Tag: Motley Fool

Aussie investors may be wondering what the best exchange-traded fund (ETF) is to buy for a long-term investment.

There are lots of different options to consider like iShares S&P 500 ETF (ASX: IVV), Vanguard Diversified High Growth Index ETF (ASX: VDHG), Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF (ASX: VGS) and BetaShares Australia 200 ETF (ASX: A200).

Each of the above options has their positives and negatives. The diversified Vanguard ETF makes things easy for investors wanting diversification. But do investors need bonds now, particularly with how low interest rates are?

iShares S&P 500 ETF and BetaShares Australia 200 ETF both offer cheap ways to access the US and Australian share markets. But they offer exposure to just one country’s share market.

The Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares option offers good diversification. It owns over 1,500 businesses. It’s invested across the world and the management fee is very reasonable for what it does. But the problem is that it’s invested in plenty of businesses which are only delivering mediocre performance. That may explain why the returns over the past five years have been pretty disappointing at just 8.2% per annum – much lower than some other ETFs.

My preferred ETF pick is:

BetaShares Global Quality Leaders ETF (ASX: QLTY)

This ETF is invested in 150 high quality businesses from across the world. Yes, around two thirds of the ETF is invested in US shares – but the other third is spread across the world in places like Japan, Switzerland, France, Denmark, Hong Kong, the UK, Spain, Finland and so on.

It’s not invested in uninspiring businesses. To get into the holdings list, companies have to have a high return on equity, cash flow generation ability, low leverage and earnings stability. If a business can do well on all of these metrics then its bottom line (and shareholder returns) should hopefully be pretty good.

Returns

BetaShares Global Quality Leaders ETF was created in November 2018, it has produced net returns of 18.8% per annum since then. That sounds good to me considering its global composition. That performance has occurred despite COVID-19 impacts. 

Holdings

It’s not just full of tech shares. Around a third is IT businesses, but more than a quarter of it is invested in healthcare shares and there is decent representation by industrials, communication services and consumer discretionary too.

So, what shares make it into this ETF’s holdings? Some of the largest positions include: Apple, Nvidia, Accenture, Adobe, Facebook, Intuitive Surgical, L’Oreal, Intuit and Cisco Systems.

Costs

You’d probably have to pay at least 1% per annum for an active manager. This ETF costs just 0.35%, which is cheap compared to actively managed funds. The lower the costs the higher the net returns for investors.

Income potential

The dividend yield isn’t shabby either. According to BetaShares, the 12-month distribution is 2.5%. That’s materially more than the S&P 500 at the moment. Some of the big US tech shares just don’t pay dividends. 

Other thoughts

I think that BetaShares Global Quality Leaders ETF has the ability to outperform other global benchmark share indices for a very reasonable annual management fee cost.

‘Quality’ businesses can’t always guarantee good shareholder returns. However, the economic advantages that they have could mean the ETF falls less when the share market falls. Indeed, BetaShares says that the fund’s index of quality companies has historically exhibited reduced declines during market falls, when compared to the MSCI World Index.

I think I’d sleep better knowing that my portfolio was full of quality businesses rather than lower quality businesses. This ETF has proven to be a good performer. I really like it. 

Foolish takeaway

I think BetaShares Global Quality Leaders ETF could be the best ETF to own for the long-term for its focus on strong economic metrics, the global diversification it offers and the low cost.

More reading

• This share platform forces you to invest long-term
• Is iShares S&P 500 ETF the best long-term investment?
• 2 ASX shares to buy for growth and income
• 2 of the best ETFs for investing in ASX shares
• Here’s how much money you can actually make from investing in ASX shares

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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It certainly was a busy day of results releases on Wednesday, with results being unveiled from the likes of Bravura Solutions Ltd (ASX: BVS) and Cleanaway Waste Management Ltd (ASX: CWY).

In light of the large number of releases, a few may have understandably slipped under the radar. Here are two ASX results you might have missed:

National Storage REIT (ASX: NSR)

The National Storage share price traded largely flat on Wednesday despite overcoming the pandemic to deliver solid earnings growth. The self-storage giant posted a 9% increase in underlying earnings to $67.7 million over the 12 months. This was driven partly by its growth through acquisition strategy. National Storage completed 22 acquisitions totalling $218 million in FY 2020.

