In early afternoon trade the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to end the week on a disappointing note. The benchmark index is currently down 0.5% to 5,522.9 points.

Four shares that have not let that hold them back are listed below. Here’s why they are pushing higher:

The Aristocrat Leisure Limited (ASX: ALL) share price is up 2% to $26.60. The catalyst for this gain appears to be a broker note out of Citi this morning. Although the gaming technology company fell short of its expectations in the first half, it remains positive on its future prospects. So much so, it has retained its buy rating and lifted the price target on its shares to $30.10.

The Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) share price is up almost 2% to $44.75. Investors have been buying this payments company’s shares this week after it revealed very strong customer growth in the United States. According to its update, two years after launching in the country, it has 5 million active U.S. customers on its platform. Impressively, 1 million of these customers were added in the last 10 weeks during the pandemic.

The Corporate Travel Management Ltd (ASX: CTD) share price is up 5.5% to $11.69. Investors have been buying a number of travel booking shares on Friday despite there being no news out of them. Investors may be hopeful that the potential development of a successful vaccine could unlock global borders and accelerate the recovery of international tourism.

The Sydney Airport Holdings Pty Ltd (ASX: SYD) share price is up 1.5% to $5.67. This follows the release of its virtual annual general meeting presentation this morning. That presentation revealed that the airport operator has no plans to raise equity in the near future. The company also confirmed there will be no interim distribution in FY 2020. Looking ahead, it will be waiting for clarity on the path to recovery before confirming future distribution plans.

More reading

• ASX 200 down 0.2%: Wesfarmers overhauls Target, Sydney Airport has no plans to raise equity
• Why Afterpay and these ASX shares just hit multi-year highs
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• ASX 200 drops 0.4%, Chinese threat to Australian iron
• 2 ASX 200 dividend shares to buy for income in 2021

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Corporate Travel Management Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The post Why Aristocrat Leisure, Afterpay, Corporate Travel, and Sydney Airport are pushing higher appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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With many savings accounts offering interest rates of just 1% per annum, if I had $10,000 in an account I would consider putting it to work in the share market.

After all, if you invest wisely, you could generate a return ten times that with shares.

But where should you invest $10,000 right now? Two top shares to consider are listed below:

Bigtincan Holdings Ltd (ASX: BTH)

I think Bigtincan could be a good option for investors. It is a provider of enterprise mobility software. The key product in its portfolio is the Bigtincan Hub. It increases the success of sales and service teams by helping them improve training, meeting preparation, customer engagement, and collaboration with peers. This results in short sales cycles, higher win rates, increased customer satisfaction and loyalty, and, most importantly, improved business results.

The company has been growing at a very strong rate and appears well-positioned to continue this trend for the foreseeable future. Especially after its recent $40 million capital raising. The proceeds will be used to accelerate key strategic priorities, take advantage of market tailwinds, and for potential acquisitions.

SEEK Limited (ASX: SEK)

Another option for a $10,000 investment could be this job listings company. Times are certainly hard for SEEK right now because of the pandemic. Last month the company released a trading update which revealed that listing volumes were down materially. This led to SEEK’s billings for the ANZ and Asia market for the week ended March 29 falling 60% on the prior corresponding period.

And while its listing volumes are likely to remain subdued until the crisis passes, I’m confident they will recover strongly in 2021. Combined with its rapidly growing China business, this should put the company back on a path to achieving its aspirational revenue target later this decade. SEEK has been targeting revenue of $5 billion by 2025, up from $1,537.3 million in FY 2019. I suspect the pandemic may mean it has to push back this target by a year or two, but I believe it will get there. This could make it a great option for patient long term investors.

More reading

• How to become a millionaire with a $5,000 investment in ASX 200 shares each year
• Why Aristocrat Leisure, Bigtincan, Clover, & Megaport shares are dropping lower
• How you can get very rich with ASX 200 shares
• The newspaper killers: 3 ASX 200 online classifieds shares dominating the market
• Where to invest $10,000 into ASX shares

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of SEEK Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended BIGTINCAN FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended SEEK Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The post Got $10,000 to invest? I would buy these ASX shares right now appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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