The Genesis Minerals Ltd (ASX: GMD) share price is in focus after the company announced it will merge with Vault Minerals Ltd (ASX: VAU) to create a new Australian gold major, boasting a pro-forma market capitalisation of $12.6 billion and combined gold production of 600–700koz per year.

What did Genesis Minerals report?

• Genesis and Vault to merge via a scheme of arrangement, forming one of Australia’s top three gold miners
• Pro-forma market capitalisation of around $12.6 billion, with $611 million net cash
• Combined Ore Reserves of 9.4 million ounces and Mineral Resources of 33.6 million ounces
• Expected annual gold production of 600–700 thousand ounces, all in Western Australia
• Vault shareholders to receive 0.7629 Genesis shares and $0.475 cash for every Vault share

What else do investors need to know?

The merged group will consolidate a range of complementary assets, giving it dominant scale in the Leonora-Laverton gold district. Both Genesis and Vault boards fully back the proposal, which offers Vault shareholders an immediate premium and access to the larger group’s growth pipeline.

Operationally, the merger aims to unlock around $2.0 billion in post-tax cost synergies and capital savings over 10 years. These savings are mainly driven by optimising milling, mining, and processing facilities between the two companies’ regional assets.

The deal is expected to reach implementation by November 2026, pending customary court, regulatory, and shareholder approvals.

What did Genesis Minerals management say?

We’re bringing together two high quality gold businesses, delivering strong shareholder alignment, operational flexibility and the scale required to compete globally.

What’s next for Genesis Minerals?

After the merger, Genesis and Vault will operate as a single entity led by an experienced team, with Genesis shareholders holding about 60% ownership and Vault shareholders about 40%. The group plans to focus on production growth, exploration, and accelerating the development of high-potential assets in its expanded portfolio.

A key priority will be completing the integration and pursuing identified cost synergies, especially in the Leonora-Laverton region. Management also expects to provide a group-wide updated production and growth outlook in the second half of 2027.

Genesis Minerals share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Genesis Minerals shares have risen 43%, outperforming the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which has risen 3% over the same period.

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The post Genesis Minerals and Vault to merge, forming new Australian gold major 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 summary of the company announcement. 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.

Space Exploration Technologies Corp (NASDAQ: SPCX) shares have had an extraordinary first month.

Shares were issued at US$135 before listing on 12 June, and the stock climbed well above US$200, pushing the valuation above US$2 trillion.

Since then, SpaceX shares have come back down to earth. Although, the company was then fast-tracked into the NASDAQ-100 Index (NASDAQ: NDX) in early July, approximately 15 trading days after listing.

Analysts remain bullish.

For ASX investors, that matters more than most realise, because a large number of Australians now own a piece of SpaceX without having made any decision to buy it.

Reasons to remain bullish on SpaceX shares

The core of the bull case is Starlink.

According to SpaceX’s S-1 filing with the SEC, the Starlink connectivity segment generated US$11.4 billion in revenue in 2025. The segment delivered US$4.4 billion in operating income, representing year-on-year growth of 49.8% and 120.4%, respectively.

Starlink served 10.3 million subscribers across 164 countries as at 31 March 2026, up from just 2.3 million in 2023.

This is a business growing at extraordinary speed with a defensible moat. Launching a satellite constellation of that scale requires launch capability that almost no competitor possesses.

The Nasdaq-100 inclusion added a further mechanical tailwind. This will force index-tracking funds worldwide to buy SpaceX regardless of any individual portfolio manager’s view on valuation.

Betashares Space Industry ETF

The Betashares Space Industry ETF (ASX: RCKT) is the most direct ASX exposure.

SpaceX has already been included in RCKT following the fund’s fast-track inclusion feature. This allowed it to enter the Solactive Space Industry Index far more quickly than standard timelines would permit.

SpaceX now accounts for approximately 27% of the RCKT portfolio, making it the fund’s single-largest holding by a wide margin.

That concentration deserves a closer look. RCKT is no longer a diversified space economy fund in any meaningful sense.

It is now, in effect, a SpaceX fund with 28 other holdings attached, and its performance will be dominated by what SPCX does from here.

Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF

The Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ) is where most Australians now own SpaceX without having chosen to.

NDQ is one of the most widely held ETFs in Australia, and SpaceX’s Nasdaq-100 inclusion means every NDQ holder automatically gained SpaceX exposure when the index inclusion took effect.

