The S&P/ASX 200 Index (INDEXASX: XJO) is easing lower again today, down 2.0% at the time of writing to 5,819 points.
Here are three ASX 200 shares that have seen particularly strong falls today, as well as some insights into what is driving these declines.
Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN)
Qantas shares have fallen down sharply by 9.66% so far today. This follows an announcement yesterday of further cuts to the company's international flights.
These latest cuts will see a reduction in capacity by almost a quarter for the next six months. According to Qantas, further action has been taken due to the spread of the coronavirus into Europe and North America over the past two weeks as well as the continued spread of the virus in Asia.
Total international capacity for Qantas and Jetstar will be reduced from 5% to 23% compared to the same time last year. Qantas' Asian routes will see the largest reduction of 31% on the prior corresponding period (pcp), while the United States will see a 19% reduction.
With investors having time to digest the seriousness of the announcement yesterday and what this could mean to Qantas' bottom line over the coming year, a sharp fall today is not surprising, in my view.
Nearmap Ltd (ASX: NEA)
The Nearmap share price is down by 6.34% today to $1.33 at the time of writing. I don't believe there is any immediate trigger for this sell-off today. Instead, I think today's fall can mostly be explained by the extreme volatility the market has been experiencing since the worsening of the coronavirus outbreak.
Nearmap, like many other ASX tech shares including WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC), Altium Limited (ASX: ALU) and Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT), has taken a big hit to its share price in the current correction.
However, a key reason why Nearmap, in particular, has been targeted over recent weeks is because of a previous earnings downgrade in late January, driven by the loss of a large contract.
Also, in its recent first-half financial results, Nearmap delivered a net loss after tax of $18.6 million, a massive 843% increase on the pcp. This blowout in losses would have further added to the negative sentiment however, despite this, I think Nearmap's long term future remains bright.
Jumbo Interactive Ltd (ASX: JIN)
The share price of online lottery ticket seller Jumbo Interactive is down by 5.36% today, following strong gains of 11.8% in yesterday's trading.
Once again, market volatility explains much of Jumbo's recent wild ride on the ASX. There definitely has been a downhill trend in the Jumbo share price since the current market correction began in February.
Jumbo Interactive appears to have been impacted by the ASX sell-off more than most due to its disappointing financial results. During the first half of FY 2020, Jumbo reported total transaction value (TTV) of $185.3 million, an increase of 25% on the pcp, and revenue of $37.6 million, an increase of 23%. While these results look to be strong, I believe the market was expecting more, leading to a downhill trend in its share price recently.