The company declared a final distribution of 3.4 cents per share, bringing its full year distribution to 8.1 cents per share. A similar distribution is expected next year, with management advising that it intends to pay out 90% to 100% of its earnings per share. It is guiding to earnings of 7.7 cents to 8.3 cents per share in FY 2021.

Regis Resources Limited (ASX: RRL)

The Regis share price dropped lower yesterday despite reporting a record full year net profit for FY 2020. The gold miner delivered a 16% increase in revenue to $757 million from 353,182 ounces of gold sold at an average price of $2,200 an ounce. And thanks to the widening of its margins, Regis’ net profit after tax grew at the even quicker rate of 22% to $200 million.

This allowed the board to declare a final fully franked dividend of 8 cents per share, bringing its full year dividend to 16 cents per share. This represents a ~3% yield based on the current Regis share price. Looking ahead, Regis expects its production to increase from 352,042 ounces to between 355,000 and 380,000 ounces in FY 2021. This is expected to be achieved at an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of $1,230-$1,300 an ounce. This compares to an AISC of $1,246 an ounce in FY 2020.

More reading

• 2 quality ASX dividend shares to buy
• 2 ASX dividend shares for income investors to buy next week
• Why is Aussie gold producer Medusa’ Mining’s share price skyrocketing?
• Why I would buy CBA and this ASX dividend share for income
• Warren Buffett is buying gold shares and top fundies assess ASX share price moves

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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On Wednesday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was out of form and tumbled notably lower. The benchmark index fell 0.7% to 6,116.4 points.

Will the market be able to bounce back from this on Thursday? Here are five things to watch:

ASX 200 expected to rebound.

It looks set to be a much better day of trade for the ASX 200 on Thursday after stocks on Wall Street surged higher overnight. According to the latest SPI futures, the benchmark index is expected to rise 16 points or 0.25% higher at the open. In the United States the Dow Jones rose 0.3%, the S&P 500 jumped 1%, and the Nasdaq stormed a massive 1.7% higher. The latter could mean local tech shares have a strong day.  

Oil prices jump.

Energy producers Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) will be on watch after a mixed night for oil prices. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 0.2% to US$43.43 a barrel but the Brent crude oil price is down 0.4% to US$45.68 a barrel. A storm in the United States boosted the WTI price, but concerns over demand weighed on the Brent price.

Woolworths result.

Second time lucky. The Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) share price is scheduled to report its full year results today (not on Wednesday). A strong result is expected from the conglomerate due largely to the strength of its key supermarkets business during the pandemic. According to CommSec, the market is expecting a net profit after tax of $1.34 billion.

Gold price jumps.

Gold miners including Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Saracen Mineral Holdings Limited (ASX: SAR) could be on the rise today after the gold price strengthened. According to CNBC, the spot gold price is up 2% to US$1,961.70 an ounce. Traders were buying the precious metal amid hopes of central bank stimulus.

Afterpay and Appen results.

Two market darlings Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) and Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) are due to release their respective results on Thursday. Afterpay has largely pre-released its results and is expected to post EBITDA of $44 million. As for Appen, it will release its half year results and some investors are tipping the company to upgrade its guidance. In May, it reaffirmed its FY 2020 underlying EBITDA guidance of $125 million to $130 million.

More reading

• ASX 200 drops 0.7%, Zip rises 27.5%
• What’s sent WiseTech’s share price up 36% so far in August
• Top brokers name 3 ASX 200 shares to buy today
• If you invested $10,000 into Zip shares in March, here’s how much you’d have today
• How to boost your share market gains

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO, Appen Ltd, and Woolworths Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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If you’re looking to add some dividend shares to your portfolio, then I think the two listed below could be top options.

Here’s why I think these dividend shares are in the buy zone:

National Storage REIT (ASX: NSR)

I think this self storage operator could be a top long term option for income investors. This is due to its strong market position and growth through acquisition strategy. It was partly this strategy that led to the company reporting a 9% increase in underlying earnings to $67.7 million in FY 2020 despite the pandemic.

