ASX at open: Facebook and PayPal earnings weigh on local tech stocks

The ASX is down -0.3% today following a rather misleading session from Wall Street. 

Major US indices inched higher for a fourth consecutive session. However, 56% of US stocks closed in negative territory.

Notable gains from heavyweight stocks including Alphabet (7.5%), Nvidia (2.5%), Microsoft (1.5%) and Facebook-parent Meta (1.3%) helped carry the market into positive territory.

Most ASX sectors opened slightly lower on Thursday, besides an outsized decline from tech.

Tech rout continues 

Tech stocks are in the deep red with notable losers including: 

• Block (ASX: SQ2) -8.8%

• Appen (ASX: APX) -7.1%

• Xero (ASX: XRO) -6.3%

• WiseTech Global (ASX: WTC) -6%

Declines from local fintech and BNPL stocks are likely influenced by a sharp -24% from payments giant, PayPal.

PayPal missed its user growth targets, with the company blaming 4.5m "illegitimate" accounts that joined the platform.

PayPal expects to deliver revenue growth between 15-17% for the full-year 2022, slightly below analyst expectations of 17.9%.

Facebook-parent Meta Platforms is also down as much as -24% in after-hours. The company said that users were shifting to viewing short-videos that don't generate as much revenue as its core news feed.

Earnings roundup

• Nufarm (ASX: NUF) shares gained more than 10% after reporting a 36% increase in first quarter FY22 revenue on the back of strong customer demand for crop protection and seed

• Westpac Bank (ASX: WBC) rallied 2% after reporting $1.58bn in cash earnings, up 1%. All-important net interest margins declined 8 basis points to 1.91% due to competition and higher liquid assets (lower interest) 

• Centura Office REIT (ASX: COF) shares are unchanged after reporting a -12.8% decline in earnings per share in the first-half FY22. The company upgraded its FY22 earnings and dividends slightly to reflect the improved outlook for office space 

• Nick Scali (ASX: NCK) is also trading flat after reporting 5.4% sales growth but a -6.6% profit decline. The furniture retailer said shipping costs and supply chain disruptions weighed on margins

• Cettire (ASX: CTT) shares fell -11% despite reporting 181% sales growth for the first-half FY22. Before today’s selloff, the stock had run 367% in the last 12-months