The AGL Energy Limited (ASX: AGL) share price finished the session up 0.58% trading at $8.63 on Friday.

While the ASX utilities company made no official announcements to the ASX today, it was in the news.

Recap on the drama at AGL this year

To recap quickly, Atlassian billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes and Canadian company, Brookfield tried to buy AGL outright earlier this year. On the day news of the first offer broke, the AGL share price spiked 9%.

The AGL board rejected both the first offer and a second improved offer of $8.25 per share. The board said the price was “still well below both the fair value of the company on a change of control basis and relative to the expected value of the proposed demerger”.

The board prefers to proceed with plans for a demerger of AGL’s energy retailing and energy generation segments. Cannon-Brookes reckons this is a bad move environmentally and for AGL shareholders.

So, what’s Cannon-Brookes doing now?

In short, Cannon-Brookes wants to block the demerger. Earlier this month, he purchased an 11.3% stake in AGL using derivatives. This made him the largest shareholder at AGL.

According to reporting in The Australian, Cannon-Brookes reckons former AGL Energy boss and US businessman Andy Vesey is against the company’s proposed demerger.

Cannon-Brookes, who is a passionate environmental advocate, apparently met with Vesy to seek his support in blocking the demerger.

According to the article, Cannon-Brookes said: “He is broadly supportive of what we are trying to do and he does believe very much in the opportunities for these assets to go in a different direction.”

When is the demerger vote?

The AGL board needs 75% shareholder approval at the vote on 15 June for the demerger to proceed.

If the demerger fails, Cannon-Brookes would like to see AGL phase out coal by 2035 and provide green loans to customers who want 100% renewable electricity in their homes.

Why does Cannon-Brookes want to keep AGL whole?

According to reporting in the Australian Financial Review (AFR), a memo received by shareholders in Cannon-Brookes’ Grok Ventures says he believes an integrated AGL Energy “could capture 30 per cent of the electricity retail market”.

The memo said AGL could achieve this “by closing its coal power stations by 2035 and offering customers 100 per cent renewable energy while expanding into energy finance products”.

The memo stated that moving to 100% electric could cost the average Australian home approximately $100,000. It said: “We believe converting this capital expenditure into operating expenditure is a challenge AGL can solve for customers.”

The AFR also reported that RBC Capital Markets considers the demerger’s value to shareholders as “subjective”.

The AFR quoted RBC analyst Gordon Ramsay:

In our view, shareholder benefits are opaque. After the demerger, shareholders will continue to own the same underlying assets in the same proportion, implying that the demerger value uplift argument is subjective.

The post Here’s why AGL shares hit the headlines again on Friday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why have AGL shares been getting so much love on Tuesday?
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Tuesday
• AGL share price bounces back amid latest demerger opposition
• How dependant on coal closure is the AGL share price?
• AGL share price lifts despite Greenpeace accusing leadership of being ‘caught with their pants down’

Motley Fool contributor Bronwyn Allen 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 Scott Phillips.

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The market has come to a close for the week and all (or at least most) seems well. That’s especially true in the camps of these ASX mining shares.

Despite a spot of trouble through the week, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) finished it 1% higher than it started. It was a similar story for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which recorded a gain of 0.9% over this week.

It was a better outcome for these ASX mining shares. They each recorded gains of up to 20% on Friday. Let’s take a look at what pushed them upwards.

3 ASX mining shares rocking the market on Friday

Chalice Mining Ltd (ASX: CHN)

First up is ASX 200 mining share, Chalice Mining. The mineral exploration company recorded a gain of 19.06% on Friday, closing the week at $6.81.

The company released good news about its Julimar Project today. The project is being explored for commodities including nickel, copper, platinum group elements, cobalt, and gold.

Excitingly, Chalice Mining today announced it has been granted approvals needed to start low-impact exploration drilling at the project’s Hartog-Dampier targets. The drilling will test for green metals in the area.

Nico Resources Ltd (ASX: NC1)

Next up is the Nico Resources share price. The ASX mining share surged 11.06% today to close the week at $1.16.

Interestingly, there’s been no news from the recently listed nickel explorer since late last month.

However, the price of nickel surged 8% on the London Metal Exchange overnight, rising to trade at around US$28,200 a tonne. That’s the highest it’s been since 10 May.

Resource Mining Corporation Limited (ASX: RMI)

The third ASX mining share recording a major gain on Friday is Resource Mining. It’s share price soared 19.57% to close at 11 cents.

Market watchers will be forgiven for not instantly recognising Resource Mining. The company is focused on nickel exploration in Tanzania and has a market capitalisation of around $36 million.

Thus, it could also have gained on the back of higher commodity prices. Though, today’s gains might also be related to a capital raise and debt repayment the company announced on Tuesday.

