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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (Index:^AXJO) is under pressure from profit misses from some leading stocks. But it isn’t all bad news as brokers upgraded their call on a number of ASX stocks.

Today’s profit sinners include the likes of the Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) share price and AGL Energy Limited (ASX: AGL) share price.

But the Metcash Limited (ASX: MTS) share price is bucking the downtrend after Citigroup upgraded the stock to “buy” from “neutral”.

Stronger for longer triggers upgrade

Shares in the grocery distributor jumped 0.5% to $2.98 in the last hour of trade when losses on the ASX 200 deepened to 0.9%.

Citi believes the COVID-19 tailwinds that have lifted the Metcash share price, Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) share price and Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) share price will persist for longer than many are expecting.

Social restrictions and lockdowns to contain the virus triggered panic buying of food and other household goods. Flattening the coronavirus curve or even finding a vaccine is unlikely to change the positive outlook for the sector over the medium term.

“The grocery outlook remains strong across the industry, with elevated sales growth; rational market conditions and earnings/dividend stability warranting an overweight position across Coles/Woolworths/Metcash,” said Citi.

The broker’s price target on Metcash is $3.50 a share.

Cleared for capital raise

Meanwhile, the embattled Sydney Airport Holdings Pty Ltd (ASX: SYD) share price is likely to get some reprieve. JPMorgan upgraded the stock to “neutral” from “underweight” on the back of the airport’s $2 billion capital raise.

The SYD share price was badly hit by the collapse in the travel market from COVID-19, but that doesn’t change the fact that it’s a quality asset with monopolistic power.

Enough runway for a recovery

“The duration of the passenger downturn continues to be pushed out, and international likely requires a vaccine before it can find a new normal,” said the broker.

“Importantly, we believe the raising will ensure SYD doesn’t breach covenants, but we await a turn in passengers and earnings before becoming more bullish.”

The Sydney Airport share price is in a trading halt as it finalises its $4.56 a share cap raise. The stock last traded at $5.39 a share and will likely fall when it returns to the bourse, although I think it will find a base comfortably ahead of the offer price.

Controlled descend

Another stock that got upgraded was the JB Hi-Fi Limited (ASX: JBH) share price. Credit Suisse lifted its rating on the electronics and whitegoods retailer to “neutral” from “underperform” as it takes a more positive view on the fiscal cliff issue.

The JBH share price outperformed during the COVID crisis as work-from-home restrictions fuelled demand for IT equipment.

Smaller than expected drop

The sector was facing a potential cliff as the support measures were initially meant to be withdrawn from September.

But the federal government is extending some of these wage support packages, although it will taper the payments through to March 2021. This means the cliff could turn out to be a relatively gentle slope instead.

Credit Suisse lifted its 12-month price target on the stock to $42.71 from $34.52 a share.

More reading

• 2 blue chip ASX dividend shares to buy
• How to find the rare ASX retail share winners
• If an ASX share announces a demerger, here’s why you should listen
• Fiji Kava share price soars 90% on Blackmores subsidiary agreement, trade paused
• Brokers have upgraded 3 ASX shares to the buy zone. Here’s why

Motley Fool contributor Brendon Lau owns shares of Telstra Limited and Woolworths Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Telstra Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of COLESGROUP DEF SET 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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I think ASX tech shares could be the best businesses to buy and hold until 2025.

Technology businesses have a couple of advantages that most other industries don’t have. The main cost for most technology businesses is simply developing the software. Once the software is made it’s very, very cheap to distribute it with low incremental costs. It means a business that can grow fast can rapidly increase its operating profit margins.

If a business has a large total addressable market then its profit has a much longer growth runway. It’s the ASX shares with international growth which are more likely to do well over time.

However, there are some ASX tech shares like Altium Limited (ASX: ALU) and Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) which are quality but are priced very highly. But there are other ASX tech shares which are priced much more reasonably:

Tech share 1: Citadel Group Ltd (ASX: CGL)

Citadel is a software business which provides essential software to various sectors including education, defence and healthcare. With government organisations being some of its major clients, Citadel has quite defensive earnings.