And while the company is expecting its earnings to be flat at best in FY 2021, I expect its growth to resume once the crisis passes. This year National Storage expects to post earnings of 7.7 cents to 8.3 cents per share and will then pay out 90% to 100% of this to shareholders. Based on the current National Storage share price, the high end implies a 4.5% distribution yield.

Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF)

Another ASX dividend share I would buy is this agriculture-focused property group. I believe Rural Funds is in a great position to continue growing its distribution at a solid rate over the 2020s. This is because of its high quality portfolio of assets that are spread across several different industries and leased to some of the biggest players in the market.

Another big positive is the long term certainty that Rural Funds’ long leases offer investors. With a weighted average lease expiry of almost 11 years and rental increases built in, Rural Funds appears perfectly positioned to deliver on its target of increasing its distribution by 4% per annum over the long term. This looks very likely to be the case in FY 2021, with management intending to grow its distribution by 4% to 11.28 cents per share. Based on the latest Rural Funds share price, this equates to a 5% yield.

More reading

• Beat ultra low interest rates with these top ASX dividend shares
• 3 ASX dividend shares that have increased their payouts in 2020
• Rural Funds share price rises on FY20 results
• Why I would buy CBA and this top ASX dividend share
• 2 of the best ASX dividend shares to buy next week

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended RURALFUNDS STAPLED. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Reece Ltd (ASX: REH) share price will be on watch this morning following the release of its full year results.

How did Reece perform in FY 2020?

The plumbing parts company celebrated its 100th year of operation in FY 2020 and delivered a solid result despite the bushfires and the pandemic.

For the 12 months ended 30 June, Reece delivered a 10% increase in sales revenue up to $6,010 million. This was driven largely by its US business, which grew sales by 20% to $3,122 million. Its Australian business reported a 1% increase in sales to $2,888 million.

However, due to a 70-basis point contraction in its normalised earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) margin, Reece reported just a 3% increase in EBITDA to $537 million.

And on the bottom line, the company’s net profit after tax (Pre AASB 16) grew 19% to $202 million.

Despite this earnings growth, Reece has cut its final dividend down by 58% to 6 cents per share fully franked. This means a full year dividend of 12 cents per share, down 41% year on year.

Unprecedented year.

Reece’s CEO, Peter Wilson, commented: “2020 was unprecedented. Starting with devastating bushfires, followed by a health and economic crisis. We acted quickly to adapt, protecting our people and supporting our customers and the community. We’re proud that while facing into this environment we were able to deliver a record result, in our 100th year.”

“We’ve focussed on what we can control, protecting our business today, while investing in our long-term future, to accelerate our strategy. Our customers, the tradespeople of Australia, New Zealand and the United States, play an essential role in society to help prevent disease – providing clean water, sanitation, and comfortable homes. We have continued to support them during this year of crises, keeping our stores open, and providing the expertise, quality products and digital support they expect,” he added.

No guidance has been given for the year ahead.

More reading

• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell next week
• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell today

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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I think there are a number of quality mid cap ASX shares for investors to choose from on the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) index right now.

Two which I believe could be great long term buy and hold options are listed below. Here’s why I would buy them in September:

Bravura Solutions Ltd (ASX: BVS)

Bravura Solutions is a fintech company that provides software products and services to clients operating in the wealth management and funds administration industries. The main product in its arsenal is its Sonata wealth management platform. It is a next generation wealth management administration system which allows users to connect and engage with their clients anytime, anywhere, via computers, tablets or smartphones.

It has also been bolstering its portfolio with a number of promising businesses such as Midwinter and FinoComp recently. Combined, I believe they have positioned the company perfectly for growth once the pandemic passes. In light of this, I feel that a pullback in the Bravura share price this week could be a buying opportunity for long-term focused investors.

Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1)

Founded by tech entrepreneur Bevan Slattery, Megaport is a provider of elastic interconnection services across data centres globally. This service allows its customers to increase and decrease their available bandwidth in response to their own demand requirements instead of being tied to fixed service levels on long-term and expensive contracts.

I have been very impressed with the company’s progress in recent years and the strong recurring revenue growth it has achieved. At the end of FY 2020, Megaport’s monthly recurring revenue (MRR) had reached $5.7 million. This was an increase of 57% year on year and equates to $68.4 million on an annualised basis. The good news is that this is still only a fraction of its sizeable market opportunity. And thanks to its leadership position, I expect it to capture a growing slice of the market over the next decade.

