Qantas Airways Ltd (ASX: QAN) shares have jumped higher in Thursday morning trade as investors digest the airline giant’s latest FY26 earnings results.

At the time of writing, the ASX 200 airline shares are up around 4% and are changing hands for $9.55 a piece.

Today’s increase is good news for investors after the shares crashed 14% over the past couple of weeks. But it hasn’t done enough to recoup the heavy losses just yet. 

For the year-to-date, the shares are still down around 9%, and they’re 14% lower than 12 months ago.

What did the airline report today?

Qantas reported a 13.8% year-on-year decline in underlying profit before tax, to $2.06 billion. 

Statutory profit after tax fell around 29% to $1.3 billion

For the 12-month period, Qantas reported a 12.7% year-on-year decline in underlying earnings per share to 96 cents.

Qantas’ $6.2 billion of net debt came in at the middle of its target range of $5.5 billion to $6.9 billion for FY26.

With profits down, management declared a fully-franked final Qantas dividend of 19.8 cents per share, and a total dividend of 39.6 cents per share, down 25% from last year’s final payout.

Management forecasts unit revenues to grow by 8–10% in the first half of FY27, despite ongoing pressure from elevated fuel prices.

It looks like investors are happy with today’s update, and many are buying back into the stock while the shares are still trading for cheap.

Is Qantas a turnaround story?

Qantas shares were smashed lower earlier this year as conflict in the Middle East and rising fuel prices put airlines under pressure.

Jet fuel (refined from crude oil) is the highest operating cost for airlines. Given Australia imports more than 90% of its refined fuel, its local prices track global oil prices and currency movements. 

That means that when oil prices increase amid tight supply and geopolitical tensions, jet fuel prices also jumped. This means that airlines, such as Qantas, face higher operating costs, which can pressure profits and potentially weigh on their share prices.

In fact, this morning Qantas reported that the impact from the Middle East conflict has cost the airline an estimated $420 million to date, largely driven by higher jet fuel costs.

But despite the higher fuel costs, the company expects to see unit revenues grow by 8% to 10% in the first half of FY27.

Robust domestic and international travel demand has helped the aviation giant’s shares maintain some level of stability. And signs that inflation and cost-of-living is improving has also likely supported the stock.

What do the experts expect next?

Market expects could revise their forecasts on the Qantas share price in coming days, following the results announcement.

But at the time of writing, it looks like the share could fly a lot higher over the next 12 months.

TradingView data shows the majority (14 out of 15) have a buy or strong buy rating on the shares. 

But after the latest slump, all analysts anticipate a strong upside ahead.

The $11.68 average target price implies a potential 22% upside over the next 12 months, at the time of writing. Even the minimum target price implies the shares could jump 13% higher. 

The post Qantas shares jump 4% today: Is this the start of a rebound? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 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.

The team at Bell Potter have been busy casting their eye over the recently published profit reports and has earmarked three miners with the potential for large share price gains.

Let’s see who they like.

Fenix Resources Ltd (ASX: FEX)

Iron ore producer Fenix produced a record 4.4 million tonnes of ore for the full year, boosting net profit by 128% to $12 million, on revenue of $589.7 million, up 87%.

The company also said it expected to further grow production in the current year to 4.7 to 5.3 million tonnes while maintaining costs at FY26 levels.

Bell Potter said earnings came in above its estimates, and there was also a positive surprise in the form of a 1-cent-per-share dividend.

The broker said:

FEX has outlined a clear pathway to incrementally grow iron ore production to 10Mtpa at significantly lower unit costs, leveraging its integrated logistics network to underpin cash flows and fund its substantial organic growth outlook. FEX holds the largest storage position at the strategic and fast-growing Geraldton Port.

Bell Potter has a price target of 54 cents on Fenix compared to 29.25 cents currently.

Nickel Industries Ltd (ASX: NIC)

Bell Potter said Nickel Industries’ full-year result was mixed, with revenue higher than their forecast but earnings lower due to higher finance and depreciation charges.

On the positive side, Bell Potter said the company was well leveraged to changes in the nickel price.

