Tag: Motley Fool

There’s no denying that having passive income would be very helpful in the current environment.

And while it may not be possible to generate sizeable income from the share market immediately to combat the cost of living crisis (unless you are already sitting on a sizeable cash balance), there’s nothing to stop you from making it a long term goal.

That way, you’re ready for any cost of living shocks that could occur down the line.

Generate a $1,000 monthly passive income

If you want to generate a $1,000 monthly passive income, you’re going to need to generate $12,000 of dividends each year.

There are plenty of ASX shares out there for investors to buy that are forecast to provide 6%+ yields. This includes banking giant Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC), and, as covered here earlier, Charter Hall Long WALE REIT (ASX: CLW) and Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS).

If you can build a diversified portfolio of ASX shares that provides a 6% yield, you will need a portfolio valued at $200,000 in order to generate dividends of $12,000 a year.

Investors that are lucky enough to be sitting on $200,000 can do this now and sit back and watch the passive income roll in.

But if you’re starting from scratch, you’ll need to come up with a plan.

Three steps to take

The first step is to start making consistent investments in the share market.

By investing $5,000 into the share market each year, your portfolio would grow to be worth $200,000 in 16 years if you earned an average 10% per annum total return.

This return is in line with historical share market averages. And while there’s no guarantee that future returns will be in line with this, they could be better or worse, I would be disappointed if the market fell short of these levels.

The second step is identifying a high quality group of ASX shares to buy.

Investors might want to build a diverse portfolio by splitting their $5,000 investment across a number of ASX shares. This could include ETFs, which allow investors to buy large groups of shares in one fell swoop.

The third step is letting the power of compounding work its magic.

Legendary investor Charlie Munger, who is Warren Buffett’s right-hand man at Berkshire Hathaway, famously quipped:

The first rule of compounding is to never interrupt it unnecessarily.

This is because compounding really starts to show its magic the longer you leave it, and by prematurely interrupting it, you could miss out on material upside. This includes selling shares or not contributing one year.

For example, 10 years of investing $5,000 and earning a 10% per annum return will turn into $88,000.

However, just six years later you will have grown your balance by a further $112,000 to $200,000 by continuing with the strategy. And keep going another four years and your balance will have ballooned another $115,000 and you’ll have a portfolio valued at $315,000.

The post 3 steps to bring in $1,000 per month in passive income appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• These ASX dividend shares offer huge yields: experts
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• My 3 best forms of passive income for 2023
• Should I buy Woodside shares before the ASX 200 energy giant reports next week?
• 2 reasons why the Westpac share price is cheap

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A couple of short Friday takes…

The Super kerfuffle?

Yeah, I’ve been asked about that – a lot – this week.

And I have some views. Views that might not (or might) be popular among some people. Might not be popular among some of our members.

Now, if I was the average finance type, and The Motley Fool was the average finance company, we’d just read the room, and argue for whatever made the most money for our members.

But I’m not.

And we’re not.

I believe in good policy. I believe in fairness, and reasonableness, and the elevation of the national interest above all.

Lofty? A little full of myself?

Maybe.

But here we are.

And here’s my view on potential changes to Super:

First, tax policy should be implemented fairly. It should raise money from taxpayers based on, among other things, their ability to pay, and the impact on them, once they’d paid it.

Second, ‘framing’ matters.

Starting with the status quo on Superannuation is the wrong framing for a principled discussion

Super was designed to relieve pressure on retirement funding, not as a wealth creation or estate planning tool.

Logically, it makes sense to incentivise saving and investing to build a large enough nest egg to deliver pension-replacing income, plus a little more for the vagaries & risks of investing and to recognise that the money was quarantined during their working lives.

And keeping with that logic, concessionary taxation should cease at a level of both contribution and income/withdrawal that exceeds that level (because after that point, the cost of Super exceeds that of the pension it seems to replace).

It’s also why we shouldn’t focus on the fund balance, but rather the size of the income stream, and tax income accordingly (there’d be an argument for removing concessions on earnings during the accumulation phase once the fund was of a size that made higher incomes likely).

That’s how you’d approach it from first principles, free of either being anchored to the status quo or the self-interest of those who want to use Super as a tax shelter (meaningfully above pension income levels).