More reading

• Why APA, Bravura, Jumbo, & Whitehaven shares are sinking lower
• ASX 200 down 1.25%: Big four banks tumble, Cleanaway impresses, Whitehaven disappoints
• Bravura Solutions share price on watch after strong FY 2020 growth but cautious guidance
• 2 ASX growth shares to buy with $2,000
• On a day when the ASX 200 is going nowhere, these popular “coronavirus shares” are hitting record highs

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 recommends MEGAPORT FPO. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Bravura Solutions Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Bravura Solutions Ltd and MEGAPORT FPO. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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I think that small cap ASX growth shares are some of the best ideas to buy for a portfolio.

It’s much easier for a smaller business to double in size than it is for a larger business. Smaller businesses usually trade at a cheaper multiple than mid-caps because of less investor attention.

Here are three of my favourite ideas at the moment:

Bubs Australia Ltd (ASX: BUB)

Bubs is one of the promising small cap ASX growth shares in my opinion. It’s a promising infant formula business with a specialty for goat milk products.

It actually sells a variety of different products including goat milk infant formula, baby food, organic grass-fed cow milk infant formula as well as other goat milk derived products.

I believe the company has lots of growth potential internationally. In the fourth quarter of FY20 it reported that China direct sales increased by 37% and other export sales increased by 71%. The company has plans to expand in several of Asia’s largest countries, which could support a much bigger Bubs business.

Bubs also recently signed a deal with Beingmate that will see Bubs China label goat infant formula manufactured in China, made from Bubs Australian goat milk at one of Beingmate’s registered facilities.

I think there is plenty of international revenue growth potential with profit margins likely to rise as infant formula (which is a higher margin product) becomes a larger part of the product mix.

The Bubs share price has fallen back to $0.93, which I think represents a great price to buy for the long-term.

Citadel Group Ltd (ASX: CGL)

Citadel is a small cap software ASX growth share. The original Citadel business offers important data management software for the defence, education and healthcare sectors. As you may be able to tell from its client base, it has fairly defensive earnings with the essential nature of its customers.

The company recently made an acquisition in the UK called Wellbeing. It’s also a software business which is leading provider for healthcare providers in the UK. This business has higher recurring revenue and a higher earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) margin than Citadel, so the acquisition will improve these two metrics for Citadel.

There are excellent cross-selling opportunities for Citadel over the medium-term and the international expansion opens up the possibility for Citadel to grow further internationally.

At the current Citadel share price it’s trading at under 14x FY22’s estimated earnings.

City Chic Collective Ltd (ASX: CCX)

City Chic is one of the best Australian retail businesses in my opinion. The small cap ASX growth share sells plus-size clothes, footwear and accessories in Australia and New Zealand with its stores and website.

It also sells a large and growing amount of product in the northern hemisphere with websites and through retail partnerships.

In FY20, the company managed to achieve 31% sales growth with unaudited underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $26.5 million despite all of the COVID-19 impacts and disruptions.

I like the current City Chic strategy of buying distressed US competitors and turning them into online-only offerings. It lessens competition and grows the business. An online-only offering comes with lower operating costs.

At the current City Chic share price it’s trading at around 22x FY22’s estimated earnings.

Foolish takeaway

I think each of these small cap ASX growth shares have very promising futures. At the current prices it’s hard to pick a winner because they all have promising growth potential.

Bubs has the product range to become a much larger business, it just needs to win market share. Citadel has inherent advantages as a software business, but it will need to win new contracts. I’m not sure how big City Chic can become, but the recent acquisitions can help if they’re integrated into the company effectively.

More reading

• This is where I’d invest $1,000 right now into ASX shares
• Why Afterpay, Bubs, Fortescue, & Zip Co shares are charging higher
• Bubs share price storms higher on new China plans
• I’d buy this ASX share this week
• The smartest 7 ASX shares to buy if you have $2,000

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 BUBS AUST FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended BUBS AUST FPO and Citadel Group Ltd. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Platinum Asset Management Ltd (ASX: PTM) share price will be one to watch tomorrow following the release of its preliminary full year results after the market close on Wednesday.

