Sydney, March 3, 2026, 18:37 (AEDT) — The market has closed.
Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) wrapped up Tuesday at A$36.90, tacking on roughly 0.6% from the previous close. Shares oscillated between A$36.38 and A$36.90 during the day, ultimately closing right at the high. That puts WOW at the upper edge of its 52-week range.
Wednesday puts the stock through its ex-dividend paces, as it drops entitlement to the interim A$0.45-a-share payout. According to the filing, the record date lands on March 5, with payment slated for April 2. Shareholders opting into the dividend reinvestment plan need to make their elections by 5 p.m. on March 6.
Macro’s back in focus, and the tone is anything but subdued. Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Michele Bullock described the March policy gathering as “live,” putting the spotlight on a possible rate increase after February’s hike left the cash rate at 3.85%. “We see next month’s meeting as ‘live’ with around 30% chance of a March hike,” said Ashwin Clarke at Commonwealth Bank of Australia. Clarke noted economists are bumping up their fourth-quarter GDP outlooks after that robust inflation reading. Reuters
Oil’s done nothing for sentiment. Energy Minister Chris Bowen urged people not to “rush to the service station and fill up” despite another jump in crude, as concerns mount that the widening U.S.-Israeli clash with Iran could hit supplies. Canberra, meanwhile, leaned on regulators to keep an eye out for price gouging. Reuters
Australian stocks dropped sharply, with the S&P/ASX 200 falling 1.34% to close near 9,089. Supermarkets and other defensive sectors held up better than most, sidestepping the worst of the slump.
Woolworths remained in focus following a broker update. Ord Minnett shifted its rating down to “Accumulate” from “Buy”, based on broker moves tracked by FNArena. That’s a more cautious approach, hinting at a slower pace for adding shares after recent gains. FNArena.com
Over at the company, an ASX disclosure indicated that Jonathan Alferness — brought on as a non-executive director — declared he held zero notifiable Woolworths securities as of his March 1 appointment.
Coles Group barely moved, ticking up just 0.1% by the end of the session. The supermarket narrative stayed focused on rate and cost pressures, with little in the way of fresh sector news.
The path ahead isn’t straightforward. Should oil prices remain high and rate expectations firm up, investors might begin to cut their outlook for consumer spending and reassess cost structures throughout grocery supply chains—even for “defensive” stocks that typically prove resilient when markets turn risk-averse.
Woolworths will report its third-quarter fiscal 2026 numbers on April 30. After that, the company is set to hold an investor day on May 12.
