJet Airlines.

The purchase marks the first time Amazon has not leased any airplanes for its Prime fleet. It expects to have 85 planes in service by the end of next year.

On a wing and a prayer

Amazon leases most of its cargo aircraft through Air Transport Services Group, which provides the fleet with 767s, and Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, which supplies 737s and 767s. Amazon has taken an ownership stake in both companies.

It also leased 15 737s through General Electric‘s GE Capital Aviation Services, but in September went off in another new direction that hinted at the purchases to come when it directly registered one of its aircraft under its own name. That plane was also from WestJet.

Under the new acquisition, Amazon will be getting Boeing 767-300 aircraft. Sarah Rhoads, vice president of Amazon Global Air said in a statement:

Our goal is to continue delivering for customers across the U.S. in the way that they expect from Amazon, and purchasing our own aircraft is a natural next step toward that goal. Having a mix of both leased and owned aircraft in our growing fleet allows us to better manage our operations, which in turn helps us to keep pace in meeting our customer promises.

Amazon has emerged as a major threat to FedEx and UPS. A recent study suggested the e-commerce leader could grow into a major aircraft carrier with as many as 200 planes in the next seven or eight years, at which time it would be close in size to UPS.

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

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Rich Duprey has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and recommends Amazon and FedEx. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Delta Air Lines and recommends the following options: long January 2022 $1920 calls on Amazon and short January 2022 $1940 calls on Amazon. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Amazon. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

The post Amazon expands its air delivery fleet after buying 11 new planes appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

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The Pushpay Holdings Ltd (ASX: PPH) share price was on form again in 2020 and surged notably higher.

Over the 12 months, the donor management and community engagement platform provider’s shares were up a sizeable 81%.

Why did the Pushpay share price jump 80% higher in 2020?

Investors were buying Pushpay’s shares in 2020 after it delivered exceptionally strong revenue and earnings growth despite the pandemic.

In FY 2020, the company reported a 33% increase in operating revenue to US$127.5 million. This was driven by a 39% increase in total processing volume to US$5 billion, a 42% lift in customer numbers to 10,896, and flat average revenue per user of US$1,317 per month.

While this growth was clearly very strong, it was nothing compared to its earnings growth thanks to the achievement of further operating leverage.

During the 12 months, Pushpay’s operating expenses only grew 5%. As a result, as a percentage of revenue, its operating expenses reduced from 65% to 52%.

This led a massive 1,506% increase in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation and foreign currency gains/losses (EBITDAF) to US$25.1 million.

Pushpay’s strong form continues.

Also giving its shares a boost was the company’s half year results and guidance for FY 2021.

For the six months ended 30 September, Pushpay delivered a 48% increase in total processing volume to US$3.2 billion and a 53% increase in operating revenue to US$85.6 million.

Once again, the company delivered further operating leverage, reducing its operating expenses as a percentage of revenue to 38%.

This underpinned a 177% increase in half year EBITDAF to US$26.7 million. This was more than the entire EBITDAF it achieved in FY 2020.

Looking ahead, more of the same is expected in the second half. Management has provided fully year FY 2021 EBITDAF guidance of between US$54 million and US$58 million. This will be up 115% to 131% year on year.

Can the Pushpay share price go higher?

Analysts at Goldman Sachs believe the Pushpay share price can continue its ascent in 2021.

It currently has a conviction buy rating and ~$2.59 price target on its shares. This compares to the current Pushpay share price of $1.71.

More reading

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• Top ASX shares to buy in January 2021

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 PUSHPAY FPO NZX. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended PUSHPAY FPO NZX. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

The post The Pushpay (ASX:PPH) share price jumped 80% in 2020: Can it go higher? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Over the past 12 months, the Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: TLX) share price has posted massive gains exceeding 150%. The Telix share price kicked off 2020 at $1.53, closed the year at $3.78 and is currently sitting at $3.86 per share.

So what has Telix done to achieve this remarkable pump for its share price?

Significant US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) wins

In January 2020, Telix announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the recruitment of American participants in the company’s Zirconium Imaging in Renal Cancer Oncology (ZIRCON) study. This was an important milestone because it extended the Phase III study into new territory beyond Australia and Europe.

The purpose of the international study is to evaluate Telix’s kidney cancer imaging agent (TLX250-CDx), which aims to detect the most common form of kidney cancer, clear cell renal cell carcinoma. The FDA followed this approval up by designating TLX250-CDx as a ‘Breakthrough Therapy’.

