Saxo Markets has put together a list of the ten-most traded stocks on its platform in August and there’s no surprise as to which stock was dominant.
It highlights the huge turnover in Fortescue Metals Group which generated the highest volumes in a year at 273 million for the month. Traders picked up stock, anticipating a strong dividend, and were not disappointed with a $2.11 dividend declared on 30 August.
Sales trader at Saxo Capital Markets, Junvum Kim, said the short-to-medium term outlook for Fortescue could hinge on its investment in its Iron Bridge magnetite development, as well as its renewed focus on greener iron ore supplies.
Dividend plays dominated trading in August with Fortescue’s monster dividend giving it top billing. Credit:Jacky Ghossein
“While FMG forecasted fiscal 2022 iron ore shipments in the range of 180 to 185 million tons, risk and the performance is expected to be subject to its Iron Bridge magnetite development that could cost $1billion more than its initial estimate, taking the total hit up to $3.5 billion,” Mr Kim wrote.
The net most-traded stocks include overseas tech stocks like Tesla, Ali Baba, Apple, and Amazon.com, as well as some blue-chip Australian names like Qantas and BHP Group.
“Client attention shifted to BHP Group in mid-August when the global mining giant announced plans to cease its dual listing on the London Stock Exchange and move its entire shares onto the ASX, where 50 per cent of its stock has long been traded,” Saxo Capital Markets says.
There was more good news in the form of selling assets to Woodside Petroleum, but BHP’s shares have fallen 22.5 per cent in the past five weeks, from $53.70 on 2 August to $41.61 today.
On the other hand, Qantas has gone from $4.56 on 2 August to $5.09 at the end of the month, and trading volumes in August were the highest since November last year.
However, the uncertainty of border restrictions means no one knows when the flying kangaroo will be properly airborne again, and it is predicting a loss for the first half of 2021-22.
The final stocks in the top ten most were growth stocks Pilbara Minerals, Zip Co and a2 Milk.
Pilbara Minerals gained 26 per cent in August, from $1.90 to $2.23 and trading volumes were a massive 768 million, up from about 360 million in July. Zip Co’s and a2 Milk’s August volumes were actually lower than July.
Zip Co is up about 30 per cent year to date, but a2 milk is deep in the red.
“The infant formula giant, which was once one of the favourites among the bulls, has lost its sparkle,” Saxo’s team noted.
“Net profits with A2 were unsurprisingly down over 79 per cent to a mere $80.7 million, with the company confirming there would be no shareholder dividend to ensure stability on the balance sheet. A decision that caused further panic and sell-offs within the market.”
Correction: An earlier version of this post had the incorrect prices for BHP. Thanks to the eagle-eyed reader for pointing it out.