Indeed, in the company’s COVID-19 update on 24 March 2020 it said that no significant projects or contracts have been delayed or cancelled.

I think the acquisition of Wellbeing could be transformative for Citadel. Wellbeing is a UK healthcare software company that manages patient workflow with recurring revenue being around 70% of its total revenue. Both Citadel and Wellbeing have major private and government clients.

In Australia, Citadel has a 42% market share of the pathology sector and a 27% market share of the oncology sector. In the UK, Welbeing has a 59% market share of the radiology sector and a 22% market share of the maternity sector. These are strong market positions for the ASX tech share to have.

Not only is the earnings of Wellbeing defensive and high-quality, but it opens up the opportunity for cross-selling each software into the other country.

For the overall business, Citadel’s recurring revenue as a percentage of total revenue grows from 41% to 48%. Its health software gross profit will increase from 31% to 52% of overall gross profit and the earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) margin will rise from 22% to 26%. Higher margins are very attractive for the ASX tech share.

At the current Citadel share price it’s trading at 12x FY22’s estimated earnings.

Tech share 2: Pushpay Holdings Ltd (ASX: PPH)

Pushpay is a software business which facilitates digital giving to not-for-profits. Currently, its main client base is large and medium US churches.

The ASX tech share is seeing enormous growth at the moment due to the current COVID-19 conditions. In FY20 the company saw revenue grow by about a third to US$129.8 million. In FY21 Pushpay is expecting that EBITDAF (the F stands for foreign currency) can at least double to US$50 million.

Aside from the strong revenue growth potential, one of the main reasons why I really like Pushpay is that its gross margin could keep increasing. In FY20 alone it rose from 60% to 65%. That means more revenue falls to the bottom line.

Pushpay offers churches a livestreaming to connect with its congregation. It’s these types of tools which make Pushpay attractive to its clients.

I think the ASX tech share has a lot of growth potential. It’s aiming for annual revenue of US$1 billion from the US church sector.

Over the long-term, Pushpay could target churches outside of the US or different religions in the US. Other markets would dramatically increase Pushpay’s total addressable market – though it already has a large market to target.

At the current Pushpay share price it’s trading at under 30x FY23’s estimated earnings and 33x FY22’s estimated earnings.

Foolish takeaway

I think both of these ASX tech shares are among the best ideas to beat the overall ASX over the next five years. Citadel looks very good value today and I believe that Pushpay can continue to grow strongly with its rising profit margins.

More reading

• 3 stellar ASX tech shares to buy for the long term
• Where to invest $500 into ASX shares immediately
• If you have $12,000, you should invest in these 3 ASX shares now
• 5 quality ASX shares to buy in August
• 3 exciting ASX growth shares to buy with $3,000

Tristan Harrison owns shares of Altium. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and recommends Altium. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of PUSHPAY FPO NZX. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Appen Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Citadel Group Ltd and PUSHPAY FPO NZX. 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’s well known that the coronavirus pandemic has not been good news for the Australian economy. As a result, we are headed for our first official economic recession in almost 3 decades.

But employment data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) this morning covering the month of July paints a somewhat optimistic picture of where the economy is headed from here.

Firstly, employment numbers increased by 114,700 people between June and July, which accompanied a 1.3% bump in ‘hours worked’. This increase was driven by 71,200 part-time workers and 43,500 full-time workers.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t enough to offset the official unemployment rate rising slightly to 7.5% (seasonally adjusted). The official unemployment figure only includes those persons aged 15–64 who are unemployed and actively seeking work, measured by the ‘participation rate’. This rate increased by 0.6% in July, which would have helped to push up the unemployment rate in turn. Female participation increased by 1.1% to 73.1% in July, whereas male participation was also up 0.6% to 82%.