In February 2020, Telix announced that the FDA had also offered positive feedback regarding the company’s submission of a New Drug Application (NDA) for its product TLX591-CDx. TLX591-CDX is an imaging radiopharmaceutical to support people suffering from prostate cancer. 

When Telix announced that the company had formally submitted the NDA in July 2020, the Telix share price jumped 16%. In the company’s August 2020 half-year shareholder report, it was noted that sales of the TLX591-CDx kit were up 28% compared to the previous corresponding period (PCP). This resulted in a $2.1 million bump in cash receipts. 

Telix continued marching forward with yet another FDA approval last October regarding its 18F-FET product, which supports the imaging of glioma, a type of brain tumour.

The strategic acquisition of TheraPharm 

As 2020 carried on, Telix diligently expanded its market reach. In November 2020, they announced that the company had entered an agreement with Scintec Diagnostics to acquire TheraPharm. TheraPharm is a Swiss-German biotechnology company developing diagnostic and therapeutic solutions in the field of haematology — specifically, blood cancers.

The acquisition was finalised in December 2020. 

What’s on the horizon for the Telix share price?

Telix continues to aggressively pursue opportunities for the company’s suite of pharmaceutical products. On 16 December 2020, Telix filed a New Drug Submission (NDS) with Health Canada pertaining to TLX591-CDX product approval. 

Later that month, Telix provided a clinical update regarding research connected to its TLX101 product in Australia and Europe. TLX101 endeavours to treat recurrent glioblastoma multiforme, a cancerous brain tumour.

A 12-month share price hike of 150% won’t be an easy achievement to top. As we enter 2021, investors will no doubt be keeping an eye on Telix’s pipeline to see if the company can keep up with last year’s powerhouse performance.

More reading

• Telix (ASX:TLX) share price down 4% despite new deal
• The Telix (ASX:TLX) share price is on the move today. Here’s why.
• Telix (ASX:TLX) share price slips despite priority review status

Motley Fool contributor Gretchen Kennedy 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.

The post How the Telix (ASX:TLX) share price roared over 150% in a year appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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In afternoon trade the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a very disappointing decline. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down 1.2% to 6,603.4 points.

Four shares that have fallen more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are dropping lower:

A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M)

The a2 Milk share price is down 3% to $11.09. This infant formula and fresh milk company’s shares have come under pressure in recent months due to weakness in the daigou channel. Judging by its increasing short interest, it appears as though some in the market are not convinced the worst is over for the company just yet.

AVZ Minerals Ltd (ASX: AVZ)

The AVZ Minerals share price has dropped 3% to 16.5 cents. The lithium-focused mineral exploration company’s shares may have come under pressure from profit taking after some stellar gains recently. Prior to today, the AVZ Minerals share price had almost doubled in the space of just one month. This was driven by optimism over lithium prices and the announcement of an offtake agreement.

Nanosonics Ltd (ASX: NAN)

The Nanosonics share price is down over 7% to $7.46 despite there being no news out of the infection prevention company. Once again, this appears to have been driven by profit taking. The Nanosonics share price hit a record high of $8.25 on Monday. Investors have been buying its shares on the belief that COVID-19 will be a tailwind for infection prevention solutions.

Premier Investments Limited (ASX: PMV)

The Premier Investments share price is down 4% to $22.71. This may be due to concerns over the impact that the UK lockdown will have on its sales in the country. Premier Investments has 131 Smiggle stores in the UK, though is planning to close up to 55 of these during FY 2021.

More reading

• Are heads in the clouds with these sky high P/E ratios?
• ASX 200 down 0.5%: Energy shares jump, big four banks fall, Zip climbs higher
• Here’s why the A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) share price was hammered in 2020
• Investors caught in crossfire as ASX retailers battle ASX property stocks in 2021
• These are the 10 most shorted shares on the ASX

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 Nanosonics Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended A2 Milk and Premier Investments Limited. The Motley Fool Australia 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.

The post Why a2 Milk, AVZ Minerals, Nanosonics, & Premier Investments are dropping lower appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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ASX 200 shares are off to a shaky start on Wednesday despite some positive economic indicators in recent days. At the time of writing, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is trading 0.47% lower at 6,638.20 points with some big names heading lower.

Why are ASX 200 shares trending lower?

Financials and health care shares are trading lower this morning with the major banks all dragging on the index’s performance.

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price is down 0.4% to $82.89 while CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) shares have slumped 1.6% to $280.97.

