FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

Australian Shares Flat; Magellan Financial Group Shareholders Approve Barrenjoey Merger

-- Australian shares were flat with a negative bias on Friday's close, as investors await talks between the US and Iran on ending the conflict in Pakistan this weekend.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index was little changed to close at 8,960.60.

US President Donald Trump said Iran was doing a "very poor job" of allowing oil to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran is seeking to collect a toll on oil tankers passing through the strait. Brent crude futures rose 1% to $96.83 per barrel.

On the domestic front, the total number of dwellings approved in Australia rose nearly 30% to 19,022 in February from 14,669 in the previous month, according to seasonally adjusted data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

A disparity between supply and demand has resulted in divergent home value trends in Australia over the past several years, Cotality said in a report. Between the first quarter of 2020 and the third quarter of 2025, the sharpest growth in home values was concentrated in states where population growth has significantly exceeded the rate of dwelling completions, pointing to Western Australia and Queensland as primary examples.

Bendigo Bank Chief Economist David Robertson expects the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) to hold the cash rate steady in May, but a third rate hike for the year is likely in August.

In company news, Magellan Financial Group (ASX:MFG) said its shareholders approved a resolution to issue consideration shares to the Barrenjoey parties and an affiliate of Barclays as part of a proposed merger at an extraordinary general meeting on Friday.

Fortescue (ASX:FMG) ramped up the delivery of an industrial, fully-integrated green energy grid amid plans to power all of its operations in Western Australia's Pilbara region for 24-hour periods without fossil fuels in 2027. Its shares fell 1% on market close.

Lastly, Life360 (ASX:360) laid off an undisclosed number of employees, as part of plans to reshape the company into an "AI-native model," according to a social media post by Chief Executive Lauren Antonoff. Its shares closed down 3%.

Related Articles

Equities

US Total Crude Oil Stocks Decline in Week Ended April 17

US crude oil stocks, including those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, fell by 2.2 million barrels in the week ended April 17 following a decrease of 5.1 million barrels in the previous week.Excluding inventories in the SPR, commercial crude oil stocks rose by 1.9 million barrels after a 900,000-barrel decline in the previous week, compared with the 2-million-barrel decrease expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg as of 7:40 am ET.Stocks in the SPR declined by 4.1 million in the week, the same as in the previous week.Overall crude oil stocks were down 0.3% from the previous week but were still up 3.6% from a year earlier. Crude oil inventories are about 3% above the five-year average for this time of the year.Gasoline stocks decreased by 4.6 million barrels, compared with the 2-million-barrel decrease expected. Gasoline stocks were down 2% from the previous week, and down 0.5% from a year earlier.Distillate stocks plunged by 3.4 million barrels in the current week, compared with an expected decrease of 1.8 million barrels. Distillate stocks were down 3.1% from the previous week but were still up 1.2% than in the same week a year ago.Refineries operated at 89.1% of their capacity, below the 89.6% rate in the previous week.

Mining & Metals

CIBC Says Risk of Competition Bureau Opposing GFL's Acquisition of Secure Waste is Low

CIBC views the risk of the Competition Bureau challenging the GFL Environmental's (GFL.TO) proposed acquisition of Secure Waste Infrastructure (SES.TO) as low, even though the Bureau has challenged GFL and Secure Waste deals in the past.Analysts Kevin Chiang and Krista Friesen, who are maintaining an outperformer rating and $77.00 price target on GFL shares, see "minimal" direct competitive overlap between the companies.Price: $54.59, Change: $+0.68, Percent Change: +1.26%

$GFL.TO
Research

Research Alert: CFRA Maintains Buy Recommendation On Shares Of Northrop Grumman Corporation

CFRA, an independent research provider, has providedwith the following research alert. Analysts at CFRA have summarized their opinion as follows:We decrease our 12-month target price by $17 to $736, as we assume NOC will trade at P/E multiple of 23.0x our 2027 EPS estimate, a premium to NOC's three-year average forward P/E of 19.6x but close to the peers' average forward P/E of 23.8x. We trim our 2026 EPS estimate by $1.04 to $28.61 and also cut our 2027 EPS forecast by $0.76 to $31.99. NOC's fundamentals remain robust, anchored by a record $96 billion backlog providing over two years of revenue visibility. The company reaffirmed 2026 guidance for mid-single-digit organic sales growth and segment operating margins of low- to mid-11%. We see strong multi-year momentum driven by four key growth engines: B-21 (approaching 10% of revenue with production accelerating 25%), Sentinel ICBM (6%-7%, growing toward 10%), missile defense (10%), and weapons/munitions (10%). With capacity investments enabling NOC to scale production and the company achieving improved ROIC on major programs, we remain confident in sustainable growth extending into 2027 and beyond.

$NOC