So when you consider the arguments for and against ‘changing Super’, remember the framing.

Ask not ‘Should it be changed?’, but rather ‘How should it be set up to achieve the stated aims?’.

(And be careful of others framing the argument differently!)

Now, that’s not going to endear me to some of our readers. They have different views, borne of different philosophies (and maybe, for a few, self-interest).

I hope you’ll at least appreciate the honest, first-principles approach. It should be the least we ask of each other when discussing national policies.

A tale of two…  tails?

I want to share two quotes with you:

Warren Buffett once wrote: “If a far-sighted capitalist had been present at Kitty Hawk, he would have done his successors a huge favor by shooting Orville down.”

The other, more an aphorism than a direct quote: “The house always wins”.

And yet, this week, we saw a tale of two, well, tails, which seems to make a lie of everything we think we know.

The first ‘tail’ – of the heads and tails gambling variety – was Star Entertainment Group Ltd (ASX: SGR); the casino operator that’s currently without a licence in Sydney, which lost $1.3 billion in the last 6 months of last year, and which has passed the hat around for $800m in new funding, while begging its lenders to give it more time.

So much for the house always winning.

And the capital-destroying airlines? That’s the other ‘tail’ tale – this time a red one with a white flying kangaroo embossed on it.

Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN)  this week delivered a $1.4 billion profit for the second half of 2022, and announced it was returning $500m to shareholders.

(We’ll leave the $2b-plus of taxpayer funds the airline was gifted for another day…)

That’s a helluva juxtaposition, huh?

Not just of two businesses with almost-opposite outcomes, but with outcomes that are largely the opposite of what most of the business world would expect of these two industries.

So… are these the examples that we need to put the accepted wisdom to bed? Or the exceptions that prove the rule?

Or, perhaps, are they points in time when black is white and north is south, destined, eventually, to reverse course?

I’d bet – no pun intended, but it was too good to leave out – on the latter.

And what about the rest?

We are now two business days out from the end of earnings season (trust me, it’s been a long month, so I’ve counted!).

All companies with a December 31 balance date for their half or full financial years have to lodge their financials with the ASX.

And how would I summarise the last month?

Extreme.

The moves, in both directions, frankly seem pretty exaggerated to me. Don’t get me wrong, some of the moves were justified, but a lot of the market reaction struck me as not too dissimilar to the moods of an overtired 5 year-old… variously not just happy, but ecstatic, and not just sad, but inconsolable.

There doesn’t seem any room for nuance, or for thinking past the next 4 or 5 months.

If I’m right, that gives us some opportunities – to buy and to sell – based on the one-dimensional response to these earnings.

But that’s for next week, the next month and the next year.

In the meantime, have a great weekend!

Fool on!

The post A first-principles look at the super changes appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Buy these ASX 200 shares following their results: Goldman Sachs
• Star Entertainment shares return to trade after raising $595 million. What’s next?
• Should I buy the dip on Qantas shares?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday

Motley Fool contributor Scott Phillips has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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ASX 200 mining shares are down on Friday with the S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) the only market sector in the red at the time of writing, down 1.25%.

Meantime, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is up 0.23% as the end of trading draws near.

What’s going on with ASX 200 mining shares today?

Let’s take a look at the performance of the top six ASX 200 mining shares by market capitalisation.

The BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price is down 1.73% to $45.88. The Big Australian released its 1H FY23 results this week, revealing a consensus earnings miss of 7.5% and a 40% cut to its dividend.

The Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) share price is down 2.28% today to $22.31. The pure-play ASX iron ore share hit a new 52-week high of $23.33 on Tuesday.

The Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) share price is down 3.4% to $119.22. Rio Tinto reported its full-year results yesterday, which fell a touch short of expectations. The company slashed its dividend by 46%.

Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM) shares are down 2.41% to $22.64 and South32 Ltd (ASX: S32) shares are down 2.22% to $4.41 today.

Mineral Resources Ltd (ASX: MIN) is today’s outlier among the big ASX 200 mining shares.

