Month: May 2022

The Altium Limited (ASX: ALU) share price has shed 30% of its value since the beginning of 2022.

Could the ASX tech share be an opportunity after its heavy decline? Or is it still too expensive?

What’s happening to the Altium share price?

The company has been headed lower as the sell-off among ASX growth shares has intensified.

There is much investor attention on inflation and how high interest rates are set to rise.

But why would interest rates have such an impact on asset valuations? Warren Buffett once described it effectively at a previous Berkshire Hathaway annual general meeting:

The value of every business, the value of a farm, the value of an apartment house, the value of any economic asset, is 100% sensitive to interest rates because all you are doing in investing is transferring some money to somebody now in exchange for what you expect the stream of money to be, to come in over a period of time, and the higher interest rates are the less that present value is going to be. So every business by its nature … its intrinsic valuation is 100% sensitive to interest rates.

Central banks around the world are considering ramping interest rates higher to try to tame rampant inflation.

In that environment, Altium announced its FY22 half-year result, its biggest announcement for the year so far.

Earnings wrap

In the six months to 31 December 2021, Altium reported revenue rose by 28% to US$102 million. It revealed 105% Octopart revenue growth to US$22 million, thanks partly to tailwinds from the global electronic parts shortage.

It’s increasing its annual recurring revenue (ARR). For the half, ARR grew by 43%. Recurring revenue is now 74% of total revenue compared to 65% in the same period last year

Altium 365 is seen as a key part of the company’s future – it’s the company’s online platform offering. When the company reported, it said that it had 19,700 monthly active users (up 54% since August 2021).

The underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) margin improved from 30.6% to 34.1%.

Altium upgraded its revenue guidance for FY22 to the high end of the range. Its revenue for FY22 is expected to be between US$213 million to US$217 million – representing growth of between 18% to 20%. ARR growth is expected to be between 23% to 27%.

Industry goals

The company has a number of high-profile customers including Tesla, Mercedes Benz, Google/Alphabet, SpaceX, NASA, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Amazon, Disney, Apple, Microsoft, and many more.

Altium says that it’s “well positioned to disrupt the way electronic products are designed and manufactured”. The electronic PCB software business also said that electronics are at the heart of all intelligent systems.

Over the long-term, Altium wants to reach 100,000 subscribers and US$500 million of revenue.

Is the Altium share price a buy?

Citi currently rates the business as ‘neutral’ but it sees upside with the Altium share price with a target price of $34. It’s optimistic about the Octopart segment of Altium.

The broker thinks the current Altium share price is valued at 51 times FY23’s estimated earnings.

The post Down 30% in 2022, is the Altium share price now a buy? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 2 excellent ASX shares to buy and hold for a decade
• Have ASX tech shares finally reached the bottom?
• The Altium share price has tumbled 27% in 2022, so what does this make the current dividend yield?
• Brokers name 2 ASX shares to buy after the tech selloff
• Here are 2 fantastic ASX growth shares analysts rate as buys

Citigroup is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in Altium. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Altium, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Tesla, and Walt Disney. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Alphabet (C shares) and Lockheed Martin and has recommended the following options: long January 2024 $145 calls on Walt Disney, long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple, short January 2024 $155 calls on Walt Disney, and short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Alphabet (C shares), Amazon, Apple, and Walt Disney. 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 Transurban Group (ASX: TCL) share price outperformed the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) on Monday. The ASX 200 fell 1.18% yesterday while Transurban shares managed a gain of 0.5%.

For readers who haven’t heard of Transurban, it’s a toll road business that builds and operates toll roads in Australia and North America. The weighted average concession life of Transurban’s roads is around 30 years.

It aims to balance growth in distributions over time and investment in new opportunities to increase long-term value.

Transurban released an investor update with comments about the current operating conditions.

West Gate Tunnel project

Transurban told investors about the progress it has made on its West Gate Tunnel project in Melbourne. When completed, the tunnel will be an alternative route to the West Gate Bridge. It will feature around 70km of new traffic lanes and connect to CityLink, another road operated by Transurban.