According to Bjorn Jarvis, head of Labour Statistics at the ABS:

The number of unemployed people rose by nearly 16,000 between June and July. For the first time there were more than one million people out of work, available to work and actively looking for work… The July figures indicate that employment had recovered by 343,000 people and hours worked had also recovered 5.5 per cent since May. Employment remained over half a million people lower than seen in March, while hours worked remained 5.5 per cent lower.

Pleasingly, the underemployment rate (those who are employed but want to work more) decreased by 0.5% to 11.2%. But this is still 2.8% higher than in July 2019, as you might expect.

Job numbers: state by state

Over the month of July, most states saw an increase in employment. Check out the table below for the official figures:

State/Territory	Unemployment Rate (%) – June 2020	Unemployment Rate – July 2020
New South Wales	6.9%	7.2%
Victoria	7.5%	6.8%
Queensland	7.7%	8.8%
South Australia	8.8%	7.9%
Western Australia	8.7%	8.3%
Tasmania	6.9%	6%
Australian Capital Territory	5.1%	7.5%
Northern Territory	5.7%	4.6%
National	7.4%	7.5%

Table: Author’s Own | Data: Australian Bureau of Statistics

As you can see, unemployment rates decreased in most states and territories in July. Tasmania and South Australia saw the largest falls. However, we did see increases in the Northern Territory, Queensland and New South Wales.

However, also consider what AMP Capital’s senior economist Diana Mousina had to say on the numbers as well:

The effective unemployment rate is still high at 10.2% but it did fall from 11.2% in the prior month and is down on its peak of 14.9% from April. The “effective” unemployment rate is a better gauge to the level of unemployment in Australia as this includes those have left the labour force altogether and those who are working zero hours due to COVID-19 (but are still considered ’employed’).

The economy is still not out of the woods yet, I’m afraid. Fingers crossed for the August numbers!

More reading

• 3 ASX small cap shares with serious growth potential
• 2 blue chip ASX dividend shares to buy
• What’s driving the surge in jewellery retailer Lovisa Holdings’ share price in August?
• Vmoto share price scoots 15% higher on successful capital raising
• Metcash share price and these ASX stocks just got upgraded by leading brokers

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen 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 Enero Group Ltd (ASX: EGG) share price is currently trading 16.55% higher following the release of the company’s FY20 results. At the time of writing, the Enero Group share price is trading for $1.66 per share.

The group is an international network of marketing and communications businesses with over 600 staff working in 14 cities around the world. Its key geographic regions are located in Australia, UK and USA.

FY20 results

Highlights include a 4.9% increase in net revenue to $135.8 million up from $129.5 million in the prior corresponding period (pcp). The increased revenue was driven by organic revenue growth predominately in the USA market. Its international operations accounted for 57% of total revenue and 62% of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA).

Operating EBITDA increased 17.7% to $24.4 million in FY20 compared to $20.7 million in FY19.

Earnings per share before significant items of 15 cents was in line with analysis forecasts and was up 5.6% compared to the pcp.

The directors declared a fully franked final dividend of 3.5 cents payable on 2 October 2020. It brings the annual dividend per share payout to 6 cents per share. Additionally, the dividend is a 9.1% increase in FY20 compared to FY19.

Enero has high sector exposure to technology, healthcare and consumer staples, which were less impacted by COVID-19. Additionally, it has a low exposure to retail, travel and tourism clients which were more heavily impacted in the second half of FY20.

Management comments

Ann Sherry, Enero Group chair, commented:

The group delivered an outstanding result particularly during challenging times in the second half of the year…Our strong sector exposure to technology, healthcare and consumer staples resulted in 4.9% organic revenue growth. The group is in a strong position to drive further growth in FY21 despite the health and economic uncertainties that lie ahead.

CEO Brent Scrimshaw added:

Enero is now in a strong financial position to accelerate our momentum and create the next chapter of growth through some of the best performing brands in the market in Australia, UK, Europe and the USA. I will be working with the teams to bring new capability to our existing group offering and investing in the expansion of our network in the coming year.