The Mineral Resources share price plummeted this morning to an intraday low of $79.74, down 6.2% on yesterday’s close. This was despite the company reporting incredible earnings growth in 1H FY23 and an interim dividend of $1.20 per share fully franked.

However, over the day, Minerals Resources shares have retraced and are up 0.04% to $85.06.

What’s going on with commodity prices?

As we all know, the prices of ASX 200 mining shares are fundamentally influenced by commodity values.

Let’s see what’s happening with the commodities relevant to these six top miners at the moment.

The iron ore price fell by 1.13% to US$131.50 per tonne overnight. It’s down 5% year over year (yoy) but up 5.6% over the past month.

This week, top broker Goldman Sachs tipped a 20% bump to the iron ore price to US$135 per tonne due to tighter supply and demand over the next three months.

The gold price is currently trading virtually steady, up 0.2% to US$1,826 per ounce. The gold price is down 6% over the past month and down 3% yoy.

Lithium held steady overnight but is down 15% over the past month and down 14% over the past year.

Copper futures fell to US$4.05 per pound overnight and are down 9% yoy. Half of this drop in value occurred over the past four weeks.

Nickel futures are down 2.2% to US$26,219 per tonne at the time of writing. They’re down 6% over the month but up 5.5% yoy.

Newcastle coal futures traded up 0.2% to US$210 per tonne overnight. Coal has fallen from lofty heights and is down 42% over the past month and down 12% yoy.

The post Why are ASX 200 mining shares ending the week in the red? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy now
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Friday
• 7 ASX 200 shares with ex-dividend dates next week
• Which ASX 200 lithium share takes the crown for dividend yield right now?
• Silver lining: Mineral Resources shares to pay interim dividend

Motley Fool contributor Bronwyn Allen has positions in BHP Group and Fortescue Metals Group. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Jumbo Interactive Ltd (ASX: JIN) share price is worse for wear on Friday as investors assess the company’s first-half numbers.

In afternoon trade, shares in the online lottery provider are down 0.6% to $14.50. For comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is inching 0.24% higher today, buoyed by exceptional showings among the tech, industrials, and real estate sectors.

Based on the market’s reaction, it seems Jumbo’s results left more to be desired.

Jumbo share price lowers on sluggish earnings

• Total transaction value (TTV) up 27.2% on the prior corresponding period to $417 million
• Total revenue up 18.1% to $62.4 million
• Underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) up 7.4% to $30.4 million
• EBITDA margin compressed from 53.7% to 48.8%
• Statutory net profit after tax (NPAT) up 4.7% to $17.2 million
• Interim fully franked dividend of 23 cents per share, raised by 4.5%

For Jumbo Interactive, the number of large jackpots during the financial period has a large bearing on the company’s performance. For the six months ending December 2022, 23 large Powerball/OzLotto jackpots occurred — matching that of the prior corresponding period.

While the company was able to recognise increased revenue from its lottery retailing segment (up 7%), EBITDA fell 3% due to the step-up in service payable to The Lottery Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLC).

Meanwhile, the other two areas of the Jumbo business — software as a service (SaaS) and managed services — delivered stronger growth. The SaaS segment recorded ~10% underlying revenue growth, while underlying EBITDA lifted 7.8%.

What else happened in the first half?

Jumbo successfully completed its acquisition of StarVale in the first half.

The company places another UK-based feather in Jumbo’s lottery management services cap for a total consideration of $40.5 million. Yet, the market reacted negatively to the announcement of its completion on 2 November 2022, pushing the Jumbo share price 1.2% lower.

What did management say?

CEO and founder Mike Veverka commended the strength of the Jumbo platform during the record $160 million Powerball draw, saying:

Our platform continues to perform exceptionally well, with 100% uptime for the $160 million Powerball and several records broken in terms of signups, checkouts, and tickets sold per second. This performance is a testament to the work we’ve done in building a best-in-class lottery platform.

In addition, Veverka spoke highly of the potential contained in the company’s recent acquisitions.

We continue to be impressed by the quality and growth potential of these businesses, and the integration process is now well underway. The strength of our balance sheet, strong cash generation profile and debt headroom provide significant flexibility to support further growth.

What’s next?

