DroneShield Ltd (ASX: DRO) shares are taking off on Wednesday morning.

The DroneShield share price is currently up 8.98% to $1.76, after closing yesterday at $1.615.

At one stage, the counter-drone stock climbed as high as $1.82 as investors reacted to an update released before market open.

It’s a welcome move for shareholders after a difficult year, with DroneShield shares still down more than 60% over the past 12 months.

So, what has the company announced today?

DroneShield lands huge US opportunity

According to the release, DroneShield’s US subsidiary has secured a new contract with the US Joint Interagency Task Force 401 (JIATF-401).

The 3-year Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract has a ceiling value of US$500 million.

It gives DroneShield the opportunity to compete for future orders as the US rolls out more counter-drone systems across the country.

These systems will be used to protect military bases, critical infrastructure, and other high-priority locations from drone threats.

However, there is one thing investors need to keep in mind before getting too excited.

The US$500 million isn’t guaranteed revenue, and DroneShield said the contract doesn’t lock in any orders at this stage.

Still, I think this is a pretty big development.

DroneShield now has a way to compete for some potentially large US defence orders over the next 3 years.

US relationship continues to grow

It’s important to note this isn’t DroneShield’s first piece of work with JIATF-401.

Earlier this year, the company secured a $24.9 million contract to supply mobile and fixed-site counter-drone systems.

DroneShield has since delivered its DroneSentry-X Mk2 systems, completing installation, testing, and operator training in around 80 days.

Another 3 systems are also planned under a modification to the original contract.

Could short sellers add fuel to the rally?

There could also be another factor helping DroneShield shares today.

The latest data shows short interest in the company was sitting at 14.76% as of 23 September.

That puts DroneShield at the top of the list as the most shorted stock on the ASX, with plenty of traders betting its share price will fall.

Keep in mind, though, today’s announcement could put some of those short sellers under pressure.

DroneShield shares are already up almost 9%, and if the buying continues, some short sellers could decide it’s time to close their positions.

To do that, they need to buy DroneShield shares back on the market.

That could add more buying pressure and give the share price another boost.

I’d keep a close eye on this stock before the year’s end.

The post Why is the DroneShield share price surging 9% on Wednesday? 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 DroneShield. 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.

It may be time to sell those Corporate Travel Management Ltd (ASX: CTD) and Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) shares.

That’s according to Red Leaf Securities’ John Athanasiou, who earlier this week issued a sell recommendation on both ASX travel stocks (courtesy of The Bull).

In morning trade today, CBA shares are changing hands for $149.07 each, down 0.8%. That sees shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) bank stock down 10.8% since this time last year, trailing the 1.6% 12-month losses posted by the benchmark index.

Now some of that underperformance will have been mitigated by the two fully franked CBA dividends, totalling $5.05 a share, that the big four bank paid out over the year. CBA shares trade on a 3.4% fully franked trailing dividend yield.

It’s a bit of a more complicated picture for Corporate Travel Management shares, which only resumed trading on the ASX on 3 September. As you may be aware, Corporate Travel shares were suspended back in August 2025 following some material accounting errors.

Prior to the suspension, Corporate Travel shares were trading for $16.07. On 3 September, shares crashed 85.6% to close the day at $2.32 as frustrated investors overheated their sell buttons.

In morning trade today, the Corporate Travel share price stands at $2.32.

With those pictures in mind…

Time to exit CBA shares?

“CBA is Australia’s highest quality major bank, but, in my view, quality doesn’t always represent value,” Red Leaf Securities’ Athanasiou said.

Explaining his sell recommendation on CBA shares, Athanasiou noted:

Its premium valuation leaves limited room for disappointment as rising interest rates potentially slow credit growth and increase borrower stress. Investors could use the opportunity to take profits and consider better-value alternatives elsewhere in the banking sector.

Should I sell Corporate Travel shares?

Atop his bearish outlook on CBA shares, Athanasiou also issued as sell recommendation on Corporate Travel shares.

“CTD reported improved underlying earnings in fiscal year 2026,” he said.

Indeed, the company reported a 4% year on year increase in revenue and other income to $670 million, with underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) up 36% to $114 million.

But that’s not enough to keep this ASX share off Athanasiou’s sell list.

“However, in my view, questions remain around historical customer remediation, governance, financial controls and funding requirements,” he said.

Summarising his sell recommendation on Corporate Travel shares, he concluded:

In a company update on April 22, 2026, a review had found that UK customers were charged in excess of their contractual entitlement. On September 1, 2026, the company noted about 78 per cent of customer refunds had been agreed or were nearing finalisation.

In my view, the near term risk-reward equation remains unattractive.

The post Sell alert! Expert calls time on Corporate Travel and CBA shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

ASX blue-chip shares can be some of the most consistent and reliable investments on the ASX. There are some names with very pleasing dividend yields.

Businesses that lead in what they do can be excellent stocks to own because of their strong market positions, enviable profit margins, and ability to retain earnings.

Let’s run through two top ASX blue-chip share contenders for passive income.

Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS)

Telstra is Australia’s leading telecommunications company that continues to cement its position in the country.

Its mobile infrastructure and mobile division are key for the company’s success. In FY26, it added 274,000 mobile handheld users (or 1.9% growth), including 39,000 retail users and 235,000 wholesale users.

Mobile average revenue per user (ARPU) grew by 3.7% year-over-year to $45.33. It saw ARPU growth of 3.8% for postpaid handheld, 7.2% growth for prepaid handheld and 8.8% growth for wholesale.

Telstra continues to invest in its network. In FY26 alone, it upgraded nearly 1,200 mobile sites and built more than 150 new mobile sites.

It’s also investing in its fibre network, with more than 8,500km of fibre deployed in its ‘aura network’. The expected strategic investment has been increased to around $1.8 billion between FY23 and FY28. It’s expected to deliver a mid-teens internal rate of return (IRR) with a nine-year cash payback.

Telstra reported in FY26 that cash earnings per share (EPS) grew by 13.8% to 25.5 cents, funding a 10.5% rise in the annual dividend per share to 21 cents.

The projection on Commsec suggests the business could pay an annual dividend per share of 22 cents in FY27, 4.75% more than FY26. That would be a FY27 grossed-up dividend yield of 6.4%, including franking credits, at the time of writing.

WAM Leaders Ltd (ASX: WLE)

Listed investment company (LIC) WAM Leaders is the other ASX blue-chip share I want to highlight. A LIC’s job is to invest in other shares on behalf of shareholders.

It aims to actively invest in large, high-quality Australian companies.

At the end of August, its five biggest holdings, compared to the overall ASX 200 index, were Stockland Corporation Ltd (ASX: SGP), Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO), James Hardie Industries plc (ASX: JHX), Mirvac Group (ASX: MGR) and South32 Ltd (ASX: S32). This shows the types of ASX shares the WAM Leaders team want to invest in.

By generating investment returns, WAM Leaders can use profits to pay large, growing dividends to shareholders. It can offer investors both diversification and attractive dividends.

WAM Leaders has increased its annual dividend per share each year since it started paying dividends in FY17, so it has essentially reached a decade of continuous dividend growth, which is a great record.

The investment team have produced an average return of 12.2% since inception in May 2026, before fees, expenses and taxes, outperforming the S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index (ASX: XJOA) by an average of almost 3% per year.

In FY26, the ASX blue-chip share paid an annual dividend of 9.6 cents per share. That translates into a grossed-up dividend yield of 10.7%, including franking credits, at the time of writing.

The post 2 ASX blue-chip shares offering big dividend yields appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• CBA vs Telstra: Which ASX blue-chip is better for passive income?

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