Pavan Sharma

Mastercard Inc (MA) reported Q3 earnings in the same cadence as Visa’s earnings this quarter – increased revenues overall largely from an increase in cross-border (travel) transactions. Revenue beat analyst expectations by 1.68% ($5.76B) and EPS (adj. diluted) of $2.68 vs expectations of $2.57.

The New Zealand market (NZX 50 Index, -0.2%) fell slightly on Tuesday. Pushpay (+1.6%) climbed closer to its takeover bid price of $1.34 per share, while helping to prop up Information Technology (+1.6%) which led the market’s sectors on the day. New Zealand King Salmon (-8.5%) sold off after announcing the abrupt resignation of its Chief Executive Grant Rosewarne. Metro Performance Glass (-9.0%) announced it would be releasing its Full Year 2023 Interim results on 29 November 2022 and subsequently cratered on the day.    

The New Zealand market (NZX 50 Index, +1.9%) rallied on Monday with Pushpay (+5.0%) accounting for a third of turnover. Large cap dividend stocks Chorus (+5.9%), Mercury NZ (+5.2%), Contact Energy (+3.4%), and Fletcher Building (+3.2%) all rose by more than 3 percent. 

The New Zealand market (NZX 50 Index, +0.3%) closed last week on a mildly positive note.  Two tourism plays, SkyCity Entertainment (+3.3%) and Tourism Holdings (+2.0%), advanced on the day. SkyCity held its 2022 annual meeting on Friday where it reported quarter 1 Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and amortisation for the 2023 Financial Year approximately +10% above pre COVID-19 levels on a like-for-like basis. However, the casino operator omitted to provide full-year guidance and couldn’t say if it would be reflective of its quarter 1 performance. 

We continue to rate Meta SELL in light of the company’s Q3 earnings. Headline concerns are declining revenue – 4% less YoY, increased costs of +19% and a significantly depleted operating income margin – 20% vs. 36% YoY. Management guided down for Q4, expecting a ~7% currency headwind. EPS declined 49% YoY to $1.64 and net income declined 52% YoY on the back of rising operating costs.

The New Zealand market (NZX 50 Index, +0.5%) rose half a percent on Thursday on light trading. ANZ Bank (-4.0%) sold off even after reporting an annual cash net profit of $2.06 billion (for the 12 months to 30 September 2022), an 8% increase over its 2021 figure. However, the company’s report ominously spent half of its space addressing the “financial pressure” impacting its home-loan customers from interest rate rises. At the same time, ANZ’s Home lending increased $5.3 billion to $104 billion over the 12 months. 

The New Zealand market (NZX 50 Index, +1.3%) rose on Wednesday, thanks to positive updates from a range of companies.  Fletcher (+3.1%) advanced after it reconfirmed its 2023 forecasts for earnings before interest and tax to be greater than $855 million but with the caveat that it has a “clear playbook if activity shows any signs of softening in the next six to nine months”.