Investors have brushed aside the uncertainty of the weekend's Federal election and have pushed the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX:XJO) 0.3% higher to 5,262 points.
The mining sector has done most of the heavy lifting today, with the big four banks being the biggest drags on the market overall.
Four other stocks that have been punished today include:
Austal Limited (ASX: ASB)
Austal shares hit a low of 93 cents earlier today but have since regained some of those losses and are now trading 11.1% lower at $1.075. The ship maker announced that higher-than-expected construction costs on one of its major projects will result in the company taking a US$115 million one-off write back against work in progress. Austal is now forecasting FY16 statutory EBIT to be a loss in the range of $116 million – $121 million. Despite the disappointing update, the company has provided some hope to investors by providing FY17 EBIT guidance of $45 million to $55 million.
iSentia Group Ltd (ASX: ISD)
iSentia shares have dropped more than 5.4% today and in the process have reached a new 52-week low of $3.15. Although the media monitoring and intelligence company has not released any market sensitive news over the past month, the shares have fallen by around 20% in that time. Interestingly, the number of short positions has increased dramatically over the past couple of months and this could be concerning to some investors. Some investors may also be waiting on the sidelines until iSentia releases its full year results, after it delivered weaker-than-expected results in the first half.
Vocus Communications Limited (ASX: VOC)
Vocus shares have fallen by around 3.4% today after the stock resumed trading following a three-day trading halt. The company last week announced the $807 million acquisition of Nextgen Networks which will immediately expand Vocus' fibre optic network across Australia. The company also announced a $652 million capital raising to fund the acquisition at an offer price of $7.55 per share. Despite today's decline, the shares are still trading significantly higher than the offer price.
Greencross Limited (ASX: GXL)
Shares of the veterinary and animal care company have fallen 2.7% today despite the company not releasing any news. The shares have been in a downward spiral over the past month after it became clear there would be no further takeover offers from a private equity consortium. The shares are now trading at $6.44 which is well below the last takeover offer of $6.75 and around 20% lower from its recent highs. As highlighted here, the recent decline may be an opportunity for risk tolerant investors to pick up a company with the opportunity to significantly expand its market share.
