Stocks to watch on the Australian stock exchange on Thursday November 29
ALL ARISTOCRAT LEISURE LTD – up 19 cents at $3.05
Poker machine maker Aristocrat Leisure expects the release of new products to fuel further growth after more than doubling its profit.
AVG – AUSTRALIAN VINTAGE LTD – down two cents at 48 cents
Winemaker Australian Vintage says sales and profit in the first half of the current financial year are expected to be lower as competition and pressure from retailers keeps a lid on prices.
CAB – CABCHARGE AUSTRALIA LTD – down three cents at $3.93
Transport payments group Cabcharge has vowed to fight any plans to cut taxi fare surcharges. Executive chairman Reg Kermode took aim at the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) and former Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chairman Allan Fels as the company faces a challenge to its 10 per cent surcharge regime.
JET – JETSET TRAVELWORLD LTD – down 0.5 cents at 40 cents
Jetset Travelworld expects a flat first-half profit as Australia’s leisure market struggles with soft retail prices.
LEI – LEIGHTON HOLDINGS LTD – down 48 cents at $17.07
Leighton Holdings subsidiary Thiess has won two contracts worth $220 million for work on a Queensland coal mine being built by the BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance.
NWS – NEWS CORPORATION LTD – down 19 cents at $23.55
NWSLV – NEWS CORPORATION LTD NON VOTING SHARES – down 22 cents at $23.00
News Ltd chief executive Kim Williams has rejected dire predictions for the print media industry, saying it has plenty of life yet.
ORL – OROTONGROUP LTD – steady at $6.49
Fashion retailer OrotonGroup says its sales are up so far this financial year and it is cautiously optimistic about the upcoming Christmas period.
PRT – PRIME MEDIA GROUP LTD – steady at 80.5 cents
Prime Media Group says the TV and advertising markets remain soft and are not about to improve but that it has improved its audience and revenue share in the current year.
QAN – QANTAS AIRWAYS LTD – down three cents at $1.31
Qantas Airways chief executive Alan Joyce has defended cutting ties with, and funding to, Tourism Australia while its chairman Geoff Dixon was plotting to buy into the airline.
TOE – TORO ENERGY LTD – up 0.5 cents at 11 cents
Toro Energy has pushed back financing negotiations for its proposed Wiluna uranium mine in Western Australia, as it waits for the federal government to decide the fate of the project.
WBC – WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – up 14 cents at $25.03
The days of Australian banks making profits of 20 per cent and higher are long gone, Westpac chief executive Gail Kelly says.
