ASX closes higher as earnings season ends
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The news: The Australian sharemarket ended higher, led by gains in industrial stocks, as earnings season came to a close.
The numbers: The benchmark ASX 200 gained 0.58% to end at 8,091.9, with eight out of 11 sectors finishing in green.
The best performing sector was industrials, up 1.65%, followed by energy (1.27%). Downer EDI shares surged 16.95% after it reported annual earnings that beat consensus estimates.
Fletcher Building shares rose 7.99% after it secured an agreement with the West Australian government to address plumbing failures in homes fitted with pipes provided by its subsidiary Iplex Australia.
TPG Telecom shares jumped 8.08% after it reported a lower-than-expected 40% drop in half year profit.
Elsewhere, Dubber gained 6.67% despite its auditors flagging 'material uncertainty' in its full-year results and issuing a correction to previous years' accounts.
APM Human Services ended flat after reporting that it swung to a full-year loss in the 2024 financial year as historically low unemployment weighed on earnings.
The worst performing sector was consumer discretionary, down 0.46%, followed by healthcare (0.1%). Harvey Norman plunged 6.34% after posting a sharp drop in full-year profit amid a slowdown in consumer spending.
Ramsay Health Care shares fell 7.33% after it posted mixed full-year results and a "subdued" outlook failed to impress analysts.
Dicker Data lowered 9.41% after it posted a drop in first-half revenue and profit.
Elsewhere, Appen shares slumped 16.87% after revealing receding revenue in FY24 which continued to soften into FY25 after the loss of its Google contract.
The Australian dollar is buying 68.03 US cents.
The context: Tonight will see the latest US core personal consumption expenditure figures published ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s next monetary policy decision in September.
Next week, the Australian Bureau of Statistics will release the country’s latest GDP figures and the Reserve Bank’s governor Michele Bullock will speak at the Anika Foundation.
