Citigroup raises profit forecast; Australian exchange operator's stock price rises

路透社2026/10/08 06:11

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On Thursday, shares of Australian Securities Exchange operator ASX Ltd (ASX.AX) surged to nearly a two-month high after Citi raised its annual profit outlook for the company, citing a strong first-quarter performance and predicting robust market activity to continue into the first half of the year. Details are as follows: The exchange operator's average daily trading volume in the spot market rose 16% year-on-year in September. Citi analysts noted that daily futures trading volumes climbed 44% during the month, approaching historical highs, possibly reflecting structural and cyclical factors, including interest rate prospects and changes in the bond market. Citi added that strong market activity is expected to last at least through the first half, and consequently raised ASX's annual earnings-per-share forecast by 2%. Citi pointed out, however, that corporate market activity remained subdued in September. Short-term market activity is expected to be boosted with Glencore's GLEN.L company planning a secondary listing in October and Firmus company planning an initial public offering (IPO) in October. Both Citi and UBS raised their target price for ASX from AU$60.10 and AU$64.20 to AU$61.00 and AU$65.50, respectively. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs remains cautious about the strategy of the new CEO, Anthony Attia, and the company's potential future financial situation. Goldman Sachs is also alert to execution risks in the exchange operator's CHESS system replacement and technology modernization plans. This comes after the central bank stated in September that the company's clearing and settlement facilities had not met the bank's expectations. ASX shares closed up 3.8%, reaching their highest level in nearly two months and ranking among the top performers on the S&P/ASX 200 index.

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Reuters, October 8 - On Thursday, shares of Australian Securities Exchange operator ASX Ltd (ASX.AX) surged to a near two-month high after Citigroup raised its annual profit forecast for the company, saying that strong first-quarter performance is expected to continue driving robust market activity through the first half of this year.

Details are as follows:

The exchange operator saw a 16% year-on-year increase in average daily trading volume in its spot market in September.
Citi analysts stated that daily futures trading volume in the month climbed 44%, approaching historical highs, which may reflect structural and cyclical factors, including interest rate outlook and changes in the bond market.
Citi added that strong market activity is expected to persist at least through the first half of the year, and as a result, ASX's annual earnings per share forecast was raised by 2%.
Citi noted that on the downside, corporate market activity remained subdued in September, but with Glencore's GLEN.L planning a secondary listing in October, as well as Firmus's planned initial public offering (IPO) in October, a near-term boost to market activity is anticipated.
Both Citi and UBS raised their target price for ASX from A$60.10 and A$64.20 respectively to A$61.00 and A$65.50.
Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs maintains a cautious stance towards new CEO Anthony Attia's (link) strategy and the company’s potential future financial situation.
Goldman also remains watchful of execution risks in the exchange operator’s CHESS system replacement and technology modernization plans, after the central bank stated in September that the company's clearing and settlement facilities had not met expectations (link).
ASX shares closed up 3.8%, hitting a near two-month high and ranking among the best performers on the S&P/ASX 200 Index.

(To assist non-native English speakers, Reuters provides automated translations of its reporting into several other languages. Since automated translation may contain errors or lack needed context, Reuters does not guarantee the accuracy of translated texts; they are provided solely for readers’ convenience. Reuters accepts no liability for any damage or loss caused by using the automated translation function.)

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Updated to market close Firmus, backed by Nvidia, cancels $5 billion IPO plan; tech stocks see their biggest weekly gain in a week; Benchmark index posts gains for the second consecutive week Jasmeen Ara Islam Shaikh, Reuters, October 9 – Australian stocks rose on Friday as bargain hunters bought shares after a recent benchmark pullback; at the same time, Firmus’s decision to shelve its $5 billion IPO plan triggered an inflow of funds into local software stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 .AXJO rose 0.6% on Friday to close at 8,716.6 points after two consecutive days of declines. For the week, the index rose 0.4%, posting gains for a second straight week. Globally, comments from US President Trump that the US would pause strikes against Iran ahead of the November midterm elections provided a slight lift to market sentiment. Domestically in Australia, markets are closely watching September quarter inflation data to be released later this month, as well as awaiting the Reserve Bank of Australia’s last two policy meetings of the year in November and December. On the day, tech stocks .AXIJ jumped as much as 3.1% after data center operator Firmus, backed by Nvidia NVDA.O, called off its IPO due to lukewarm market response. Maas Group MGH.AX, a 3.2% shareholder in Firmus, resumed trading after a morning halt and saw its shares plunge as much as 10.7%. David Tuckwell, Chief Investment Officer at ETF Shares, said Firmus’s withdrawal was positive for local tech stocks as it kept fund managers’ money in existing listed shares and avoided forced rebalancing for index funds. He added that after extended selling, valuations in the sector were oversold and now operating on their own momentum. However, weak demand for Firmus indicated that investors preferred enterprises with solid performance, rather than shunning tech stocks entirely. WiseTech Global WTC.AX, Xero XRO.AX, and Life360 360.AX rose 4.2%, 3.5%, and 4.1% respectively. As gold prices edged up, gold miners .AXGD gained 1.9%, the sector's biggest gain in more than two weeks. GOL/ Weighed down by softer iron ore and copper prices, the overall mining index dipped 0.2%. IRONORE/ MET/L Financial stocks .AXFJ rebounded 0.5% after declines over the previous two sessions. Energy stocks .AXEJ edged higher by 0.2%, marking four straight gains despite weaker early oil prices. O/R Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 closed up 0.4% at 13,749.35 points. (For the convenience of non-English speakers, Reuters automatically translates its reports into several languages. Due to possible errors or omitted context in automated translations, Reuters does not guarantee the accuracy of such texts and provides them solely for reader convenience. Reuters accepts no liability for any damages or losses resulting from the use of automated translation features.) For more on "Schedules & Data": US earnings calendar RESF/US, Wall Street outlook for the week .N/O, Global economic outlook DATA/ ... See all the latest market headlines and breaking news at NEWS1.

路透社•2026/10/09 05:56