It certainly was a great week for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) last week.
The benchmark index climbed a sizeable 215 points or 3.5% to end the period at 6,405.2 points.
Another busy week awaits investors next week. Here are five things to watch:
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ASX 200 futures pointing higher.
A strong finish to the week on Wall Street looks set to give the local market a boost on Monday. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to rise 51 points at the open tomorrow. On Friday night in the United States, the Dow Jones rose 1.4%, the S&P 500 climbed 1.4%, and the Nasdaq pushed 1% higher. The S&P 500's gain led to it closing at a record high.
Elders result.
The Elders Ltd (ASX: ELD) share price will be in focus on Monday when it hands in its full year results. The agribusiness company has been tipped by Goldman Sachs to deliver a better than expected result. It commented: "We are 5%/8% above Bloomberg EBIT/EPS consensus and expect a strong result." It is forecasting EBIT of $116 million and earnings per share of 71 cents. Goldman has a conviction buy rating and $13.65 price target on its shares.
Afterpay AGM.
On Tuesday the Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) share price could be on the move when it holds its annual general meeting. Last month the payments company released a business update which revealed first quarter underlying sales of $4.1 billion. This was up 115% on the prior corresponding period. If Afterpay releases a trading update, investors will no doubt be keen to see if this sales growth has been maintained.
Aristocrat Leisure full year result.
The Aristocrat Leisure Limited (ASX: ALL) share price will be one to watch on Wednesday when it releases its full year results for FY 2020. The gaming technology company is widely expected to report a sharp decline in revenue and profits due to the impact of COVID-19 on its operations. According to a note out of Goldman Sachs, its analysts have forecast revenue of $3.94 billion and net profit after tax before amortisation of $471 million. This will be a 10% and 47% decline, respectively, over the prior corresponding period. This is despite Goldman forecasting a 27% increase in Digital revenue to $2,273 million.
Annual general meetings.
Annual general meeting season continues next week with a range of popular companies holding their virtual events. This includes infant formula company A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M) on Wednesday and electronic design software provider Altium Limited (ASX: ALU) and job listings giant SEEK Limited (ASX: SEK) on Thursday.