It’s expected to save up to 20 minutes per trip.

The first tunnel boring machine has excavated around 550m of the outbound tunnel. The second boring machine commenced tunnelling and excavated around 150m of the inbound tunnel.

More than 70% of the widening works on the West Gate Freeway have now been completed. The company also said that more than 600 metres of the new elevated roadway above Footscray Road has been built.

Transurban Traffic update

Transurban is expecting near-term and long-term traffic growth with the ongoing economic recovery after COVID-19 and new asset capacity. The lifting of the remaining government restrictions is expected to help.

Traffic changes can have an influence on the Transurban share price and profitability.

The company’s traffic stats showed that Easter traffic in Sydney and Brisbane was higher than in 2019. Indeed, consistent growth has been seen in these two cities since the beginning of March 2022.

However, in 2022 so far, Melbourne and North American traffic has largely been lower compared to 2019.

Transurban noted that airport-exposed roads were some of the most COVID-impacted, including Transurban roads in Sydney and Brisbane.

However, there are expectations for traffic to recover on airport corridors with the return of domestic and international travel.

Commercial traffic has been resilient, according to Transurban, thanks to e-commerce and construction. Large vehicle traffic has been relatively steady.

Transurban also points to the benefit of the public’s continued preference for private transport over public transport for daily use. The latest NSW public transport data shows public transport volumes down almost 60% compared to July 2019.

The company also said that a permanent and total shift away from the workplace is unlikely.

Fuel prices and inflation

There has been much market talk about the higher fuel prices. Transurban said that fuel price movements have “limited near-term influence on traffic volumes”. The business said that there are other factors that have more influence such as population growth, the employment rate, wage growth, and tourism levels.

However, Transurban acknowledged that over the longer-term, higher fuel prices may have a flow-on effect on the broader economic growth.

The toll road operator said that the average toll spend remains a “small” proportion of typical household expenditure, though it noted the cost of living pressure.

Transurban noted that it has inflation-linked toll escalations, which provide “protection in a rising interest rate environment and would likely result in a net benefit over the near term”.

Distribution

The Transurban FY22 distribution is expected to be in line with its ‘free cash’, excluding capital releases.

The post What drove the Transurban share price higher on Monday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 2 ASX dividend shares analysts have named as buys for income investors
• Own the Vanguard Australian Shares High Yield ETF? Here’s what you’re invested in
• 2 ASX 200 dividend shares to buy according to brokers
• Transurban shares are one of only a handful of ASX 200 stocks gaining today. What’s happening?
• Could this ASX 200 share be one of the best monopoly plays there is?

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison 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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If you’re looking for ASX shares to buy and hold, then you may want to consider the two listed below.

Both have been named as buys and tipped for big things in the future. Here’s what analysts are saying:

Altium Limited (ASX: ALU)

The first ASX share to look at is Altium. It is the technology company behind the Altium 365 and Altium Designer electronic design platforms, the Nexus collaboration platform, and the Octopart parts search engine.

This portfolio of businesses have positioned Altium perfectly to profit from the increasing demand for electronic design and related software due to the rapidly growing Internet of Things (IoT) and AI markets.

Bell Potter is a fan of Altium and believes it is well-placed for growth in the coming years. So much so, it has forecast net profit to more than double between FY 2021 and FY 2024 from $47 million to $105 million.

The broker has a buy rating and $41.25 price target on the company’s shares.

Lovisa Holdings Limited (ASX: LOV)

Another ASX share that could be a top buy and hold option is Lovisa. It has already been growing at a solid rate for a number of years but appears well-placed to continue this trend long into the future.

This is due to the company’s strong brand and bold global expansion plans.

The team at Morgans is very positive on Lovisa’s outlook and believe it “could prove to be one of the biggest success stories in Australian retail.”

The broker added: “With ambitious (and financially well-incentivised) new leadership in place, we think now is the time LOV steps up to become a global force. Investment will be needed to expand LOV’s network in the US and Europe and to take it into new markets, but the returns could be stellar.”

Morgans has an add rating and $24.00 price target on its shares.