How did Platinum perform in FY 2020?

Platinum had a tough 12 months in FY 2020 and saw a sharp decline in funds under management (FUM) weigh on its revenue and profit.

For the 12 months ended 30 June 2020, Platinum reported a 13.7% decrease in FUM to $21.4 billion. This was driven by net fund outflows of $3 billion during the year, with absolute investment returns contributing $0.2 billion to its FUMs.

This weighed on its management fee revenues for the year, which decreased 6.5% year on year. Positively, the company reported a rebound in its performance fee revenue from $0.3 million to $9.1 million. This was primarily attributable to strong relative performance by the Asia ex Japan and Healthcare strategies.

This ultimately led to total revenue and other income coming in at $298.7 million, down 0.2% from FY 2019.

Platinum’s costs increased by $1.5 million in FY 2020 to $77.9 million. This was due to an increase in occupancy related expenses (up $1.8 million due to office fit-out costs) and share-based payments expenses. These increases offset a decrease in staff costs and custody and unit registry fees.

As a result of this increase in its costs, Platinum’s net profit fell 1.3% to $155.6 million in FY 2020. This represents 26.76 cents on a per share basis.

Challenging year.

Management acknowledged that FY 2020 was a challenging year for the company.

It commented: “It has been a somewhat challenging year for Platinum Asset Management Limited with investment returns for our flagship Platinum International Fund overshadowing some strong investment performance in other areas, most notably our Asia ex-Japan and International Health Care focused strategies. This underperformance in the flagship fund translated into net fund outflows and lower funds under management, albeit that overall revenues were flat for the year and profit after tax was down only slightly, by 2%, when compared to the prior period.”

Outlook.

Positively, Platinum’s Managing Director, Andrew Clifford, appears cautiously optimistic on the future.

He commented: “COVID-19 has roiled markets. Despite the global economic and investment backdrop, the world will reset and over time, will work its way out of recession. Importantly, many companies will be the beneficiary of this, and it is here that the opportunity set is vast and exciting. The investment team remains focused on ensuring the portfolios are positioned accordingly.”

More reading

• Top ASX dividend shares to buy in August 2020

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) fell by 0.73% today to 6,116 points.

There was one star performer on the ASX today:

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P)

The Zip share price rose by 27.5% today after making an announcement.

The buy now, buy later (BNPL) business said that it has marked the launch of Zip Business by partnering with eBay Australia to offer 40,000 Australian small and medium-sized businesses the ability to access working capital via the eBay marketplace.

Merchants can use the money to purchase inventory, cover short-term expenses like marketing campaigns and manage their cashflows via access to flexible lines credit. Zip said it’s bringing the Spotcap brand into the Zip business stable.

Zip explained Zip Business will be leveraging the credit experience in the Spotcap business and combine it with Zip’s risk decisioning and real-time onboarding to scale the BNPL offering.

The company also announced it has agreed a $100 million debt funding facility with US outfit Victory Park Capital Advisors.

The chief operating officer and co-founder of Zip, Peter Gray, said: “Zip is extremely excited to formally launch its Zip Business platform to create a suite of products for the small business community, a segment that has been underserved by the traditional lenders in recent years. This comes at a time when Australia’s small businesses are confronting the extreme challenge of COVID-19, which has created enormous pressure on cashflow and ongoing business investment.”

Cleanaway Waste Management Ltd (ASX: CWY)

Investors wasted no time in buying Cleanaway shares after it reported its result. The Cleanaway share price rose 8.5% today, it was the best performer in the ASX 200.

The company reported that net revenue fell by 0.4% to $2.1 billion. However, on an underlying basis, the business reported a solid set of profit numbers.

Underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) went up 2.5% to $473 million and the EBITDA margin improved by 60 basis points to 22.5%.

Underlying earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) grew by 4.6% to $251.9 million with the EBIT margin also improving by 60 basis points to 12%.

Net profit, on an underlying basis, grew by 8.7% to $152.9 million. However, statutory profit dropped by 6.6% to $112.6 million. Free cashflow improved by 11.5% to $230.1 million.

