In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a decline. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down 0.35% to 8,776.8 points.

Four ASX shares that are not letting that hold them back are listed below. Here’s why they are rising:

A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M)

The A2 Milk share price is up 4% to $7.12. This follows news that the infant formula company is rewarding shareholders with a NZ$300 million special dividend. The company estimates this will equate to 41.36 New Zealand cents per share (33.9 Australian cents per share). Based on its last close price of $6.85, this represented a dividend yield of just under 5%. A2 Milk’s chair, Pip Greenwood, said: “With the necessary China regulatory approvals now in place, the Board is pleased to declare a $300 million special dividend. This reflects our commitment to delivering shareholder returns while maintaining disciplined capital management.”

EchoIQ Ltd (ASX: EIQ)

The EchoIQ share price is up 33% to $1.65. Investors have been bidding the medical technology company’s shares higher after Pro Medicus Ltd (ASX: PME) made an investment. Pro Medicus’ CEO, Dr Sam Hupert, said: “In addition to providing financial backing, we are looking to offer our Visage 7 Cardiology customers the option of Echo IQ’s technology. This is in line with our AI strategy of offering a curated suite of algorithms that will be a mixture of algorithms created by us, those created in conjunction with our clinical partners and 3rd party algorithms such as Echo-IQ.”

Lendlease Group (ASX: LLC)

The Lendlease share price is up 5% to $3.06. This has been driven by the announcement of a major divestment. Lendlease will divest its remaining 25.1% interest in the Keyton Retirement Living Trust to existing co-investor, Aware Super, for a consideration of $525 million. It advised that net proceeds will be used to reduce group debt. Management notes that this transaction brings the total of announced and completed capital recycling initiatives from the Capital Release Unit (CRU) to $3.4 billion.

Qantas Airways Ltd (ASX: QAN)

The Qantas Airways share price is up 4% to $10.73. This may have been driven by a pullback in oil prices overnight. As fuel is the airline operator’s largest cost, any reduction in oil prices is good news for margins. Qantas shares are now up almost 20% over the past two weeks.

The post Why A2 Milk, EchoIQ, Lendlease, and Qantas shares are racing higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why is everyone talking about Mineral Resources, A2 Milk and Pro Medicus shares on Thursday?
• A deal with Pro Medicus has turned this ASX biotech into a 10-bagger, up more than 30% today
• Lendlease offloads Keyton stake in $525m deal
• A2 Milk shares jump amid $300 million special dividend
• Pro Medicus shares jump again as AI deal adds fuel to 40% rally

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Pro Medicus. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Pro Medicus. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Pro Medicus. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

DroneShield Ltd (ASX: DRO) shares are falling again in Thursday’s trade. 

At the time of writing, the counter-drone technology company’s shares are down around 1% and trading at $2.52 each.

Today’s decrease is just one of many in a long line of consecutive share price falls. 

DroneShield shares are down 24% year to date and 62% from an all-time high recorded in October last year.

What has happened to the share price?

There has been a significant shift in sentiment around DroneShield shares recently.

After a strong start to the year, when governments around the world hiked their defence budgets, and geopolitical volatility worsened, investors seem to have turned their backs on the stock.

There is now some concern that the company’s future growth may not be large enough to justify its share price. 

Even a flurry of contract wins hasn’t been enough to convince investors. 

At the same time, a combination of recent governance and regulatory issues and the cooling of conflict in the Middle East has dragged DroneShield’s shares down further.

The stock climbed higher during the first week of May, but then turned again after the company announced that the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) had requested DroneShield to provide reasonable assistance in connection with an investigation under the Corporations Act. The investigation relates to market announcements and share trading in November 2025. 

All this has happened amid a background of signs of easing conflict in the Middle East. While heightened conflict can increase interest in defence technology, particularly counter-drone systems, signs of easing will do the opposite.

So, is it time to buy in the dip or has the market now lost interest in DroneShield shares? 

Here’s what the experts think.

Is it time to invest in DroneShield shares? Or should I look elsewhere?