The post 2 excellent ASX shares to buy and hold for a decade appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Have ASX tech shares finally reached the bottom?
• The Altium share price has tumbled 27% in 2022, so what does this make the current dividend yield?
• Brokers name 2 ASX shares to buy after the tech selloff
• Here are 2 fantastic ASX growth shares analysts rate as buys
• 3 ASX shares analysts believe have enormous growth potential

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 positions in and has recommended Altium. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Lovisa Holdings 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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Looking for growth shares to buy in May? Well, here’s some good news! Listed below are two growth shares that have recently been named as buys with major upside potential.

Here’s what you need to know about them:

Allkem Limited (ASX: AKE)

Allkem could be a growth share to buy in May. It is the top five global lithium mining company that was created with the merger of Galaxy Resources and Orocobre.

The company owns a collection of high-quality assets including Olaroz, Mt Cattlin, and the Sal de Vida brine project. This gives Allkem geographic diversity and also lithium type diversity.

Unlike the many explorers on the Australian share market that are some way off producing lithium, Allkem is already shipping it in large quantities. This is allowing the company to benefit from the sky high lithium prices being underpinned by the clean energy transition and the rapid adoption of electric vehicles.

Morgans is a big fan of Allkem and has an add rating and $16.98 price target on its shares. Based on the current Allkem share price, this implies potential upside of over 40%.

Xero Limited (ASX: XRO)

Another ASX growth share that has been tipped as a buy is Xero.

It is a leading cloud-based business and accounting software provider which had over 3 million subscribers globally at the last count.

As you may have noticed in 2022, tech shares are not performing very positively. And Xero is certainly no exception, with its shares down 38% since the start of the year.

While this is disappointing, it could be a buying opportunity for long term focused investors. In fact, Goldman Sachs believes Xero is a “compelling global growth story” and has recently reiterated its buy rating on its shares with a $133.00 price target.

Based on the current Xero share price, this implies potential upside of almost 48%.

The post Analysts rate these ASX growth shares as buys in May appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why are ASX tech shares having such a dire run on Monday?
• Why is the Xero share price sinking 6% today?
• 2 ASX lithium shares to buy in May 2022: brokers
• Here’s why ASX 200 tech shares are having such a stellar end to the week
• Why the Xero share price is a buy right now: experts

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Allkem Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Xero. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Xero. 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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Those that believe that COVID-19 is yesterday’s news should look at the Biotron Limited (ASX: BIT) share price today.

Shares in the small cap biotech jumped 37.5% to 9.9 cents each after reporting positive COVID-19 animal trial results today.

The company said that its lead clinical drug BIT225 protected mice that have SARS-CoV-2 from severe disease.

Bitotron share price jumps on more challenging test results

This test was trickier than an earlier one the company conducted. In the latest test, the mice were infected by SARS-CoV-2 up to 48 hours before being treated with BIT225.

In the earlier study, the mice were given BIT225 12 hours before being infected by SARS-CoV-2.

The second trial was more challenging as it had a higher hurdle to demonstrate the efficacy of the drug, according to Bitotron.

Why this animal trial matters

“The results are important as they provide key information that will assist in determining the dosing regimen for BIT225 in planned human clinical studies,” said the company in its ASX statement.

“The results further extend the robust in vivo data package that shows statistically and clinically significant efficacy of BIT225 in both treatment and prevention in murine models of COVID-19.”

Biotron’s management believes the effectiveness of BIT225 to treat and prevent severe cases of the highly contagious disease sets it apart from other treatments.

In fact, Biotron claims that this characteristic is a requirement for successful product development in this therapeutic area.

Details of Biotron’s latest mice trial

In all studies, BIT225 was tested in a human-adapted COVID-19 mouse model (K18-hACE2) that is routinely used to assess the ability of drugs to target SARS-CoV-2 and treat COVID-19 disease.

There were five mice in each of the pre-dose and post-dose groups. There was also a control group with the same number of mice.

In the groups that were treated with BIT225, all but one remained healthy and continued to gain weight as per age expectations through to Day 12 when the study was terminated. One of the five mice in the post-dose group died on Day 11 of the trial.

