The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) rose by 1.5% today to 6,763 points.
Here are some of the highlights from the ASX:
RBA announcement
The Reserve Bank of Australia has decided to double its quantitative easing program to $200 billion. The central bank also decided to keep the official interest rate at just 0.1%.
Further to that, the RBA decided to say that it's not expecting to increase interest rates until 2024 at the earliest.
This had the effect of boosting the share prices of many different industries.
The Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) share price was one of the best performers in the ASX 200, rising by almost 8%.
Property shares got a big boost. The REA Group Limited (ASX: REA) share price went up around 5%, the Domain Holdings Australia Ltd (ASX: DHG) share price grew 2.6% and the Brickworks Limited (ASX: BKW) share price went up 2.4%.
Volpara Health Technologies Ltd (ASX: VHT)
The Volpara share price went up 3.7% after announcing an acquisition.
Volpara is acquiring CRA Health, which is based in Boston, for US$18 million. CRA's software is integrated with the major electronic health record (EHR) and genetics companies.
CRA receives patient information, including breast density, and returns the risk of breast cancer alongside appropriate recommendations, including whether additional imaging or genetics testing is advised and reimbursed according to established guidelines. CRA also has electronic interfaces built with all the major genetics companies.
Volpara said that CRA is profitable, with annual recurring revenue (ARR) of over US$4 million, average revenue per user (ARPU) of US$1.70 and coverage of around 6% of US breast screenings.
After this acquisition, Volpara will have ARR of around $US$17.5 million and at least one product in use in over 30% of US breast screenings. Group ARPU will increase to over US$1.40.
Credit Corp Group Limited (ASX: CCP)
The Credit Corp share price went up 8.8% today after reporting its FY21 half-year result.
The debt collector reported that its net profit after tax (NPAT) grew by 10% to $42.3 million. Credit Corp's US purchased debt ledger (PDL) segment saw NPAT double to $8 million.
Credit Corp also reported a record half-year PDL investment which was driven by the Collection House Limited (ASX: CLH) investment.
The ASX 200 company said that there had been a strong recovery in consumer lending volume over the December quarter.
It upgraded its full year outlook to a range of $85 million to $90 million, up from the previous range of $70 million to $85 million. The company said that it has $400 million of net cash and undrawn credit lines, putting it in a strong position to invest further.
Temple & Webster Group Ltd (ASX: TPW)
The online furniture retailer announced its FY21 half-year result. The Temple & Webster share price fell 4%.
The company's revenue increased by 118% year on year to $161.6 million. It generated $14.8 million of earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), which was growth of 556%.
The business said that its active customers increased by 102% and in the trade and commercial division it saw growth of 89% year on year.
In terms of cashflow and the balance sheet, it ended with a cash balance of $85.7 million (including proceeds from the $40 million placement) and it was cashflow positive.
Temple & Webster CEO Mark Coulter said: "While 2020 remained a challenge for the country, we are proud that many Australians continued to turn to Temple & Webster for their furniture and homewares needs. It is great to see our revenue growth translating into operating leverage and significant profit growth. This allows us to accelerate our investment into areas such as data, technology, private label and brand awareness to further differentiate our proposition."