Cleanaway’s final dividend was 2.1 cents per share – an increase of 10.5%, that brought total FY20 dividends up 15.5% to 4.1 cents.

Management boasted that the company demonstrated defensive characteristics of revenue streams during COVID-19. The company has finished integrating the Toxfree and the SKM businesses.

In FY21 trading conditions have been mixed with COVID-19 impacts more pronounced in Victoria. The ASX 200 company said that enterprise performance in July 2020 has been in line with the FY20 average monthly performance. Cost management will continue to play a part. Cleanaway couldn’t give FY21 guidance due to the variable trading conditions.

Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC)

The Whitehaven share price was the worst performer within the ASX 200. The Whitehaven share price fell 18% today.

In the FY20 result Whitehaven reported that revenue dropped 31% to $1.7 billion.

Underlying EBITDA plunged 71% to $306 million and underlying net profit collapsed 95% to $30 million. Operating cash flow declined 84% to $146.4 million. The FY20 dividend was cut by 97% to 1.5 cents per share.

Unit costs per tonne increased by 12% to $75. Net debt jumped from $161.6 million in FY19 to $787.5 million in FY20.

A large decline in coal prices was blamed for the difficult result as well as labour shortages and dust events at its largest mine. Plus, there was the scheduled eight-week Narrabri mine longwall move. 

However, the company is still confident about the continuing demand for high quality coal in a more carbon conscious world. Management thinks high quality coal will play a major role as part of the global economic recovery.

More reading

• What’s sent WiseTech’s share price up 36% so far in August
• Hydrix and Zip were among the most traded shares on the ASX last week
• Why APA, Bravura, Jumbo, & Whitehaven shares are sinking lower
• Whitehaven Coal share price crashes to 52 week low following annual result
• If you invested $10,000 into Zip shares in March, here’s how much you’d have today

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 ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Australian Ethical Investment Limited (ASX: AEF) share price has responded well to the company’s release of full-year earnings for the 2020 financial year today. At the time of writing, Australian Ethical shares are up 4.65% at market close to $4.50 after closing at $4.30 yesterday.

What is Australian Ethical Investment?

Australian Ethical is a superannuation provider that specialises in providing ethical investment options for super funds (as its name implies). It also offers non-super investment options like managed funds and retirement plans. The company started life back in 1986 and today manages roughly $4.05 billion in funds for more than 57,000 clients.

What did the company report today?

Australian Ethical reported total revenues of $46.26 million for FY20, up 22% from FY19’s $40.98 million. This was helped by funds under management growth of 19% over the prior year to $4.05 billion. The company also experienced record net inflows of $660 million, which was a 100% increase on the prior year.

Meanwhile, earnings per share (diluted) came in at 8.42 cents, up 46% from FY19’s 5.77 cents per share. The company noted that the compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) for earnings had been a pleasing 47.6% per annum over the past 3 years.

That enabled statutory net profits after tax to rise 43% from FY19’s $6.6 million to $9.46 million in FY20.

Dividend investors will be pleased with the company’s results as well. Australian Ethical will pay 6 cents per share in dividends for FY20, up 20% from FY19’s 5 cents per share. This includes a fully franked dividend of 1.5 cents per share that will be paid on 16 September. A special dividend of 1 cent per share that reflects performance fees is also included.

FY21 outlook

Australian Ethical didn’t provide any material guidance for FY21, but CEO John McMurdo had this to say on the company’s outlook:

Like all fund managers we are highly leveraged to the markets at a time when economic uncertainty remains high, interest rates low and COVID-19 still unbeaten. FY21 will be a difficult year as market volatility continues…

Despite this, we are in a strong position heading into FY21 with no debt, strong cash flows and positive net inflow momentum. We are focused on investing in the long-term growth of our business.

All in all, it was good news for the Australian Ethical share price today, which, although up more than 14% for the year to date, is still down more than 50% from the highs we saw in June.

More reading

• Why Australian Ethical Investment’s share price has slid 32% in August
• These were the worst performing ASX shares last week
• Why Australian Ethical, Northern Star, ResMed, & TPG Telecom are dropping lower
• Australian Ethical share price crashes 15% lower after IOOF selldown

Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Australian Ethical Investment Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Australian Ethical Investment Ltd. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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