Woolworths Group (ASX:WOW) disclosed their sales in the first eight weeks of the year have shown similar trends to Q4.

As anticipation builds for the remainder of the year, the food retail giant in Australia expressed cautious optimism.

For the upcoming F24, Woolworths expects the food inflation in Australia and New Zealand to continue moderating.

In addition, its Australian food retail sales growth for F24 to date has remained strong at approximately 6.5%.

The Company reported a decline in the BIG W sales for the first eight weeks of the year compared to the prior year.

Material wage increases and inflation in energy and transport will likely impact the costs in F24.

New Zealand food sales have shown a promising increase of approximately 4.5% in F24 to date.

Looking ahead, the outlook for BIG W remains uncertain.

The Group is particularly focused on addressing cost-of-living pressures experienced by their customers and team.

The F24 capital expenditure (CAPEX) budget is approximately A$2 billion.

Woolworths has plans to invest over A$40 million in safety enhancements including CCTV upgrades, team safety body-worn cameras, and wearable duress devices.

The New Zealand Store team can expect to have their wages increased by 7% starting from July 1.

The Group expects food inflation in Australia and New Zealand to remain elevated in some packaged categories, and also sees challenging consumer conditions continuing into F24.

Woolworths has observed careful spending patterns among its customers as economic conditions continue to fluctuate.

Woolworths Group is a major food retail company based in Australia and New Zealand.

Citi analysts have increased their price target for Australian firm Monadelphous Group (ASX:MND) to A$15.30 per share, up from A$15.45 per share.

They maintain an optimistic view of the company’s business recovery, particularly in terms of its engineering and construction operations.

The analysts have also boosted their FY24 revenue forecast by 2% to A$2.07 billion, which is mainly attributed to increased input from engineering and construction.

The FY24 engineering and construction revenue is projected to be approximately 90% of FY22 levels.

These changes indicate growing confidence and optimism concerning the near-term outlook.

The stock of Monadelphous Group (ASX:MND) has seen a rise of 0.9% this year, as of the last reported closure.

Monadelphous Group is an Australian company primarily engaged in the provision of construction, maintenance, and industrial services to the resources sector.

Citi has downgraded Australia’s Woodside Energy (ASX:WDS) to ‘sell’ from ‘neutral’, with the price target maintained at A$33 per share.

Despite affirming Woodside as a well-run and high-quality business, the brokerage deems it ‘expensive’.

There are also ongoing concerns about the Scarborough project’s environmental approvals, and future unrest from non-government organizations.

Woodside’s CEO asserted earlier this week that there are ongoing constructive negotiations with unions over a potential industrial action at its liquefied natural gas facilities in Australia.

According to Citi, such industrial actions pose minimal risks to the company’s earnings.

Although strikes seem likely, their impact on production appears negligible.

Among 17 analysts, eight rate the stock ‘buy’ or higher, six ‘hold’ and three ‘sell’; their median price target is A$38.25, as per Refinitiv data.

Woodside’s stock has increased by 7.4% as of the most recent closing.

Woodside Energy is a prominent Australian energy company involved in the exploration, production and processing of hydrocarbons.

Analysts at Canaccord Genuity have elevated the price target for Australia’s Service Stream (ASX:SSM) from A$1.24/share to A$1.35/share.

Service Stream, a network service provider, revealed its plans for further profit growth and increased diversification in fiscal 2024.

With the brokerage predicting the company to report EBITDA of about A$138.5 million, up from their previous estimates of A$133 million, Canaccord Genuity maintains a ‘Buy’ recommendation for the stock.

Among six analysts, five rate the stock as a ‘Buy’ or higher, while one assigns it a ‘Hold’.

Their median price target is A$1.01, according to Refinitiv data.

Following the last close, Service Stream’s stock has seen a 23.4% decline this year.

Service Stream is a network service provider based in Australia.

Financial analysts at Canaccord Genuity have increased their price target on the Australian technology company, Megaport (ASX:MP1) to A$13.40, up from A$11.80.

