AGL Energy Ltd (AGL) Moves Up 2.06% on Sep 10

September 9, 2017 - By Marguerite Chambers

Shares of AGL Energy Ltd (ASX:AGL) last traded at 24.77, representing a move of 2.06%, or 0.5 per share, on volume of shares. After opening the trading day at 24.35, shares of AGL Energy Ltd traded in a close range. AGL Energy Ltd currently has a total float of 655.83 million shares and on average sees 2.23M shares exchange hands each day. The stock now has a 52-week low of 16.51 and high of 28.47.

S&P/ASX 200: Directing Asian Economy Growth

CG Watch has recently named Australia as one of the Asian nations with the best corporate governance, which is essential in carrying out national economic growth prospects. The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) is the perfect reflection of Australia’s thriving national economy.

It includes companies with perfect liquidity like AGL Energy Ltd. The ASX is one of Asia’s leading stock exchanges. As of 2014, it has a market capitalization of A$1.60 trillion with over 2,000 companies listed on it. Its benchmark index is the S&P/ASX 200, which weighs its top 200 stocks on a free-float market capitalization basis.

About the S&P/ASX 200

The S&P/ASX 200 was launched in April 2000, starting at 3,133.30 points. Regardless, it continues from the history of the previous Australian benchmark index, All Ordinaries, which was founded in January 1980. Consequently, the S&P/ASX 200 holds an all-time low of 1,358.50 points, which was recorded in November 1992; and an all-time high of 6,828.70 points, which was posted in November 2007.

The S&P/ASX 200 first touched the 6,000 mark in February 2007 as investors began resorting to safe-haven markets such as the ASX with the looming threat of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. An ability to transform assets into cash as in case of AGL Energy Ltd was highly appreciated by nervous traders. Australia has always been an ideal market for investors because of its low interest rates and compelling corporate governance. Having low interest rates means that investors can better access capital through loans.

S&P/ASX 200 Composition

The components of the S&P/ASX 200 are reviewed by the Index Committee four times a year, particularly every 16th of March, June, September, and December. The Index Committee is a panel with five members that reviews the companies listed on the ASX, the 200 most active of which are then included in the S&P/ASX 200. Sometimes, depending on several factors such as market capitalization, liquidity, among others, less than 200 companies make it to the S&P/ASX 200. And this is the double reason to be proud for such companies as AGL Energy Ltd.

In the latest review of the S&P/ASX 200, the Index Committee had dropped six companies and had added six new companies on the coveted index.

As a free-float, market-capitalization-weighted index, the S&P/ASX 200 is quarterly adjusted with respect to the stock prices of frequently traded stocks. This means that stocks held by the government, venture capitalists, and the likes are not reviewed by the Index Committee.

The S&P/ASX 200 has various sectors with the financial sector being the largest as it makes up roughly 40% of the index. It makes up almost 80% of the overall market capitalization in Australia. Representing the top 200 stocks on the ASX, the S&P/ASX 200 is a reliable indicator of the Australian economy.

Needless to point out, investing in the ASX is worth considering. With a cheap borrowing environment complemented by a hot equity market, investors can realize their long-term goals by investing in Australia. At a time when the Asian economy is immensely growing, it is just right to bet on Australia’s growth.

More recent AGL Energy Ltd (ASX:AGL) news were published by: Fool.com.Au which released: “Is AGL Energy Ltd a buy at today’s share price?” on August 13, 2017. Also Reuters.com published the news titled: “Australia’s AGL under pressure to sell, not close, coal-fired plant” on September 06, 2017. Foxbusiness.com‘s news article titled: “AGL Energy to Sell Gas Assets to Chinese-Australian Consortium” with publication date: August 25, 2017 was also an interesting one.

AGL Energy Limited is engaged in buying and selling of gas and electricity and related services and products; construction and/or operation of power generation and energy processing infrastructure; operation of natural gas storage facilities; extraction, production and sale of natural gas, and sale of distributed generation technologies, including solar, digital meters, storage and other business and residential energy services. The company has market cap of $16.24 billion.