By Stuart Condie
SYDNEY--Computershare's stock is on course for its largest one-day gain since November 2016 after the share-registry provider beat first-half earnings expectations and lifted its annual guidance.
The stock was the best performer on Australia's S&P/ASX 200 after about 90 minutes of Wednesday's session. It was recently up 11% at 40.00 Australian dollars, equivalent to US$25.18.
Computershare, which announced its December half result late Tuesday, raised its guidance for so-called management earnings-per-share growth to 15% from the 7.5% estimated earlier. Management EPS, the company's preferred profitability metric, is closely watched by analysts.
Macquarie analysts said that the first-half revenue beat expectations across every major division.
The improved guidance includes the impact of Computershare's A$750 million share buyback, which the company aims to complete by June 30, Macquarie analysts said.
The analysts said that the buyback provides downside protection to valuation, although potential upside appears to be tempered by renewed concerns over U.S. inflation.
Write to Stuart Condie at stuart.condie@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 11, 2025 19:42 ET (00:42 GMT)
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