The post 3 ASX mining shares that went gangbusters on Friday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why BHP, Chalice Mining, IGO, and Life360 shares are storming higher
• Here’s why the Chalice Mining share price is jumping 15% today
• Why did this ASX nickel share surge 23% today?
• These were the worst performers on the ASX 200 last week
• 3 ASX 200 mining shares that surged more than 5% today

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 Scott Phillips.

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Don’t look now but the Aristocrat Leisure Limited (ASX: ALL) share price is making another dash higher today.

Shares in the gaming machine and app developer jumped a further 3.8% to a more than one-month high of $35.02 in after lunch trade.

The gain comes on top of its 6.7% surge yesterday after management released its half year results and announced a $500 million on-market share buyback.

Aristocrat share price gets another lift from bullish brokers

The Aristocrat share price appears to be getting a second wind as brokers gave the thumbs-up to the results and reiterated their buy recommendation on the shares.

These positive developments come after Aristocrat tanked 23% over the past six months. That’s a 20% underperformance to the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO).

Earnings beat

The group’s interim net profit after tax and amortisation from acquisitions (NPATA) jumped 40% to $580 million.

That was ahead of UBS’ forecast of $507 million, but that isn’t the only thing that impressed the broker. UBS noted that Aristocrat’s gaming machine business in the Americas is winning market share.

UBS rates the Aristocrat share price as a buy with a 12-month price target of $44.80 a share.

High quality result

Goldman Sachs is another broker that was impressed. The group’s first half earnings and sales came in 5% to 6% ahead of its expectations.

The broker said:

Compositionally, the result was strong, with better-than-expected performances across the board, particularly across North American land based which came in 12% higher than our above consensus segment profit forecasts.

Digital presents big upside for the Aristocrat share price

Further, Aristocrat’s digital business is also delivering. This offsets the recent weak mobile bookings data that had been dragging on the Aristocrat share price.

The analysts at Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) think there is a big upside from Aristocrat’s plans to launch iGaming in North America before the end of this year. It has two major customers lined up and has the opportunity to scale the business in what is believed to be a US$30 billion market in 2030.

Macquarie commented:

We take the view that Aristocrat has a strong opportunity for success, considering its market leading slot content, land-based customer relationships and the ability to tuck-in additional capability and product suites through M&A.

As context, we see an opportunity for Aristocrat to deliver A$6.00/sh upside under a bull-case scenario but for now include A$3.50/sh in our target price.

Both Goldman Sachs and Macquarie are recommending the Aristocrat share price as a buy. Goldman’s 12-month price target on the shares is $43 while Macquarie’s target is $44 a share.

The post Why the Aristocrat share price is surging again today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• Here are the top 10 ASX shares today
• 3 ASX 200 shares defying today’s carnage to climb higher
• Why Aristocrat, Arafura, Calix, and Strike Energy shares are charging higher

Motley Fool contributor Brendon Lau has positions in Aristocrat Leisure Ltd. and Macquarie Group Limited. 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 Macquarie Group Limited. 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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It has been another busy week for Australia’s top brokers. This has led to the release of a large number of broker notes.

Three broker buy ratings that you might want to know more about are summarised below. Here’s why brokers think these ASX shares are in the buy zone:

Aristocrat Leisure Limited (ASX: ALL)

According to a note out of Citi, its analysts have retained their buy rating but trimmed their price target on this gaming technology company’s shares to $41.00. This follows the release of a half-year result that smashed the broker’s estimates thanks to strength from its land-based businesses. Pleasingly, Citi believes that Aristocrat’s strong market position is sustainable and continues to forecast further solid earnings growth in the coming years. The Aristocrat share price is trading at $35.21 on Friday.

Goodman Group (ASX: GMG)

A note out of Credit Suisse reveals that its analysts have retained their outperform rating on this industrial property company’s shares with a $24.05 price target. Credit Suisse was pleased to see Goodman increases its earnings per share growth guidance to 23% for FY 2022. Looking ahead, the broker continues to forecast solid earnings growth in the coming years, noting that there is good visibility on the company’s future earnings thanks to its work in progress pipeline. The Goodman share price is fetching $19.37 today.

Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB)

Another note out of Citi reveals that its analysts have retained their buy rating and lifted their price target on this online travel agent’s shares to $6.75. While the broker expects volatility to remain as we come out the pandemic, it takes comfort that the business is trending in the right direction. Furthermore, Citi is very optimistic on Webjet’s potential in the US market and suspects the market could rerate its shares to higher multiples as it grows in the massive market. The Webjet share price is trading at $6.02 on Friday afternoon.

The post Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why the Aristocrat share price is surging again today
• Webjet share price tipped to rise: Broker says it ‘hasn’t wasted a crisis’
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• Here are the top 10 ASX shares today
• 3 ASX 200 shares defying today’s carnage to climb higher

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 Webjet Ltd. 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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