Given that three of the big four banks report their half-year results this week, IG Markets’ Evan Lucas believes this may see a sharp reversal in the retail banks.

“Westpac’s (WBC) results today, clearly show that impairment charges are going to be the talking point of the week with ANZ likely to be the worst of the three reporting,” Lucas says.

“It may be the one to exit early with an idea of buying back in later in the cycle,” he says.

However, Lucas is a little positive over the outlook for Macquarie despite the stock being on the not-so-good books in this week’s Buy, Sell, Hold – what the brokers say report.

Domestically, he says Macquarie has been caught up in investor concerns over the bad and doubtful debts cycle and capital raising issues that have plagued the big four. Macquarie has also been “lumped in with the European and American investment banks around wholesale funding issue”. However, Macquarie is not tied to any of these issues and Lucas expects the bank to deliver solid results when it reports its full-year results on Friday.

CMC Markets’ Michael McCarthy does not like BT Investment Management (BTT) because of an announcement it made ahead of its half-year result this Thursday.

“Last Friday afternoon, BT announced the formation of a new Global Executive Committee to “provide leadership and management bandwidth”. I interpret this as action ahead of a shocking report – just my opinion, but if I were a shareholder I’d sell before the half-year result,” McCarthy says.

Instead, McCarthy likes Beach Petroleum (BPT).

“A new chief executive, a resurgent oil price and a senior partner (Santos) that must develop new fields while the CSG (coal seam gas) moratoria remain in place, make Beach look attractive to me,” McCarthy says.

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