Why are ASX tech shares all over the place today?

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is cooling off today. After 5 straight days of shares in the green, the ASX 200 is down 0.7% to 6,405 points at the time of writing.

However, one sector, in particular, is bucking this broad-market trend, if a little inconsistently. ASX tech shares spiked in early morning trade this morning. Note the S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX). It’s up 0.81% at the time of writing, outperforming the ASX 200 handily. But soon after market open this morning, it was as high as 2,740 points – a 2.7% spike from yesterday’s close.

Let’s dig a little deeper.

When most investors think of ‘ASX tech shares’, they probably jump to the WAAAX shares – the collective name for some of the ASX’s highest-flying tech companies. WAAAX stands for WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC), Altium Limited (ASX: ALU), Appen Ltd (ASX: APX), Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) and Xero Limited (ASX: XRO). All of these companies have made investors a lot of money in recent years. All 5 are up more than 500% over the past 5 years, with a couple (Afterpay and Appen), up more than 2,000%.

WAAAX on for ASX tech shares?

So this morning, Xero hit a new all-time high of $130.95 after jumping almost 5%. The catalyst? Xero released a strong half-year update that was evidently well-received by investors. The update included the relevation that Xero managed to grow its revenue by 23% over the period, and subscribers by 19%. Xero shares have since cooled from these highs, and are trading up 0.93% at $123.85 at the time of writing.

Afterpay shares, however, are having a much more consistent day in the green. Afterpay is up 3.94% to $99.82 at the time of writing, after making a new all-time high of its own earlier this week ($105.80).

Appen shares are also having a pretty nice day of it – up 1.99% to $33.89. That stands in contrast to Altium, which is down 0.7% to $37.10. Unlike most ASX tech shares, Altium is still way off it’s 52-week high that it recorded in February, just before the coronavirus-induced market crash in March. WiseTech Global shares were also missing out on the fun for most of today. After initially spiking all the way up to $32.79 this morning, WiseTech dropped down 0.34% to $32.04. It has since rallied slightly to $32.32 at the time of writing.

Looking outside the WAAAX sphere though, and we see other ASX tech shares making moves as well. Dubber Corp Ltd (ASX: DUB) shares are still very much in positive territory, up 2.93% from open to $1.58 a share at the time of writing. Dubber was as high as $1.64 ealier in the day, but is still very much in the green.

It’s hard to say what’s causing these erratic moves, but it might be a case of ASX tech investors getting FOMO with some shares, or just a rising tech tide trying to lift all boats, with varying degrees of success.

More reading

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• Why the Aristocrat (ASX:ALL) share price could jump next week
• The Hipages (ASX:HPG) share price jumped 16% after its IPO
• ASX 200 down 0.1%: Xero hits record high, Telstra and Wesfarmers updates impress
• Best and worst ASX retail stocks to own in the COVID recovery

Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and recommends Altium. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Xero. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO, Appen Ltd, and WiseTech Global. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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