The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is a sea of red on Friday and down heavily in afternoon trade. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down almost 1% to 8,080.5 points.
Four ASX shares that are falling more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are dropping:
AFT Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: AFT)
The AFT Pharmaceuticals share price is down 10% to $2.59. This follows the release of the pharmaceuticals company's trading update today. AFT Pharmaceuticals revealed that it expects to post an operating loss of just under $2 million when it releases its half year results later this month. It said: "This is primarily due to both International and Asia sales being lower than last year's first half, reflecting one-off factors that have affected performance." This includes a reduction in orders from some of its largest customers.
Amcor (ASX: AMC)
The Amcor share price is down 5% to $15.93. Investors have been selling this packaging company's shares after its quarterly update fell short of expectations. Amcor posted a 2.6% decline in revenue to US$3.35 billion for the first quarter of FY 2025. This was US$100 million lower than consensus estimates. Management blamed the sales decline on an unfavourable impact from raw material costs and movements in foreign exchange rates. One positive is that Amcor has reaffirmed its FY 2025 earnings guidance of adjusted earnings per share of 72 to 76 US cents.
Corporate Travel Management Ltd (ASX: CTD)
The Corporate Travel Management share price is down 3.5% to $11.97. This may have been driven by profit taking after a strong gain on Thursday following the release of a trading update. In addition, this morning Morgans downgraded the corporate travel specialists' shares to a hold rating (from add) with a reduced price target of $13.50 (from $15.95). The broker believes that the company could be impacted by a reduction in travel spending from the UK government, which accounts for its largest contract.
Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG)
The Macquarie Group share price is down 4% to $222.06. Investors have been selling this investment bank's shares following the release of its half year results. For the six months, Macquarie reported a 14% increase in net profit after tax to $1,612 million. However, this profit is down a sizeable 23% on the second half of FY 2024. The company's Markets-facing businesses, Macquarie Capital and most businesses in Commodities and Global Markets, weighed on its performance during the half.
