David Martin

Kalgoorlie Gold Mining (ASX:KAL) has announced a new gold discovery at its Pinjin Project, located within the prolific Eastern Goldfields region.

The newly identified deposit, named "Lighthorse," features thick, high-grade gold intercepts that extend along a 600-metre strike.

The Lighthorse discovery has been characterised by several high-grade intercepts, such as 17m at 4.81 g/t Au from 48m and 4m at 4.72 g/t Au from 52m.

The mineralisation remains open along strike and at depth, suggesting potential for further resource expansion.

KalGold's Managing Director, Matt Painter, commented on the find, "This is what we've been chasing at Pinjin. Our systematic approach to exploration has paid off. Thick, high-grade gold mineralisation at Lighthorse is located just 1 km west of our Kirgella Gift deposit."

The discovery lies 1km west of Kirgella Gift and is located with proximity to other significant gold projects such as Hawthorn Resources' (ASX:HAW) Anglo Saxon Gold Mine and Ramelius Resources' Rebecca Gold Project.

The company plans to initiate a follow-up reverse circulation drill program in March.

The latest discovery strengthens KalGolden's position as a key player in the Eastern Goldfields, a region rapidly gaining attention for its gold exploration and development potential.

At the time of reporting, Kalgoorlie Gold Mining’s share price was $0.023.

Sigma Healthcare (ASX:SIG) has upgraded its full-year normalised EBIT guidance for the fiscal year ended Jan. 31.

The company now projects EBIT in the range of $64 to $70 million, an increase from the previous guidance of $50 to $60 million announced in September 2024.

The upward revision in guidance is attributed to improved operational performance, particularly the execution of a new supply contract with Chemist Warehouse.

The contract commenced on July 1, 2024, and has enabled Sigma to demonstrate its capacity to efficiently manage increased volume growth.

However, Sigma has indicated that the statutory net profit after tax for FY25 will be adversely affected by non-recurring merger-related costs.

These include changes to existing performance rights as approved at the Sigma extraordinary general meeting.

Sigma Healthcare's audited financial results are expected to be released to the Australian Securities Exchange in mid-March.

At the time of reporting, Sigma Healthcare's share price was $2.94.

Neuren Pharmaceuticals (ASX: NEU) announced that the US Food and Drug Administration has granted a Type C Meeting to finalise discussions on the primary efficacy endpoints for its planned pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial of NNZ-2591, aimed at treating Phelan-McDermid syndrome.

The Type C Meeting, scheduled for early April, follows a successful Type B End-of-Phase 2 Meeting where the FDA and Neuren aligned on key aspects of the trial program.

The FDA deemed a Type C Meeting the most appropriate setting for completing discussions on efficacy endpoints.

Neuren CEO Jon Pilcher stated, "We look forward to another constructive discussion with the FDA. With the meeting confirmed, we now have a clear timetable and are proceeding with preparations for a mid-year launch of the first-ever Phase 3 trial for children with Phelan-McDermid syndrome."

Neuren Pharmaceuticals focuses on developing treatments for serious neurological disorders that emerge in early childhood and currently lack effective treatment options.

The company’s drug programs have received orphan drug designations in the United States, granting development incentives for therapies targeting rare and serious conditions.

Nick Scali (ASX:NCK), a furniture retailer, announced its half-year results for the period ended Dec. 31, 2024.

The group reported a total revenue of $251.1 million, marking a 10.8% increase from the previous year.

However, its net profit after tax fell to $30 million, representing a decrease of 30.2% compared to H1 FY24.

The Australia and New Zealand Group (ANZ Group) revenue reached $222.5 million, a 1.8% decline from the previous period.

Despite this, the group's underlying net profit of $36 million surpassed their previous guidance.

The decline in gross margin to 64.4% was attributed to increased freight rates.

The company's recent expansion into the UK market recorded a revenue of $28.6 million, but faced challenges with a statutory net loss of $4.1 million.

The refurbishment and rebranding of UK Fabb stores contributed to disruptions in written sales orders.

Anthony Scali, Managing Director of Nick Scali, commented, "Re-branded Nick Scali UK stores were the top 3 performing UK stores in January 2025 for written sales orders, only 1 of which was in the top 5 under Fabb."

The directors have declared a fully franked interim dividend of 30 cents per share, slated for payment on March 26.

Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) today announced robust financial results for its fiscal third quarter, ending December 28, 2024, surpassing market expectations.

The company reported an 11% increase in revenue, fueled by strong holiday sales performance across all regions.   

Gross profit reached $1.5 billion, with a healthy gross margin of 68.4%.

Net income for the quarter totaled $297 million, translating to $4.66 per diluted share.