About the Enero Group share price

The Enero Group share price is currently trading at $1.66, up by 16.55% in today’s trade. The group currently has a market capitalisation of $142.45 million.

More reading

• 3 ASX small cap shares with serious growth potential
• 2 blue chip ASX dividend shares to buy
• What’s driving the surge in jewellery retailer Lovisa Holdings’ share price in August?
• Vmoto share price scoots 15% higher on successful capital raising
• Metcash share price and these ASX stocks just got upgraded by leading brokers

Motley Fool contributor Matthew Donald 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 Byron Energy Ltd (ASX: BYE) share price has today soared higher following a strong operations update published by the company. The Byron share price was up 10.3% to 21.5 cents in intraday trading before edging back to its current price of 21 cents, at the time of writing.

What Byron Energy does

Byron’s business was established in 2005 and is focused solely on the outer Continental Shelf in the Gulf of Mexico. The company participates in the identification, analysis and leasing of suitable oil and gas prospects. The Byron team boasts extensive geological, geophysical and operational expertise in developing and operating properties in that region.

To this tune, Byron has a portfolio of operated and 100% working interest properties in the Gulf of Mexico, many of which are oil prone.

Operations update

The Byron share price has today been buoyed by positive drilling and pipeline activities. The company announced that it has completed operations on the Upper Sand in the SM58 G1 well. This is positive progress for the company as it aims to get the G1 well into production by 1 September. The well will be placed into production after all pipelines are operational and are tied into the production facility.

Also in the SM58 region, it was announced that the G2 well has begun drilling. The drilling is set to occur over a section where strong mudlog oil and gas amounts were observed.

As mentioned above, in order to get the operation underway, pipeline installation and topside work is necessary. Operations to lay all necessary oil and gas pipelines are now complete and the lines are currently being buried beneath the seafloor. However, the next phase of the project will entail making the pipeline connections to the platform risers. This is expected to be completed later this week.

CEO, Maynard V. Smith had this to say regarding the SM58 project:

“Our team implemented a very complex tie back and completion program in the G1 well with no operational issues. The fact we accomplished this task ahead of schedule and under budget is a direct result of exceptional upfront planning and excellent offshore execution.”

Foolish takeaway

The Byron share price has been a casualty of falling oil prices. This has seen the company’s share price fall to a low of 10.5 cents during the pandemic. However, the recent rebound in oil prices has been driving the Byron share price higher, with experts stating the upturn isn’t over yet.

Company shareholders will be hoping that this, along with strong management, can elevate the Byron share price to its former highs. However, despite the recent good news, this is still a long way off as the Byron share price sits at 21 cents – well below its 52-week high of 39 cents.

More reading

• 3 ASX small cap shares with serious growth potential
• 2 blue chip ASX dividend shares to buy
• What’s driving the surge in jewellery retailer Lovisa Holdings’ share price in August?
• Vmoto share price scoots 15% higher on successful capital raising
• Metcash share price and these ASX stocks just got upgraded by leading brokers

Motley Fool contributor Daniel Ewing 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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ASX retail shares… it certainly hasn’t been a good year. Retail has been something of a dirty word in the investment world for a while now. It’s no secret that the advance of e-commerce has decimated large swathes of the traditional retailing landscape, both here in Australia and around the world.

Tech shares like Amazon.com, Shopify and our own Kogan.com Ltd (ASX: KGN) have made many investors stupidly wealthy over the past decade or so. But this has come largely at the expense of existing retailers that used to dominate the physical shopfront.

Some of you might be old enough to remember the heyday of shops like David Jones and Myer Holdings Ltd (ASX: MYR). David Jones left the ASX boards a while ago when it was sold to South Africa’s Woolworths Holdings (not to be confused with the Aussie grocer). But Myer’s descent has been very public. Roughly a decade ago, Myer shares were asking around $3 each. Today, Myer is effectively a penny stock with a share price of 21 cents at the time of writing.

So should investors avoid all ASX retail shares like the plague?