For those most enthralled with the declared dividend, the ‘what’s next?’ for you is when are the record and payment dates.

According to the release, the record date is 3 March — which means you’ll need to purchase shares a couple of days prior to allow for settlement. Following that, the 23 cents per share dividend will be paid out to eligible shareholders on 17 March.

On a longer timeline, Jumbo provided some guidance for FY23, mostly relating to costs and margins.

Management expects the cost of sales on its lottery retailing to be higher for the year due to the service fee to The Lottery Corporation. Whereas, costs excluding lottery retailing are anticipated to moderate to an increase of 16% to 18% from ~33% in FY22.

Finally, the company’s EBITDA margin — when excluding Stride and StarVale — is expected to be toward the upper bound of the original 48% to 50% guidance.

Jumbo Interactive share price snapshot

It’s been a bumpy old ride for Jumbo shareholders over the last year. Though, the overall trend has been downwards. However, anyone that pulled the trigger between September and December 2022 is still likely in the green.

The Jumbo Interactive share price is down 18.5% compared to a year ago. Based on the current share price, the company trades on a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 29 times.

The post Jumbo share price slips despite revenue growing 18% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Tech’s back! Fund names 2 ASX shares to ride the resurgence
• Morgans names the best ASX growth shares to buy in February

Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler has positions in Jumbo Interactive. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Jumbo Interactive. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Jumbo Interactive. 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 has been another busy week for results releases, with a number of high profile companies unveiling their latest numbers.

Two ASX 200 shares that impressed analysts at Goldman Sachs are listed below. Here’s why the broker believes they are post-results buys:

IDP Education Ltd (ASX: IEL)

Goldman Sachs believes that this language testing and student placement company is an ASX 200 share to buy.

Although IDP’s earnings were a touch short of expectations, the broker was impressed with its strong revenue growth and operating leverage. Its analysts believe there’s plenty more to come and are forecasting strong growth out to at least FY 2025.

In light of this, it has reiterated its buy rating with a $35.70 price target. The broker commented:

While the 1H23 result was modestly below our EBIT forecast (-4%) the company delivered strong revenue growth (+26%) and operating leverage (EBIT margin +476 bps). We expect double digit revenue growth and c.200bps p.a. of EBIT margin expansion to continue over the forecast period, justifying the stock’s premium rating. Our revised $35.70 TP is based on DCF and implies 25% total return to last close. We maintain our Buy rating.

Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN)

Another ASX 200 share that Goldman believes is a buy is airline operator, Qantas.

Goldman was impressed with its performance during the first half and expects more of the same in the second half. And while it suspects that airfares may now have peaked, it doesn’t expect that to prevent strong earnings through to at least FY 2025.

In fact, the broker believes this will position Qantas to undertake an $800 million on-market share buy-back next year.

As a result, the broker has retained its conviction buy rating with an $8.30 price target. It commented:

Fares (and therefore unit revenues) may have peaked (we forecast a 15% yoy unit revenue decline in FY24e representing a c2.5% CAGR vs FY19). However, we believe QAN’s earnings capacity has reset. Declines in unit revenues are tied to and mitigated by higher capacity. This is complemented by roll-off of significant transitional costs ($400m in FY23), reiterated by management. This is the key driver of the 9% uplift in our FY24e PBT forecast. We note that our FY24e EBIT margin of 12.4% compares with an estimated ~13% implied by management’s profitability targets. Beyond this, we incorporate continued capital management ($800m buyback in FY24e), noting that ND would be below management’s target range that is likely to increase over time. This translates into a 13% uplift in EPS to 94c (flat yoy).

The post Buy these ASX 200 shares following their results: Goldman Sachs appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Should I buy the dip on Qantas shares?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday
• Why Platinum, Qantas, Red 5, and Zip shares are dropping today
• Why is Qantas buying back shares instead of paying dividends?

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Idp Education. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Idp Education. 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 has been another busy week for Australia’s top brokers. This has led to the release of a large number of broker notes.

