A huge day for company earnings saw the share market rise for a second session as Commonwealth Bank hit its highest level in more than two years.
The ASX 200 hit a fresh peak for the month, climbing 34 points or 0.5 per cent to 7090 by mid-session. The rally brought the index within 0.6 per cent of last month’s record high.
One of the busiest days of the interim earnings season brought strong gains for the largest listed company by ASX valuation. Commonwealth Bank rallied 3.6 per cent to its strongest level since May 2017 after reporting a first-half cash profit of $4.47 billion that was 4.3 per cent weaker than the same period last year but ahead of expectations. ANZ put on 0.2 per cent, NAB 1 per cent and Westpac 0.5 per cent.
The nation’s second largest company by ASX market capitalisation, health giant CSL, missed a chance to move into first place as an early surge gave way to profit-taking. The global biotech’s shares hit a record $335.99 before paring their rise to 0.7 per cent at $328.08 after reporting an 11 per cent increase in half-year net profit after tax to $1.248 billion.
Insurer IAG called for government action to limit the impact of climate change after announcing a 43.4 per cent slump in half-year net profit to $283 million due to payouts for bushfires, hail damage and floods. The company’s shares bounced 0.7 per cent.
Beach Energy fell 3 per cent to a five-month low after unveiling a 2 per cent drop in half-year net profit to $279 million. Online classified ad business Carsales.com surged 7.7 per cent to a record following a record half that delivered a 22 per cent rise in reported net profit.
Share registry Computershare overcame sharp early losses to rise 0.6 per cent despite a 16.7 per cent decline in earnings per share amid weak corporate activity. Industrial conglomerate Downer EDI shed 2 per cent after statutory half-year net profit after tax declined 35.4 per cent to $91.4 million.
A two-speed market saw gains in bank and consumer stocks partly offset by weakness in resource stocks and utilities. BHP dropped 0.8 per cent, Rio Tinto 1.2 per cent, APA Group 1 per cent and AGL Energy 0.4 per cent.
Asian
markets traded mixedafter
US stocks inched higher overnight. The S&P 500 rose six points or 0.17 per
cent. This morning, China’s Shanghai Composite shed 0.11 per cent, Hong Kong’s
Hang Seng added 0.19 per cent and Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.45 per cent. S&P
500 index futures were recently points or per cent.
Brent crude continued to recover
from one-year lows, rising 70 cents or 1.5 per cent this morning to $US54.71 a
barrel. Gold slipped 60 cents or 0.1
per cent to $US1,569.50 an ounce.
The dollar edged up 0.2 per cent to 67.25 US cents.
What’s hot today and what’s not:
Hot today: Educator Idp Education (ASX:IEL) soared to an all-time high after the company doused fears the coronavirus will undermine earnings. CEO Andrew Barkla said the virus was not having a material impact on the firm’s financial performance. IDP announced a 25 per cent increase in half-year revenue to $379 million and a 49 per cent jump in pre-tax earnings to $86.9 million. The share price soared 28.7 per cent to a record $4.79.
Not today: Blackmores (ASX:BKL) became the latest to cite the coronavirus for a profit downgrade. Shares in the natural health company sagged 16.per cent to its weakest point since September after it cut its full-year profit outlook. The company said the virus had affected the rollout of product labels, sales and supplies.