Sharesight20 top 20 trades on ASX & NZX - August 2018

Welcome to the August 2018 edition of the Sharesight20 monthly trading snapshot (click here for last month’s Sharesight20), where we look at the top 20 trades on both the ASX and NZX markets among Sharesight users during the current month, and dig a little deeper into the news behind these movements.

Let’s dive into August’s top trades.

Sharesight20ASX August 2018 Snapshot

Afterpay Touch (ASX: APT) put in a strong month after reporting strong growth figures to claim top spot in August, Telstra (ASX: TLS) was the most heavily sold down share in second overall. We also saw all but 1 (ASX: VGS) of the 4 ETFs that made it into July’s Sharesight20ASX slide out of this snapshot. Some of the other highlights include:

Afterpay Touch (ASX: APT)

• Shares are up 628 percent over the past 12 months, making the company the best performing ASX 200 stock for the period
• Announced plans to acquire a 90% interest in UK-based buy now, pay later business Clearpay for a total consideration of 1 million Afterpay Touch shares
• Released annual results, with Afterpay Group Revenue and Other Income of $142.3 million, up 390%
• EBITDA for the period rose 468% to $33.8 million, with underlying sales processed through its system rising 290 per cent to $2.18 billion
• Launched an equity raising of $108.1 million at $15.75 per share, a discount of almost 10%

Telstra Corporation (ASX: TLS)

• Share price spiked on news rivals Vodafone and TPG Telecom were engaged in merger talks
• Took out the crown in the 2018 Speedtest Awards by Ookla across both Mobile and Fixed line networks
• The role of CMO was axed from Telstra organisation charts - with the role to be devolved to individual business units
• The Communications Electrical Plumbing Union (CEPU) recommended its members reject Telstra’s ‘below-inflation’ pay increase
• 81% of employees voted against the proposal
• The telco switched on its 5G network on the Gold Coast
• Broke streaming records with 1.2 million individual devices streaming NRL, AFL and Netball in a single weekend

Commonwealth Bank (ASX: CBA)

• Banking Royal Commission found 13,000 breaches of Commonwealth Bank’s duties to super fund members and has recommended criminal charges
• CBA online banking and merchant payment terminals were down for almost 24 hours due to a data centre problem
• Reported cash profit was $9.23 billion for the year to June 30 - down 4.8%
• The bank stood to make $12 billion from corporate tax cuts proposed by the Federal Government (that appear to have been abandoned after a leadership spill)
• It was revealed more dead clients were charged for financial advice by CBA’s wealth management arm
• Pay for senior CBA executives has been cut after a ‘scathing’ APRA report
• The bank launched the world’s first bond to be created, allocated, transferred, and managed via blockchain - worth $110 million

BHP Billiton (ASX: BHP)

• Production at Olympic Dam mine disrupted by technical issue - will affect production for up to 8 weeks
• Reported full year net profit of US$3.71 billion down from US$5.9 billion on the same corresponding period last year - a fall of 37%
• The miner wants the Samarco class action delayed as it continues to fight criminal charges in Brazilian courts over the 2015 dam collapse, which killed 19 people
• Reports also indicate there is little chance the Samarco mine joint venture with Vale SA will reopen in 2019
• 20,000 tonnes of fabrication work for BHP’s South Flank project was awarded to Tianjin BOMESC Offshore Engineering Company, in China’s north-east - angering Western Australian firms bidding for the contract

Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC)

• Reported Net Interest Margin (NIM) fell to 2.06%, its lowest level since 2015, adding about $400 million a year to the bank’s cost base - with shares tumbling as a result
• This fueled speculation the bank would raise mortgage rates outside the RBA’s cash rate movements
• Pharmaceutical giant CSL overtook the bank as the third-largest company on the ASX by market capitalisation
• Details on the new payment model for financial planners have been revealed, but with the start delayed for partnership planners
• Announced US-based Citigroup’s consumer bank CTO Craig Bright to replace outgoing CTO Dave Curran
• Announced a $100 million fund for farmers affected by the drought crisis
• Economists at the bank have forecast no increase in the RBA cash rate until 2021

National Australia Bank (ASX: NAB)

• NAB could face potential criminal charges after preliminary findings handed down from Royal Commission into banking and financial services
• Charged more than 4000 dead superannuation customers $3 million in advice fees
• Executives kept quiet about fee for no service for 11 months
• Named as the worst offender by the Royal Commission
• The bank plans to challenge allegations it has been ‘ethically unsound’
• Chief operating officer Antony Cahill resigned - joining Visa in the UK
• "Well-designed" email phishing scam targeting NAB and Amex customers discovered

Sharesight20NZX August 2018 Snapshot

Again we see strong interest in NZX based ETFs, as we see the NZ Top 50 Fund (NZX: FNZ) and the US 500 Fund (NZX: USF) take out the top 2 places this month.

a2 Milk Company (NZX: A2M)

• Announced an FY18 profit of $283m on revenue of $922.7m (up 68%) - with 75% of revenue from sales of infant formula, mostly to China
• Increased availability of a2's infant formula in China helped lift its market share to 5.1% in FY2018
• Reported net profit was up 116%
• Some Walmart stores in the USA now stock a2 Milk
• Australian "daigou" retailer AuMake will produce its own-brand A2 milk powder, threatening a2 Milk
• Agreements to sell a2 milk formula in China have been extended as the diplomatic freeze thaws
• Announced a doubling of a2 Milk’s stake in New Zealand dairy producer Synlait to 17.39%

Pushpay Holdings (NZX: PPH)

• Only lifted client numbers 3% higher on the prior corresponding June quarter
• Guidance for the current quarter is revenue between US$21.8 million and US$23.3 million
• Announced summer product launch (press release)

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Important Disclaimer. We do not provide tax or investment advice. The buying of shares can be complex and varies by country. You should seek tax and investment advice specific to your situation before acting on any of the information in this article.

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