Pro Medicus Ltd (ASX: PME) shares closed the day up around 3% on Wednesday afternoon, at $184.83.

The increase means the shares have now jumped 13% over the past week alone. The latest rally has helped recoup some of the losses shed by the company over the past 12 months. But they’re still down 17% for the year-to-date and 36% lower than 12 months ago.

Why is everyone rushing to buy Pro Medicus shares this week?

The ASX healthcare company has come into focus this week after it announced two new seven-year contract wins.

On Monday, Pro Medicus announced its wholly owned US subsidiary, Visage Imaging, had signed a A$24 million contract with Billings Clinic – Logan Health in the US. The implementation will see Visage 7’s entire platform integrated, including image distribution within the client’s electronic health record system. Rollout planning is underway, aiming for a go-live date in early 2027.

The announcement was followed by news of a second contract deal on Wednesday. Pro Medicus announced a A$43 million contract with Virtua Health, also in the United States, for a unified imaging platform comprising Visage 7 Viewer, Workflow, Open Archive, and Cardiology products. Planning is underway and with a go-live date in around the second or third quarter of the 2027 calendar year. 

The announcements have clearly been well received by investors. 

The new contract wins continue a strong run of major client acquisitions and contract renewals this year.

They also come at a time when the broader healthcare sector is continuing to rebound after a difficult first-half to the calendar year.

Are the shares a buy, sell, or hold after the latest rally?

Most experts are still very optimistic about the outlook for Pro Medicus shares over the next 12 months.

TradingView data shows that the majority (nine out of 15) have a buy/strong buy rating on the shares. Another five rate the stock a hold, and one has a strong sell rating.

The average $212.74 target price sits around 15% above the trading price at the time of writing, implying a decent upside ahead over the next 12 months.

Some are even more optimistic and forecast the shares to jump up to 35% higher to $250 each within the next year, at the time of writing.

Citi recently renewed its buy rating on the shares with a $225 target.

The team at Morgans also think Pro Medicus shares are in the buy zone. They upgraded their rating to a buy with a $230 price target following its contract wins. The team commented that while the individual contracts in FY27 are modest, they’re consistent in size, term, and scope. This helps to broaden the company’s pipeline beyond large integrated delivery networks.

The post Up 13%: Why is everyone buying Pro Medicus shares this week? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Pro Medicus: $43m US contract boosts outlook
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
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• Pro Medicus signs A$24M US deal

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

Judo Capital Holdings Ltd (ASX: JDO) shares copped a hiding earlier this year when the company downgraded earnings expectations and upped provisions for bad debts.

The shares have failed to recover since, and are down about 45% on a 12-month basis.

Time for Judo Capital shares to rerate?

It will be heartening, then, that three separate brokers are tipping solid share price gains for the small-business bank following the company’s annual general meeting this week.

And why are they so optimistic about the company’s fortunes?

In the words of the Macquarie analysts, “no news is good news”.

By this they meant that there was no more bad news coming out of the company which could send the share price even further south.

While Judo’s trading update delivered at the AGM was unremarkable, if not a bit soft, it was at least not negative, Macquarie said.

They added:

While the messaging in JDO’s 1Q27 trading update pointed to some softer trends and a more cautious growth outlook, we see no major new negative catalyst, which is a positive given current expectations and recent share price weakness. Conditions have softened since the FY26 results, including higher arrears and lower capital, but we suspect this is largely expected by investors given recent share price weakness, and off-balance sheet activities remain available for JDO.

Macquarie made the point that the economic outlook remains uncertain, so it was difficult to extrapolate the trading update across the rest of the financial year.

They added:

While the “caution from SMEs” that was flagged into today’s trading update was already factored into the previous guidance, growth could be somewhat slower than JDO’s recent run-rate.

Macquarie said credit quality remained a near-term concern; however, the underlying revenue trend for the business appeared sound.

Brokers unanimous that Judo Capital shares will improve

The team at Morgans said the valuation of Judo was compelling at current prices “given the strong growth outlook”.

They added:

Given our discounted cash flow valuation as the base case scenario and zero equity value as the downside scenario, we estimate the share price is implying c.23% probability of failure. This looks unreasonable given the common equity tier 1 strength. JDO is a challenger bank with pure-play exposure to the SME business banking space (leveraging a relationship-driven customer proposition) and a rapidly growing online deposit franchise. We expect earnings growth to be at strong double-digit rates across FY27-29.

Morgans said Judo was higher risk than the larger banks, but investors were compensated with higher potential returns.

Morgans has a price target of $1.44 on Judo shares, while Macquarie has a price target of $1.65. Morgan Stanley has a price target of $1.30.

Judo shares are currently changing hands for 94 cents. The company is valued at $1.04 billion.

