ASX reporting season: All the news from companies reporting their financial results to the market today

Apr 19, 2024

Is it the weekend yet? We hear ya. It certainly feels like it should be.

We’re now smack-bang in the thick of reporting season. Tired? Grumpy? A little shell-shocked? Feeling like you can’t go on? Here’s something to cheer you up ... it’s only 125 day til Christmas!

And if you like getting your shopping done early, how about picking up a couple of gift cards for Coles. The grocery giant delivered a $1.1 billion profit but it was marked as a “miss” by analysts who were left wanting more. So were investors, who hammered its share price from the opening bell and didn’t let up, eventually wiping off 7. 1 per cent.

Will it be a similar story when Woolworths reports today?

Big Australian BHP cut its dividend after “significantly lower” prices for iron ore, copper and coking coal compounded inflationary pressures and halved profit to $20.1b.

It was better news for WA’s mining services contractors, with Monadelphous, Mader, Perenti, SRG Global and Macmahon all capitalising on the resources boom and (mostly) weathering rising costs and labour shortages.

Woodside reported record-half production and a record half profit of $US1.77b ... but CEO Meg O’Neill was quick to warn workers they should not expect big pay rises, insisting it won’t make any decisions that drive up longer-term costs.

She said the energy giant had made “good progress” on a new pay deal for its WA offshore gas workers ahead of key negotiations with unions due today, but she emphasised the group needed to guard its “longer term financial viability”.

Those airing their financial laundry for investors today include Emeco, Santos, WiseTech, Perpetual, Iluka Resources, Worley, SkyCity Entertainment, APA Group, and Domino’s Pizza.

Let’s dive in ...

Woolworths has reviewed every piece of equipment in its businesses and has cut the bonuses of senior managers after safety lapses resulted in the deaths of two workers.

In December, 39-year-old contract cleaner Malerato Harrison was killed when she was crushed against a wall by a floor polisher while cleaning a Woolworths store in Newcastle about 5am.

And on June 27, Woolworths employee 35-year-old Basel “Baz” Brikha was killed and two other workers injured after they were hit by pallets when a pallet-stacker was unjammed at a distribution centre in western Sydney.

Read the full story here ...

Derek Rose

Retail Food Group, which owns Donut King, Gloria Jeans, Crust Pizza and Brumby’s Bakery, says many of its brands have so far managed to avoid a noticeable consumer downturn despite higher cost of living pressures.

This is largely due to the cheaper price point, said chief executive Matt Marshall in an analyst call, with the average transaction just over $9 at Gloria Jeans, Brumby’s and Donut King.

The exception was Crust, where same-store sales fell 0.2 per cent over the year at its 130 outlets.

RFG reported underlying revenue of $98 million, up 8 per cent year-on-year.

Market watchers with a passion for accounting must surely rub their hands with glee when contractor Decmil reports.

Decmil has been planning to sell its Homeground accommodation precinct in Queensland for some years — telling shareholders the asset was on the market in its 2020, 2021 and 2022 annual reports.

The Gladstone facility is still up for grabs and is expected to be sold in the next 12 months, Decmil said today.

That will be a familiar feeling for shareholders, who were told in August 2022 that the precinct would be sold within 10 months.

While the asset is being held for sale, Homeground adds about $57 million to Decmil’s current asset balance, which totalled $142m at June 30.

For comparison, current liabilities were running at $114m on that date.

The numbers mean Homeground was playing a key role keeping the company’s net current asset position positive.

Since the financial year closed, however, Decmil has brought itself some breathing space with a $26 million capital raise in July.

As for Homeground, the company reported occupancy at the site had averaged 14 per cent in the year — peaking at 47 per cent.

Homeground earned about $10 million of revenue with EBITDA of $1.2m.

A Decmil spokesman for the company said the sale process had advanced in the past 12 months, with advanced negotiations under way after receiving interest.

The company said it did not want to jeopardise negotiations but would inform the market if a binding deal is reached.

“The company has a strong working capital position of $41.3m on a pro-forma basis following the RCPS capital raising it recently completed,” the spokesman said.

Made a bit of coin with some savvy portfolio Jenga over reporting season?

Looking to blow that fat profit on a mid-life crisis set of hot wheels?

If you’re prepared to wait, you could grab yourself a Ferrari.

But choose your model wisely - some waitlists have ballooned to three years, says Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna ... and the company has no plans to supercharge production to meet demand.

The client is giving a value to our cars because they are unique, because they are limited, because they are exclusive. We could make more, but that doesn’t make sense. We will offend our clients.

And it seems the rush to flash cars isn’t just for middle-aged men. Vigna says about 30 per cent of Ferrari’s new clients are younger than 40.

But if you’re still counting your losses after a misplaced punt on Iress, Coles or WiseTech this week, we’ve got a 2011 Corolla hatchback you migth be interest in

The local share market has been climbing slowly and steadily and is on track for its best performance in nearly a month, as traders snap up bargains following a stretch of heavy losses.

The ASX200 was up 46.1 points, or 0.65 per cent, to a four-day high of 7167.7 at 12.15pm.

While not dramatic, the gains put the ASX200 on track for its best performance since a 0.73 per cent rise on July 27.

The ASX’s 11 sectors were mixed, with consumer staples the biggest gainer, climbing 2.4 per cent as Woolworths jumped 5.1 per cent on its earnings results.

Domino Pizza chief executive Don Meij says 20 per cent of the company’s staff will be cut globally, equating to about 200 people after the company revealed a 74 per cent fall in full-year net profits over the last financial year.

Headquartered in Australia, the company operates franchises in Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Japan, Germany, Luxembourg, Cambodia, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore.

Mr Meij said margins were ultimately affected by the company’s “inability to pass through ingredient cost changes as we ordinarily do”.

“While we anticipated the increasing cost of doing business for Domino’s stores, through higher labour, ingredients and energy, the scale and pace of these increases meant Domino’s leadership needed to adjust our pricing and cost base faster than in our history,” he said.

Australia is considering appointing an outsider as the new deputy governor of its central bank, as an overhaul of the institution gets under way.

Following the appointment of long-time Reserve Bank of Australia stalwart Michele Bullock as the central bank’s new governor, the Federal Government’s looking at external candidates to fill the deputy role, people close to the discussions said.

Outside candidates are on the rough short list being prepared by the Government, they added.

The central bank will soon have a completely overhauled leadership team, with a new assistant governor for economics and a chief operating officer to also be appointed.

MsBullock is expected to start her role at the top of the bank in September.

As Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ push to revamp the institution ramps up, the new dual board structure recommended by a government review into the RBA is expected to begin in July 2024, a person close to the talks said. One board will focus on setting interest rates, the other on bank governance. The RBA review was released by Chalmers in April.

Still, there’s substantial legislative work to be done before the new structure can begin, and the timing of its implementation might depend on how quickly the changes could pass through Parliament.

Bloomberg

Contractor Emeco says demand and activity levels had been “exceptional” thanks to strong commodity markets.

The company reported revenue of $874 million, up 16 per cent on restated numbers from 2023.

But profit was down by a third, to $41 million — with the business saying it was tested by inflation pressures.

“Emeco’s financial performance can be considered a story of two halves,” the Osborne Park-based contractor told markets.

“The company delivered a strong turnaround performance in the second half, with growth in revenue and earnings across each business, including the benefit of the successful renegotiation of rates and contractual terms with a key Pit N Portal customer.”

Emeco said the first half had been disappointing, with the Pit N Portal equipment business underperforming.

That business unit had been reset, with projects terminated and a writedown, Emeco said.

Emeco provides equipment, labour hire and fabrication, largely for the resources industry.

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