In the control group made up of untreated mice, all lost weight and died by day eight of the study. The company noted that there was less weight gain if BIT225 treatment was delayed. But the trend lines are statistically similar regardless of when the drug was used.

Next catalyst for the Biotron share price

BIT225 was tested in a human-adapted COVID-19 mouse model (K18-hACE2) that is routinely used to assess the ability of drugs to target SARS-CoV-2 and treat COVID-19 disease.

Bitotron has submitted a proposal to the US Food and Drug Administration to conduct a human clinical trial to assess the efficacy of BIT225 for the treatment of COVID-19.

The application was made under the Coronavirus Treatment Acceleration Program and Biotron’s management is expecting a response soon.

The post Biotron share price rockets 38% on COVID trial results appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• The CBA share price was the worst performer of the ASX 200 big banks in April. What happened?
• Worried about inflation? Here’s what Warren Buffett says Berkshire Hathaway is doing
• The top 2 cryptos of April unmasked
• Own ANZ shares? Here’s what to expect from the bank’s half-year results
• Why is the Webjet share price beating the ASX 200 today?

Motley Fool contributor Brendon Lau 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 S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) didn’t have a great month in April. Last month saw the flagship index go backwards by about 0.86%, not including the nasty falls we have seen today. But it was an even bleaker month for the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price. April saw CBA shares fall from $105.77 a share to $103.88, a fall of 1.8% or so, more than twice the fall of the ASX 200.

But what might stick even deeper in CBA investors’ craw is that CBA was the worst-performing ASX 200 big four bank share. CBA investors have long enjoyed the bank’s reputation as the best performing ASX bank share. But that was certainly not the case last month.

Take the National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB) share price. NAB shares ended April in the green with a rise of 0.87%. Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) shares didn’t do quite as well as that, but fell less than CBA did. It was a similar story with Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ).

So after a period of topping out the ASX bank sector, what went wrong with CBA shares last month?

Why was the CBA share price sold in April?

One possible explanation for this scenario comes from reporting in the Australian Financial Review (AFR) today. The report quoted analysis from investment bank and broker JP Morgan. JP Morgan noted that NAB is currently the “only big four bank stock that domestic fund managers have a ‘well held’ position in”. This, the broker suggests, might mean that “investors have less conviction in the other three majors, which rank as ‘underheld’”.

“This cooling on the banks follows a period of particularly strong performance, with the sector outperforming the ASX 200 and MSCI World Banks in the year-to-date,” the report quotes JP Morgan’s Jason Steed.

But many ASX brokers have been warning about possible falls in the value of the CBA share price for a while now. Just this week, broker Morgans has retained a ‘reduce’ rating on CBA shares. That came with a 12-month share price target of just $77. Part of Morgans’ pessimism on CBA shares is the view that they are overvalued at current levels.

So if the various commentary on CBA is to be believed, perhaps the bank might have a few more months of disappointing performance in front of it yet. But we shall have to wait and see what happens.

At the current CBA share price, this ASX 200 bank share has a market capitalisation of $175.33 billion. That comes with a dividend yield of 3.65%.

The post The CBA share price was the worst performer of the ASX 200 big banks in April. What happened? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why is the Webjet share price beating the ASX 200 today?
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Monday
• Can ASX 200 banks live up to the $11 billion ‘big expectation’ when they report this month?
• Why are ASX tech shares having such a dire run on Monday?
• The Pilbara Minerals share price just dropped 6%. Time to pounce?

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has positions in JPMorgan Chase and National Australia Bank Limited. JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. 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 Westpac Banking Corporation. 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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This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

Inflation is on the minds of investors, policymakers, and everyday Americans. We can feel it at the pump, at the grocery store, the post office, and even the barbershop. Since inflation is higher than the rate of economic growth, the real gross domestic product for the first quarter of 2022 decreased by 1.4% year over year. If we get another negative reading for the second quarter, the US economy will officially be in a recession.

