June 2016
June 2016 A well-received investor briefing in May, together with a currency tailwind from the falling Australian dollar, drove QBE Insurance Group (ASX:QBE) shares higher in May. After several years of restructuring, QBE is now better positioned to produce reliable profit growth despite the soft premium environment and low interest rates. The insurance book has…
June 2016
June 2016 Andrew Stanley, Head of Australian Equities at Ralton, discusses how Australian investors can make sense of Chinese data, particularly with China's macro-economic outlook becoming more complex as levers to deal with imbalances become less effective. “The big problem is basically China itself. This is, it is slowing down its rate of growth quite…
June 2016
The RBA lowered the cash rate in May for the first time in 12 months to 1.75%, with the resulting rally in Australian bonds underpinning a demand for equities. The S&P/ASX 300 Accumulation Index continued its climb from its February lows, adding 3.14% in May, with Health Care the top performing sector as regulatory concerns…
June 2016
June 2016 Shares in Graincorp (ASX:GNC) rebounded from recent lows most likely due to the rains that started to arrive near the end of April in key growing areas. Over the next few months, investors and farmers alike will focus on the rainfall to support the winter crops. Although GNC is less dependent on the size…
May 2016
May 2016 Following a pull-back in the share price, we added Aurizon Holdings (ASX:AZJ) to the portfolio (AZJ is the former QR National or QLD railway company). AZJ has two key divisions, consisting of basically above-rail and below-rail assets. The above-rail assets or ‘train sets’ are focused on coal haulage for key miners with long-dated take…
May 2016
May 2016 Boutique Australian equities value manager, Ralton Asset Management, has been awarded an institutional mandate by IOOF Investments. “We are pleased to have been chosen by IOOF to manage large-cap Australian equities,” said Andrew Stanley, Ralton’s Head of Australian Equities. “For Ralton, the mandate validates the strength of their team and consistency of performance…
May 2016
May 2016 Shares in comparison website, iSelect (ASX:ISU), continued their recovery from January lows. With a new management team in place since last October, the business appears to be regaining momentum. Key to investor sentiment will be the company's ability to hit its recently restated profit guidance for the full year – it is fair…
May 2016
The Australian share market continued its rebound in April from its mid-February lows, with the S&P/ASX 300 Accumulation Index adding 3.34% for the month. Both the Materials and Energy sectors posted healthy gains, while Utilities and Consumer Discretionary were the only two sectors to record a negative return for the month. Despite the sharp recovery,…
May 2016
May 2016 Origin Energy (ASX:ORG) was boosted by a relatively clean-half year result in February. The energy market business delivered good growth with margin expansion in ORG’s domestic gas retailing business a noteworthy feature that we had been expecting for some time. ORG’s APLNG plant has finally commenced operations with the first train now operational…
April 2016
April 2016 Star Entertainment Group (ASX:SGR) was a strong contributor to the Ralton Australian Shares portfolio during the March quarter, adding value in a volatile market. Half-year profit results were solid on most metrics and importantly, the outlook continues to appear supportive. SGR will be a beneficiary of the ongoing influx of tourists from Asia,…