The same applies to holders of the Vanguard MSCI International Shares ETF (ASX: VGS) and the iShares S&P 500 ETF (ASX: IVV). What’s more, the millions of Australians whose superannuation funds hold international shares benchmarked against major US indices have also gained exposure.

For most investors, that exposure will be small relative to the overall portfolio.

But it exists, automatically, without any further action required.

The risk worth understanding for SpaceX shares

SpaceX is not a conventionally profitable company.

The company posted a GAAP net loss of US$4.94 billion in 2025, driven by losses in the xAI and Space divisions that offset Starlink’s profitability.

A company trading above US$2 trillion with significant GAAP losses is a demanding proposition, even for investors genuinely excited by the long-term opportunity.

The mechanical index buying that has supported the share price since listing was a one-time event, not a permanent support mechanism.

Furthermore, SpaceX bonds issued shortly after the IPO have reportedly sold off to levels comparable with junk-rated borrowers.

This is despite investment-grade ratings, a warning sign that the debt market is less enthusiastic than the equity market.

Foolish Takeaway for SpaceX shares

Analysts remain bullish on SpaceX shares, and Starlink’s growth justifies significant optimism.

But for ASX investors, the more important point is that ownership of SpaceX is now largely automatic rather than chosen.

RCKT holders own it heavily, at around 26% of the fund.

NDQ, VGS, and IVV holders own it passively.

Understanding how much exposure you actually have to SpaceX is perhaps a more useful exercise than debating whether to buy it.

The post Analysts are still bullish on SpaceX shares after Nasdaq inclusion. Here is what that means for ASX investors appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Mark Verhoeven 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 BetaShares Nasdaq 100 ETF and iShares S&P 500 ETF. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended BetaShares Nasdaq 100 ETF. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Vanguard Msci Index International Shares ETF and iShares S&P 500 ETF. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

There are so many ASX shares Aussies can buy, as share prices fluctuate constantly. Some can end up being significantly undervalued, based on analyst opinions.

Company updates can change investor confidence , while sell-offs can unlock ideas for opportunistic Aussies.

Analysts regularly tells investors about price targets, which explains to us where the share price could be in 12 months from the time of that investment call.

Let’s look at two ASX shares with a potentially exciting future.

Judo Capital Holdings Ltd (ASX: JDO)

Judo is a financial institution that provides loans to small and medium enterprises (SMEs), with term deposits being a key source of funding. Term deposit customers include SMSFs, individuals and businesses.

The company recently said its FY26 cost-to-risk is expected to be in the range of between $116 million to $122 million because of three exposures across different sectors as a result of customer-specific developments.

Even so, Judo still expects its FY26 profit before tax (PBT) to be between $163 million to $169 million, or approximately 30% growth compared to FY25.

The company also expects FY27 PBT to be between $210 million to $220 million, which would be a 30% rise as a result of growth and operating leverage despite this period of uncertainty.

According to CMC Invest, there have been 10 ratings on the business within the last three months, with eight of those being a buy and two being a hold. Of those 10 ratings, the average price target is $1.63, which implies a possible rise of 77% from where it is at the time of writing.                                                                         

Nextdc Ltd (ASX: NXT)

Another ASX share that has attracted a lot of positive attention is Nextdc, a business that builds, owns and operates data centres in a number of Australian cities. It also has a growing number of locations overseas, including Japan, Malaysia and New Zealand.

The business is investing heavily in data centres to provide the computing infrastructure feeding global demand for AI.

Nextdc is seeing this period as a great time to heavily invest, and it’s also seeing a rapid increase in the contracted utilisation. In mid-April, the company upgraded its contracted utilisation by 60% to 667MW and it also upgraded its FY26 capital expenditure guidance range to between $2.7 billion to $3 billion.

According to CMC Invest, there have been eight broker ratings on the business in the last three months, with all of those being a buy. The average price target of those eight analysts is $20.41, which implies a possible rise of 46%.

These are both businesses growing profit rapidly, though there are other ASX shares that could be even better buys.

The post 2 ASX shares tipped to grow 45% or more in the next 12 months appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• SK Hynix IPOs in the US. Here’s what that means for ASX investors
• NEXTDC boosts funding with $2.3 billion senior debt facility upsize
• 9 ASX 200 shares downgraded by analysts this week
• 3 ASX 200 shares with 50% to 100% upside in FY27
• Buy, hold, sell: CAR Group, Judo Capital, and Worley shares

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.