Macquarie Conference Pt 2: Updates from TPG, Flight Centre and Lendlease

The Macquarie (ASX: MQG) conference features presentations from more than 100 top Australian and New Zealand companies.

Here are some of the more interesting updates from ASX-listed companies.

TPG: Mobile market recovery taking shape

TPG Telecom (ASX: TPG) has struggled for share price momentum, up just 1.8% in the past 12-months compared to Telstra’s (ASX: TLS) 13.7% rise. 

TPG said that official data and store experience indicates good momentum in the first quarter for mobile subscriber growth.

The company added 70,000 subscribers in the first quarter of FY22 and expects the second quarter to deliver "lower growth".

Source: TPG Macquarie Australia Conference Presentation

Interestingly, the mobile recovery seems linked to the recovery in international arrivals.

Source: TPG Macquarie Australia Conference Presentation

The $335m selldown of TPG’s founder and former chairman David Teoh last December proved to take a massive toll on momentum, with TPG shares down as much as -13% in the two days following the announcement. 

What’s interesting is that Teoh and his associates are in an escrow arrangement where they may not dispose of more than 20% of their aggregate shares until June 2022 - which is just around the corner and a likely overhang that's weighing on the share price.

TPG 12-month price chart

Flight Centre: Travel rebound gathers momentum

Flight Centre (ASX: FLT) shares are down -4.1% in early trade despite a significant improvement in business activity and cash flow.

Updates today include:

• March total transaction volumes (TTV) was almost triple the prior period and sitting around 59% of pre-covid levels

• Corporate business is trading ahead of other segments, back to 76% of pre-covid TTV levels, globally

• Group margins are tracking below pre-covid levels due to:

  • Higher mix of corporate travel

  • Channel mix

  • Heavy 'visiting friends and relatives' component in initial international rebound

• $2m operating cash inflow in March

Flight Centre 12-month price chart

The overnight performance of US-listed travel stocks might be weighing on Flight Centre on Wednesday. Household names like Expedia and Airbnb, fell -14% and -5.1% respectively in overnight trade.

Citi downgraded Expedia after its first quarter earnings, saying the results were below expectations. The company faced a slight impact from omicron earlier this year and the Ukraine war was slowing European travel.

Airbnb topped earnings expectations and gave a strong second quarter guidance. The looming Fed interest rate decision might have prompted to investors to take some chips off the table. Airbnb experienced more than triple its usual trading volume in the overnight session.

Lendlease:

Lendlease (ASX: LLC) has rallied almost 15% since March - demonstrating a turnaround to its usual downtrending share price.

The construction and property developer observed a mixed-bag of FY22 return expectations.

Source: Lendlease Macquarie Australia Conference Presentation

Though, the narrative does seem to age better with time, as the business expects profitability to significantly improve from the second-half of FY22 and reach its medium term return on equity target by FY24.

Lendlease 12-month price chart