Now that reporting season for most ASX shares has settled for another six months, investors have reviewed the reports and decided which companies (and valuations) look like opportunities.
Businesses that reported better-than-expected results or are delivering growth at a reasonable price could be the right places to look for investment ideas.
Some of the companies that captured the attention of investors were smaller businesses, not necessarily the ASX giants.
With this in mind, let's look at two of the businesses that the broker UBS recently called a buy.
Aussie Broadband Ltd (ASX: ABB)
This company is a telecommunications services provider, which includes the Aussie Broadband and Symbio businesses.
It says it's the fifth largest provider of broadband services in Australia. It provides a broad suite of offerings through data, voice, and managed solutions to business, enterprise, and government customers. It also provides wholesale services to other telecommunications companies and managed service providers.
In the FY25 first half-year result, the business reported that on-net broadband connections grew 12.5% to 727,951. Revenue rose 6.8% to $588.5 million, gross profit rose 7.5% to $217.6 million, and underlying operating profit (EBITDA) increased 8.9% to $65.8 million. The business declared an interim dividend of 1.6 cents per share and a special dividend of 2.4 cents per share.
UBS upgraded Aussie Broadband to a buy because the "strong" earnings growth came at a "very reasonable price". The broker is expecting cash earnings per share (EPS) to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26% over the next three years.
The broker believes that smaller telco brands, such as Aussie Broadband, can grow their overall market share to 35%, compared to the current market share of 20%. If they achieve that growth, they could potentially generate a revenue opportunity of A$3.1 billion. UBS also likes that Aussie Broadband is growing market share in business, enterprise, and government.
UBS has a price target of $4.80 on the ASX telco share, implying a possible rise of around 20% in the next 12 months. The Aussie Broadband share price is valued at under 18x FY26's estimated earnings.
Accent Group Ltd (ASX: AX1)
This ASX retail share sells footwear through a wide number of brands, including acting as the local distributor for global brands and other brands that Accent owns.
In the company's FY25 half-year result, total sales were $845 million (up 4.2%), while owned sales grew 4.6%. The business' operating profit (EBIT) rose by 11.5% to $80.7 million, and the board decided to declare an interim dividend of 5.5 cents per share. During the period, 42 new stores opened, reaching 903 locations.
UBS said that the EBIT generated in this result was in line with guidance, which was helped by controlling costs despite gross profit margin challenges.
The broker said the store network expansion remains a "key driver", though this is expected to moderate in FY25 and then recover in FY26. Store refurbishments are expected to accelerate as well. UBS says the ASX share has multiple sources of potential sales growth.
UBS also noted that closing loss-making Glue stores is helping Accent's profitability, while the growing apparel brands are "profitable with an emerging own-label offering".
The broker has a price target of $2.45 on Accent shares, implying a possible rise of around 20% in the next 12 months. It's trading at under 14x FY26's estimated earnings.
