August reporting season closed with just 20–30% of companies beating expectations, as investors rewarded certainty in dividends, guidance, and cost control while punishing cautious outlooks. Standouts included Northern Star, Goodman Group, and JB Hi-Fi, while Woolworths, CSL, and James Hardie lagged on guidance misses. Looking to FY26, rate cuts, AI, gold, and resilient retailers are set to drive opportunity, but disciplined execution will be key.

In this week’s wrap, Grady covers:

• (0:16): a look back at reporting season as a whole
• (1:03): why investors are valuing clarity and strong guidance
• (2:03): a dive into some key sectors, including retail, gold and real estate
• (5:22): the themes shaping FY26’s outlook
• (7:05): how the local market performed over the last trading week
• (7:32): the most traded stocks and ETFs this week
• (8:00): economic news items to look out for next week.