This year has seen some great bargains for ASX blue-chip shares. Investors who picked up shares in Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) and Domino's Pizza Enterprises Ltd (ASX: DMP) during the March sell-off would be up 78% and 94%, respectively.
With the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) down 1.8% for the day, now could be a great time to buy a quality business that has the potential to push its share price higher over the next 12 months.
Here are my picks for 3 top blue-chip shares that I would buy today.
Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW)
Woolworths has always been considered a quality company with supermarket revenues resistant to economic crises. However, the same cannot be said of its hotels business, which has been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since the supermarket giant released its FY20 results to the market last week, the Woolworths share price has been on a mini rollercoaster ride. The group reported a net profit after tax of $1,602 million, a drop of 1.2%. Although conditions remain challenging in the short-term, management is adamant that sales growth will resume as seen in the first 8 weeks of FY21.
The Woolworths share price has dropped 2.56% today to $38.38 (at the time of writing). I think today would be a great time to pick up some of its shares.
Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX: NCM)
One of the world's largest gold mining companies, Newcrest has been surging on the back of gold's rising spot price. Although the Newcrest share price has been down 10% over the past month, I don't believe this is cause for concern.
This is because the precious metal reached an all-time high of US$2,074.88 in early August. While the spot price has since receded, gold could reach new territory again amid the economic uncertainty.
In the company's FY20 report card to the market, Newcrest achieved an underlying profit of $750 million, up 34% from FY19. To further support its growth plans, the gold mining outfit invested $1.3 billion to acquire Red Chris and increase its exposure to Fruta del Norte.
I think that every portfolio should have some gold exposure as protection against extreme market volatility. In light of this, I would be happy to buy Newcrest shares at today's price of $32.10 (at the time of writing).
Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH)
The Cochlear share price has declined 25% from its all-time high reached in early February. At one point, shares were down 6.4% over the past week.
The global leader in implantable hearing solutions has experienced difficult trading conditions during COVID-19. In its FY20 report, profit collapsed 42% from the prior year and management advised of some impacts on the number of patient assessments for cochlear and acoustic implants.
However, the weakness in its share price could be an opportunity for patient investors as the company is confident business will normalise post COVID-19.
At the time of writing, the Cochlear share price is trading at $190.67. I would add it to my buy list of quality blue-chip companies.
