The stock market Olympics – who would be the GOATs of the ASX investment world?

While we have all been inspired and awed by the extraordinary feats of athleticism at the Olympic Games in Paris, I got to thinking about the equivalents in the investment world. Which names do our fundies most frequently speak about in the highest esteem?

In the spirit of fun (and the Olympics), here are some of the GOATs of the ASX investment world matched to their global Olympian equivalent. While I’ve selected the candidates, I’ve chosen them based on what fundies have said about these winners in the past.

The Emma McKeon All-Star Award for the standout large-cap – Wisetech (ASX: WTC)

Wisetech has had a stand-out year, beating revenue and net profit consensus by 1% and 24% for FY24.

Some of the fund managers who have been positive (or glowing) on Wisetech’s prospects have included:

• Firetrail, which spoke to Wisetech’s moat, limited competition, huge EPS and revenue growth;
• Seneca's Luke Laretive views it as a market champion that has legitimately innovated, won market share and generated better shareholder returns on its way to the top.
• Forager's Steve Johnson referred to Wisetech as a quality compounder – “companies that consistently achieve earnings growth and generate high returns on invested capital across different economic cycles.”
• Wilson Asset Management's Hailey Kim argued that Wisetech is attractive despite its pricing due to its growth drivers. “That includes things like a very strong pricing power, given their unique software platform and they’re still quite under-penetrated with the existing customers and also have a significant runway of addressable market in the broader logistics space,” she said.

The Gabriel Medina Award for iconic status in a tough moment - Wesfarmers (ASX: WES)

Remember this iconic shot? Which ASX company is just as iconic?

Wesfarmers wins out because of Kmart and Bunnings' iconic status in the hearts of consumers. Who doesn’t spend an unnecessary amount on things they don’t need every time they visit those stores? (I know it’s not just me…)

Back in February, Wesfarmers was a clear beneficiary of rising interest rates and the inflation squeeze on consumers, and its share price has continued to perform, up 12% in July alone. It has been a clear outperformer for FY24 – though whether that continues for FY25 is a different story.

Brokers and fundies are becoming more mixed in their views on Wesfarmers with Wilson Asset Management’s Hailey Kim and Alphinity Investment Management’s Jacob Barnes nominating it as a SELL in a recent episode of Buy Hold Sell.

By contrast, it is one of TMS Capital’s Ben Clark’s largest holdings and he notes it has benefited from tougher climates.

The Simone Biles Award for the small-cap with big things coming – Telix Pharmaceuticals (ASX: TLX)

Which better company to represent the diminutive and extraordinary gymnast than Telix Pharmaceuticals. 

The Aussie biotech is poised to hit large-cap status in coming years and has seen significant success in its radio-pharmaceuticals treatments.

Among the fundies, I’m struggling to find someone who doesn’t love it. Just in recent months, the solid performance and future potential of Telix have been espoused by:

• Monash Investors’ Shane Fitzgerald who suggested it could be the next CSL.
• Eiger Capital’s Stephen Wood is expecting two product approvals in the pipeline to further accelerate revenue.
• Wilson Advisory’s Dr Shane Storey has also affirmed his conviction in Telix many times on Livewire, arguing that Telix is in a great spot given it is heavily investing in R&D.

The Novak Djokovic Award for the prodigal champion – ResMed (ASX: RMD)

Only a few short years back, Australians were up in arms over a COVID-19 vaccination scandal and the Joker. But, the world has returned to celebrating him after he finally won his first Olympic Gold medal.

At the start of this year, ResMed had its own struggles. The Ozempic media frenzy was taking a toll and it was also managing supply-chain concerns. How quickly the mood changes. ResMed delivered a stellar FY24 return, with operating profit up 38% and revenue up 9%. It’s worth noting this result met market expectations.

Several fund managers featured on Livewire believe ResMed has continued growth in it.

• Firetrail’s Patrick Hodgens believes it has at least 10% EPS growth in it for the next 5 years.
• Airlie Funds Management’s Vinay Ranjan expects double-digit growth in FY25 and points to Resmed having 80-90% market share in the US.
• Auscap’s Tim Carleton has high conviction in the stock and sees a significant runway for growth.

The Arisa Trew Award for youth appeal (and future leadership) - Lovisa (ASX: LOV)

This award is inspired by Australia’s youngest medallist, 14-year-old skateboarder Arisa Trew. Lovisa seemed an appropriate fit, not only frequented by many of Trew’s demographic but also a standout in the consumer discretionary space in recent years.

It has recently been referenced positively by the likes of:

• Marcus Today's Henry Jennings believes it will continue to push higher and is a rare kind of retailer that may be exempt from today’s mortgage pressures.
• Tribeca's Jun Bei Liu says the US rollout has been successful and she anticipates similar to occur with the Asian rollout.
• Hyperion Asset Management deems it a long-term compounder due to its unique model.

The Yusuf Dikec Award for the unexpected income hero - Suncorp (ASX: SUN)

The Turkish marksman has gone viral for winning a Silver medal while using no specialised equipment. While I’m not suggesting that Suncorp is as laissez-faire in its approach to insurance, the point is more that businesses like Suncorp or IAG are somewhat unrecognised by many investors for their potential as income investments.

• IML’s Michael O'Neill notes Suncorp has a proven track record of returning excess capital to shareholders and expects it to continue to perform well in the medium term.
• Ausbil’s Michael Price also tipped Suncorp as one of his income stock picks in a recent episode of Signal or Noise.
• Lazard's Aaron Binsted pointed to Suncorp and IAG as offering dividend growth and positive earnings outlooks.

The Olympic Village Chocolate Muffin Award for a company that satiates its investors – Commonwealth Bank (ASX: CBA)

The surprise GOAT of the Olympics has been the Olympic Village Chocolate Muffin – although satisfying, it eventually hits the waistline. You could compare that to Commonwealth Bank which sits firmly on the Strong Sell side for most brokers and fund managers but remains beloved of the investing public.

Both Seneca’s Luke Laretive and Forager’s Steve Johnson noted that Commonwealth Bank was a strong business and their concerns stemmed from high valuations in a recent episode of Buy Hold Sell.

Why does the public love it? 

It has been a consistent, fully franked dividend player for decades, with Morningstar analysis indicating it makes up just over 8% of ASX 200 dividends. As long it keeps up that level of income, it’s unlikely retail investors will be making any big moves.

Over to you. What Olympian-inspired awards would you give your favourite ASX companies? Let me know in the comments.