Additionally, Ralph Lauren saw significant growth in its global direct-to-consumer business, with sales up 12%.

A resurgence in North American wholesale sales also contributed to the overall positive results.

During the quarter, operating income rose to $390 million, representing an 18.7% margin on an adjusted basis, significantly exceeding previous forecasts.

The company's strong financial position is further highlighted by its $2.1 billion in cash and short-term investments, against $1.1 billion in total debt.

Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) saw its stock rise approximately 2% in pre-market trading Thursday after reporting fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 earnings that largely surpassed Wall Street expectations.

However, the pharmaceutical giant fell short of analyst estimates for sales of its popular GLP-1 drugs.  

The company reported a 45% surge in fourth-quarter revenue, reaching $13.5 billion, driven by sales of its GLP-1 medications, Mounjaro (for diabetes) and Zepbound (for weight loss).

Mounjaro sales alone totaled $11.5 billion, a significant 124% increase from 2023, while Zepbound contributed $4.9 billion.

Despite the impressive growth, Mounjaro's sales missed Wall Street projections, though they aligned with the company's revised guidance issued last month.

For the full year, Lilly's revenue reached $45 billion, a 32% increase from the previous year.

Looking ahead, the company has raised its 2025 revenue guidance to between $58 billion and $61 billion, exceeding Wall Street expectations by approximately $1 billion.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) reported impressive first-quarter results, exceeding analyst predictions and demonstrating significant growth across several key metrics.

The leading automotive maintenance provider saw net revenues climb 11% year-over-year to $414 million.

The company posted a fiscal first-quarter profit of $91.6 million, or 71 cents per share.

Adjusted earnings, excluding non-recurring gains, were 32 cents per share, surpassing the average estimate of 31 cents per share from five analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research.

While system-wide same-store sales increased by a robust 8%, Valvoline expanded its footprint by adding 35 new locations, including 14 new franchise stores.

Meanwhile, a successful refranchising transaction significantly boosted the company's income from continuing operations, surging 177% to $94 million.

Adjusted EBITDA also saw a healthy 14% increase, reaching $103 million.

Peloton Interactive (NASDAQ:PTON) reported a net loss of $92 million for its fiscal second quarter, equivalent to a loss of 24 cents per share.

This missed the average analyst estimate of a 19-cent per-share loss, according to a Zacks Investment Research survey of eight analysts.

Despite the loss, the exercise equipment company's revenue surpassed expectations.

Peloton posted revenue of $673.9 million for the quarter, exceeding the $655.2 million forecast from seven analysts surveyed by Zacks.

Looking ahead, Peloton anticipates revenue between $605 million and $625 million for the current quarter ending in March.

The company also provided a full-year revenue outlook, projecting between $2.43 billion and $2.48 billion

Labcorp Holdings (NYSE:LH), a leading global life sciences company, today announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2024, reporting significant revenue growth and issuing a positive outlook for 2025.

For the fourth quarter, Labcorp reported revenue of $3.33 billion, a 9.8% increase compared to $3.03 billion in the same period last year.

Full-year 2024 revenue reached $13.01 billion, up from $12.16 billion in 2023.

The company attributed this strong performance to a combination of organic growth and strategic transactions.

Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) for the fourth quarter were $3.45, compared to $3.30 in the fourth quarter of 2023, demonstrating the company's robust financial health.

A notable contributor to this growth was the company's biopharma laboratory services unit, which saw a 10.4% increase in sales, reaching $767 million in the fourth quarter.

This unit provides contract research facilities for biopharmaceutical companies.

Looking forward to 2025, Labcorp anticipates continued growth, projecting revenues between $13.88 billion and $14.05 billion.

The company also forecasts adjusted EPS to range from $15.60 to $16.40.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) today announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and the full year 2024.

Full-year sales remained at $33 billion, while underlying sales saw a 2% increase.

The company's operating profit reached $8.6 billion, with adjusted operating profit climbing 7% to $9.7 billion.  

For the fourth quarter of 2024, Linde reported sales of $8.3 billion, flat year-over-year, but with underlying sales again up 2%.

Adjusted operating profit for the quarter reached $2.5 billion, a 9% increase compared to the same period last year.  

Linde also reported earnings per share (EPS) of $3.60, a 14% increase, and adjusted EPS of $3.97, up 11%.

Meanwhile, the company generated strong cash flow in the fourth quarter, with an operating cash flow of $2,809 million, a 3% increase year-over-year.

After capital expenditures of $1,250 million, free cash flow was $1,559 million.   

Looking forward to the first quarter of 2025, Linde projects adjusted EPS guidance of $3.85 - $3.95, representing a 7%-9% growth excluding foreign exchange impacts.