This is the second edition of our weekly wrap for the August 2026 earnings season. It was another busy week, with results highlighting just how differently companies are navigating the current environment.

REA Group benefited from a changing property market, ResMed continued to demonstrate resilient earnings growth although guidance missed investor expectations, and investors received a fresh read on the big banks through results from Westpac, CBA and ANZ.

At the other end of the spectrum, Life360 saw one of the season’s sharpest share price reactions despite delivering strong headline growth. Below, we break down what mattered from each result and whether it changed our analysts’ views on fair value.

Commonwealth Bank (ASX:CBA)

  • Fair Value Estimate: $108 (60% premium at 12 August)
  • Rating: ★
  • Moat: Wide

Commonwealth Bank’s fiscal 2026 profit increased 7% to a record $11 billion. Loan growth of 7% and steady net interest margins more than offset 6% operating expense growth and a modest rise in loan impairment expenses.

The result is largely as expected. The bank is expanding at system in home loans and retail deposits, while taking share in business loans with the support of more bankers. However, competition in lending and deposits has eroded any hopes of a boost to NIM from higher cash rates.

We increase our fair value estimate for wide-moat Commonwealth Bank by 3% to $108 due to the time value of money. Shares are materially overvalued, trading on a forward P/E ratio of around 26 and a dividend yield of 3%. We don’t think this is a case of it being priced for perfection; instead, we think the fundamentals no longer matter to the share price.

Full-year fully franked dividends of $5.05 slightly missed our $5.10 forecast but are close to the top end of the bank’s 70%-80% payout target. We expect dividend growth to track earnings, supported by healthy provision levels and surplus capital.

REA Group (ASX:REA)

  • Fair Value Estimate: $130 (25% premium at 12 August)
  • Rating: ★★
  • Moat: Narrow

REA Group’s full-year results showed both revenue and EBITDA up 12% on the prior year, excluding the exited India business. Dividends per share were up 20% to $2.97.

The company saw significant acceleration through the fourth quarter. Listing volumes increased 11% during the final quarter compared with a year ago, following a softening housing market due to rate hikes by the Reserve Bank of Australia and the introduction of tax changes for real estate investors.

We expect this acceleration to continue as investors typically act procyclical, meaning they hold on to properties when prices are rising and become more interested in selling when prices are falling. Given ongoing price falls, we expect above-trend listing volumes for the next two years.

We increase our fair value estimate for narrow-moat REA Group to $130 per share, reflecting the time value of money. At current prices, REA Group shares screen as materially overvalued.

We question the long-term growth prospects for the company. The company is already by far the dominant website in Australia and enjoys EBITDA margins of 66%. We also think continued double-digit price hikes are bound to draw the ire of regulators, especially if property prices continue to fall.

Resmed (ASX:RMD)

  • Fair Value Estimate: $43 (28% discount at 12 August)
  • Rating: ★★★★★
  • Moat: Narrow

ResMed grew fiscal 2026 EPS 17% to USD 11.2. Management guides to 12% to 14% core EPS growth in fiscal 2027. Shares fell 8%. Excluding the recalled Astral ventilator, guidance implies fiscal 2027 revenue growth of about 6%-8%. This meets our forecast but undershoots management’s five-year ambition for high-single-digit growth.

Remaining EPS growth is mostly buyback accretion. ResMed targets USD 1.5 billion of repurchases in fiscal 2027, cutting our forecast share count by 5%. While only marginally accretive to fair value, it’s a sensible use of capital with shares this cheap.

After removing the disposed MatrixCare business, our forecasts stand. We expect revenue to reaccelerate, averaging 8% a year to fiscal 2030, as wearables pull undiagnosed patients into treatment.

Our fair value estimate for ResMed rises 3% to USD 300, mostly due to time value of money. Our AUD valuation increases 7% to $43, the difference being a weaker AUD. Shares are undervalued.

We don’t read too much into one result. But growing reliance on price over volume could be a sign that GLP-1s are impinging on CPAP adoption. If it continues, we will reassess that threat.

Westpac (ASX:WBC)

  • Fair Value Estimate: $30 (15% premium at 12 August)
  • Rating: ★★
  • Moat: Wide

Westpac’s third-quarter 2026 underlying profit of $1.8 billion increased 2% on the first-half fiscal 2026 quarterly average. Loan growth of 2% and steady net interest margins supported top-line growth, while operating expenses and loan impairments increased by 1%. Shares slipped 5%.

We lower our fiscal 2026 forecast 2% to $7.1 billion, with benefits to net interest margin (NIM) from recent cash rate increases eroded faster than expected by competition in home lending and deposits. Slowing credit growth likely keeps rate competition high.

Mortgage applications are 20% down on the second quarter, which likely will hit credit growth next year. Investor applications are down around 26%, but the 18% decline in owner-occupier reveals rate increases, and not only the budget tax changes, have slowed credit demand from strong levels.

Softening house prices may also be deterring buyers, as fear of missing out turns into fear of overpaying. Population growth, high construction costs, and rising rents are expected to support prices in the medium term. We forecast fiscal 2027 home loan growth of just 2.5%, below Westpac’s 4.7% forecast, and a sharp pullback from 6.8% in fiscal 2026.

We retain our $30 fair value estimate on wide-moat Westpac, with adjustments to short-term earnings not material enough to shift our valuation. Shares are overvalued, trading around 20% above our fair value.

Life360 (ASX:360)

  • Fair Value Estimate: $25.50 (8% discount at 12 August)
  • Rating: ★★★
  • Moat: None

Life360 shares fell nearly 20%, despite second-quarter fiscal 2026 revenue growth of 38% at adjusted EBITDA margins of 20%.

Growth in monthly active users decelerated further to 16% on the prior year, from 17% in the first quarter. Temporary technical issues were cited as the reason for the disappointing deceleration in the first quarter but should have been cycled.

We think slowing user growth is the reason for the selloff. MAU growth is crucial for the long-term growth story. But it has slowed markedly from the low-30s in 2024, to the mid-20s in the first half of 2025, to the high-teens in the second half of 2025, and is now trending toward the midteens.

However, we think the slowdown is temporary. Management expects acceleration in the second half as some marketing spending is postponed to the third quarter.

We maintain our $25.50 fair value estimate for no-moat Life360. Our forecast for a 12% MAU CAGR for our 10-year explicit forecast period is unchanged. The shares screen as fairly valued.

We see a long runway for user growth. Penetration in the US nearly tripled between 2020-26 to 17%, but Europe quintupled over the same period to just 2%. Within the US, the most engaged states are still growing despite nearly 25% penetration now, so we still think there’s a way to go.

Subscribe to get Morningstar insights in your inbox