The Australian share market is on track to end the week higher after the top 200 stocks (ASX200) rose 0.6 per cent
The Materials, IT and Telcos sectors are leading most the sectors higher today, while just the Consumer Discretionary and Industrials sectors trail in the red.
Broker movesBody, hair and skin care company, BWX
(ASX:BWX) was reinstated as buy by Golden Sachs.
Centuria Capital
(ASX:CNI) was earmarked as a buy by Shaw and Partners with a price target of $1.59.
Rio Tinto
(ASX:RIO) marked as a buy by Citi, with the heavyweight to distribute US$3.2 billion from the sale of its coal assets in Queensland. Its price target is $87.00 (12 months), with an expected return of over 20.2 per cent.
Market The S&P/ASX 200 index is 35 points or 0.6 per cent higher at 6,205. On the futures market the SPI is 35 points higher.
Company news The takeover battle for property funds is heating up with Propertylink Group
(ASX:PLG) receiving a $1.15 cash takeover offer from ESR Real Estate. The acquisition is subject to Propertylink not proceeding with the takeover of Centuria’s Industrial REIT
(ASX:CIP). Centuria Capital Group
(ASX:CNI) which is the largest shareholder of Property Group
(ASX:PLG), owning 10.9 per cent of PLG shares. And prior to Centuria Capital Group
(ASX:CNI) and Centuria Industrial Reit
(ASX:CIP) buying into PLG in September 2017, PLG shares failed to trade above their IPO price of $0.89. Shares in Propertylink Group
(ASX:PLG) are trading 8.6 per cent higher at $1.14 at noon, while Centuria Capital Group
(ASX:CNI) are trading 4.6 per cent higher at $1.37 at noon.
Garda Diversified Property Fund
(ASX:GDF) inked a deal to buy a 4.1 hectare industrial site in Wacol Queensland for $5.9 million, which is 15 kilometres from Brisbane, which is due to settle in May 2019. The fund plans to build an industrial complex as an investment. The fund has a nearby $35.3 million industrial facility, which is leased by Volvo Group Australia for 10 years. Garda Diversified Property Fund
(ASX:GDF) shares are trading 0.4 per cent lower at $1.30 at noon.
IPOsMedicinal cannabis company, Althea Group Holdings Limited
(ASX:AGH) started trading today. It floated with an issue price of $0.20, opened at $0.60 and its trading at $0.56.
Best and worst performersThe best performing sector is Materials adding 1.3 per cent, while the worst performing sector is Industruals, shedding 0.3 per cent.
The best performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 is Orocobre Limited
(ASX:ORE), rising 5.9 per cent to $4.07, followed by shares in Fortescue Metals Group Ltd
(ASX:FMG) and Greencross Limited
(ASX:GXL).
The worst performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 is Pendal Group Limited
(ASX:PDL), dropping 5.7 per cent to $8.64, followed by shares in Premier Investments Limited
(ASX:PMV) and Aurizon Holdings Limited
(ASX:AZJ).
Asian markets Higher: Japan’s Nikkei has added 0.6 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng has added 0.6 per cent and the Shanghai Composite has gained 0.1 per cent.
Commodities and the dollarGold is trading at US$1,209 an ounce.
Iron ore price fell 0.4 per cent to US$69.18, its futures are flat.
One Australian dollar is buying 72.85 US cents.
CryptocurrenciesBitcoin has gained 1.5 per cent to US$6,515, Ethereum added about 5.5 per cent to US$222 and XRP rose about 39 per cent to US$0.45.
