If you’re a fan of small cap ASX shares, then you may want to add the two shares listed below to your watch list.

Here’s what you need to know about these growing small cap ASX shares:

Nitro Software Ltd (ASX: NTO)

The first small cap to watch is Nitro Software. It is a document productivity software company that is aiming to drive digital transformation in organisations around the world.

Nitro is doing this with its Nitro Productivity Suite. This suite provides businesses of all sizes with integrated PDF productivity and electronic signature tools through a horizontal, software-as-a-service, and desktop-based software solution.

Management is very positive on the future, particularly after a recent acquisition strengthened its offering.

It said: “Nitro believes the expanded product suite delivered by the Connective acquisition will drive substantial opportunities in the fast-growing US$17 billion global SaaS eSign market as organisations around the world increasingly demand high-trust and highly secure eSign and workflow solutions.”

In response to its recent full year results, the team at Bell Potter put a buy rating and $2.75 price target on the company’s shares.

PlaySide Studios Limited (ASX: PLY)

Another small cap to watch is PlaySide Studios. It is one of the largest independent video game developers in Australia.

At present, the company’s portfolio comprises 50+ titles that are delivered across four platforms. These are mobile, virtual reality, augmented reality, and PC. Among these titles are games developed in collaboration with studios such as Disney and Pixar.

PlaySide has also recently announced promising deals with a number of parties. This includes games publishing giants 2K Games and Activision Blizzard, as well as gaming influencer company One True King. These deals look set to support the company’s growth in a market estimated to be worth US$159 billion per annum at present.

Canaccord Genuity currently has a buy rating and $1.30 price target on its shares.

The post 2 small cap ASX shares that are highly rated by brokers appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Nitro (ASX:NTO) share price sinks 14% despite record result
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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Nitro Software Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Wednesday was a big day for oil prices, and ASX oil shares made the most of it.

The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) led the market today, gaining a whopping 4.88%, with oil producers making up the sector’s leaders.

For context, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) closed 0.28% higher while the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) also ended the day with a 0.28% gain.

Let’s take a closer look at what boosted oil prices on Wednesday.

What drove oil prices, and ASX oil shares, higher today?

The price of oil soared to seven year highs on Wednesday – trading well over US$100 per barrel.

The rapid increase came after the International Energy Agency announced it will release 60 million barrels of oil from emergency reserves to calm supply concerns following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

However, the size of the release – less than a single day’s worth of global consumption – seems to have fuelled fears of a shortfall.

The Brent crude oil futures rose 5.8% to a high of US$111.09 per barrel on Wednesday, according to data from CNBC.

Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate futures rose to US$109.30 per barrel at its intraday high – representing a 5.6% increase.

ASX oil giants Santos Ltd (ASX: STO), Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL), and Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) all saw their share prices take off, along with the commodity’s value.

Santos was the ASX 200 Energy Index’s best performer on Wednesday. Its share price gained 6.2% to close at $7.71.

Meanwhile, the share prices of Woodside and Beach Energy gained 6.14% and 4.22% respectively.

Woodside was among several energy stocks to hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday.

Broker predicts a bright future for these energy producers

Likely also boosting shares in Santos and Woodside was a note out of Credit Suisse.

The broker believes the conflict in Ukraine – and the resulting decision among international energy giants to pull out of projects in Russia – could spell great news for the companies.

Credit Suisse analyst Saul Kavonic was quoted by The Australian as saying:

 [The conflict] could present material upside to LNG supply/demand fundamentals benefiting Woodside and Santos, both in terms of pricing, asset selldowns and appetite to develop new growth projects.

With only Qatari and the US presenting material supply growth options on the table near-term, we expect more capacity may need to be incentivised elsewhere.

More marginal LNG projects may even return again, such as Browse, Sunrise, and the Darwin LNG expansion.

The post The price of oil is soaring to new highs and these ASX oil shares are cashing in appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Black gold! 3 ASX energy shares pumping new 52-week highs today
• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts on Wednesday
• Here’s why the Beach Energy (ASX:BPT) share price is climbing today
• Woodside (ASX:WPL) shares are up 6% today. Here’s the lowdown
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Rio Tinto, South32 storm higher, PointsBet sinks

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Here’s the understatement of the last couple of years: There’s just a little bit going on right now.

Ukraine.

COVID.

Floods.

They are, of course, more important as human issues than financial ones.

Each brings suffering in its own way, and the investment implications do – and should – come second.

But, as I’ve said before (and will say again), I’m a financial advisor working for an investment advice business, so that’s where I’ll focus most of my comments.

Still, it’s important to recognise that the real issues aren’t financial – and we hope for a good result in each case.

Financially speaking, though, in each case there’s no shortage of ‘new news’ with each passing day (or sometimes hour).

It’s hard to keep up with.

As soon as you’ve digested the last piece of news, and started to think about the implications, another one takes its place.

Again, those new pieces of news are important. They are real and they are impactful for the people involved.

They are also potentially impactful, economically and financially.

Potentially.

In the short term.

Medium term at best, is my guess.

