The ASX closed relatively flat today, declining slightly to 8,291.4 points. Over the past five days, the index has lost 3.09% and is now 3.76% below its 52-week high.
Top performer: NIB Holdings saw a 12% increase, closing at $6.66 per share. The company reported a strong half-year update, with policyholder growth exceeding the industry average and total group revenue reaching $1.8 billion, a 7.7% increase from the first half of the 2024 financial year. Its underlying operating profit was $105.8 million.
On the decline was WiseTech Global, which dropped by $24 to close at $97.25. The $41 billion tech firm faced a sell-off following the resignation of four independent board members. The departures were linked to "intractable differences" with company founder Richard White, who retains a 38.7% stake despite stepping down as CEO last year. WiseTech stated the decision was "in the best interests of the company."
Sector performance: Only five sectors closed higher. Utilities led gains, up 3.35%, driven by APA Group (+9%) and Origin Energy (+~2%). Information Technology was the weakest sector, declining 7.04% due to WiseTech Global’s 20% drop.
Small caps: After submitting a non-binding proposal to an international pharmaceutical company to in-license a new drug development program focused on a rare neurological disease, Percheron Therapeutics Ltd traded up to 15.39% higher to $0.015.
Other gains in the small cap sector were made by Elixir Energy Ltd, which was as much as 6.67% higher to $0.032; Cadoux Ltd increased 6.12% to a daily high of $0.052; Recce Pharmaceuticals Ltd reached $0.445, a rise of 4.71%; NGX Ltd was up by 3.58% to $0.145, American Rare Earths delivered a robust scoping study update for the Halleck Creek Project in the US and this resulted in a 3.34% lift to $0.31 and Alkane Resources Ltd was 2.39% higher at $0.645.