ASX closes higher; Boss Energy tanks 44%
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The news: The Australian sharemarket finished higher as broad gains offset losses in the energy, materials and utilities sectors, with Boss Energy shares plunging after the uranium miner warned of potential difficulties in reaching nameplate capacity at its flagship mine.
The benchmark ASX 200 rose 0.36% to end at 8697.7 with eight of the 11 sectors finishing in the green.
Telecommunication (+1.1%) services was the best performing sector as Telstra (+0.8%), REA Group (+1.3%) and CAR Group (+1.7%) finished higher.
Meanwhile, the energy sector was the worst performing as coal producers Whitehaven Coal (-4.2%) and Yancoal (-2.6%) fell. Woodside (-0.04%) finished relatively flat while Santos (-0.4%) and Ampol (-0.9%) also fell.
Commonwealth Bank (+1.2%), NAB (+0.7%), Westpac (+0.5%) and ANZ (+0.3%) all finished higher.
Biggest movers:
- Magellan Financial (+4.6%) – The best performer on the ASX 200 despite there being no company-specific news.
- Newmont Corporation (+4.5%) – Analysts at UBS and Macquarie lifted their price target on the stock after the gold miner reported better-than-expected Q2 results on Friday.
- Boss Energy (-44%) – Warned of "potential challenges" in hitting nameplate capacity at its Honeymoon uranium project in South Australia, and set higher-than-expected cost guidance for the 2026 financial year.
- Lithium miners – Pilbara Minerals (-11.7%), Liontown Resources (-8%), IGO (-6.7%) and Mineral Resources (-6.4%) all finished lower despite Cannacord Genuity analysts arguing that the down cycle for the battery metal has “now likely passed”.
Executive and board moves:
- Bubs Australia (+2.9%) – Former Darigold CEO and Fonterra Americas president Joe Coote has been appointed CEO of baby formula and food business Bubs.
- Cochlear (+1.3%) – Former Foxtel CEO Richard Freudenstein will join the hearing device maker’s board as a non-executive director on 25 August.
- WiseTech Global (+0.3%) – Zubin Appoo has been appointed permanent chief executive, replacing interim head Andrew Cartledge who will retire at the end of 2025.
- The Lottery Corporation (-1.3%) – Wayne Pickup has been appointed managing director and chief executive. He will replace retiring incumbent Sue van der Merwe on 24 November.
Deals news:
- IMDEX (+2.4%) – Acquired a controlling stake in AI-based geoscience platform Earth Science Analytics for $26 million and told investors it would buy the remaining shareholdings within four years.
- Stockland (+0.6%) – Entered a joint venture with John Boyd Properties to redevelop Kogarah Golf Club into a logistics precinct featuring a multi-storey hub expected to have an end value of $3.5 billion.
Other news:
- Clarity Pharmaceuticals (+2.4%) – Completed a $203 million placement with institutional investors close to the company.
- Australian Foundation Investment Corporation (+1.2%) – Reported a fall in net profit and revenue for the 2025 financial year, but declared a special dividend.
- Webjet Group (+0.6%) – Ordered by the Federal Court to pay $9 million after admitting to making false or misleading statements in regards to the advertised cost of flights and bookings that were not actually confirmed.
- Regal Partners (+0.3%) – Morgans anlaysts reiterated their 'buy' rating on the investment manager’s stock, due to a better-than-expected profit outlook released by the company on Friday.
- Bellevue Gold (-0.6%) – Reported record free cash flow during the June quarter, a 55% quarter-on-quarter increase in gold production and a 50.4% increase in gold sales quarter on quarter.
- Bowen Coking Coal – The troubled coal producer has received claims worth $29.3 million from mining services business Bowen Coking Coal and owes the Queensland Royalties Office $14.4 million.
What’s ahead:
- The Australian Bureau of Statistics will release data on labour participation potential, job search and mobility data for February 2025 tomorrow at 11:30am AEST.