That may not be the case if you’re a Russian oligarch, of course. Or a Lismore cafe owner.

The latter group have my sympathy. The former, not so much.

But for the rest of us?

Those of us who have a diversified portfolio of ASX and US-listed companies?

Over the long term?

I’m going to stick my neck out here.

I don’t know how long COVID hangs around. I don’t know how long the Russian invasion of Ukraine takes to play out. And I don’t know what Mother Nature has in store for Brisbane or the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales.

But I’m going to suggest that a year from now, none of those issues is weighing heavily on share prices.

Those odds get even longer if we look out 2, 3 or 5 years.

Now, think about the things that have occupied your mind recently, when thinking about your investments.

Are you waiting for COVID to finally go away?

Are you just going to ‘wait and see’ over Ukraine?

Have the floods, as awful as they are, distracted you from your long term investing focus?

Here’s what I tweeted this morning:

—–

The more nervous the market gets, the more it overweights the short term and underweights the long term.

That, right there, is the opportunity for the patient, stoic, long term investor.

—–

We’ve seen just that over the past few weeks on the US and Australian share markets.

Overactive, overstimulated and overtrading.

Traders trying to second guess what the rest of the market might do next.

And that’s despite next-to-no actual operational or financial impact for the vast, vast majority of the companies listed on our stock markets.

Remember, too: when the market falls by 2% it’s wiping one-fiftieth off the value of all listed companies.

And, if you believe (you should) that share prices are the sum total of all future cash flows of those companies, from here to eternity… well, shaving one-fiftieth of that number away because of an issue half a world away just seems silly, doesn’t it?

I got quite a few replies to that tweet.

One asked whether I was saying we were at the bottom.

My reply was simple:

—–

No-one knows.

And probably useless to try.

The question I ask myself: “Will these shares be worth materially more in 5 and 10 years?”

If yes, I buy.

The short-term volatility is just a distraction.

—–

There’ll be more news.

More crises.

More reason to dither.

More justification to ‘wait and see’.

And, if history is any guide, the money will be made while all of that happens.

Which means we have a choice.

Me?

I’m buying.

I reckon that’s the right approach for almost everyone else, too.

Fool on!

The post What investors do while traders are distracted appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• This ASX mining share rocketed 21% today. Here’s why
• ‘Hope for the best and plan for the worst’: BHP boss
• Own Endeavour (ASX:EDV) shares? Here’s how the company is responding to the Ukraine crisis
• Analysts name 2 excellent ASX tech shares to buy
• Black gold! 3 ASX energy shares pumping new 52-week highs today

Motley Fool contributor Scott Phillips has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) was the best performing sector on the ASX today, closing the day 4.89% higher. The S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) came in second, gaining 2.81%.

The price movements come as global commodity prices climb amid conflict between Russia, Ukraine and the rest of the world.

Against that backdrop, an Aussie cobalt developer has received government support for its project in New South Wales.

At market close, the Cobalt Blue Holdings Ltd (ASX: COB) share price was up 20.65% to 55.5 cents. In comparison, the broader ASX All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) was up 0.21%.

So, what’s going on with this ASX mining share?

Renewable energy project receives Government support

Cobalt Blue’s Broken Hill Cobalt Project (BHCP) was awarded “Major Project Status” by the Australian government today — a move that will support the development of the project over three years.

The project aims to produce “high quality, battery ready cobalt sulphate” for renewable energy solutions.

The company says the project has the potential to be “one of the largest cobalt producers in the world” and has the attention of “more than 30 of the world’s largest battery manufacturers”.

Cobalt Blue said the government grant gives “formal recognition of the national economic implications of the BHCP through its contribution to growth, productivity, government revenue, industry and regional development”.

Further, the company said the project was “the only large scale, ex African, Greenfield primary cobalt project globally”.

Critical minerals projects such as BHCP are integral components of The Australian Critical Minerals Strategy and Australia’s Long Term Emissions Plan as well as aligning with national security and interests to bolster geopolitical stability and building sovereign capability in the sector.

Project to position Australia as ‘number 2 cobalt producer’

Commenting on the development, Cobalt Blue CEO Joe Kaderavek said:

Granting Major Project Status to the Broken Hill Cobalt Project will greatly assist COB to raise development capital by recognising the strategic importance given to this Project by The Australian Government.

This milestone is particularly important for overseas partners and well timed in our development journey.

COB can now boast both Made in Australia and Backed by Australia.

Cobalt Blue share price snapshot

Over the last 12 months, this ASX mining share has increased 37% in value.

It’s also risen more than 12% this year to date.

The company has a current market capitalisation of around $170 million.

The post This ASX mining share rocketed 21% today. Here’s why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• What investors do while traders are distracted
• ‘Hope for the best and plan for the worst’: BHP boss
• Own Endeavour (ASX:EDV) shares? Here’s how the company is responding to the Ukraine crisis
• Analysts name 2 excellent ASX tech shares to buy
• Black gold! 3 ASX energy shares pumping new 52-week highs today

Motley Fool contributor Alice de Bruin has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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