Reporting season is always a wild ride, with numerous upsets and disappointments alongside the wins. Here are 10 ASX 200 shares that I think are worth watching in the remaining two weeks of reporting season.
Altium Ltd (ASX: ALU)
Could the printed circuit board (PCB) maker be ready for another leg up during reporting season? Altium has experienced significant gap-ups after the announcement of its earnings in the past. The company is targeting US$200 million revenue by 2020 with an earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) margin of 35% or better. Altium reports on Monday 19 August.
Tassal Group Ltd (ASX: TGR)
In my view, Tassal is a defensive earnings play, as a company that trades at a moderate valuation (a price-to-earnings ratio of 15) producing a product that is embedded in the modern-day consumer's lifestyle. I believe Tassal will deliver strong earnings growth driven by an increased production of salmon, higher prices and an additional contribution from its recent prawn acquisition.
A2 Milk Company (ASX: A2M)
A true market darling, a2 recent hit an all-time high of $17.30 before dropping back to $15.00. The company has stated that its second half EBITDA will be lower than the first half. a2 has focused on reinvesting the benefits of scale into increased marketing activities in the second half. I look forward to seeing if its marketing efforts will pay dividends for its bottom line.
Domino's Pizza Enterprises Ltd. (ASX: DMP)
I believe it is likely that Domino's will fall short of its guidance on the back of recent franchisee class action and a rise in competition within online food and delivery services. But how much of this bad news has been priced in already? The focus will be on same-store sales growth and Domino's operations abroad.
WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC)
WiseTech is often regarded as one of the most overvalued shares, given its growth capabilities. However, contrary to popular belief, it is still a company that provides a solution used by 38 of the top 50 global third-party logistics providers. I believe WiseTech will go higher, but as far as reporting season is concerned, it could be a hit or miss.
Bingo Industries Ltd (ASX: BIN)
Bingo is somewhat of a turnaround play, after the company announced a downgrade back in February. The company cited that growth in building and demolition waste collection did not grow as much as expected due to the slowdown in apartment building in NSW and Victoria.
Zip Co (ASX: Z1P)
Zip had previously delivered a very strong quarterly update that exceeded the company's own goals set at the beginning of FY19. With all the market noise about new buy-now-pay-later competitors entering the market, I believe Zip will deliver pleasing numbers that are in line with its Q4 outperformance.
Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS)
Lithium shares were showing signs of life last week but now, not so much. It is vital for Pilbara, as one of the younger producers, to demonstrate its ability to lower costs towards its goal of US$320–350/dry metric tonnes by Q4 FY20. The company needs to report conservative capital spend while outlining its forecast for the lithium market.
Appen Ltd (ASX: APX)
Appen cited a forecast full year underlying EBITDA to be in the range of $85–90 million in its May CEO Presentation. This would represent a 20–27% improvement on FY18 figures, but it could be higher given the weakness in the Australian dollar.
People Infrastructure Ltd (ASX: PPE)
People Infrastructure is a workforce management company that delivers solutions to the management of contractors. Its share price has run up strongly this year from $1.75 to $3.03. The market is expecting strong growth, both organically and from its recent staffing agency acquisition.