Both Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger spoke about inflation at Berkshire Hathaway‘s (NYSE: BRK.A) (NYSE: BRK.B) annual shareholders’ meeting on Saturday. Here’s what the longtime chairman and vice chairman said and how they’re positioning Berkshire to ride out the storm.

An unavoidable consequence

Buffett and Munger both spoke negatively about the state of the economy due to inflation and how it is largely a result of loose fiscal and monetary policy. This policy artificially inflated demand and effectively caused a supply/demand imbalance — the cure for which was rising prices to try and lower demand. And now, the remedy seems to be raising interest rates to try and reduce demand. “We are seeing an unleashing of the fact that we just mailed a lot of money one way or another,” said Buffett.

However, Buffett and Munger view inflation as a necessary consequence to get the US out of what could have been a COVID-19 induced depression.

“We’ve had a lot of inflation, and it was almost impossible not to have it if you’re going give out the kind of money we gave out. And it’s probably a good thing we did it, in fact, I think at one point when the Federal Reserve was creating the money, if they hadn’t done it our lives would be worse, a whole lot worse. Now that was an important decision,” said Buffett.

In another exchange, Munger said, “It happened on a scale this time that we’ve never seen before. Those checks are just mailed out to everybody who claimed to have a business and claimed to have employees. They probably drowned the country in money for a while, and as you [Buffett] say, they probably had to do it.”

“In my book, Jay Powell [chair of the US Federal Reserve] is a hero,” Buffett responded. “It’s very simple, he did what he had to do.”

Find value wherever it’s available

One way of growing wealth during inflationary times is looking for opportunities that aren’t otherwise available. The trick is having plenty of experience looking for those opportunities in other economic conditions, too. “We depend on mispriced businesses through mechanisms where we aren’t responsible for the mispricing of them,” Buffett said.

Buffett surprised investors when he disclosed a roughly 9.5% stake in Activision Blizzard. The stake is worth about $6.2 billion as of Friday’s close. Buffett owned about $1 billion of Activision before Microsoft announced it would acquire it for $95 a share. Buffett then increased Berkshire’s position as a classic arbitrage opportunity under the assumption that Microsoft is a reliable buyer and would come through on the deal. That arbitrage opportunity is sizable, considering Activision Blizzard’s stock is currently $75.60 per share.

Buffet’s Activision Blizzard play is merely an old-school way of finding value in a challenging market. However, regular investors should probably steer clear of these kinds of investments, as the deal isn’t based on fundamentals and could fall through. You don’t want to end up owning a company you don’t understand and didn’t really want in the first place.

So what can you do?

Learn from Buffett’s actions

It’s all good and well to say that inflation is unavoidable. But the real question many investors are probably wondering about is how to position their portfolios for prolonged inflation.

First off, it’s important to remember that economic cycles are simply par for the course in a long investing career. Whether inflation is the cause of a sell-off or not is secondary. The bigger takeaway is that a bear market can create life-changing wealth for investors in companies with bright futures, positive cash flows, and durable balance sheets.

What Berkshire is showing through its actions is an increased buying appetite that we haven’t seen in years, which indicates Berkshire is finding value — mainly in the energy sector. In less than a year, oil and gas went from a minor allocation to a major one. Berkshire’s Chevron holding has pole-vaulted to its third-largest position, while Occidental Petroleum has been a top 10 holding since Berkshire increased its stake in February and March. Berkshire also took a stake in HP this year, and its acquisition of insurer Alleghany shows its classic value stock bent.

Chevron is known for its industry-leading balance sheet and a low cost of production that allows it to reach breakeven free cash flow even when oil is in the low $40s per barrel. Meanwhile, Occidental Petroleum is a much more aggressive spender and has a higher breakeven than Chevron. But its relatively high capital expenditures have paid off now that oil and gas prices are at eight-year highs. Meanwhile, Berkshire’s other major positions are in diversified large companies like Apple and Coca-Cola, which is one of the most recession-resistant and reliable sources of passive income on the market.

Treading carefully in a challenging market

All told, Buffett’s actions show that Berkshire is finding value in the market, more value than it has found in years. But that Berkshire isn’t just buying the dip on any company. It is selectively buying companies that are contributors to inflation (upstream producers like Occidental) or have relatively reliable cash flows and inexpensive valuations (like Chevron and HP).

