Stocks of the Hour: Origin Energy, Perpetual & NRW Holdings

Origin Energy (ASX:ORG) dived to a loss of $2.29 billion for their full-year as the rise in clean energy smashed prices across the business amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Following the mammoth write-downs, the power supplier posted a 69 per cent fall in underlying earnings at $318 million from a year ago. EBITDA for the energy markets business dropped 32 per cent to $991 million from a year ago in line with their guidance. Given the numbers, Origin counselled investors that the pain would linger if not deepen into financial year 2022. A dividend of 7.5 cents per share unfranked, down from 10 cents same time last year to be paid in October this year. Shares in Origin Energy (ASX:ORG) are trading 4 per cent lower at $4.20.

Investment manager Perpetual (ASX:PPT) recorded a 31 per cent surge in revenue to $640.6 million for the financial year 2021, underpinned by solid inflows from ESG-focused Trillium and Barrow Hanley. Their net profit after tax came in 9 per cent lower at $74.9 million from the year before after they bolted on the two U.S. investment managers which put a one-off dent to their figures. However, their underlying profit after tax came in at $124.1 million, a 26 per cent jump on the year before. Total assets under management came in at $98.3 billion by the end of the financial year. Outflows were seen in both their Aussie and international division in the period with inflows turning positive only in the final quarter for the Australian arm. Meanwhile ESG-focused Trillium saw record net inflows as ESG-focused investing started to dominate investing values in the market. A fully franked dividend of 0.96 cents per share is to be paid in September. Shares in Perpetual (ASX:PPT) are trading 0.8 per cent lower at $39.17.

NRW Holdings (ASX:NWH) revealed a 26 per cent fall in their full year profit at $54.3 million from a year ago but have assured investors that their outlook ahead looks bright. The company’s operating earnings before interest and taxes fell to $120.6 million in FY21 as Covid-19 restrictions hindered their progress. Resource availability, labour cost pressures and skilled labour shortages impacted completion costs and schedules. NRW saw a 6.7 per cent rise in their EBITDA to $266.7 million while their adjusted NPAT dipped 16.2 per cent. Net cashflow from operations was $147.4 million which the company said reflects increased working capital pending resolution of outstanding claims. Looking ahead, NRW has a pipeline of opportunities at $14.5 billion across all business segments. The value of the work secured for FY22 is around $2.0 billion. A fully franked final ordinary dividend of $0.96 per share is to be paid in September. Shares in NRW Holdings (ASX:NWH) are trading 18 per cent higher at $1.97.

Source: Finance News Network