Daily FNArena News - Australia

The Commonwealth government is proposing an inquiry into the Australian aged care sector and brokers suspect that prospect, and negative media coverage, will impact on listed stocks.

The main risks going forward for TPG Telecom are the erosion of margins as the NBN roll-out completes. Brokers suggest the company will need to rely heavily on mobile revenue.

Brokers suggest Fonterra needs to start delivering on earnings expectations to rebuild confidence, while the strategic review is welcomed as an opportunity to simplify the business.

Contributions from all levels of government are finding their way to large infrastructure projects and analysts at ANZ Bank suggest construction activity and demand for workers and materials is slowly heating up.

Taking the Quadrant Energy sale into calculations, brokers revise up earnings estimates for Macquarie Group, despite the usual “broadly in line” guidance.

Incitec Pivot is confident in the FY19 outlook for fertiliser prices while demand for explosives in quarry & construction is robust.

FNArena’s Monitor keeps track of corporate earnings result releases, including broker views, ratings and target price changes and beat/miss assessments.

The severe drought on Australia’s east coast augurs poorly for Graincorp over FY19 but the company has surprised brokers with an upgrade to its FY18 earnings guidance.

The outlook for the A-REIT sector is relatively benign, as brokers note portfolio fundamentals are healthy and gearing is generally low. The favoured segment is office while headwinds continue for retail.

WA gold miner is hoping to leverage the expertise it has gained in revitalising operations at Jundee by extending life of Alaska’s Pogo mine.