The Arena REIT (ASX: ARF) share price is in focus after the real estate investment trust provided an update on the administration process for tenant Edge Early Learning. Arena is currently receiving rent on all 27 centres it owns and leases to Edge, with major developments underway regarding future lease arrangements.

What did Arena REIT report?

• Goodstart Early Learning has entered into a conditional agreement to acquire 31 business operations from Edge Early Learning.
• 20 of Arena’s 27 Edge-leased centres are included in the proposed transaction.
• Rent continues to be received on all 27 Arena-owned Edge centres.
• Arena holds bank guarantees and security deposits of approximately $4 million for the Edge portfolio.
• Due diligence and final agreements on lease assignments are in progress.

What else do investors need to know?

Arena says the proposed transfer of Edge centres to Goodstart is still subject to ongoing due diligence and final agreement between all parties. Arena is actively involved in reviewing the transaction as it decides whether to consent to the assignment of leases.

The sale of Edge’s remaining 33 centres, which includes seven still leased from Arena, is being pursued separately. Arena is engaging closely with the appointed Administrator and has reassured investors it continues to proactively seek the best long-term outcome for its securityholders.

What’s next for Arena REIT?

Arena REIT will provide another update once there is more certainty regarding the outcomes of the lease assignments and the future of the remaining Edge-operated centres. The company continues to reserve all legal rights concerning the portfolio, underlining a measured approach as it works to protect investors’ interests.

The group will maintain its focus on maximising long-term value across its social infrastructure real estate and intends to keep engaging constructively with all stakeholders as the process unfolds.

Arena REIT share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Arena REIT shares have declined 38%, trailing the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which has declined 3% over the same period.

View Original Announcement

The post Arena REIT shares in focus as Edge Early Learning lease update issued appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• 6 ASX REITs just hit 52-week lows. Do any brokers say buy?
• 15 ASX shares going ex-dividend next week
• How much superannuation do I need to earn $1,000 per week in passive income?

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.

Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1) shares have had an extraordinary run in 2026.

The stock is trading around $21.12 on Wednesday, up over 75% for the year after investors responded enthusiastically to a string of major artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure deals.

Does this mean Megaport shares are one of the ASX stocks to own for the AI boom?

Megaport has become a different business

For years, Megaport was primarily a connectivity story. Its network enables businesses to connect quickly across data centres, cloud providers, and other digital infrastructure worldwide.

I still think the business has a strong future as companies use more cloud services and move greater amounts of data between different locations.

But the acquisition of Latitude.sh has added a completely new dimension.

Latitude.sh gives Megaport direct exposure to AI compute through GPU and CPU infrastructure. Instead of simply connecting customers to the infrastructure they need, Megaport can now provide some of that computing capacity itself.

That puts the company closer to the enormous spending currently taking place around artificial intelligence.

And early demand suggests the opportunity could be substantial.

Megaport recently announced three additional strategic AI infrastructure contracts worth approximately $979 million, taking the value of strategic contracts announced since April to around $2.3 billion. Once those contracts are fully deployed, the company expects group annual recurring revenue to reach roughly $1.1 billion.

For me, that is when the AI story becomes much easier to take seriously.

Why AI inference could be important

Much of the attention around AI has focused on the enormous data centres required to train increasingly powerful models.

But models also require computing power every time somebody actually uses them. This is known as inference, and demand should increase as AI becomes embedded in more software, businesses, and everyday applications.

Bell Potter believes Megaport is particularly well placed here.

The broker recently described the company as offering “one of the few direct exposures on the ASX to a neocloud provider”, with particular exposure to growing inference demand.

Megaport is building a distributed compute network rather than trying to construct enormous AI data centres itself. That potentially gives it a more flexible way to participate as demand develops across different markets.

Its relationship with NVIDIA is another positive. NVIDIA recently named Megaport among the Australian partners it is working with to expand AI infrastructure, which Bell Potter believes could improve Megaport’s access to GPUs and help it win AI-native customers.

Bell Potter sees much more growth ahead

The scale of the earnings growth Bell Potter expects is striking.

