Codan Ltd (ASX: CDA)’s value has surged past $10 billion, up more than 15% just today, after the company announced a large profit upgrade just three months into the new financial year.

Firing on all cylinders

The technology manufacturer has two main divisions – metal detection and military communications – with both expecting to grow significantly over the full year.

Codan had already issued a trading update on 20 August, saying strong demand for unmanned systems meant that its communications division expected to significantly exceed the previous year’s performance in the first half.

The company said on Tuesday that orders had continued to strengthen during the first quarter and it now had better visibility for results through the second quarter.

Codan said demand outside of conflict regions was strong, and revenue was expected to be up 20% on the previous corresponding period, “with broad-based growth across regions and markets reinforcing the global relevance of our technologies”.

The company added:

Demand from conflict regions is currently exceptionally strong, reflecting the proven performance and reliability of our technology in these contested environments. With this elevated demand, Codan expects revenue generated from conflict regions to represent approximately 50% of Communications segment revenue in H1 FY27 (vs. approximately 20% in the previous corresponding period). Codan now expects the Communications segment to deliver H1 FY27 revenue of between $400 million and $410 million. This compares to $221.8 million in the pcp and $506.2 million in full year FY26.  

The strong demand could also translate into a better EBIT margin of about 40% in the first half, compared to 26% in the first half last year.

Codan said demand from conflict regions was difficult to predict over the full year, “and accordingly it is too early in the financial year to determine if demand and margin will continue at similar levels in H2 FY27”.

Metal detection also performing well

The Minelab metal detection division was also performing strongly, driven by demand for the recently launched GPZ8000 and Gold Monster 2000 detectors, Codan said, as well as by the favourable gold price.

On August 20, Codan said that Minelab was tracking broadly in line with second-half FY26 levels.

Minelab’s revenue run rate is now slightly above those levels, Codan said.

In terms of group profit, Codan is expecting a net profit of not less than $160 million for the first half, compared to $71.2 million in the first half of FY26 and $175.2 million for the full year.

Codan shares traded as high as $61.30 before settling back to be 16.8% higher at $60.73.

The post This ASX tech company just surged past the $10 billion valuation mark after a major profit upgrade 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.

The ASX stock Charter Hall Long WALE REIT (ASX: CLW) looks like it could be one of the most effective picks for passive income.

I think investors would be well served by looking at the real estate investment trust (REIT) sector for opportunities right now, given how low share prices have fallen.

There’s an obvious headwind for REITs right now – higher interest rates. It’s a key tactic by central banks to try to reduce inflation by hiking interest rates and trying to take some heat out of the economy.

Higher interest rates are a significant headwind for REITs because they increase borrowing costs and can hurt property valuations.

For Charter Hall Long WALE REIT, this could be the right time to pounce.

Significant diversification

Plenty of Australian investors may have a significant sum of money invested in a single property, whether that’s a residential property or commercial property.

With a REIT like Charter Hall Long WALE REIT, investors can buy exposure to a portfolio of over 500 properties in a single investment, while providing great passive income.

The ASX stock is invested across numerous areas, including government buildings (like Geosciences Australia), hotels, grocery and distribution, data centres, telecommunications exchanges, service stations, banking and professional services, food manufacturing, healthcare, Bunnings properties and so on.

I like how the business can provide exposure to all of those areas with just a single investment. How good is that?

It could become even more diversified in the future, since the ASX stock has the flexibility to invest anywhere for potential returns.

Large dividend yield

Charter Hall Long WALE REIT has a very generous distribution payout ratio of 100% of rental earnings. This means investors can fully benefit from the REIT and earn a higher yield than many other investments currently offer.

Despite the headwind of higher interest rates, the ASX stock expects to maintain its distribution at 25.5 cents per security in FY27, the same as the 2026 financial year.

At the time of writing, its projected payout translates into a forward distribution yield of 7.8%, which is a huge starting yield.

Its organic rental growth could help support the distributions in the coming years. The rental income is growing either in line with inflation or at a solid fixed annual rate. During FY26, the ASX stock achieved average annual net property income growth of 3.1%.

$800 per month of passive income

The ASX stock does not pay monthly, but it does pay quarterly, which I’d describe as pleasingly frequent.

However, we should think of the monthly goal as an annual goal and then divide that by 12. The annual goal is $9,600.

As mentioned, the business expects to pay an annual distribution of 25.5 cents per security. To generate $9,600 of annual passive income, we’re talking about needing 37,648 Charter Hall Long WALE REIT units.

Given it’s trading at a 30% discount to its net tangible assets (NTA) of $4.71 as at 30 June 2026, this looks to me like a great time to invest.

The post I’d buy 37,648 shares of this ASX stock to aim for $800 a month of passive income appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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.

Cochlear Ltd (ASX: COH) shares are falling on Tuesday morning after the hearing implant giant gave investors another issue to digest.

The Cochlear share price is currently down 2.12% to $142.05 after the company confirmed it has been hit with a shareholder class action.

It’s another setback in what has already been a difficult year, with Cochlear shares down around 50% over the past 12 months.

The stock has recovered from its April low of $88.74, but remains well below the $296.50 reached over the past year.

So, what exactly is the class action about?

Why are Cochlear shares falling?

In its latest ASX announcement, Cochlear revealed that it has been hit with a class action in the Supreme Court of Victoria.

The claim involves investors who bought Cochlear shares between 15 August 2025 and 21 April 2026, when the company was providing its FY26 profit guidance.

Cochlear didn’t say too much about the case this morning, other than confirming it denies the allegations and plans to defend itself.

However, litigation firm Echo Law has provided a bit more detail.

It claims Cochlear engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct and failed to meet its continuous disclosure obligations.

Basically, the case centres on what Cochlear told investors about its FY26 profit outlook, and whether enough information was provided along the way.

And the dates are worth keeping in mind.

The period ends on 21 April, just one day before Cochlear slashed its profit guidance and its shares crashed more than 40%.

What happened in April?

The class action comes after a brutal few months for Cochlear shareholders.

On 22 April, the company cut its FY26 underlying net profit guidance to between $290 million and $330 million.

That was a big drop from its original forecast of between $435 million and $460 million.

Investors didn’t take the news well, with Cochlear shares tanking over 40% on the day to close at $99.58.

At the time, Cochlear blamed weaker implant demand, hospital capacity constraints, and fewer patient referrals across developed and emerging markets.

Uncertainty in the Middle East also weighed on sales, while lower production volumes and currency movements added to the pressure.

It wasn’t the first warning either.

Back in February, Cochlear had already told investors that FY26 profit was likely to come in at the lower end of its original guidance range.

Where does Cochlear go from here?

Despite the problems earlier this year, Cochlear has managed to recover a decent chunk of its April losses.

The company eventually reported FY26 underlying net profit of $322.4 million, down 22% from the previous year.

Looking ahead, Cochlear expects underlying net profit of between $330 million and $350 million in FY27, representing growth of around 2% to 9%.

There are some positives heading into the new financial year as well.

The Nucleus Nexa implant represented more than 95% of developed market implant sales by June, while Cochlear expects further product launches during FY27.

The post Cochlear shares fall as investors face another setback appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 positions in and has recommended Cochlear. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Cochlear. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.