The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to end the week deep in the red. In afternoon trade, the benchmark index is down 1.35% to 8,923.1 points.
Four ASX shares that are falling more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are dropping:
Image source: Getty Images
Austal Ltd (ASX: ASB)
The Austal share price is down 21% to $4.99. This follows the release of a disappointing earnings guidance update from the ship builder on Friday. Austal revealed that it had previously overstated its potential earnings for the year. Its previous guidance included incentives that had already been recognised in Austal USA's forecast. As a result, there was a US$17.1 million overstatement included in its FY 2026 EBIT guidance. This led to Austal updating its EBIT guidance for FY 2026 to approximately A$110 million from A$135 million previously.
Cochlear Ltd (ASX: COH)
The Cochlear share price is down 19% to $199.69. This morning, Cochlear released its half-year results and reported a 1% increase in sales revenue to $1.176 billion and a 9% decline in underlying net profit to $195 million. And while management has reaffirmed its earnings guidance for FY 2026, it expects to be at the lower end of its $435 million to $460 million range. A slower-than-expected rollout of the new Cochlear Nucleus Nexa system was largely to blame for the soft performance.
Nick Scali Limited (ASX: NCK)
The Nick Scali share price is down 19% to $19.31. This was despite the furniture retailer releasing its half-year results and reporting strong revenue and profit growth. Nick Scali's revenue was up 7.2% to $269.3 million and its net profit was up 36.4% to $41 million. Though, investors may be disappointed with the performance of its UK operations, which posted a loss of $5.6 million for the half.
WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC)
The WiseTech Global share price is down a further 10% to $42.61. This is despite there being no news out of the logistics solutions technology company. However, it is worth noting that most ASX tech stocks are falling heavily today. So much so, the S&P/ASX All Technology Index is down by almost 4% this afternoon. WiseTech shares are now down by approximately 38% since just the start of the year. Artificial intelligence disruption concerns have been weighing heavily on software stocks.