The broker forecasts underlying EBITDA increasing from $77 million in FY26 to $329 million in FY27 and $726 million in FY28, with much of that growth supported by strategic contracts already being rolled out.

Bell Potter has consequently initiated coverage with a buy rating and a $27 price target.

From the current Megaport share price of around $21.12, that would represent potential upside of roughly 28%.

I would not buy purely because a broker has put a higher price target on the stock. But I think those forecasts help illustrate just how dramatically Megaport’s earnings profile could change if it successfully delivers the business already contracted.

What could go wrong?

There is plenty of execution required. Megaport has signed enormous contracts, but it now needs to deploy the infrastructure, secure the necessary hardware, and turn those agreements into recurring revenue and profits.

AI infrastructure is also evolving extremely quickly. Competition could increase, technology could change, and today’s exceptionally strong demand may not develop exactly as investors currently expect.

After the share price rally this year, expectations are also much higher. Any delays or weaker contract momentum could produce some sharp volatility.

Foolish takeaway

I think Megaport shares are among the most compelling ways to gain direct exposure to AI infrastructure on the ASX.

I would be comfortable buying shares around $21.12, provided I was prepared for a bumpy ride as this much larger business takes shape.

The post Are Megaport shares a must-buy for the AI boom? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 3 ASX 200 shares I’d buy and hold for the next decade
• Buy, hold, sell: Megaport, Northern Star, Woolworths shares
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy next week
• Tech shares shine while ASX 200 plunges to 4-month low
• 3 ASX 200 shares I would buy and hold for 10 years

Motley Fool contributor Grace Alvino 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 Megaport and Nvidia. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Capricorn Metals Ltd (ASX: CMM) recently reported first-quarter gold production results, which piqued the interest of the analyst team at Barrenjoey.

The Barrenjoey team has a bullish price target on Capricorn shares, after the company reported better-than-expected gold production for the quarter.

I’ll get to the specifics of that price target shortly, but first, let’s look at what the company reported.

Ramping up gold production

Capricorn said it had produced 31,218 ounces of gold from its Karlawinda gold project, up from 30,437 ounces in the previous quarter, while construction of the Karlawinda expansion project was successfully completed on schedule and within budget.

The company said it was now on track to produce 137,000 to 147,000 ounces of gold at an all-in sustaining cost of $1,900 to $2,100 per ounce in FY27.

Capricorn’s cash and gold on hand at the end of the September quarter was $535 million, up from $507 million at the end of the June quarter.

Development activities at the company’s Mt Gibson gold project also progressed, with detailed engineering complete and all major contracts finalised.

Analysts like the growth story

Barrenjoey said in their research report that the solid results during the quarter were an example of the company’s ability to execute well.

They added that Capricorn had bigger things planned:

CMM has made clearer its growth agenda unveiling a new business plan, which includes a production target of ~410koz in FY31, a large uplift on the 124koz delivered in FY26 and a prior business plan target of ~300kozpa. This growth is to come from an expansion of Karlawinda (to 150kozpa) and delivery of the Mt Gibson project (now ~260kozpa; prior business plan was ~150kozpa). This growth is projected to be high margin, with the prefeasibility study outlining all-in sustaining costs of less than $2000 per ounce.

Barrenjoey said the growth projects would be funded through cash.

They added:

We do not think this growth agenda is fully priced in, with the market at face value pricing in a discount for execution risk. We have high regard for the ability of management to execute, which has again been demonstrated this quarter, with the Karlawinda mill expansion commissioned on schedule and ramping up well. We think CMM looks attractive, with the share price a ~30% discount to our net present value.

Barrenjoey said Capricorn was trading at a higher multiple than many of its peers, but they believed this was justified by its robust growth pipeline.

The broker has a price target of $22.50 for Capricorn shares, compared with the current price of $14.85.

This would constitute a 51.5% increase if achieved. The company is valued at $6.58 billion.

The post This up-and-coming ASX gold producer could rise more than 50%: Broker appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
• Capricorn Metals delivers solid Q1 gold output and expansion milestone
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• 6 ASX shares upgraded by experts amid a weak market 
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday

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 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.