These are two of the biggest names that have contributed to Wednesday’s losses. This is despite oil prices reaching a 10-month high.

What was the good economic indicator?

According to an article in the Australian Financial Review (AFR), the jobs market is entering the new year with some significant momentum.

An Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ) Australian job advertisement series published on Tuesday showed a continued recovery in demand for Aussie workers. More than 159,000 vacant positions were advertised in December which was the highest in 18 months and 4.1% above pre-coronavirus levels in February 2020.

ASX 200 shares have slid this morning despite the positive leading indicator news from the ANZ survey. ANZ senior economist Catherine Birch was cautiously optimistic on the news, saying “we should see pretty solid employment gains in December and going into 2021.”

CommSec chief economist Craig James was quoted saying, “a healthier job market will support overall economic activity, confidence and spending.”

The latest ANZ job series survey could bode well for unemployment statistics due out later this month. That, in turn, could be good news for several ASX 200 shares as investors hope for the strong momentum seen in the fourth quarter of 2020 to continue into the new year.

Foolish takeaway

All eyes will be on the economic data due out in coming weeks to kickstart the new year. ASX 200 shares have had a soft start to the year with the index falling 0.7% since Monday.

More reading

• ASX 200 down 0.5%: Energy shares jump, big four banks fall, Zip climbs higher
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• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• ASX 200 falls on Tuesday
• Here’s which ASX bank share this leading broker thinks you should buy

Ken Hall has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of CSL Ltd. 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 Sensen Networks Ltd (ASX: SNS) share price has been up and down this morning after the software company announced a successful placement.

The company’s shares opened 15% lower at 15 cents. However, at the time of writing, the Sensen share price has since lifted 2.86% to trade at 18 cents.

Why is the Sensen share price up today?

In today’s release, Sensen advised it has raised $7.15 million from professional and sophisticated investors through a placement. The issuance of 57,200,000 new ordinary shares at a price of 12.5 cents each were allotted to participating shareholders yesterday. Sensen noted that the offer price reflected a 9.2% discount on the 30-day volume weighted average price of its shares.

The moneys raised from the placement will be used to support a variety of initiatives. The company will seek to recruit new personnel for key executive roles such as sales and marketing, and project management.

In addition, Sensen will also use the new capital to fund its strategic business objectives to generate revenue and fine-tune its global delivery capabilities. Some of the funds will be allocated to its R&D department to ensure the company maintains a competitive advantage.

What did the CEO have to say?

Commenting on the placement, Sensen CEO Dr Subhash Challa said:

Following a strong 2020 growth year for the company despite the global effects of COVID-19, this capital raising means we are now extremely well positioned to execute the company’s aggressive expansion plans in 2021 and beyond.

Sensen is delighted to welcome global equities manager VGI Partners to the company. The fund’s focus on investing in businesses with a competitive advantage for the long-term clearly aligns with SenSen’s strategic plans.

Similarly, we are delighted to enter a new phase of institutional and sophisticated investor support for the company as we aggressively pursue expansion in our target markets and rapidly grow our revenue profile especially in the US.

A year in review for the Sensen share price

The Sensen share price has gone through peaks and troughs during the past 12 months. Reaching as low as 5.5 cents in March, the company’s shares have stormed higher only in the past few days.

Based on the current Sensen share price, the company commands a market capitalisation of around $82.9 million.

More reading

• Are heads in the clouds with these sky high P/E ratios?
• What’s in store for the Scentre (ASX:SCG) share price in 2021?
• ASX 200 down 0.5%: Energy shares jump, big four banks fall, Zip climbs higher
• 20% of Aussie investors would take high returns over personal ethics
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Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras 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.

The post Why the Sensen (ASX:SNS) share price is lifting today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The humble price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio is also known as the earnings multiple. Value investors swear by it, speculators trash it. Truthfully, the earnings multiple doesn’t necessarily define whether an investment is a buy or not. It is simply another tool in the arsenal of an investor.

Over the long term, it is typical that a company’s earnings multiple trends towards the market average. For relevance, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO)’s P/E ratio is 22.96 according to Blackrock.

But today we’ll take a look at a handful of ASX shares that are trading on sky-high P/E ratios.

4 ASX shares with lofty P/E ratios

REA Group Limited (ASX: REA)

You have likely used a service of REA Group before, either when house hunting (realestate.com.au) or looking for a new housemate (flatmates.com.au). The online real estate advertising company currently boasts a daily audience of 1.9 million people, up 61% from a year ago.

