Sydney, June 20, 2026, 02:06 (AEST)
- Macquarie shares finished Friday at A$249.82, slipping 1.17% on the day. For the week, the stock is up 3.0%.
- The group bought back A$734 million worth of shares for staff awards, paying an average of A$238.80 each. The total covers a proposed CEO grant valued near A$13.23 million.
- Investors will watch Australia’s May inflation data out June 24, ahead of Macquarie’s annual meeting set for July 23.
Macquarie Group shares rose 3.0% for the week to end at A$249.82. The firm said it finished A$734 million in share purchases for employee awards. Shares dropped 1.17% on Friday after hitting A$254.31 on Thursday, the highest price in the 52-week data.
The gain was higher than the S&P/ASX 200, which added 0.3% from last Friday but slipped 0.92% in the last session. Sydney trading is closed for the weekend. Investors now weigh Macquarie’s earnings momentum against a tight window for inflation data and governance headlines.
Macquarie said it bought A$680.7 million in employee-plan shares off-market, and picked up another A$53.3 million on-market. Weighted average price was A$238.80, which Macquarie will use to set awards under its Employee Retained Equity Plan, known as MEREP.
Shareholders are set to vote on 55,402 restricted share units for Chief Executive Shemara Wikramanayake in July. The units have an indicative value around A$13.23 million at the acquisition price. These restricted share units won’t be available until their conditions are met.
The vote carries more weight this year. Macquarie got a “first strike” on pay for 2025, with 25.4% of votes against its remuneration report. If opposition hits 25% or more again, shareholders will have to put a board-spill resolution to a vote; if that goes through, a separate meeting must be held within 90 days to vote on the affected non-executive directors. Macquarie
Macquarie’s bumper May numbers are still driving the stock. Full-year profit climbed 30% to A$4.847 billion, with second-half profit hitting a record A$3.192 billion. CEO Wikramanayake said the group had relied on its “specialist expertise in navigating the current environment.” Macquarie
Commodities and Global Markets, still Macquarie’s biggest profit driver, saw earnings jump 49% to A$4.221 billion, with client hedging, oil and gas trading, and the OnStream meters platform sale all playing a part. Macquarie’s shares tracked National Australia Bank’s 3.4% weekly rise, and topped the Commonwealth Bank’s 1.8% advance.
The earnings story has some bumps. Gains from asset sales and hot commodity trading might not repeat at this level. Commodities head Simon Wright said “prolonged volatility does tend to lead to more subdued client appetite.” Another strike over pay would add to the uncertainty. Reuters
Australia’s May CPI drops Wednesday, with the market watching after April’s annual inflation of 4.2%. Trimmed-mean inflation last read at 3.4%. The Reserve Bank kept rates steady at 4.35% on June 16, and any inflation surprise could move financial stocks.
ASX 200 closed Friday at 8,828.70, trading right by the 8,800–8,780 level that IG’s Tony Sycamore has pointed to as key support. Buyers have shown up here before. A dip under that band would put the index at risk of a steeper pullback. For Macquarie, investors are watching the A$4.20 final dividend set for July 2 and the annual meeting on July 23. Whether the stock can stay near its highs will likely come down to delivering steady earnings, not just another one-off result from trading or asset sales.
