The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) fell by almost 0.9% today to 6,697 points.
Here are the highlights from the ASX:
Mesoblast Limited (ASX: MSB)
The Mesoblast share price went up 14% today after giving the market an update.
It announced today additional results from the landmark DREAM-HF randomised controlled phase 3 trial in 537 treated patients with chronic heart failure with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (HFrEF) who received rexlemestrocel-L or control shame.
Mesoblast explained that a single dose of rexlemestrocel-L resulted in substantial and durable reductions in heart attacks, strokes and cardiac deaths.
The ASX 200 company said that existing therapies have only minimal or no benefit on these endpoints, these notable outcomes may signal a breakthrough in addressing the principal unmet needs in patients with chronic heart failure.
Based on the observed reduction in mortality and morbidity in this phase 3 trial, Mesoblast intends to meet with the FDA to discuss a potential approval pathway.
Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX: MFG)
The Magellan share price went up 1.4% after updating the market with its funds under management (FUM) for December 2020.
The fund manager revealed that its total FUM fell from $103 billion to $101.4 billion. The main part of the decline was a $2 billion decline of FUM in the global equities strategy.
Magellan said that, in December, it experienced net inflows of $579 million, included net retail inflows of $327 million and net institutional inflows of $252 million.
The ASX 200 fund manager reported that it is entitled to performance fees of approximately $12 million for the six months ended 31 December 2020. It stated that performance fees may fluctuate significantly from period to period.
Average FUM for the six months ended 31 December 2020 was almost $101 billion, this compares to average FUM of $92.8 billion for the six months ending 31 December 2019.
Magellan stated that the average exchange rate between the Aussie dollar and the US dollar for the six months ended 31 December 2020 was 0.7234, compared to 0.6848 for the six months ending 31 December 2019.
Shaver Shop Group Ltd (ASX: SSG)
The Shaver Shop share price went up 11.3% today after the grooming business gave a trading update and profit guidance for the first half of FY21.
Shaver Shop said that the sales for the second quarter of FY21 increased by 12.4% in total and 13.7% growth of like for like sales. Online sales growth was 64.7% in the second quarter, and this was the primary driver of sales.
FY21 first half online sales grew 102% helped like for sales grow by 17.3% and total sales went up 15.2%. Online sales represented 30.3% of total sales in the first half.
The gross profit margin is expected to increase by more than 200 basis points across the first half of FY21. The company tried to balance volume growth and profit margins.
FY21 first half net profit is expected to be between $13.5 million to $14 million, compared to $7.6 million in the prior corresponding period.
Shaver Shop managing director and CEO Cameron Fox said: "Our teams across Australia and New Zealand have remained focused and resilient and have consistently delivered exceptional customer service during an incredibly uncertain time. With in-store sales conversion more than 50% and average transaction values increasing more than 10%, our store teams were able to more than offset the 20% plus decline in outside foot traffic we saw in December.
"We expect our first half profit to increase 75% to 85% when we release our results in February and we are on track to deliver another record profit for the full year."