For investors who don’t manage billions of dollars in assets, sticking with unstoppable stocks you’ll want in your corner if the market crashes can be a great way to rest easy at night and endure the gauntlet of a bear market.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post Worried about inflation? Here’s what Warren Buffett says Berkshire Hathaway is doing appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 3 lessons from what Buffett didn’t say at Berkshire Hathaway’s shareholder meeting
• Warren Buffett talks cash and more at Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting
• What Apple and Amazon said after hours Thursday
• Which ASX 200 shares have historically performed well during rising inflation?
• Why Apple stock could crush the market this earnings season

Daniel Foelber has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Activision Blizzard, Apple, Berkshire Hathaway (B shares), and Microsoft. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended the following options: long January 2023 $200 calls on Berkshire Hathaway (B shares), long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple, short January 2023 $200 puts on Berkshire Hathaway (B shares), short January 2023 $265 calls on Berkshire Hathaway (B shares), and short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Activision Blizzard, Apple, and Berkshire Hathaway (B shares). The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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Cryptos didn’t have the best of months in April.

In fact, running our slide rule over the data from CoinMarketCap, only four of the top 100 cryptos by market cap returned more than 1% to investors holding the tokens last month.

Meanwhile, 90 of the top 100 virtual coins finished April in the red.

Like we said, not a great month, overall.

Bitcoin sets the crypto tone for April

Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) set the broader tone, losing 17% over the 30-day period.

Bitcoin and the rest of the crypto market came under selling pressure as investors repositioned their holdings ahead of a series of expected interest rate hikes from the US Federal Reserve and other leading central banks.

That repositioning also saw the tech-heavy US Nasdaq shed 14% last month as investors shy away from risk assets.

With that gloom out of the way, here are the two best performing cryptos of April.

This altcoin gained 64% last month

The second best crypto to have held during April is Kyber Network Crystal (CRYPTO: KNC).

Kyber kicked off April trading for US$3.14 and rounded off the month worth US$5.16 for a gain of 64%.

Indicative of the continuing volatility in the crypto world, Kyber traded as low as US$2.88 last month and as high as $US5.72 on 28 April, which also marked its all-time high.

If you’re not familiar with Kyber, CoinMarketCap tells us it’s “a hub of liquidity protocols that aggregates liquidity from various sources to provide secure and instant transactions on any decentralised application (DApp)”.

Kyber has lost some ground in the first days of May, currently trading for US$4.56. That gives the crypto a market cap of US$880 million and ranks it as number 88 among the top 100 tokens.

Which brings us to…

April’s top crypto performer

The best performing crypto to have held in April is ApeCoin (CRYPTO: APE).

ApeCoin was trading for US$12.79 early on 1 April and finished the month trading for US$24.21, an impressive gain of 89%.

Also highly volatile, ApeCoin traded for as low as US$10.57 in April and reached highs of US$26.91.

The first two days of May haven’t been as kind to investors in ApeCoin, with the token retracing to US$17.08 at the time of writing. That’s down 57% from the record highs hit on 17 March.

So, what is ApeCoin?

According to CoinMarketCap, “ApeCoin is an ERC-20 governance and utility token used within the APE Ecosystem to empower and incentivize a decentralized community building at the forefront of web3.”

At the current price, ApeCoin has a market cap of US$4.8 billion, making it the number 29 crypto in virtual circulation.

The post The top 2 cryptos of April unmasked appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• What happened with the Bitcoin price in April?
• Why Shiba Inu, Ethereum, and Dogecoin are sinking today
• Crypto king Bitcoin to be dethroned by this hot rival: experts
• Bitcoin will be worth $590,000 by 2030: experts
• Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Cardano are turning it around today. Here’s why

The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Bitcoin. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Bitcoin. 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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All eyes will be on Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ) shares this week when the banking giant releases its half-year results.

Ahead of the release on Wednesday, let’s take a look at what the market is expecting.

