Senior ESG Analyst Ayesha Azeem shares highlights from our 2025 Small Companies ESG Report, reflecting a year of active engagement and forward-looking focus.

Energy mix planning in the US is being reshaped by rising demand and changing regulations. The EPA’s deregulatory changes could alter coal retirement timelines and long-term investment strategies. While renewables face headwinds, the pace of coal’s decline may slow – thereby altering emissions trajectories and energy mix planning. Utilities now face near-term relief but greater long-term uncertainty.

Phillip Hudak, CFA and Matt Griffin unpack the key takeaways from this reporting season with Morningstar Australia’s Eva Cook in their 'Earnings in Focus' webinar.

While the macroeconomic clouds may be looming, global listed transport infrastructure companies such as toll roads and airports continue to look beyond the horizon and are seeing strong, long-dated demand for their assets as well as investing to accommodate future demand.

As investment markets continue to evolve and passive capital crowds large caps, Australian small caps present a rare opportunity for active investors to capture growth, diversification, exposure to emerging sectors, and long-term outperformance potential from an inefficient equity market segment.

With a proven track record of strong returns, lower volatility, and consistent outperformance, the Maple-Brown Abbott Australian Small Companies Fund stands out as a disciplined, high-conviction strategy delivering sustainable value through most market conditions.

Dougal Maple-Brown joins Christopher Conway from Livewire Markets to examine five ASX companies, uncover value opportunities, and analyze top stocks across banking, mining, healthcare, and consumer staples.

oOh!media (OML) is currently benefiting from a combination of structural and cyclical tailwinds Including: 1) shift in media spend / continued reallocation of advertising budgets from traditional media to Out-of-Home (OOH); 2) cyclical upswing with lower interest rates and improving macroeconomic conditions supporting an increase in overall media spend; and 3) operational turnaround improving fundamentals with the rollout of new contracts and improved execution.

With the Australian equity market trading near all-time highs, valuations across many sectors—particularly Industrials and Financials—appear expensive. Key benchmark stocks such as Commonwealth Bank, Goodman Group, Macquarie Group, and Wesfarmers are contributing to the expensive profile. Dougal Maple-Brown outlines his view on the market and where we see value in Australian equities.