The post How high do brokers think Judo Capital shares will soar? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Cameron England 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 Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Regis Healthcare vs Ryman Healthcare shares: Which ASX small cap has more upside?

Investors on the hunt for turnaround potential in the aged care sector might be weighing up Regis Healthcare Ltd (ASX: REG) and Ryman Healthcare Ltd (ASX: RYM) shares. Both are well-known operators in residential aged care and retirement living, but each tells a different story when it comes to valuation, dividends, and recent momentum. If you’re searching for which beaten down small cap has the better shot at a true bounce-back, here’s how the fundamentals stack up.

The case for Regis Healthcare

Regis Healthcare is a major player in Australian aged care, chiefly focused on residential aged care services. Apart from its core aged care facilities, Regis also offers retirement villages, home care, and a variety of day therapy and respite programs. Founded in 1994 and based in Melbourne, Regis has built a strong reputation for providing specialist care for seniors across the country.

A few fundamentals stand out. Regis Healthcare currently sports a market cap of $1.39 billion and a P/E ratio of 24.86. While that’s not rock-bottom, it could be seen as fair given the sector. Notably, the company has delivered a fully franked dividend yield of 4.03%, which is quite attractive for income-minded investors. YTD, though, the shares have underperformed, with a painful -31.6% return. Recent dividends have bounced back to 100% franking, after a spell of partial franking in earlier years—a positive for those relying on franking credits.

The case for Ryman Healthcare

Ryman Healthcare is a New Zealand-headquartered provider of integrated retirement living, with operations in both New Zealand and Australia. Ryman develops and manages large retirement villages, offering everything from independent living through to rest home, hospital, and dementia care. Ryman’s model has long emphasised a full spectrum of care, designed to let residents “age in place”.

Looking at the fundamentals, Ryman is slightly larger by market cap ($1.50 billion), but it’s currently in tougher financial shape. There’s no P/E ratio available, and the latest reported EPS is negative (-0.615), suggesting it’s running at a loss. The year to date return is even bleaker than Regis: the shares have fallen -42.4%. Ryman hasn’t paid a dividend according to the available data, and there’s no info on franking, reinforcing its current focus on stabilising the business rather than rewarding shareholders.

Valuation comparison

There’s a notable divergence in how the market is pricing these two aged care shares, particularly when it comes to earnings and yield.

Metric	Regis Healthcare	Ryman Healthcare
Market Cap	$1.39 billion	$1.50 billion
P/E Ratio	24.86	N/A
Earnings per Share (EPS)	$0.184	-$0.615
Dividend Yield	4.03% (100% franked)	0.00%
Year to Date Return	-31.60%	-42.38%

Regis is profitable, offering a fully franked yield, while Ryman is loss-making and not paying dividends at all. Note: Ryman Healthcare’s reported P/E ratio is “N/A” because its latest earnings are negative.

Recent share price momentum

Comparing recent share price performance up to 16 October 2026:

• As of 16 October 2026, Regis Healthcare closed at $4.50, having shown some intraday recovery recently but down heavily over the year.
• As of 16 October 2026, Ryman Healthcare finished at $1.47, reflecting its own volatility, but with a steeper annual decline than Regis.
• Year to date, Regis is down -31.6%, while Ryman has fallen -42.4%.

Both stocks have experienced significant downward momentum this year. However, Ryman has fallen from a higher base and lost a greater percentage of its value.

Which is the better buy?

For investors looking for a beaten-down small cap with true “double from the bottom” potential, I’d lean toward Regis Healthcare. Here’s why: Regis remains profitable, pays a fully franked dividend, and maintains a clear pathway to recovery if operating conditions stabilise. Yes, its P/E is higher than value hunters might like, and its 31.6% share price fall is rough—yet it’s still generating earnings and rewarding shareholders today.

Ryman Healthcare, on the other hand, is battling through losses, has suspended its dividend, and its shares have fallen even further. While deep turnarounds can deliver outsized rewards, I think the additional uncertainty and the lack of ongoing income tilt the risk/reward too far for my taste.

In short, although both companies look deeply out of favour right now, if I were betting on which could double from here, my pick would be Regis Healthcare. Its underlying profitability, dividend history, and Australian market exposure give me more confidence in a rebound from current levels.

The post Regis Healthcare vs Ryman Healthcare: Which under-the-radar ASX small-cap could double from here? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Laura Stewart 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. This article was prepared with the assistance of Large Language Model (LLM) tools for the initial draft. Any content assisted by AI is subject to our robust human-in-the-loop quality control framework, involving thorough review, substantial editing, and fact-checking by our experienced writers and editors holding appropriate credentials. The Motley Fool Australia stands behind the work of our editorial team and takes ultimate responsibility for the content published by The Motley Fool Australia.