What is the market expecting from ANZ’s first half results?

According to a note out of Goldman Sachs, its analysts are expecting the market to be focusing a lot on the bank’s margins.

In light of this, investors may want to pay close attention to ANZ’s net interest margin (NIM), which the broker expects to come in at 1.56%. This will be down 9 basis points versus the second half of FY 2021.

Goldman also suggests investors pay “attention to management expectation around its leverage to higher cash rates.”

What about ANZ’s profits and dividends?

The note reveals that Goldman expects ANZ to deliver a pre-provisioning operating profit of $4,270 million and cash earnings of $2,971 million for the half. This will be down 4.2% and 7.4%, respectively, from the second half of FY 2021.

Anything materially better (or worse) than these estimates could have a say in the direction ANZ shares take on Wednesday.

Finally, the broker has pencilled in a fully franked interim dividend of 72 cents per share for the period. This will be up 2.9% on the prior corresponding period and flat on ANZ’s final dividend of FY 2021.

Are ANZ shares in the buy zone?

Goldman Sachs sees plenty of value in ANZ shares at the current level. The note reveals that its analysts have a buy rating and $32.74 price target on the bank’s shares.

Based on the current ANZ share price of $27.32, this implies a potential return of 20% for investors over the next 12 months before dividends. This stretches to over 25% if you include them.

The post Own ANZ shares? Here’s what to expect from the bank’s half-year results appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 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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Bullish updates from travel-related ASX shares are putting the wind beneath the wings of the Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) share price today.

The Webjet share price is up 1.16 at the time of writing, to $6.10, while the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is diving 1.24%.

A trading update from Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) is exciting Webjet shareholders. The airline reported a significant rebound in free cash flow. That’s thanks to strong demand for travel following the easing of international border restrictions.

Webjet share price riding higher on Qantas’ jetstream

The pickup in sales prompted Qantas to forecast a return to profitability. The airline still expects underlying earnings before interest and tax for FY22 to be in the red. However, underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) is tilled to come in at between $450 million and $550 million.

The improved cash position plus the return of the travel bug was enough to convince Qantas to purchase 12 Airbus A350s. The acquisition is part of its Project Sunrise program. The new aircraft will enable Qantas to offer direct flights to Europe and the United States from any city in Australia.

“The board’s decision to approve what is the largest aircraft order in Australian aviation is a clear vote of confidence in the future of the Qantas Group,” said Qantas CEO Alan Joyce.

“The phasing of this order means it can be funded within our debt range and through earnings, while still leaving room for shareholder returns in line with our financial framework.”

More good news for the Webjet share price

What’s good for the goose is good for the gander. Investors are betting that the pent-up demand for international travel will be a tailwind for the Webjet share price too.

Better still, Qantas isn’t the only one in the sector that provided an upbeat assessment for the industry.

The Helloworld Travel Ltd (ASX: HLO) share price is also taking off today after the company released its quarterly update.

Earnings jump as travel rebounds

The travel agent said that total transaction value (TTV) in the recent quarter jumped 60% over the same time last year. TTV for the quarter ending 31 March 2022 was $419 million.

Revenue also increased by 52% to $22.8 million. While EBITDA loss narrowed to $1.9 million from $4 million over the period.

“International travel has resumed, and confidence is returning as travelers book with longer lead times and higher average spend,” said Helloworld in its ASX statement.

“Based on retail, wholesale and inbound booking intakes across the first three months of 2022 we expect a rapid improvement in revenues across the coming months.”

Clear skies ahead

But there was another big move signalling that international travel is about to make a big comeback. Regional Express Holdings Ltd (ASX: REX) announced its intention to partner with Delta Air Lines.

The airlines are aiming to sign a deal that would allow reciprocal ticketing and baggage services. The Rex and Delta connectivity is due to commence in the third quarter of 2022.

There are high hopes that all the good news will translate to further gains for Webjet. The Webjet share price has jumped over 20% over the past year.

The post Why is the Webjet share price beating the ASX 200 today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Brendon Lau has positions in Webjet Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Helloworld Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Helloworld Limited. 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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