The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index on Wednesday finished down 50.6 points, or 0.66 per cent, to 7,608.4, while the broader All Ordinaries dropped 51.5 points, or 0.65 per cent, to 7,860.0.
Woolworths Group fell 6.6 per cent to a more than one-year low of $33.50 after the supermarket group posted its half-year earnings and announced chief executive Brad Banducci would retire in September.
E&P Capital retail analyst Phillip Kimber said the retirement of a well-respected chief executive during a time of heightened media and government scrutiny would naturally lead to a sell-off.
Australian food sales had also dropped in January, he said.
Woolworths chairman Scott Perkins said Mr Banducci's retirement had been in the works for months and was not related to recent scrutiny of the company.
He called Mr Banducci's replacement, WooliesX managing director Amanda Bardwell, a proven leader who was highly respected.
On the flip side, Wisetech Global soared 11.2 per cent to an all-time high of $88.75 after the logistics platform raised its dividend following a strong half-year performance.
RBC Capital Markets analyst Garry Sherriff said Wisetech had delivered a very strong beat to expectations, with impressive margins, earnings and profit.
CSR soared 17.4 per cent to an 18-year high of $7.95 in late trading after Bloomberg reported French building material producer Saint Gobain was considering buying its Australian rival.
CSR requested a trading halt in its shares until Friday so it could announce the "receipt of a proposal regarding a potential material transaction involving CSR".
Corporate Travel Limited plummeted 20.2 per cent to a four-month low of $15.85 after the travel agency reported underlying first-half earnings of $100.7 million, nearly double that of a year ago.
Domino's Pizza Enterprises rose 2.3 per cent to $40.50 after the fast food company reported a fall in first-half profit as customers in Europe and Asia remained cautious amid inflationary pressures.
Santos dropped 0.8 per cent to $7.34 after the gas giant revealed a 42 per cent slide in underlying profit for 2023, as that year's revenue fell by almost a quarter to $US5.9 billion.
Scentre Group gained 2.7 per cent to $3.06 after the Westfield owner reported its operating profit was up 16 per cent to $1.06 billion.
Codan rocketed 16.6 per cent to a more than two-year high of $9.79 after the metal detector company grew first-half net profit by 24 per cent, to $38.1 million.
The Big Four banks were mixed, with ANZ up 0.8 per cent to $28.10, NAB climbing 0.4 per cent to $33.61 and Westpac basically flat at $25.89, while CBA dropped 2.0 per cent to $114.62.
In the mining sector, BHP dropped 2.4 per cent to $44.47, Fortescue fell 3.4 per cent to $27.25 and Rio Tinto retreated 1.8 per cent to $125.80.
After the market closed, Rio Tinto reported lower earnings on overall weakness in commodity prices but generated a boost to performance from an easing of energy costs.
The Australian dollar was at a three-week high against its American counterpart, buying 65.69 US cents, from 65.33 US cents at Tuesday's ASX close.
ON THE ASX:
* The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index finished Wednesday down 50.6 points, or 0.66 per cent, to 7,608.4
* The broader All Ordinaries dropped 51.5 points, or 0.65 per cent, to 7,860.
CURRENCY SNAPSHOT:
One Australian dollar buys:
* 65.69 US cents, from 65.33 US cents at Tuesday's ASX close
* 98.53 Japanese yen, from 98.23 yen
* 60.74 Euro cents, from 60.65 Euro cents
* 51.99 British pence, from 51.90 pence
* 106.09 NZ cents, from 106.39 NZ cents.
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