They said:

Overall, this leverage was reflected in revenue rising 13%, EBITDA rising 54% and NPAT rising 366% vs the previous corresponding period. Looking ahead, we expect volume growth and increased margins to drive aggressive EBITDA and earnings growth in 2HCY26 and CY27 as mining ramps up.

Bell Potter has a price target of $1.45 on Nickel Industries shares compared to 86.75 cents currently.

Paladin Energy Ltd (ASX: PDN)

The uranium miner recently reported revenue of US$304 million and EBITDA of US$63 million, which was below Bell Potter’s estimate of US$71 million.

The broker said this was “due to higher corporate and marketing costs which reflect the larger, multi-jurisdictional business following the completion of the Fission acquisition in FY25”.

Bell Potter said FY26 was a “transitional year” at Paladin’s Langer Heinrich mine, and they expected a lift in operating performance “with fresh ore now the sole feed to the processing plant and rising uranium prices to further support earnings”.

The broker added:

We retain our Buy recommendation. We have a positive medium- to long-term outlook for the uranium market, supported by barriers to new supply and demand growth linked to electrification, energy security and AI-related power requirements.

Bell Potter has a price target of $14.50 on Paladin compared to $12.07 currently.  

The post 3 ASX mining shares Bell Potter rates a buy 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 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.

Mineral Resources Ltd (ASX: MIN) shares are moving higher on Thursday after the mining company released its FY26 results.

At the time of writing, the Mineral Resources share price is up 2.62% to $68.64.

There was plenty for investors to unpack, with revenue, earnings and free cash flow all moving higher during the year.

But one part of the result seems to have caught investors by surprise.

After going without a dividend in FY25, Mineral Resources is bringing it back, and the payment is much bigger than the market had expected.

So, how much will shareholders receive?

Mineral Resources brings back its dividend

Mineral Resources has declared a fully-franked final dividend of 83 cents per share.

This represents a 20% payout of underlying net profit after tax (NPAT) and marks the company’s first dividend since FY24.

The payment itself was also a lot bigger than the market had expected.

According to RBC Capital Markets, consensus estimates were sitting at just 7 cents per share heading into the result. Analyst James Redfern described the 83-cent payment as a “very positive surprise”.

At the current Mineral Resources share price of $68.64, the dividend represents a yield of around 1.2% before franking credits.

When will shareholders get paid?

Mineral Resources shares are scheduled to trade ex-dividend on 8 September, with the record date falling on 9 September.

The company will then pay the dividend on 30 September.

The payment is fully franked, giving eligible shareholders the added benefit of attached franking credits.

Mineral Resources is also operating its dividend reinvestment plan (DRP), with eligible shareholders able to receive new shares instead of taking the payment in cash.

Why is the dividend back?

The return of the dividend follows a pretty big improvement in the company’s finances during FY26.

Revenue jumped 44% to a record $6.5 billion, while underlying EBITDA surged 183% to $2.6 billion.

Underlying NPAT came in at $822 million, compared with a $112 million loss a year earlier.

The company also returned to profit after a difficult FY25, helped by stronger operating performance across the business.

Cash flow was another positive from the result. Mineral Resources generated $849 million in free cash flow, while liquidity more than doubled to $2.4 billion.

Net debt also fell by around $1.1 billion to $4.3 billion, bringing its net debt to underlying EBITDA ratio down from 5.9 times to 1.7 times.

What’s next?

While there were some big numbers in the FY26 result, the return of the dividend is likely to stand out for shareholders who went without one last year.

Management is also expecting volumes to grow across its mining services business, as well as iron ore and lithium commodities in FY27.

If that growth comes through and debt keeps falling, the company could be in a stronger position to keep rewarding shareholders with dividends.

The post Mineral Resources just delivered a surprise dividend. Here’s how much appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Mineral Resources shares jump 5% today: Buy, sell or hold?
• Why Wesfarmers, Mineral Resources and Qantas shares are turning heads on Thursday
• Mineral Resources share price on watch as record earnings, dividend highlight FY26
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday
• Up 73%! 3 reasons I’d still buy Mineral Resources shares today

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras 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.