If you invest in the Big Four Banks, it is likely that you are looking for two things: profit and dividends. That instinct is understandable, but it misses most of what actually matters. Banks are structurally unlike any other listed company. They borrow money at one rate and lend it at another, hold vast pools…
Bank Stocks
NAB Profit Falls 18% in H1 2026, But Underlying Up 6.4%
National Australia Bank (ASX:NAB) released its half-year 2026 results today, and the headline numbers looked rough. Statutory profit fell 18% to A$2.75 billion. The share price slipped 1.46% to A$39.25. And management announced plans to raise around A$1.8 billion in fresh capital. But the…
ANZ Shares Slip Despite Strong Profit Growth
ANZ Group Holdings (ASX:ANZ) just released one of its strongest half-year results in years, but the share price tells a different story. Cash profit jumped 70% to A$3.78 billion, the dividend was held at 83 cents, and franking was boosted to 75%. Yet shares fell 2.84% on Friday…
CPI hit 4.6%. But the trimmed mean held at 3.3%
Australia's headline inflation jumped to 4.6% in the year to March 2026, the highest level since September 2023. The Australian Bureau of Statistics released the data this morning, showing inflation accelerated sharply from February's 3.7% reading. On a quarterly basis, annual CPI accelerated to 4.1%…
RBA May Hike Again if CPI Runs Hot
The Australian Bureau of Statistics releases the March quarter inflation number at 11:30 am today, and it decides whether the Reserve Bank hikes the cash rate from 4.10% to 4.35% on 5 May. All four big four banks (CBA, NAB, Westpac and ANZ) are now forecasting a…
The 50% CGT discount on shares is one of the key mechanisms that helps investors keep as much of their cash as they have earned on their investments. We felt that it was time to write a stand-alone article about this in light of the inflation crisis and how it could lead to investors seeking…
Judo Capital Rises Despite SME Loan Caution
Judo Capital Holdings (ASX:JDO) delivered its Q3 update on Friday, and the market's response was interesting. The stock closed up 1.45% at A$1.40, outperforming most of the big four banks despite the cautious commentary. On the surface, Judo reaffirmed its full-year profit guidance of A$180m to A$190m. But…
Suncorp’s announcement of a new 5‑year aggregate reinsurance arrangement lands at a moment when the group has already undergone one of the most significant strategic resets in its modern history.
The business that once balanced general insurance with a low‑return retail bank has, over the past three years, reshaped itself into a more focused, more predictable…
ASX Confession Season got into full swing yesterday with Cochlear's guidance downgrade that saw over $4bn in shareholder value wiped out. It is that time that happens every year - a period that fund managers dread and short sellers quietly anticipate. It has no official name on the ASX calendar, no regulatory trigger, and no…
Australia's three listed small cap ASX lenders — MoneyMe (ASX:MME), Harmoney (ASX:HMY) and Plenti (ASX:PLT); each released quarterly trading updates to the market today, providing a timely window into the health of the non-bank lending sector.
Taken together, the releases tell a consistent story. These companies are carving out positions that the major institutions appear either…
