The newest growth stocks on the ASX

Over the past few years, a wave of M&A has taken a substantial toll on the breadth of growth opportunities on the ASX, with notable departures including:

• Alumina (ASX: AWC)
• Altium (ASX: ALU)
• Arcadia Lithium (ASX: LTM)
• Boral (ASX: BLD)
• Costa Group (ASX: CGC)
• Cimic Group (ASX: CIM)
• CSR (ASX: CSR)
• Dropsuite (ASX: DSE)
• De Grey Mining (ASX: DEG)
• MMA Offshore (ASX: MRM)
• Newcrest (ASX: NCM)
• Oz Minerals (ASX: OZL)

This trend is showing no signs of slowing, with several companies currently under offer, including Metals Acquisition Corp, Insignia Financial, Domain Holdings, Mayne Pharma and more.

New listings are still occurring, though at a slower pace than in previous years — and the companies coming to market lack the scale to replace the heavyweight departures.

Despite a relatively smaller size, many of these newcomers bring compelling growth potential – and I'm not talking about those 20 cent IPOs that are 'prospective for [insert trending commodity here]' but those with genuine earnings and growth outlooks.

As part of Livewire’s Growth Series, we’ll dive into these recent IPOs, and why they might be flying under the radar.

#1 Cuscal 

Cuscal (ASX: CCL) was the largest float of 2024, raising approximately $337 million at $2.50 per share. Despite being one of the more high-profile listings, its debut was rather depressing, with the stock opening at $2.50 and sliding 7.6% to close at $2.31.

Cuscal is a payments infrastructure provider founded in 1966, providing B2B payment processing services to banks, fintechs and corporates. It has a unique moat as the only non-Big 4 provider processing all major payment types, generating revenue from issuing (65%), payments (17%), and acquiring (11%).

HD Capital’s Harley Grosser considered the stock as an attractive opportunity back in November 2024. The key takeaways from his wire include:

• Growth drivers: Benefits from rising card usage (75% of transactions), fintech growth, real-time payments via NPP (53% market share), and a growing non-Big 4 deposit market (18% to 27% in a decade), with strong client retention (no major losses in 16 years).
• Competitive edge: Offers lower pricing (e.g. half Big 4 costs), scale-driven efficiencies, a $200m regulatory capital barrier, and a history of innovation (first ATM, contactless payments, NPP in Australia).
• Valuation & potential: At $460m market cap, Cuscal trades at 12.5x PE and 7x EV/EBITDA, attractive vs. peers (20-32x PE), with potential ASX 300 inclusion and upside from its early-stage Data business under Open Banking expansion.

Cuscal traded sideways around the $2.4-2.6 level through to mid-May, but experienced a strong breakout to record levels. The stock is now pushing the $3.00 mark, and up around 17% from its IPO price.

#2 Symal Group

Symal Group (ASX: SYL) made its ASX debut on 21 November 2024 after raising $136 million at $1.85 per share. The stock hasn’t really found much traction and continues to trade around the $1.70 level.

Symal is a founder-led, vertically integrated civil construction business that operates four core business pillars: i) contracting; ii) plant and equipment hire; iii) material sales and iv) recycling and repurposing.

At the time of listing, Symal guided to FY25 revenue of $961.1 million (24.9% year-on-year growth), supported by increasing market share, continued growth across all divisions and expansion across the East coast.

Its latest 1H25 result (24-Feb) highlighted:

• Revenue up 12% to $416.7 million.
• EBITDA up 30% to $48.7 million, reflecting "160 bps margin expansion, supported by strong returns on investment in plant and equipment."
• NPAT up 72% to $19.6 million
• Net cash position of $32.6 million as at 31 December 2024
• On track to meet FY25 prospectus forecasts
• 91% of FY25 forecast revenue secured as at 21 February 2025
• Estimated $1.37 billion work in hand as at 21 February 2025
• Note: The company currently has a market cap of $390 million

#3 Bhagwan Marine

Bhagwan Marine (ASX: BWN) debuted on the ASX on July 30, 2024, after raising $80 million at 63 cents per share. Founded in 2000 by the Kannikoski family, the company has grown from a single vessel to a fleet of over 100, including tugs, barges, and crew transfer boats. It serves diverse industries such as oil and gas, renewables, defence, and civil construction, offering solutions across ports, offshore, and subsea environments.

