Daily Brief Australia: Bell Financial, Iron Ore and more

In today’s briefing:

Bell Financial Group Ltd – Reported FY24 NPAT +26% in line
Iron Ore Tracker (20-Jan-2025): Temporary Closure of Hedland and Dampier to Boost Prices

Bell Financial Group Ltd – Reported FY24 NPAT +26% in line

RaaS has published an update report on diversified financials company Bell Financial Group (ASX:BFG) following the release of FY24 unaudited revenue and reported NPAT, with group revenue +12% to $276m (RaaS $279m), implying H2 FY24 growth of 8.0%, and group NPAT +26% to $30.7m (RaaS $31m), implying H2 FY24 growth of 7.0%.
Divisionally Retail & Wholesale NPAT increased 115% to $9.2m, with H1 growth >900% and a H2 decline of ~20% on forecast lower ECM activity off a high base and in line with ASX market data.
Technology & Platforms and Products & Services NPAT increased 16% over the year, with H1 +~5% and H2 +~25% (including normalisation assumptions), likely to be aided by growth in Funds Under Administration (FUA) and higher transaction volumes.These businesses now represent 70% of group NPAT with a NPAT margin of 25% compared to 5.2% for Retail & Wholesale.

Iron ore bounced back 7.7% last week to finish at 104 USD/ton. The short-term bullishness was due to temporary port closures for Hedland and Dampier due to cyclone warnings.
China TSF exceeded expectations for December, coming in at 2.85 trillion RMB, up 47% year over year (compared to street expectations of 2.15 trillion RMB).
We like the small-cap Fenix Resources (FEX AU). Read our research Fenix Resources (FEX AU): Deep Value, >35% of Mkt Cap in Cash, 2.5x PE/0.3 EV-EBITDA on Ramp Up.

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