At the moment, REA Group trades on a staggering earnings multiple of 175x. This is significantly higher than the interactive media and services industry average of 36.9x.

This begs the question, why is REA trading on such a rich P/E ratio compared to others in the industry? Earnings per share actually fell by 9% in REA Group’s last posted full-year results, dampened by the impacts of COVID-19.

Potentially investors are placing significant value on the growth in eyeballs to the platform, which can translate to additional monetisation. Average monthly traffic on the Australian realestate.com.au page increased by 18% to 90 million for FY2020. In addition, June saw the platform pull a record 114.3 million views – 3.2 times the traffic of its nearest competitor.

REA Group has also been undertaking a rapid growth strategy in Asia, America, and India. This has mostly been facilitated through acquisitions in what are newly developing markets for the company.

Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME)

Pro Medicus offers a suite of health imaging software solutions to hospitals, imaging centres, and healthcare groups. Since 2014, the company has been growing annual earnings at a blistering pace of 34.8% historically.

Currently the shares are trading on a P/E ratio of 154x. This is 2.48 times more than the healthcare services industry average of 63.8x.

The company reported double-digit growth in revenue, earnings, and cash reserves in its FY2020 results back in October. Chairman Peter Kempen described the result:

The success of the company, despite the challenge of COVID-19, has been due to the quality of the management team, the resilience of all of our staff, the flexibility of our leading-edge technology and the robustness of our business model.

The company believes its operating leverage is in its highly scalable offering, due to its product being purely software-based. As noted in the presentation, management expects this will enable a contained cost base, which will result in margin growth as the business expands. 

Pro Medicus is currently paying a dividend of 12 cents per share, an increase of 14.3% from last year.

The company has signed several deals over the last few months alone, including a 5 year contract with MedStar Health, a renewal with Zwanger-Persiri, and a 7 year contract with Ludwig-Maximilians University.

Xero Limited (ASX: XRO)

The well-known cloud-based accounting software provider has grown to become a global entity. Xero provides its solutions in the United Kingdom, North America, Singapore, and of course, across Australia and New Zealand.

The Xero share price at the time of writing is commanding an unbelievable earnings multiple of 625x. Keep in mind that the company only turned to profitability in late 2019.

Taking a look at Xero’s investor presentation for the first half of FY2021, the company managed to grow despite the challenging conditions. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) leapt 86% to $120.8 million. Likewise, free cash flow increased by 49.4% to $54.3 million from $4.8 million in the prior corresponding period.

One of Xero’s strategic priorities is to continue to harness the benefits of scalability, while driving its cloud accounting platform. 

Nanosonics Ltd (ASX: NAN)

Nanosonics is an Australian infection prevention company that offers an automated disinfection technology known as Trophon. This product delivers a modern means of disinfecting ultrasound probes.

At present, Nanosonics’ P/E ratio is a massive 243.9x. This is in contrast to the average 41.2x multiple for the broader medical equipment industry.

It seems the potential for this company to disrupt an arguably stagnant disinfection industry has investors excited. Although Nanosonics’ operating profit after tax fell for FY2020, down 25% to $10.137 million, revenue continues to grow. In its 2020 annual report, Nanosonics reported that company revenue rose 18.65% to just over $100 million.

Nanosonics continued to increase its investment in R&D by 37% to $15.6 million in FY2020. This was a part of the company’s strategy to expand its product portfolio and open up future opportunities. Shareholders will be watching attentively to see if any new innovations are sprout from these investments over the coming years.

More reading

• ASX 200 down 0.5%: Energy shares jump, big four banks fall, Zip climbs higher
• Why the REA Group (ASX:REA) share price thumped the market in 2020
• 2 blockbuster blue chip ASX shares to buy in January
• Which ASX 200 healthcare shares delivered the top returns in 2020?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday

Mitchell Lawler owns shares of Pro Medicus Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Nanosonics Limited and Xero. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Pro Medicus Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Pro Medicus Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Nanosonics Limited and REA Group Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

The post Are heads in the clouds with these sky high P/E ratios? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The Scentre Group (ASX: SCG) share price has lost almost 30% of its value over the past year, with coronavirus restrictions curbing various social activities, including physical shopping, across Australia. 

However, with the rollout of an effective vaccine now possibly only months away, can the Scentre share price rebound to its pre-COVID levels in 2021?

A recap of what happened to Scentre Group in 2020

Scentre Group was created in mid-2014 when the Australian assets of the Westfield Group and those of the Westfield Retail Trust were combined.

