Morgan Stanley, traditionally bullish on Afterpay, lowered its price target by A$10, citing risks to merchants fees from the entry of Commonwealth Bank of Australia into the buy-now- pay-later market.
Wealth manager AMP was a bright spot on the index, rising nearly 5.5% to the top of ASX200, after it named deputy chief of Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Alexis George as its new group chief executive officer.
Earlier in the day, the company said it would split itself into two separate businesses in a bid to change strategy and reverse a steep share price slump it has faced.
Santos said it expects to make a final investment decision on its Barossa project in the coming weeks after the oil and gas producer postponed the call last year.
Bucking the sombre mood, the Australian health stocks advanced, with medical devices makers Resmed and Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp rising 0.7% and 1.1%, respectively.