The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price is largely flat in afternoon trading, up 0.07% having earlier posted gains of 0.5%.
CommBank shares closed up on Monday and Tuesday this week and retraced on Wednesday and Thursday. All told, the CBA share price is down 1.95% since the closing bell last Friday, currently at $101.97 per share.
We take a look at what's been putting the big bank in the news this week.
A potential legal headache failed to dampen CBA share price
On Monday, the CBA share price closed up 0.2%, despite the bank reporting that the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) had commenced civil proceedings against it and its stockbroking subsidiary, CommSec.
As the Motley Fool reported on the day: "The FWO alleges that Australia's largest bank breached the Fair Work Act by not paying 7,425 of its employees their correct entitlements. Staff mainly in customer services roles were affected by the underpayment."
CBA said it had self-reported the issue to the FWO and publicly disclosed this in 2019. With a remediation program launched in early 2018, the bank believes the situation is resolved without the need for additional compensation payments.
Highlights from the Annual General Meeting (AGM)
The CBA share price slipped on Wednesday when the bank held its AGM.
CommBank's CEO, Matt Comyn, and Chairman, Catherine Livingstone, both presented at the AGM.
Livingstone highlighted the bank's $6.2 billion in dividends paid out during FY 21. She also noted that CBA shareholders received another $6 billion from the bank's off-market share buyback.
Pointing to the profit line, Livingstone said, "Cash net profit after tax was up 19.8 per cent on the prior year, reflecting an improvement in economic conditions, and the strong operating performance of our core banking businesses.".
Looking at the year ahead, Comyn added, "The stimulus provided by our governments during lockdowns has been doing its job. Australians continue to accumulate more savings and many businesses are ready to take advantage of opportunities ahead.".
Comyn also pointed to the rapid pace of technological development. "We're seeing digital technology enable a raft of changes, which come with both opportunities and risks," he said.
CBA share price snapshot
Year to date, the CBA share price is up about 22%, well outpacing the 10% gains posted by the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) so far in 2021.
Over the past month, CBA shares edged out the ASX 200, gaining 0.54% compared to a loss of 1.03% on the index.