It owns a portfolio of all the 42 Westfield shopping centres across Australia, among other retail assets.

The company is predominantly a passive rent collector, and hence a real estate investment trust (REIT) share, though it does also undertake new development activities.

With government restrictions seeing many of Scentre’s tenants shut up shop periodically during the first half of 2020, the company faced reduced rent collection levels during this time. As restrictions began easing, however, Scentre reported improvements in trading conditions. For the 10 months of trading ending 31 October the company advised it had collected $1,621 million of rent, an increase of $746 million since 30 June 2020.

Customer visits during the September 2020 quarter were 90% of the same time the previous year (excluding Victoria).

Portfolio occupancy was also at a surprisingly high 98.4% at the end of September 2020.

What of the prospects for the Scentre share price in 2021?

Given 90% of its shopping centre consumers, outside of Victoria, had returned by September 2020, the company believes that once the vaccine rollout is complete, it can roughly return to pre-coronavirus trading conditions.

Also, according to Scentre Group, it owns many properties among the most strategic retail locations in Australia, which are integrated with major transport hubs. As such, the company hopes it can maintain full occupancy across all its centres in 2021.

However, Scentre Group has acknowledged it is facing rather stiff competition from online retailers.

To this end, Scentre is attempting to evolve in response to this competition by shifting to categories less exposed to online players. For example, it has tried to increase the mix of its food retail tenants as well as boosting its entertainment and service categories.

Notwithstanding this, Scentre has reported that restaurants typically involve comparatively short leases and costly fit-outs. Furthermore, they are generally unable to command the premium rental rates that high-margin fashion and electronics retailers usually do.

Scentre also faces the challenge of attempting to continue its recovery as government stimulus payments are phased out, which could possibly put some of its tenants under renewed pressure.

Foolish takeaway

As mentioned, the Scentre share price has lost more than 28% of its value over the past twelve months. The share price plummeted to as low as $1.35, its 52-week low, back in March last year.

Since then, however, it has partially recovered and is currently trading at $2.80, up a little over 1% for the day so far.

The REIT has announced its intention, subject to unforeseen circumstances, to pay a distribution in early 2021.

More reading

• Investors caught in crossfire as ASX retailers battle ASX property stocks in 2021
• The ASX sectors hardest hit by COVID-19 in 2020
• The Unibail Rodamco Westfield (ASX:URW) share price has dipped 3% today
• ASX retail shares in the spotlight: Cashed up consumers unfazed by “uneven and bumpy” rebound
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell today

Motley Fool contributor Eddy Sunarto 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.

The post What’s in store for the Scentre (ASX:SCG) share price in 2021? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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At lunch on Wednesday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a decline. The benchmark index is currently down 0.5% to 6,646.5 points.

Here’s what has been happening on the market today:

Energy shares storm higher.

One area of the market performing very strongly on Wednesday is the energy sector. The likes of Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) are recording strong gains after oil prices jumped higher overnight. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price rose 5.1% to US$50.06 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price stormed 5.1% higher to US$53.70 a barrel. This was driven by news that Saudi Arabia will cut production by 1 million barrels a day.

Bank shares lower.

The big four banks are all trading lower on Wednesday and are acting as a drag on the ASX 200’s performance. Once again, the worst performer in the group has been the National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB) share price. Its shares are down 0.6% at the time of writing. However, despite this decline, NAB’s shares are still up 24% over the last three months.

Zip’s AsiaPay partnership.

The Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) share price is pushing higher on Wednesday after signing a partnership with AsiaPay. It is the leading digital payment service and technology player in Asia. According to the release, the deal will see AsiaPay offer merchants the ability to accept digital mobile wallet payment via Zip.

Best and worst performers.

The best performer on the ASX 200 on Wednesday has been the Oil Search Ltd (ASX: OSH) share price. Its shares are up 5% at lunch after oil prices jumped. The worst performer has been the Nanosonics Ltd (ASX: NAN) share price with a 6% decline. This is despite there being no news out of the infection prevention company.

More reading

• Are heads in the clouds with these sky high P/E ratios?
• Why Fortescue, Nick Scali, Santos, & Zip shares are charging higher
• How to invest in ASX shares in a post-COVID world 
• This is the latest speculative ASX tech buy from Citigroup
• Why the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price is pushing higher today

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 Nanosonics Limited and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia 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.

The post ASX 200 down 0.5%: Energy shares jump, big four banks fall, Zip climbs higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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