Can you believe it? We're already into the second half of 2021 — and August reporting season is only a fortnight away.
Financial results can see dramatic movements either way in ASX share prices. So it's prudent to think about what adjustments you'd like to make to your portfolio before the fireworks arrive.
As such, Burman Invest chief investment officer Julia Lee nominated 3 ASX shares that are ripe for the taking before August.
Pathology is roaring back for Healius
"Looking at companies we expect to report quite strongly during reporting season, one of those that we like and have been adding to is Healius Ltd (ASX: HLS)," Lee told Switzer TV Investing.
Healius runs medical centres, pathology labs and imaging practices.
"The pathology part of the business has been bouncing back. So over the next 12 to 18 months, what you're likely to see in pathology is higher margins and higher volumes coming through," Lee said.
"But in the short-term, there's a massive amount of COVID-19 testing that's going on."
Shares for Healius were trading at $4.75 on Wednesday afternoon. They're up 26% for the year.
Will there be a higher bid for Sydney Airport?
Lee's team has been adding to its position in Sydney Airport Holdings Pty Ltd (ASX: SYD).
The airport received a buyout offer last week from a consortium of superannuation funds that put in an indicative bid of $8.25 per share.
After shooting up that day from $5.81 to $7.78, Sydney Airport shares have held steady at that level while the market waits to see if others might be interested.
Some shareholders might be tempted to sell high before the air is clear on the acquisition potential. Lee prefers to wait.
"The general rule of thumb when it comes to any takeover is to buy on the first bid and hold on until it finishes," she said.
"Especially with a quality asset like Sydney Airport… there are a lot of super funds as well as national funds which would be interested in these types of assets."
Lee noted that the consortium priced the airport at pre-COVID valuation levels.
"These superannuation funds and national funds do take a long-term view of these assets," she said.
"Sydney Airport I'd be holding on or even accumulating under that $7.70 mark, with potentially another bidder coming through here."
Invest your wealth into a wealth management tool
Praemium Ltd (ASX: PPS) makes software for wealth management professionals.
Lee said that the tech company plays in a high-growing market segment.
"Praemium's a really impressive company," said.
"There's a number of players that do participate in this area, Praemium's one of them, [plus] Netwealth Group Ltd (ASX: NWL) and Hub24 Ltd (ASX: HUB)."
The fund manager noted Praemium had $34 billion funds under management at the end of 2020, but that had grown to $38 billion by the end of March.
"We've seen some strong growth numbers coming through, especially after the acquisition of Powerwrap and that's likely to continue."
Praemium shares jumped a whopping 17.5% on Wednesday to trade at $1.14 in the afternoon after it revealed a plan to divest international operations.
Even though Lee made her comments before this revelation, she still saw upside beyond Wednesday's leap.
"Probably around that $1.20 to $1.30 mark is where I'd expect the shares to trade over the next 6 to 12 months. So certainly a bit of growth available there."
