At lunch on Wednesday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is off its intra-day lows but trading broadly flat at 7,508.1 points.
Here's what has been happening on the ASX 200 today:
BHP share price sinks
The BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price is sinking today despite delivering a full year result in line with expectations and a dividend ahead of estimates. The decline appears to have been driven by a mixed reaction to its plan to merge its oil and gas operations with Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL). Morgans commented: "The downside of divesting petroleum is the loss of high-margin oil & gas earnings and growth projects that represent 2/3 of BHP's total growth profile."
CSL outperform FY 2021 guidance, but outlook disappoints
The CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) share price is trading lower today following the release of the biotherapeutics company's full year results. For the 12 months ended 30 June, CSL reported a 9.6% increase in constant currency revenue to US$10,026 million and a 10% lift in profit after tax to US$2,307 million. The latter was ahead of its guidance of 3% to 8% growth. However, management warned that its profits are expected to decline 2.5% to 6.8% in constant currency in FY 2022.
Coles result impresses
The Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) share price is rising after investors responded positively to its full year results release. The supermarket operator reported a 3.1% increase in sales revenue to $38,562 million and a 7.5% jump in net profit after tax to $1,005 million. This was ahead of the analyst consensus estimate of $998.2 million. This allowed Coles to pay a record full year dividend of 61 cents per share, up 6.1% from FY 2020.
Best and worst ASX 200 performers
The best performer on the ASX 200 on Wednesday has been the Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) share price with a 7% gain. This appears to have been driven by a positive broker note out of Citi. The worst performer on the ASX 200 has been the BHP share price with a 6% decline following its results.
