ASX closes lower; Light & Wonder tumbles
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The news: The Australian sharemarket closed lower as a mining sector rally was offset by a fall in healthcare and finance stocks, including a slump in share price for most of Australia’s four biggest lenders.
The benchmark ASX 200 fell 0.28% to end at 8,807.1 with six of the 11 sectors finishing in the red.
The materials sector (+1.4%) was the best performing as mining giants BHP (+0.9%) Fortescue (+1.8%) and Rio Tinto (+1.1%) all posted gains. Fortescue announced it had secured a roughly $3 billion yuan-denominated syndicated term loan.
Meanwhile, the healthcare sector (-1.5%) fell after US pharma giant Eli Lilly shares declined 14% overnight on the New York Stock Exchange. CSL (-1.8%) and Telix Pharmaceuticals (-3.1%) fell while Clarity Pharmaceuticals (-13.2%) was the worst performer on the ASX 200.
Commonwealth Bank (-0.9%), NAB (-0.9%) and Westpac (-1%) weighed on the finance sector (-1.1%). ANZ (-0.3%) finished higher.
Biggest movers:
- Light & Wonder (-11.3%) – Reported lower-than-expected net profit and revenue results for the second quarter on Thursday.
- QBE Insurance (-8.8%) – Reported first-half net profit after tax that was 27.4% higher than the prior corresponding period.
- Iress (+12.2%) – Led gains on the ASX 200 after confirming reports that it is engaging with investment giants BLackstone and Thoma Bravo over a possible acquisition.
- Block (+9.1%) – Raised its full-year gross profit forecast USD10.17 billion ($15.6 billion) from USD9.96 billion.
- Gold Miners – Westgold Resources (+6.2%) and Northern Star Resources (+4%) tracked gains in the price of gold futures on New York’s Commodities Exchange Centre after it was reported that gold bullion imported into the US from Switzerland would be subject to the broader 39% tariff.
- Nick Scali (+6.9%) – The furniture retailer’s ANZ group written sales orders were up 2.8% in FY25, compared to FY24, as second half sales picked up 7.3% on the previous corresponding period. Citi analysts highlighted that "top line momentum improving".
Deals news:
- PointsBet (+4.6%) – Japanese entertainment company MIXI improved its off-market takeover cash offer price from $1.20 per PointsBet share to $1.25 a week after rival bidder Betr lobbed an improved all-scrip offer. PointsBet’s board unanimously backs the MIXI offer.
- Liontown Resources (ended flat) – Completed a $316 million oversubscribed institutional placement, which included a $50 million investment from the federal government’s National Reconstruction Fund Corporation.
- Infratil (-0.2%) – Agreed to sell its 50% stake in retirement village operator RetireAustralia to Invesco Real Estate for $300 million.
Earnings and FUM news:
- Platinum Asset Management (-4%) – Reported net outflows of $264 million in July, representing a 0.7% fall in funds under management in July.
- Avita Medical (-13.6%) – Lowered its full-year commercial revenue guidance after a posting lower than expected sales in the first-half of 2025.
- GQG Partners (-14.6%) – Reported a 3.4% decline in funds under management in July and warned that “negative net flows experienced in July could persist”.
What’s ahead:
- The National Bureau of Statistics of China will release consumer price index and producer price index data for July on Saturday at 11:30am AEST.
- The Tokyo Stock Exchange will be closed on Monday as Japan holds its Mountain Day public holiday.
