Here are 5 ASX stocks dealing with major backlashes from the public! Who will prevail in the tug of war?

This article outlines 5 ASX stocks dealing with major backlashes from the public.

Note: We are not necessarily talking about companies facing backlash just from investors, like Droneshield is. We are talking about companies facing a backlash from the broader public.

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5 ASX stocks dealing with major backlashes from the public

IDP Education (ASX:IDP)

IDP’s core business is providing placement services for international students and administering the IELTS English language test globally. Because of that it is inherently exposed to changes in immigration, visa and education policies across multiple countries (Australia, UK, Canada, US, New Zealand and others).

There has been an explicit backlash against high immigration levels into the West and international students are particularly scapegoated for housing affordability and pressure on public services. Now, Australia’s policy changes will see some international students come in, but fewer than before and IDP has not shied away from admitting there will be an impact. Such warnings have hurt IDP’s share price although it remains to be seen just how much student numbers will be cut.

Chalice Mining (ASX:CHN)

Chalice has discovered the Gonneville project in the Julimar State Forest which could be one of the biggest PGE mines globally. But it is a few years away from production and even at this early stage, there have been warning signs. Chalice’s ambitions have met opposition from local residents and environmental advocates concerned about drilling in the Julimar State Forest.

Surveys show a significant portion of nearby communities expresses low trust in the company’s handling of environmental concerns, and that local conservation groups frame the project as a threat to native forests and ecosystems. Currently community tensions are simmering under the surface, but we would not imagine the company would get off without any scrutiny re-emerging as the company gets closer to production. It is one thing for there to be backlash a company with aspirations to build a mine in a few years time, it is another when a company is going ahead with it.

Woolworths (ASX:WOW)

Woolworths as a supermarket giant (not to mention Coles) has increasingly found itself at the centre of a backlash – in the form of consumer frustration over grocery pricing transparency and perceived profiteering amid cost-of-living pressures. Consumer advocates and some consumer groups have called for stronger regulation to ensure clearer price labelling and protect shoppers from ambiguous pricing structures.

The federal government has announced new “price-gouging” laws set to take effect in mid-2026 targeting very large retailers’ margins, directly responding to broad political and public concerns about supermarket pricing power and the duopoly’s share of the market. Of course, things could have been worse, but we imagine that more regulation could come if inflation does not ease and the government sees little alternative but to crack down on supermarkets.

CBA (ASX:CBA)

Any big bank could make this list because they all face backlash and scruitany from the public at various points in time. But we didn’t want this list to be just the big banks so we kept our list to only have one big bank. And we chose CBA because it is the largest bank and has arguably been under the most pressure in the last 12 months. Of course some investors are reeling over shares sliding down from all time highs, and millions of investors are exposed to CBA via their super funds. But the regulators have targeted the bank in recent times.

In 2025 consumers and advocacy groups publicly criticised the bank after regulator reviews found it had charged excessive fees — around $270m — to millions of low-income customers eligible for low-fee accounts, and for months the bank initially resisted full refunds, prompting petitions and political scrutiny. CBA later agreed to refund a portion (around $68m) following regulatory pressure. Beyond fee issues, CBA has also been penalised for breaches of the Consumer Data Right rules and criticised for lapses in data-sharing compliance that affected business customers.

CBA’s reputation is further shaped by long-running debates about bank profitability, fee practices and its historical involvement in broader industry controversies, such as inquiries into banking misconduct, though some older legal actions (e.g., class actions over continuous disclosure) have been dismissed.

NextDC (ASX:NXT)

Now, we will admit that NextDC itself is not necessarily a target, but the broader data centre industry is being eyed off. And as one of Australia’s largest operators, plus the only listed data centre stock with centres in operation, it will face an impact.

In Australia and globally there’s growing friction around the environmental impacts of data centres — specifically energy demand, carbon emissions and water usage — that is increasingly influencing public perception and planning policy around data centre development. Data centres require vast amounts of power to operate and significant volumes of water to cool equipment.

This has translated into public petitions and community opposition to new data centre construction in Melbourne, where critics argue such facilities could worsen carbon emissions and exacerbate water stresses in already climate-vulnerable regions.

The public concern has been shared by councils and utilities. They have voiced concern that the rapid expansion of these facilities could strain local water supplies and conflict with community priorities, particularly as drought and climate-driven scarcity become more pronounced. Local authorities have even called for stronger planning controls and frameworks to assess these impacts, highlighting that large data centre projects are not without environmental controversy.

NextDC and many data centre operators are aware of these perceptions and actively emphasise sustainability efforts (such as net-zero pledges, renewable energy sourcing and efficiency programmes) as part of their corporate positioning to mitigate reputational risk.