It’s been a fairly pleasant day for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) and many ASX 200 shares this Wednesday. At the time of writing, the ASX 200 has advanced 0.33% to just under 8,840 points. But let’s talk about what’s happening with the Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) share price.

Macquarie shares are also enjoying some time in the sun this hump day. The diversified financial stock closed at $253.04 yesterday evening but opened at $255.22 this morning. Just after midday, Macquarie went even higher, blowing past $257 to top out at $257.29. That’s a new all-time record high for the Macquarie share price.

At present, the financial stock has cooled off a little, but is still trading at $255.80 a share, up a comfortable 1.12% for the session thus far.

This gain puts Macquarie shares up a sizeable 25.6% year to date in 2026, and up 14% over the past 12 months. Investors who held back in March when the company fell below $200 a share during the initial sell-off following the onset of the US-Iran War have certainly been rewarded.

Why is the Macquarie share price hitting new record highs today?

There’s no smoking gun for today’s new record high for the Macquarie share price. The company hasn’t made any significant announcements for a while.

What we can say is that sentiment on Macquarie shares has been improving since the company’s latest earnings were released back in May. As we covered at the time, these earnings were impressive, with Macquarie reporting higher return on equity, a 30% rise in net profits after tax to $4.85 billion, and a 30% boost to earnings per share (EPS) to $12.77. The company also raised its final dividend by a healthy 7.7% to $4.20 per share.

Macquarie has a large and immensely profitable investment banking division. Perhaps investors are betting that the company will continue to prosper amid the heightened volatility this year has brought.

It’s also worth noting that Macquarie shares are being looked upon favourably by brokers. As my Fool colleague Samantha Menzies looked at the end of last month, a “majority of brokers have a strong buy rating on Macquarie Group shares”.

Let’s see if this ASX 200 financial stock can keep breaking its records.

At the current Macquarie share price, the company trades on a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 20.2 and a dividend yield of 2.73%.

The post The Macquarie share price just hit a new record high appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen 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 Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) shares have dipped into the red in Wednesday afternoon trade.

The oil and gas producer’s shares are down around 0.2% and changing hands at $7.70 at the time of writing.

But today’s small dip has barely dented gains made over the past week.

Santos shares tumbled 9% through June and into the first week of July. But have now rebounded around 8% over the past week and are back to levels seen during a rally in mid-March when escalating conflict in the Middle East raised concerns about global oil supply.

The shares are now up around 25% year to date, but are still roughly 1% below the trading levels seen this time last year.

Why are Santos shares in the spotlight this week?

The oil and gas major’s shares are the talk of the town after the US-Iran ceasefire broke down last week, and war escalated again between the two nations.

Santos shares gradually cooled through June and into July, off the back of expectations that the conflict was winding down. When the original peace deal broke in June, Santos fell 8% in a single session. 

But a stark reversal over the past week has reinvigorated the war risk tailwinds that saw the company’s shares fly higher earlier this year. 

Escalating conflict has quickly caused a spike in oil prices, which in turn acts as a strong tailwind for Santos shares.

Trading Economics data shows that the price of WTI crude oil has now spiked over US$80 per barrel.

“Oil prices have rallied this week as renewed tensions between Washington and Tehran heightened supply concerns, adding fresh uncertainty after Persian Gulf producers increased exports following the signing of the interim peace agreement,” Trading Economics said.

The good news for Santos is that the business can continue to perform well regardless of whether geopolitical uncertainty is high or low.

A few company-specific price drivers, including a rise in production and improved cash flow, have also helped Santos shares climb higher.

In late April, Santos posted its March quarter update, where it revealed a 1% increase in production and a 3% rise in sales revenue versus the prior quarter. 

Its free cash flow from operations of US$383 million was in line with Q4 2025, and management reaffirmed its full-year 2026 production and cost guidance.

The company also recently confirmed it has now hit continuous production at its Pikka oil project in Alaska. The project is now producing about 20,000 barrels of oil per day, which will ramp up to 80,000 during the third quarter of 2026.

Are Santos shares a buy, sell, or hold now?

The experts are very bullish about the outlook for Santos this year.

Market Index data shows that all brokers agree on a buy rating on Santos shares. The average $8.70 target price implies a potential 13% upside at the time of writing. 

Macquarie is one broker that has an optimistic outlook on Santos. It said that the company has had solid sequential growth in its second-quarter production and that it currently sees the producer tracking to the lower end of its CY26 guidance range. The team has a buy rating and a $9 target price on the shares. 

The post Why is everyone talking about Santos shares this week? 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 positions in and has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

BHP Ltd (ASX: BHP) shares are enjoying a strong session on Wednesday.

In early afternoon trade, BHP shares are up 4% to $61.12. They’re comfortably outperforming the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which is up 0.4%.

The gains continue a recent rebound for the mining heavyweight. BHP shares have climbed around 6% over the past five trading days, though they remain down roughly 6% over the past month.

Zooming out, however, the picture looks much brighter. BHP shares have rallied about 34% since the start of the year and are up approximately 54% over the past 12 months. By comparison, the ASX 200 has gained around 3% over the same period.

So, what’s driving BHP’s sharp share price jump today?

A sector-wide rally lifts BHP

Unlike some large moves in the past, Wednesday’s rally doesn’t appear to be linked to a major company announcement.

Instead, BHP is benefiting from renewed investor appetite for mining stocks as sentiment towards the resources sector improves. The S&P/ASX 200 Resources Index (ASX: XJR) was up 1.6% around midday.

After a period of weakness driven by concerns over global growth, commodity demand, and geopolitical uncertainty, investors have rotated back into diversified miners. BHP shares have emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries.

Copper remains the key long-term story

While iron ore remains BHP’s largest earnings driver, investors are increasingly valuing the company as a global copper producer.

The miner has spent several years repositioning its portfolio towards commodities expected to benefit from long-term electrification trends, including copper through assets such as Escondida, Olympic Dam, and the recently acquired OZ Minerals business.

That shift means BHP is often viewed as one of the ASX’s premier large-cap copper exposures.

Interestingly, however, today’s rally wasn’t sparked by a surge in copper prices. Benchmark copper prices were little changed overnight, slipping around 0.2%, and remain modestly lower than they were a month ago.

Even so, prices are still well above year-ago levels. This reflects a constructive long-term outlook supported by growing demand from artificial intelligence infrastructure, renewable energy projects, and electric vehicles.

Looking ahead

With no major company news driving Wednesday’s gains, the rally appears to reflect improving sentiment towards the mining sector rather than a fundamental change in BHP’s outlook.

Investors will now turn their attention to BHP’s upcoming quarterly operational update next month. This should provide fresh insight into production across its iron ore and copper operations.

In the meantime, movements in copper and iron ore prices, as well as any signs of further economic stimulus from China, are likely to remain the biggest drivers of BHP shares.

For long-term investors, today’s rally also highlights an important shift in the investment case.

BHP remains the world’s largest-listed iron ore miner. But its growing exposure to copper means the company’s fortunes are becoming increasingly tied to a metal many analysts expect will play a central role in the global energy transition.

The post Why are BHP shares surging 4% today despite a flat copper price? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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