Well, not so fast.

I do think retail is a risky area to invest in these days, to be sure. It’s a sector in the middle of a massive structural shift – a shift that has been dramatically accelerated by the coronavirus pandemic. But I still think there are plenty of diamonds in the rough, so to speak. And if you can find such a diamond, it might be a lucrative investment.

Finding a diamond ASX retail share

If you’re considering investing in any ASX retail share, I would recommend asking 2 questions about your potential investment. One, does it have a robust and cutting edge online store? And two, does it have something special that keeps customers coming back for more?

JB Hi-Fi Limited (ASX: JBH) is one such ASX retailer in my view. JB was written off a few years ago as being effectively doomed in the face of Amazon. Its primary product range included CDs and DVDs – two product lines I think we can all agree don’t have a bright future.

But JB has done a remarkable job of proving its critics wrong. The company read the writing on the wall accurately and has spent the last decade diversifying into TVs, white goods, home appliances and gaming – all areas less prone to e-commerce disruption. Investors who wrote JB off also didn’t notice that its customers love shopping there, drawn in by things like friendly staff and folksy product recommendations. It also has an extensive, fluid and fun online store.

Investors who took a shot with JB shares in January last year are already up more than 100%. That just proves how betting against the crowd in retail can make you a fortune, if you do it correctly, of course.

Foolish takeaway

So if you have found a potential investment in the ASX retail space, I think asking yourself the kinds of questions we explored today is a great start. There is a lot of company’s on life support in retail right now. But finding the rare winners can be a great place to invest.

More reading

• 4 ASX shares to buy now for a post-coronavirus world
• Can the Kogan share price keep going?
• Top ASX dividend shares to buy in August 2020
• ASX reporting season reveals some upside surprises
• Why Kogan and these ASX shares just hit new record highs

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 Kogan.com ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Kogan.com 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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Envirosuite Ltd (ASX: EVS) has today provided the market with a sales update that has propelled its share price higher. The Envirosuite share price has gained 14.3% to reach 16 cents.

The company also recently completed the acquisition of AqMB Holdings for a total consideration of $1.35 million that sent the share price up 11%.

What Envirosuite does

Envirosuite is an environmental management technology company that provides services through its software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform. The Envirosuite platform offers environmental monitoring, management and investigative capabilities. It is incorporated into a number of diverse operations from waste water treatment to large scale construction, open cut mines and port operations.

The company hosts more than 500 customers worldwide. Envirosuite’s clients include organisations in China, airports, and companies such as Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO).

Sales update

This morning, the company released a sales update driving the Envirosuite share price strongly higher. Envirosuite reported robust sales and a strong pipeline despite the global impact of COVID-19.

Despite the downturn in economic conditions, the company was able to report sales orders totalling $14.5 million. This was for the period 1 March to 12 August following the completion of the company’s acquisition of EMS Bruel & Kjaer. Breaking down these sales, there was $8 million from new business and $6.5 million in renewal contracts.

Furthermore, the current sales order pipeline exceeds $30 million. The target percentage of recurring revenues to total revenue is 70% and the company is currently tracking above this at around 75% across both existing revenues and the sales order pipeline.

Envirosuite CEO, Peter White, was pleased with the results and commented:

“The robust sales to date and the strong pipeline provide validation of Envirosuite’s strategic acquisition of EMS. They also highlight the resilience of the Company’s business model and the essential role Envirosuite plays for its customers that continues even in the pandemic.”

What now for the Envirosuite share price?

Envirosuite has reaffirmed its positive earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) target to the end of Q3 FY21 and medium-term target of $100 million revenue thanks to high recurring revenues. If the company is able to deliver on these promises it is likely the Envirosuite share price will continue its strong current run.

Furthermore, the strong results announced today demonstrate the resilience of Envirosuite’s business sourced from multiple industry sectors and economic regions. Despite today’s rise, the Envirosuite share price is still down 27.3% in year-to-date trading. It has a current market capitalisation of around $164 million.