Three broker buy ratings that you might want to know more about are summarised below. Here’s why brokers think these ASX shares are in the buy zone:

BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP)

According to a note out of Macquarie, its analysts have retained their outperform rating and $52.00 price target on this mining giant’s shares. Macquarie remains positive on BHP’s outlook thanks to the prospect of robust coal, copper, and iron ore prices. In light of this, it appears to see recent weakness as a buying opportunity for investors. The BHP share price is trading at $45.89 on Friday afternoon.

Nanosonics Ltd (ASX: NAN)

A note out of Morgans reveals that its analysts have retained their add rating on this infection prevention company’s shares with an improved price target of $5.24. This follows the release of the company’s half-year results, which impressed the broker. It was particularly pleased with the successful transition to a direct sales model and notes that operating leverage is evident. It also highlights the strong momentum in the second quarter and that Nanosonics’ new product launch is on track for late 2023. The Nanosonics share price is fetching $4.65 today.

Universal Store Holdings Ltd (ASX: UNI)

Analysts at Goldman Sachs have retained their buy rating on this fashion retailer’s shares with an improved price target of $8.05. This follows the release of a strong half-year result and a positive second-half trading update. Goldman believes the latter demonstrates the resilience of Universal Store’s core customer base despite cost of living pressures. The Universal Store share price is trading at $5.62 this afternoon.

The post Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy now appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 2 ASX retail shares surging over 6% on strong earnings announcements
• 2 high-profile ASX healthcare shares lifting on blazing revenue growth
• Could this send the BHP share price rocketing to all-time highs?
• 3 ASX shares I’d buy for passive income instead of BHP’s declining dividend
• Should I buy BHP’s shares after the ASX 200 miner’s latest update?

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Nanosonics. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Nanosonics. 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 Block Inc (ASX: SQ2) share price has gone up by more than 6% after the payments business announced more growth in the final quarter of its 2022 financial year. Meantime, Zip Co Ltd (ASX: ZIP) shares are not having a strong finish to the week – they’re down 1.89%.

It has been a very different 12 months for two of the biggest buy now, pay later (BNPL) businesses in the world. Let’s check Block’s share price movement, shown in the chart below.

Amazingly, the Block share price is at the same level as it was 12 months ago. That’s largely thanks to a 25% rise in 2023 to date.

However, the Zip share price is down around 75% over the past year, including a 6% fall in 2023 to date.

Block’s fourth quarter

The ASX payments share announced that in the fourth quarter, it generated gross profit of $1.66 billion, which was an increase of 40% year over year.

Square’s gross profit increased 22% to $801 million, while the cash app gross profit jumped by 64% year over year to $848 million.

Block’s adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) jumped 53% to $281 million.

However, it did report a net loss of $114 million in the fourth quarter of 2022. That compares to the $15 million loss in the third quarter of 2022 and the $77 million loss in the fourth quarter of 2021.

This meant that while 2022 gross profit jumped 36% to $5.99 billion, adjusted EBITDA dropped 2% to $991 million, while the net loss came in at $541 million.

Adjusted EBITDA didn’t increase; it’s still close to that $1 billion level.

Zip still making cash losses

Zip’s latest result – for the six months to 31 December 2022 – didn’t quite reignite investor interest. Indeed, the Zip share price is down more than 25% in the past month.

While it revealed revenue growth of 19% to $351 million and cash gross profit up 20%, its ‘core cash EBITDA’ came in at a loss of $33.2 million, though this was an improvement of $27.3 million from the $60.5 million loss in the FY22 first half.

But, there were some positive signs, including the revenue margin improving by 50 basis points year over year to 7.1%. Credit losses were 1.9% of total transaction value (TTV), an improvement from 2.4% in the HY22 result.

Zip also said it’s going to take actions to divest, restructure, or wind down these businesses, which is expected to “neutralise cash burn and deliver additional cash inflows during the second half of FY23″.

The company believes it has the strategy and funding runway to deliver group positive cash flow during the FY24 first half.

Zip said that it had $78.5 million of available cash and liquidity at 31 December 2022.

Block is winning the race

Not only is Block’s cash profit improving at a faster rate, but it’s also making substantial profit while it grows. Zip is still trying to make itself sustainable, and it doesn’t have a lot of spare liquidity, though the numbers are trending in the right direction.

