Reporting season reacap: All the latest news from the ASX as companies deliver their financial reports

Lycopodium shares have fallen in response to a full-year update, despite increases to profit and revenue.

The multi-commodity engineer and project management company booked a $50.9 million profit for FY24, up from $45.5m in the prior year.

But its cash reserves were down over the 12 months from $82.4m to $67.6m.

Works during the past 12 months include Liontown Resources’ Kathleen Valley project and the recently restarted Langer Heinrich uranium mine in Namibia.

Looking ahead, the Peter De Leo-led company is confident in projects linked to the energy transition including lithium and nickel, despite weaker prices.

“Relatively tight financial conditions have dampened world economic growth, but despite this, key markets like the United States and China are continuing to support commodity demand,” the company said.

“Major influences on the long-term outlook include increased demand for commodities in support of the global energy transition.”

The company is banking demand to start outpacing copper and lithium supply before the end of the decade.

Guidance for FY25 will be tabled in November.

Shares were down 11.41 per cent to $12.42.

The oil and gas giant’s bottom line was down to $US636 million ($942m) due to lower sales volumes and weaker LNG prices.

The Kevin Gallagher-led company sold 46.4 million barrels of oil equivalent, 1 per cent less than the prior half.

He said the delayed Barossa project - which had been caught up in a legal dispute with Traditional Owners - was on track for first production in Q3 2025.

Santos will pay an interim dividend of US13.0 cents per share.

Shares in Santos were off 2.69 per cent in early trade to $7.61.

Property developer Cedar Woods has reported a 28 per cent jump in annual profit to $40.5 million, bettering its guidance and sending it shares sharply higher.

The result was aided by the previously announced sale of the group’s Williams Landing shopping centre in Victoria, with annual revenue down 1 per cent to $386.3m.

The final dividend was lifted to 17 cents a share from 7 cents previously.

Cedar Woods has tipped a 10 per cent rise in profit for the 2025 financial year, citing $559m of presales as at June 30 and a pipeline of more than 10,000 undeveloped lots across four States.

Its shares were 7.3 per cent higher at $5.29 as at 8.40am.

Domino’s has booked a 136.5 per cent lift in full-year net profit to $96 million as its Australian and New Zealand empire delivers the strongest growth in seven years.

Earnings grew 3 per cent to $208m in the year ended June 30, aligned closely with market expectations ($209m) and was slightly above Ord Minnett’s estimate of $205m. Revenues lifted 2.7 per cent to $2.38 billion.

The Australia and New Zealand division was the best performer, with underlying earnings up 10.4 per cent to $124.1m across 898 stores.

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But the listed company told investors inflation and higher labour costs were still prevalent.

Brambles’ US$779.9m ($1.15b) bottom line was higher by 9 per cent on the prior year after increasing its prices.

“While the overall rate of input-cost inflation moderated from record levels in prior years, Brambles continued to experience labour rate increases in all regions and higher transport rates in Europe,” it said.

Chief executive Graham Chipchase announced a US$500m ($741m) share buyback.

The insurance behemoth’s bottom line lifted 7.9 per cent on last year to $898 million, a result partly driven by “less volatile” weather in Australia.

But profits were mainly spurred by an 11 per cent rise in net earned premiums, which chief Nick Hawkins said he recognised “was affecting customers”.

To tackle this he said the company would be using AI to “better identify and assist vulnerable” ones.

“We have previously said inflation, increasing weather volatility, and rising reinsurance costs were major factors affecting customer premiums,” he said.

“Our long-term reinsurance agreement announced in June is expected to reduce year-on-year volatility from extreme weather events and help stabilise costs for our customersover the longer term.”

On the back of the strong result IAG also announced a $350m buyback.

IAG’s board also declared a final dividend of 17 cents per share, taking its full year dividend to 27 cents per share.

The dual-listed company caught in a pipes saga with BGC has booked a $227 million net loss, after a $235 million profit in FY23.

“We remain focused on reaching a pragmatic industry response to the plumbing matters in Perth,” acting CEO Nick Traber said.

“Constructive negotiations continue and Iplex is intent on trying to reach an agreement in principle with the Government and key parties in the near term.”

Revenues were flat at $7.68 billion with higher residential construction activity in New Zealand unable to offset low materials earnings.

There were about $333m ‘significant items’ also dragging down Fletcher’s balance sheet.

Fletcher is the manufacturer of the Iplex piping, which was installed in thousands of homes in WA by BGC.

The companies are at odds as to whether a manufacturing problem or installation issues are the caues of bursting pipes in homes across the State.

Investors have given fast-growing Mader Group a whack, looking through another big earnings jump to call out slower growth forecasts.

SRG Global will pay $111 million to buy Sydney-based utilities infrastructure builder Diona as the contractor turns another profit and eyes further growth in water and energy transition markets.

The latest financial reports from two listed retailers on Tuesday show the pullback in consumer spending is far from over as soaring living costs crunch households.

The mineral sands miner says a weak result for the half-year is due to subdued global construction activity.

Net profit fell from $204m in the first half of FY23 compared to $134 million for the same period this year. That came as mineral sands revenue dropped to $606m from $712m.

And the company has warned continuing to build a fully-integrated rare earths refinery will hinge on “risk sharing” with the Federal Government.

Iluka has been locked in negotiations for more money to support the expensive project, priced at between $1.7 billion to $1.8 billion.

“At Eneabba, we have struck a prudent balance of progressing critical path works whilefunding arrangements with our strategic partner, the Australian Government, are being concluded,” managing director Tom O’Leary said.

Global rare earths supply is dominated by China.

The local bourse has finished modestly higher in its eighth straight day of gains, equalling its best winning streak of the year amid a wave of optimism about the economic outlook.

The S&P/ASX200 climbed as high as 8,025.2 in the first 10 minutes of trading on Tuesday, its first time above 8,000 since August 2, the first day of a sharp two-day sell-off.

Ultimately the benchmark index closed just below that level at 7,997.7, up 17.3 points, or 0.22 per cent, while the broader All Ordinaries gained 12.8 points, or 0.16 per cent, to 8,207.6.

Tuesday’s gains came after a strong lead from Wall Street, where the S&P500 rallied one per cent after three Federal Reserve officials signalled willingness to begin cutting interest rates as early as September.

The situation appears quite different domestically, with Reserve Bank minutes released on Tuesday showing the board earlier this month considered raising interest rates, not cutting them.

Members assessed “the risk of inflation not returning to the target range by late 2025 had risen materially”, while financial conditions had eased only modestly, with housing prices and credit growth picking up.

The minutes said the board, which next meets in September, believed “it was unlikely that the cash rate target would be reduced in the short term”.

Six of the ASX’s 11 sectors finished higher on Tuesday and five closed lower.

AAP