They state that confidence in Megaport’s management has led to this upgrade, which reflects increased EBITDA estimate upgrades and a reduced cost base.

On Tuesday, Megaport announced it is expecting a 152% to 182% year-on-year growth in their FY24 EBITDA.

Canaccord says Megaport is transitioning to a new Software-as-a-Service business model, thus aligning with the belief that Megaport should be identified as a software-based enterprise.

They also noted that for FY25, both revenue and EBITDA estimates were marginally increased.

The tech company’s stock has seen a hike this year with a rise of 92.6% as of their last closing.

Megaport is an Australia-based technology firm that specializes in providing a global network-as-a-service platform.

Following the acquisition of OTR Group and integration of Coles Express, analysts at Jefferies see additional growth for Viva Energy, an Australian company.

The company announced on Tuesday the completion of the Coles Express deal and anticipates the OTR acquisition by the year’s end.

Jeffries predicts that shop sales contribution will drive earnings growth as Coles Express integration and improvement initiatives advance.

Commercial operations remain the core strength of the country’s second biggest fuel retailer, Jefferies points out.

The brokerage notes that the planned repair of the Geelong refinery in early September is progressing well.

Jefferies also identifies the potential for inorganic growth in Viva Energy’s Commercial & Industrial operations.

As of its last close, the company’s stock has risen 13.6% this year.

Viva Energy (ASX:VEA) is Australia’s second largest fuel retailer.

There’s been a wave of uncertainty for Australian grocer, Coles (ASX:COL), among analysts at Jefferies, Citi and Morningstar.

This doubt comes following the company’s annual report where it disclosed disappointing results.

Coles, the second largest grocery chain in Australia, posted a decrease in profits on Tuesday due to escalating costs, subsequently causing its share value to decrease significantly.

Jefferies predicts that operational costs, including the implementation of the Witron & Ocado project, will pose a larger challenge for the company in the upcoming year.

Compounding this, the firm anticipates issues like higher operational costs, reduced property EBIT and an increase in net interest to impact Coles' performance negatively.

Concurring with Jefferies' assessment, Morningstar predicts a weak earnings growth from ongoing operations in the near term due to factors like weak volume growth, a decrease in shelf price inflation and increasing labour costs.

Citi, however, forecasts a total supermarket cost growth of about 8% in FY24.

Despite the disappointing results, Citi remains hopeful that the rebased consensus earnings expectations can be exceeded if there are positive cost management surprises and benefits from the Witron project in FY25.

As of its last close, Coles' stock price has suffered a 4.3% decrease this year.

Coles is Australia’s second-largest grocery chain with a significant presence across the country.

Analysts at Citi have raised their price target on Australia’s Ingenia Communities Group (ASX:INA) from A$4.64 to A$4.80.

They anticipate strong prospects for the Australian land leasing industry, with Ingenia leading the pack.

The analysts predict that increased development settlements will drive an estimated compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 20% for earnings per share (EPS).

Citi also expects the company’s assets to gain value due to inflation linked rental growth.

Ingenia Communities is evaluating potential capital partnerships beyond its existing joint venture with the NYSE-listed housing operator, Sun Communities.

Among eight analysts, four rank Ingenia as ‘buy’ or higher, three rate it as ‘hold,’ and one as ‘sell’ or lower.

The median price target, according to Refinitiv data, is A$4.40.

The company’s stock has fallen 5.6% this year, as of the last closing.

Ingenia Communities Group, an Australian property developer, commands the highest position in the country’s land leasing industry.

Resolute Mining (ASX:RSG) continues to hold firm its full year 2023 production guidance of 350,000Oz, reinforcing its existing commitment towards its obligations.

Resolute Mining is a mining company that specialises in the exploration, development and operation of gold mines.

Vanadium Resources has announced the appointment of Tim Feather as their new CFO.

The company which trades under the ticker VR8 on the Australian Securities Exchange, released this information recently.

Vanadium Resources is a mining and exploration company focusing primarily on the extraction of vanadium, a unique metal used in the production of large scale, industrial grade batteries.