Ultimately, I think businesses should be valued based on how profitable they can be in the future. Block seems to be doing a better job at being sustainable than Zip, for now. The changing interest rate environment has really pulled the rug out from under Zip’s momentum.

I also think Block’s underlying earnings make Block shares more attractive than Zip shares.

The post Is Block one-upping Zip shares with its double-digit growth? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Block share price jumps 7% on Q4 profit beat
• Earnings preview: Here are the ASX shares reporting on Friday
• Why Platinum, Qantas, Red 5, and Zip shares are dropping today
• Zip share price lower on $243m first-half loss
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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Block and Zip Co. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Block. 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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Well, it’s looking like the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) will have a positive end to the trading week after all. After three days of falls in a row, the ASX 200 has turned a corner so far this Friday, with the index currently up a healthy 0.27% at just over 7,300 points.

So let’s now dig a little deeper into these share market gains by taking stock of the ASX 200 shares that are currently topping the share market’s trading volume charts at present, according to investing.com.

The 3 most traded ASX 200 shares by volume this Friday

Tabcorp Holdings Ltd (ASX: TAH)

Our first share this Friday is ASX 200 gaming company Tabcorp holdings. So far today, a hefty 30.5 million Tabcorp shares have made their way across the ASX boards. There’s been no official news or announcements out of Tabcorp today. But saying that, the Tabcorp share price has had a very positive day indeed.

The company has gained a healthy 2.87% so far, putting Tabcorp at $1 a share at present. Tabcorp has had a bouncy week ever since reporting its latest earnings on Tuesday, so no doubt investors will welcome this happy end to the week (touch wood).

Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA)

ASX 200 lithium stock Sayona is next up this Friday. So far this session, a sizeable 32.84 million Sayona shares have swum through the share market. There’s been no news out of Sayona today either.

But that hasn’t stopped this company’s shares from rocketing a pleasing 5.44% so far to just over 24 cents per share. Some big news from a fellow lithium stock (stay tuned) could be the reason why Sayona is spiking, and we are seeing so many shares flying around.

Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS)

Our third, final and most traded ASX 200 share today is another lithium stock in Pilbara Minerals. This Friday has had a notable 33.33 million Pilbara shares trade hands as it currently stands. Pilbara has revealed its latest earnings today, and (as we just flagged), they contained some big news.

The company has just announced its maiden dividend payment. Investors will be receiving Pilbara’s first-ever dividend of 11 cents per share on 24 March. The market is evidently very excited by this news, as well as the impressive metrics Pilbara reported this morning, and has sent the company’s shares up a meaty 3.24% so far today to $4.62 each.

All of these factors are probably why Pilbara is topping out ASX 200 volume charts this Friday.

The post Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Friday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why Accent, Brambles, Infomedia, and Pilbara Minerals shares are pushing higher
• Pilbara Minerals share price charging higher on maiden dividend
• Which ASX 200 lithium share takes the crown for dividend yield right now?
• Everything you need to know about the inaugural Pilbara Minerals dividend
• Pilbara Minerals share price on watch amid 989% profit surge

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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ASX dividend shares might be looking particularly tempting this year amid still-high inflation and the cost of living. After all, dividend stocks typically provide inflation protection and extra cash a few times each year.

But not all ASX dividend shares are built equal. Not to mention, picking those worth buying might appear particularly difficult after the market rallied last month.

However, I believe that looking for a few key qualities could help to determine if a passive income stock is really a buy in 2023.

Three factors I think can point to a quality ASX dividend share

Competitive advantages

Buying ASX dividend shares with competitive advantages could prove a winning tactic. Companies with competitive advantages are often set up to push through tough times relatively unscathed compared to their peers.

Such advantages could be a loyal customer base, strong pricing power, a unique product, or a recognisable brand, to name a few.

Defensive characteristics

Another green tick I’d look for in shares in 2023 is defensive qualities. Of course, a company with competitive advantages will generally also be more defensive than one without.

However, truly defensive stocks offer products or services that are indispensable to their customers.

Thus, their revenue and profits will largely be protected no matter the economic environment. That might be particularly important in 2023 as Australians bear the brunt of consecutive interest rate hikes and inflation.

