When it comes to thinking about which ASX shares you could invest in hoping to double your money, ASX payments shares are the first group that comes to my mind.

The coronavirus pandemic that has changed the world in 2020 has had a lot of consequences for how we live, work and spend our time. Some are direct – such as the lockdowns. Others are indirect – like a decline in using physical cash. We were already heading towards a ‘cashless society’ before the pandemic struck, but this trend has almost certainly accelerated following hygiene concerns and the growing dominance of e-commerce over brick-and-mortar stores.

That’s why I think the companies that cater to this growing trend will be amongst the biggest winners of the 2020s. In my opinion, these shares are some of the most likely to double your money over the next few years.

Here are 3 ASX payments shares that I would be happy to have as an ASX growth investment going forward.

Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT)

Afterpay is never far from the headlines these days, it seems. Just today, the company made a new all-time high of $62.33 on the back of some exciting growth numbers out of the United Kingdom market. Clearpay (Afterpay’s UK brand) now has over a million active users, despite only being present in the market for 1 year.

Afterpay is the company that pioneered buy now, pay later (BNPL). It has had its fair share of detractors and doubters, but the company has a knack for consistently proving them wrong. This is a company that I could see doubling up over the next few years if everything continues to go well.

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P)

Zip Co is another BNPL provider that has been going gangbusters in its own right over the last few months. This company’s shares dipped to as low as $1.05 during the March share market crash, but have since recovered strongly and are going for close to $6 today.

Zip recently announced the acquisition of the US-based Quadpay, which gives the company a global presence for the first time. Zip has already grown its active users by 63% over the past year, so I think there is plenty of overseas potential for this company to exploit. I can see this company becoming another potential double-up stock in the years ahead.

Splitit Ltd (ASX: SPT)

The final ASX payments share I’ll look at today is Splitit. This company has been making some waves after its share price doubled over the past week. The catalyst for this move was Splitit announcing a partnership with the global payments giant Mastercard.

Unlike Zip and Afterpay, Splitit is not a credit provider, but it still allows customers to pay off purchases in monthly instalments. I think there is a nice niche in the payments market for Splitit to exploit and I think this could lead to this company giving investors another double up in the years ahead.

More reading

• Australian businesses are running out of cash
• 3 ASX shares I’d buy if the market crashes again
• Why the Afterpay share price hit another all-time high today
• Bull market! Avoid these 3 ASX mistakes if you don’t want to lose money
• How to get rich by investing in ASX shares

Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of ZIPCOLTD FPO. 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 3 ASX payments shares that could double your money appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

from Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3fTh7ie

If you’re wanting to add some blue chip ASX shares to your portfolio, then you’re certainly in luck.

The Australian share market hosts a number of blue chips which I believe could generate strong returns for investors in the 2020s and beyond.

Three blue chip ASX shares that I would buy are listed below. Here’s why I like them:

Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH)

I think this hearing solutions specialist could be a great blue chip share to buy. I’m bullish on Cochlear’s long-term outlook due to its exposure to the ageing populations trend. This is because hearing tends to fade as people get older. I expect this to lead to strong demand for its high quality products over the next couple of decades and drive consistently solid sales growth. Another positive is the industry’s high barriers to entry, which I expect to limit competition.

CSL Limited (ASX: CSL)

Another blue chip share to look at is this biotherapeutics giant. I see a lot of value in CSL’s shares for long-term focused investors. This is due to the positive outlooks of its two businesses – CSL Behring and Seqirus. CSL Behring is the global leader in plasma therapies and Seqirus is the second biggest player in the influenza vaccines industry. I believe both businesses can grow strongly over the next decade thanks to favourable industry dynamics, their leading products, and high levels of investment in research and development.

SEEK Limited (ASX: SEK)

A final blue chip ASX share to consider buying right now is SEEK. I think the job listings giant is a great long-term option due to its strong market position and its investment in future growth opportunities. These investments and its fast-growing China business are expected to play a key role in SEEK achieving its ambitious aspirational revenue target of $5 billion later this decade. This compares to revenue of $1,537.3 million in FY 2019.

More reading

• Australian businesses are running out of cash
• 3 ASX shares I’d buy if the market crashes again
• Consider these 3 quality ASX healthcare shares to buy now
• Invest like Warren Buffett by buying and holding these ASX 200 shares
• Why top brokers are urging you to buy SEEK and these other ASX stocks today

James Mickleboro owns shares of SEEK Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Cochlear Ltd. and CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Cochlear Ltd. and 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 Give your portfolio a boost with these ASX blue chip shares appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

from Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3hYgyWb

The bulls and bears are in a Mexican standoff! The S&P/ASX 200 Index (Index:^AXJO) can’t seem to move much from current levels as investors wait for a circuit breaker.

Optimism about the re-starting of our economy is offset by fears of a second wave of COVID-19 infections.

But there are some ASX stocks that have already started slumping after leading brokers downgraded their recommendations on these shares.

Taking a toll

The first is the Transurban Group (ASX: TCL) share price after UBS cut its rating on the toll road operator to “neutral” from “buy”.

That sent the stock 2.3% into reverse as it fell to $14.45 during lunch time trade.

The downgrade comes even as management issued a positive update recently. Traffic volumes are recovering faster than what many expected and management said it will pay a half year dividend of 16 cents a share. UBS was only expecting an 11 cent a share distribution.

Dividend doubts

However, dividends over the longer-term may not meet previous expectations.

“Although there is no specific dividend guidance for FY21, there is a repeated intention to only pay out underlying free cashflow excluding capital releases,” said UBS.

“Our forecasts incorporate this as a new dividend policy which dampens longer-term distributions considering the magnitude of forecast WestConnex (WCX) capital releases.”

It also doesn’t help that the Transurban share price is outperforming the broader market, making valuations less attractive.

UBS’ 12-month price target on the stock is $14.85 a share.

Rising costs challenge

Meanwhile, the Qube Holdings Ltd (ASX: QUB) share price got a double hit as not one, but two brokers downgraded their recommendation on the stock.

The move comes even after the logistics group signed Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) as a key tenant at its Moorebank intermodal facility.

The customer win is one factor supporting the stock’s outperformance, although that isn’t the only reason why Morgans and Citigroup lowered their rating on Qube.

“QUB has advised of a $60m increase in capex related to upgrading Moorebank Avenue prior to its realignment,” said Morgans.

“In addition to this and the WOW DC capex, QUB says the minimum capex it expects to incur to fund Moorebank will be higher than previous forecast, with an update to be provided at the FY20 result.

“Each $100m unexpected cost increase reduces our valuation by 5 cps.”

Morgans changed its recommendation on Qube to “reduce” from “hold” with a price target of $2.45 a share.

Too much good news in the price

Citi also noted that Qube is funding more of the development and warehouse capex for tenants than originally expected.

“Qube’s share price has risen 34% since its equity raising in early May 2020,” said Citi.

“With the near-term operating outlook still highly uncertain, we lower our recommendation from Buy/High Risk to Neutral with a $3.15 target price.”

More reading

• 3 ASX shares I’d buy if the market crashes again
• Is the share market facing another February 2020 moment?
• This top fund manager believes dividend yields are going to 0%. Where should you invest?
• Can the Newcrest share price crest to new highs?
• Here’s why I think the Link share price has a huge growth opportunity ahead

Motley Fool contributor Brendon Lau owns shares of Woolworths Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Transurban Group and Woolworths 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 The latest ASX 200 stocks to be slapped with a broker downgrade appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

from Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3hWgaI4