Daily Roundup

Eagers Automotive is banking on a strong finish to 2026 despite a challenging year. The automotive retailer's third quarter felt the weight of industry-wide headwinds—elevated interest rates, inflation, and higher fuel prices all took their toll. Yet the company isn't backing down from its ambitious targets. Eagers expects to post record revenue between $17.3 billion and $17.5 billion, a jump of at least 30% from the prior year. The underlying return on sales is projected to land between 2.8% and 3.0%, a performance that would significantly outpace the broader industry. A bright spot in the quarter came from CanadaOne Auto, which delivered results above expectations and is eyeing substantial expansion opportunities across North America.

REA Group kicked off its fiscal 2027 with impressive momentum. The property portal reported Q1 revenue of $450 million, up 11% year-over-year, while EBITDA (excluding associates) climbed 12% to $294 million. The growth was fueled by strong controllable yield increases in the core residential business. Engagement metrics also painted a rosy picture, with active members jumping 9% and owners tracking 13% more properties. Looking ahead, REA Group expects low single-digit declines in national buy listings for the full year, but remains focused on productivity and cost management to drive operational margin expansion and achieve low double-digit yield growth.

St Barbara hit a significant milestone by commencing ore processing at its Touquoy Restart Project on November 3. The gold miner expects to ramp up to full capacity by the end of December, with the first gold production arriving in January 2027. For fiscal 2027, the company guided for gold production between 17,000 and 21,000 ounces at all-in sustaining costs of A$2,070 to A$2,560 per ounce. Growth capital expenditure is anticipated at A$40 to A$50 million, with reclamation costs for Touquoy expected to run A$24 to A$30 million.

Light & Wonder delivered a mixed quarter that nonetheless showed underlying strength. The gaming and entertainment company reported adjusted free cash flow surging 21% year-over-year to $181 million, while consolidated AEBITDA edged up 2% to $383 million. Gaming operations revenue climbed 3% year-over-year, with gaming machine sales particularly strong at up 5%. However, the company's digital gaming arm, SciPlay, faced headwinds with revenue sliding 12% to $173 million, though its direct-to-consumer business showed promise with a 33% increase to $53 million. The silver lining came from Fitch upgrading the company's outlook to Positive. For the full year, Light & Wonder expects consolidated AEBITDA growth toward the lower end of the mid-to-high single-digit range, citing weakness in the social casino market and some delayed investment timing.

Block, Inc. reported robust third-quarter results with net income jumping to $564.1 million and total revenue climbing to $6.7 billion. Gross profit reached $3.2 billion, reflecting the company's expanding profitability across its financial solutions and Bitcoin ecosystem segments.