Examples of arguably defensive dividend shares include Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW), CSL Limited (ASX: CSL), and Transurban Group (ASX: TCL).

An affordable payout ratio

Finally, I’d look for ASX dividend shares with an affordable payout ratio.

While it might seem counterintuitive for passive income investors to buy ASX shares with lower dividend payout ratios, I think it could be a prudent move.

That’s because a company handing nearly all its profits to investors probably won’t have nearly as much left over to fund growth. And growth could very well equal bigger dividends in the future.

Not to mention, whopping payout ratios or dividend yields might indicate a share is cyclical.

While there’s nothing wrong with buying cyclical shares, they very, very rarely hold the defensive characteristics I tend to look for.

Though, it is worth noting that no investment is guaranteed to provide returns, no matter how well-considered they are.

Bonus: ASX dividend shares trading for good prices

Imagine I’d just found a share housing all three qualities I’m looking for. There’s just one more question to ask. And it’s potentially the most important.

Is the stock trading at a good price?

Buying ASX dividend shares – or any share for that matter – for more than their worth is a reliable way to slow down returns.

Some simple ways to help determine if a share is trading for a good price include its price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio or price-to-book (P/B) ratio.

The post How I’d determine the best types of ASX dividend shares to buy in 2023 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 3 ASX All Ords shares making moves today following earnings, one up 16%
• Why Clinuvel, Cogstate, Omni Bridgeway, and Westgold shares are sinking
• 7 ASX 200 shares with ex-dividend dates next week
• 3 ASX 300 shares soaring to new 52-week highs on Friday
• Why Accent, Brambles, Infomedia, and Pilbara Minerals shares are pushing higher

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended CSL. 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 Scott Phillips.

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These three S&P/ASX All Ords (ASX: XAO) shares are having a mixed day on the market after the release of their latest results today.

Helia Group is the standout of these ASX All Ords shares after the company announced a big lift in earnings per share (EPS) and a sizeable combined interim and special dividend of 41 cents per share.

Let’s take a look.

Helia Group Ltd (ASX: HLI)

Helia shareholders are throwing a party today after the company declared a combined 41-cent interim and special dividend and a 53% increase in undiluted earnings per share (EPS).

The ASX All Ords share is soaring today, up 16.25% to $3.255 apiece at the time of writing.

The mortgage insurance provider released its 2022 annual report today. It revealed a statutory net profit after tax (NPAT) of $186.8 million, down 3.1% on the prior corresponding period (pcp), and an underlying NPAT of $288.4 million, up 21.3% pcp. Statutory NPAT was materially lower as a result of pre-tax unrealised mark-to-market investment losses of $140.3 million due to rising bond rates.

The separation from Genworth Financial Inc (NYSE: GNW) was completed on time and under budget in H2 FY22. The company noted that it retained all its customers in the changeover process.

Both the interim and special dividends will be fully franked and payable on 24 March.

Impedimed Limited (ASX: IPD)

This ASX All Ords share fell to an intraday low of 5.6 cents, down 3.45%, before rebounding to be flat for the day at 5.8 cents at the time of writing.

In its half-year results, the medical devices company announced a 10% increase in revenue to $5,655,000 and a net loss attributable to members of $10,815,000 — up 21% pcp.

Impedimed said the oncology division would be its primary focus for 2H FY23. The company noted a need to look at private payer reimbursement, expanding the sales platform in advance of reimbursement, and completing the SOZO II hardware development and submitting it for US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance.

Weebit Nano Ltd (ASX: WBT)

This ASX All Ords share is up 5.24% to $6.935 at the time of writing.

The semiconductor technology company also released its half-year results today. It reported no revenue and a $22,276,150 loss due to research and development costs. This is up 3.5% pcp.

The company said it had “achieved several key technical and commercial milestones” during the half.

Weebit expects to achieve its first revenue later in 2023. The company says it is “well positioned to productise its ReRAM technology”.

The post 3 ASX All Ords shares making moves today following earnings, one up 16% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• ASX tech share Weebit Nano has surged 90% in 2023. What’s going on?
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• 3 ASX All Ords shares rocketing 10% or more today

Motley Fool contributor Bronwyn Allen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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