Macquarie Shares Plunge After Disappointing Half-Year Result
Macquarie Group experienced its largest intraday drop since April following half-year results that missed analysts’ expectations. The decline was mainly due to weaker earnings in the commodities division.
Near midday, Macquarie shares fell 6.7% to $202.56, approaching an intraday low of $202.37. This is the steepest drop since April 4, when shares declined 9% amid equity market turmoil after tariff announcements.
Company Overview
Macquarie is a diversified financial group that provides asset management, finance, banking, advisory, risk, and capital solutions across debt, equity, and commodities. It operates globally with a strong base in Australia.
Financial Performance
Despite the share decline, Macquarie reported a net profit of nearly $1.7 billion. This was supported by performance fees from its asset management division but fell short of analysts' forecasts.
UBS analyst John Storey said the reported result was “10.4 per cent below consensus estimates.”
The earnings per share (EPS) of $4.37 missed expectations by 10.9 per cent.
Analysts had anticipated a first-half profit of $1.86 billion and an interim dividend of $3.09, which Macquarie did not achieve.
Summary
The sharp share decline reflects market disappointment with Macquarie’s weaker commodity earnings and lower-than-expected profit and dividend figures, despite a strong asset management performance.
Author’s summary: Macquarie’s shares fell sharply after half-year results missed forecasts, driven primarily by weaker commodity earnings despite solid asset management profits.