If analyst forecasts are anything to go by, I wouldn’t jump at buying $5,000 of DroneShield shares just yet.

TradingView data shows that analysts are sharply divided in their outlook for the counter-drone technology stock over the next 12 months, though they mostly agree there will be some upside ahead.

Out of four analysts, two have a strong buy rating, and two have a sell or strong sell rating.

The average $3.41 target price still implies a potential 35% upside at the time of writing. The maximum $4.80 target price implies that DroneShield shares could jump another 91%, while some are even more bearish, tipping the shares to fall around 9% to $2.28.

Canaccord Genuity is one analyst with a more bullish view on the shares. It renewed its buy rating on Droneshield shares earlier this month, with a 12-month price target of $3.75.

The post Should I invest $5,000 in DroneShield shares before the end of June? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Own DroneShield shares? Here’s some news you might have missed
• DroneShield shares lifting off on Monday amid big leadership news
• Here are the 10 most shorted ASX shares
• 8 ASX shares with 30% to 220% upside ahead: Experts
• Own DroneShield shares? Here’s some big news

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 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.

Industrial conglomerate Tasmea Ltd (ASX: TEA) is forecasting net profit to grow by 70% next financial year on the back of a record order book and the contribution from a number of acquisitions.  

Strong order book driving growth

The company said in a statement to the ASX that it expected underlying EBITA to be $202 to $208 million and underlying net profit to be $128 to $132 million.

Both figures would be a 70% uplift from the expected results for the current financial year.

The company said:

Guidance assumes a full 12 months’ contribution from the Maxim Group acquisition which is now unconditional and is expected to settle on 1 July 2026 and includes 11 months earnings from JPS Group, expected to settle on or around 1 August 2026.

Tasmea said it had consistently delivered compounding earnings growth since its initial public offer, “with a multi-year EBIT and NPAT CAGR of more than 50% from FY24 to forecast FY27″.

The company said there were a number of factors which had contributed to this, including growth in high-quality, recurring revenues “with an increasing number of master service agreements, facilities management agreements and long term contract with now more than 120 on foot following recent acquisitions and organic customer growth”.

There were also increasing synergies across the company’s portfolio, and the company said the underlying growth from the Tasmea base business was forecast to grow organically at 10% to 15%.

Tasmea also said there were:

Strong industry tailwinds across Australia’s key industries including mining and resources, data centres and infrastructure, oil and gas, electrification, power and renewables, waste and water, telecommunications, defence and retail.

The company added:

Tasmea’s contracted order book has reached record levels, providing strong forward earnings visibility and reinforcing the Company’s ability to deliver sustained organic earnings growth. Demand is underpinned by structural tailwinds across the Group’s core markets.

Of the company’s expected revenues, 62% would come from recurring revenues and another 17% from secured contracts. Another 12% was expected to come from tendered business.

Management have skin in the game

Tasmea Managing Director Stephen Young said:

We are proud to be providing FY27 earnings guidance that reflects the continued strength and momentum of our business. These results are only possible thanks to the outstanding efforts of our people across the country. I want to sincerely thank all Tasmea employees for their unwavering commitment to safety and operational excellence — the foundation of everything we do. Tasmea’s Executive Directors, Mark, Jason, Trent and I have together reinvested over $50 million in Tasmea since IPO—reflecting our continued confidence in the Company’s outlook, our strategy, and the strength of the team that’s driving it with our core purpose, to Deliver Value. Always!

Tasmea shares have more than tripled from $3.20 to $9.62 over the past 12 months.

The company is now valued at $2.52 billion.

The post This company’s shares have more than tripled. It’s now predicting 70% earnings growth appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• A $75 million deal has this ASX 200 stock smashing a record high today
• 3 ASX small-cap shares to buy: Morgans
• This special dividend could deliver a windfall gain, and it’s not too late to buy in
• Tasmea share price rockets as it enters data centre race
• Could this surging ASX small cap still be hiding in plain sight?

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.