More reading

• The next battle facing these ASX stocks will come from within
• Broker sees top returns for iron ore miners BHP and Rio
• Has the ASX 200 finally taken off?
• ASX iron ore miners jump on broker upgrades
• Are ASX lithium shares the next big thing?

Motley Fool contributor Daniel Ewing 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 PM Capital Global Opportunities Fund Ltd (ASX: PGF) share price is up 4% after reporting its FY20 result.

Quick overview of PM Capital Global Opportunities Fund

PM Capital Global Opportunities Fund is a listed investment company (LIC). The job of a LIC is to invest in other shares. As the name might suggest, the LIC invests in global shares which it thinks are opportunities.

Fund manager business PM Capital, run by Paul Moore, operates this LIC. It aims to be invested in between 25 to 45 global companies. PM Capital has been investing for over 30 years.

FY20 result

The COVID-19 share market selloff caused PM Capital Global Opportunities Fund’s share portfolio to drop in value over the year. This caused its net revenue to drop to negative $22.1 million. It saw a net loss of $18.7 million.

The LIC disclosed that its portfolio’s net return after fees and expenses was a negative 6.4%, compared to the MSCI World Net Total Return Index return of 4.8%. However, looking at its 22-year track record shows clear outperformance of the MSCI, by 4.38% per annum.

Manager of PM Capital Global Opportunities Fund, Paul Moore, said that the LIC has been adding to its positions in resource businesses across various commodities including Freeport-McMoRan (copper), Newmont Mining (gold), Teck Resources (copper and zinc) and Boliden (zinc). It increased its positions in industrial stocks like Siemens and also re-established a position in Alphabet (Google).

But he believes that there is potential for good longer-term returns. Mr Moore said: “We feel the pandemic has not simply delayed our thesis, but the fiscal and monetary actions will have the effect of essentially making the thesis inevitable. The unknown factor is the timing. In the short-term, behavioural biases have not declined and their effects will be exaggerated by the weight of the index funds. This is why it is so important to have a longer time horizon so as to let the thesis play out to its full extent and in doing so profit from it. It is amazing how often – if one has patience – the conventional “wisdom” proves itself to be wrong.”

Shareholder returns

PM Capital Global Opportunities Fund announced two shareholder return initiatives.

The LIC has announced a final dividend of 2.5 cents per share, which is a 25% increase on FY19’s final dividend and the FY20 interim dividend. The full year dividend of 4.5 cents per share equates to a grossed-up dividend yield of 6.6% at the current PM Capital Global Opportunities Fund share price.

Income-focused investors will probably see the bigger payout as a welcome increase. Particularly as the RBA interest rate is now very low.

The LIC also announced an off-market equal access buy-back. It will buy up to 5% of the shares held by each shareholder at a price set at a 5% discount to the post-tax net tangible assets (NTA) (excluding deferred tax assets) at the close date which is 23 October 2020.

The PM Capital Global Opportunities Fund board believes this is an efficient way to allow shareholders to obtain value close to the NTA in circumstances where the shares are trading at a discount to the NTA.

Largest positions

At the end of FY20 its biggest positions were (in order): Apollo Global Management, Freeport-McMoRan, Bank of America, MasterCard, KKR & Co, Visa, Siemens, Oracle, JPMorgan Chase, Caixa Bank, Lloyds Banking Group, Howard Hughes, Ares Management, Sands China and ING.

Each of the above positions had a market value of more than $10 million at the end of FY20.

Current valuation

At the current PM Capital Global Opportunities Fund share price of $0.98, it’s trading at a 17% discount to the 7 August 2020 NTA of around $1.18.

More reading

• Top ASX dividend shares to buy in August 2020

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison owns shares of PM Capital Global Opportunities Fund Ltd. 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 SEEK Limited (ASX: SEK) share price has come under pressure this week following the release of its full year results.

Since the start of the week, the job listings giant’s shares have fallen a disappointing 8.7%.