Despite a relatively lacklustre share price performance, its latest 1H25 result (announced 28-Feb) highlighted a record set of numbers, including:

• Revenue up 41% to $154.1 million
• EBITDA up 32% to $27.3 million
• Net cash from operations up 64% to $21 million
• Net debt of $11.5 million (down from $81.4 million – largely driven by IPO proceeds) 

#4 Alfabs

Alfabs (ASX: AAL), the smallest listing among the stocks discussed, raised $18 million at 25 cents per share, resulting in an indicative market cap of $72 million. Since 1986, the company has been owned and operated by the Torrance family, which have retained approximately 52.3% ownership post listing. The company operates two divisions in Australia: (i) mining equipment hire for underground coal mining and (ii) engineering, protective coatings, logistics, and other services for the infrastructure sector.

The IPO saw a quiet start, with shares closing at 25 cents and trading sideways for four months. However, a breakout in early 2025 drove the stock to a high of 50 cents by February, before settling around 35 cents after a 25% rally over four sessions.

Alfabs’ financial performance has been robust, with strong earnings growth and the introduction of dividends. Key highlights include:

FY24 Results (August 26, 2024):

• Sales: $97 million, 3% above the forecasted $94 million
• Net Profit After Tax: $6.9 million, 15% above the forecasted $6.0 million

1H25 Results (February 2025):

• EBITDA: Up 21% to $12.5 million
• Net Profit: Up 39% to $5.7 million
• Maiden Fully Franked Dividend: 1.5 cents per share (75% payout ratio)
• Net Debt: $11 million

#5 Tasmea

Tasmea (ASX: TEA) raised $59 million at $1.56 per share, making its debut on 29 April 2024. The stock managed to open at $1.85 (19% gain for IPO investors) but faded early gains to close at $1.70.

Founders Stephen Young and Mark Vartuli retained a combined 60% ownership post-listing.

The company operates over 20 businesses, delivering maintenance and engineering services for plant and equipment to blue-chip clients like BHP, Rio Tinto, Newmont, and Fortescue, with 90% of its revenue from repeat customers.

The share price traded sideways for about four months until its FY24 results, released on August 26, 2024, sparked a breakout to all-time highs.

The FY24 results exceeded prospectus targets, showcasing strong cash flows and supporting a fully franked dividend of 4 cents per share:

• Revenue up 10.8% to $407 million
• EBIT up 27.4% to $54.8 million and 1.5% ahead of prospectus target
• NPAT up 29.9% to $36.9 million and 10.3% ahead of prospectus target

This momentum carried into the 1H25 results, announced on February 24, 2025:

• Revenue up 27.6% to $246.6 million
• NPAT up 76.6% to $27.9 million
• Statutory earnings per share up 53.5% to 15.2 cents
• Interim fully franked dividend up 100% to 5 cents per share
• Upgraded FY25 NPAT guidance to $52 million (from $48m)
• "The outlook for key commodities across iron ore, copper, and gold remains sound with large iron ore miners looking to maintain or increase volumes."

This week, Tasmea unexpectedly declared a fully franked special dividend of 12 cents per share (approx 3.8% yield), reflecting "the Company’s strong financial performance, financial position and Board confidence in the Company’s strategic direction and business model."

Tasmea also noted that the special dividend will not impact its plans to declare a final dividend in FY25 or its FY26 growth aspirations. 

The bottom line

Growth opportunities among newly listed companies remain, though far less common than in previous years.

The initial price action of five recent listings — Cuscal, Symal, Bhagwan, Alfabs, and Tasmea — reflects a cautious market stance toward new IPOs, with hard-fought re-rates underpinned by strong earnings growth and capital management.

All five companies achieved double-digit earnings growth in FY24 and 1H25, and continue to trade at relatively attractive multiples compared to their larger-cap peers.