What happened in FY 2020?

For the 12 months ended 30 June 2020, SEEK delivered a 2.6% increase in revenue to $1,577.4 million but a 9% decline in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) to $414.9 million.

While this result was largely in line with expectations and reasonably robust considering the tough trading conditions it is facing, its outlook for FY 2021 appears to have spooked investors.

For FY 2021, SEEK has suggested that its revenue could come in at ~$1,470 million and its EBITDA could be in the region of ~$330 million. This represents a decline of 6.8% and 20.5%, respectively, year on year.

Beyond this, management remains positive on its long term outlook and continues to target revenue of $5 billion later this decade.

Should you invest?

There’s no doubt that FY 2021 will be tough for SEEK because of the pandemic. However, I believe it is well worth sticking with the company and focusing on its very positive long term potential once the crisis passes.

One broker that agrees with this is UBS. This morning the broker put a buy rating and $22.00 price target on SEEK’s shares. This price target represents potential upside of 12.5% for its shares over the next 12 months.

According to the note, the broker has reduced its estimates to reflect its outlook but remains very positive on its prospects once trading conditions return to normal.

Another broker that is positive on the company is Credit Suisse. It has an outperform rating and $23.20 price target on SEEK’s shares currently.

I agree with both UBS and Credit Suisse and would suggest investors take advantage of the recent weakness in the SEEK share price to buy shares.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of SEEK Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended SEEK 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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Growth investment is one area that I find exchange-traded funds (ETFs) most useful. Sure, picking a single ASX winner like Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) is highly lucrative. But it’s also highly difficult to get in before ‘the crowd’.

By using an ETF to gain exposure to a high-growth industry or sector, you can somewhat mitigate the risk while still giving your portfolio the potential of high returns.

Let’s look at 2 high-growth ETFs that I think fit the bill.

High-growth ETF 1) BetaShares S&P/ASX Australian Technology ETF (ASX: ATEC)

This ETF is a relatively new addition to the ASX, only listing back in early March (unfortunate timing there). Even so, I think it’s one of the most exciting, high-growth ETFs available on the ASX. ATEC tracks a basket of ASX shares that mirrors the S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX). This index aims to hold only ASX shares that are, according to Betashares, “leading ASX-listed companies in a range of tech-related market segments such as information technology, consumer electronics, online retail and medical technology”.

Some of ATEC’s current top holdings include names many ASX growth investors would be familiar with, such as Afterpay, Xero Limited (ASX: XRO), Altium Limited (ASX: ALU) and Seek Limited (ASX: SEK). Even though ATEC has only been around a few months, it has already delivered a return of 23.55% since inception. The index it tracks has an average return of 17.8% per annum over the past 5 years. That’s a pretty good track record in my view and makes this fund one of the most exciting high-growth ETFs on the ASX.

2) BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF (ASX: ASIA)

Another ETF from Betashares, this one also covers a basket of up-and-coming tech shares. But rather than holding ASX companies like Afterpay and Xero, ASIA instead tracks tech companies that operate in the Asian region (as the name implies). Most of the fund’s holdings (56.2%) come from China. But it also has significant exposure to Taiwan (20.9%), South Korea (17.3%) and India (5.1%) as well.

You might know some of this fund’s top holdings as well, which include Tencent Holdings, Alibaba Group, Samsung Electronics and JD.com.

ASIA has a few more runs on the board than ATEC but was still only incepted back in September 2018. Since then, it has delivered an average annual return of 27.77%. That’s a return I would be very happy to have collected! As such, I think this fund is another top high-growth ETF that I think would make an exciting addition to your ASX portfolio today.

More reading

• Brokers remain bullish on the SEEK share price
• 4 quality ASX shares to buy in August
• These soaring tech shares are making savvy investors rich
• ASX 200 drifts 0.1% lower, CBA reports solid FY20 result
• Is BetaShares Australia 200 ETF the best ASX ETF?

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 Xero. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended SEEK 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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