Lovisa Holdings Ltd (ASX: LOV) shares have crashed into the red in Thursday lunchtime trade.

At the time of writing, the Australian jewellery chain’s shares are down just over 9% to $22.45 a piece.

It’s been a pretty rocky road for the company’s share price over the past year. After suffering a strong sell-off in November last year, and again in February, the ASX consumer discretionary shares have experienced several peaks and troughs.

Over the past 12 months, the shares have fluctuated anywhere between $19.30 and $39.33 each. They’re now down around 23% for the year to date, and 39% lower than this time last year.

Why are Lovisa shares crashing today?

Today’s share price decline appears to be the result of the company’s latest update to the ASX.

Ahead of the market open this morning, Lovisa announced a change to its senior executive lineup.

It said that its group chief financial officer, Chris Lauder, has resigned. He will serve his six-month notice period, and his final day will be Wednesday, the 7th April 2027.

The company confirmed that he is fully supporting an orderly transition and said that it is in search of a successor.

“Lovisa has a very strong global finance team, and the Board will appoint a successor following a global search process,” the company said in its ASX statement.

“A further announcement will be made when a successor is appointed.”

It’s not uncommon for investors to sell up their shares in an ASX company during leadership changes. There are often concerns about increased uncertainty about the company’s near-term direction, and the risk that the changes suggest hidden problems.

The announcement follows a strong FY26 result in August

Today’s news follows the company’s FY26 results, which it posted to the ASX in late August. 

Lovisa confirmed its total revenue increased 17.6% to $938.8 million, while comparable-store sales rose 2% for the year.

The company saw a 14.1% increase in its EBIT, and NPAT climbed 10.7%. The company generated a 21% increase in its operating cash flow, and shareholders also received a boost. Its 86-cent per share full-year dividend represents an 11.7% increase from FY25.

Investors were clearly happy with the result, and the share price spiked to a six-month high soon after the announcement. 

The peak didn’t last for long, though, and the shares soon tumbled downwards again.

What do the experts think of Lovisa shares?

Market Index data shows that, at the time of writing, the majority of brokers have a buy rating on the shares. The $29.09 average target price implies an upside of around 28%, at the time of writing.

The team at Morgans said Lovisa’s FY26 results were strong, with net profit coming in ahead of consensus estimates. They added that Lovisa has ambitious expansion plans, with significant white space for continued network expansion. 

Morgans added that ongoing investment will be needed to expand Lovisa’s multinational network, but the company has the capacity to fund this, and that it expects strong returns. 

Morgans has an accumulate rating and a $31 target price.

Morgan Stanley is more bullish. The broker has a $33.50 target price and said it sees a compelling bull case for the stock based on expansion in the total addressable market, extended store roll-outs, and an increasingly diversified business.

The post Why are Lovisa shares crashing 9% today? 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 Lovisa. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Lovisa. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) shares are down 0.5% to 8,681 points on Thursday.

Among the 11 market sectors of the ASX 200, consumer staples is in the lead today, up 1.4%.

The materials and mining sector is the laggard, down 2.3%.

Let’s check out some new ratings from the experts.

IDP Education Ltd (ASX: IEL)

The IDP Education share price is $2.12, up 1.9% today. 

Ord Minnett has a buy rating on this ASX 200 consumer discretionary share. 

In a new note, the broker said: 

IDP Education Limited provides student placement services in Asia, Australasia, and internationally. 

IDP Education (IDP) disclosed that it has rejected two unsolicited and non-binding takeover approaches from Blackstone Singapore Pte Ltd, which is part of the global private equity firm Blackstone Inc. The latest proposal offered $2.50 per share in cash.

On our numbers, the bid equates to an FY27 price-to-earnings multiple of approximately 13.2x, but this is on depressed earnings.

Unsurprisingly, IDP’s Board has unanimously rejected the proposal, stating that it “substantially undervalues IDP and is not in the best interest of shareholders”.

The Directors highlighted that it considers the approach highly opportunistic, given the international education sector is facing significant headwinds (we point to policy uncertainty and weaker student visa issuance across key markets), which have temporarily depressed valuations.

Further, it does not factor in the upside from IDP’s multi-year transformation program.

Macmahon Holdings Ltd (ASX: MAH)

The Macmahon Holdings share price is $1.14, up 2% today. 

Ord Minnett has a hold rating on this ASX 200 materials share. 

The broker commented: 

Macmahon Holdings Limited engages in the process of surface mining, underground mining and mining support, and civil infrastructure services to mining companies in Australia and Southeast Asia.

Macmahon Holdings (MAH) has agreed to acquire Aspect Engineering Solutions in a transaction valued at an enterprise value to earnings before interest and tax (EV/EBIT) multiple of approximately 5–6x, depending on the final earn-out.

The deal will be funded from existing cash reserves and includes an upfront payment of $30 million, annual retention payments of $6million over five years, and performance-based earn-outs of $15–30 million.

MAH can choose to settle the retention and earn-out payments in shares rather than cash.

The acquisition looks financially attractive.

After incorporating the acquisition costs and earnings contribution from Aspect into our numbers, our EPS estimates are revised higher by 3% in FY27 and 6% in FY28. Our target price increases to $1.10 from $1.00 following the positive earnings changes.

Transurban Group (ASX: TCL)

The Transurban share price is steady at $12.96 on Thursday.

Morgans has a trim rating on this ASX 200 industrials share. 

The broker said: 

TCL has increased its exposure to the Sydney market via acquisition of additional equity stakes in key tollroads.

While we view positively the deployment by TCL of capital into markets and assets that it knows well, we struggle to see the cashflow benefit for investors at the acquisition price paid particularly in the context of the higher rate environment.

Target price -50 cps to $12.03/s as a result of the forecast update and adjusting our DCF discount rate higher to part-risk for the rise in risk-free rates.

We retain a TRIM rating at current prices, given potential TSR of -3%.

The post Buy, hold, sell: IDP Education, Macmahon Holdings, Transurban shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

Xero Ltd (ASX: XRO) shares have climbed higher in Thursday lunchtime trade.

At the time of writing, the ASX tech shares are up around 3% and are changing hands at $57.70 each.

It’s great news for investors after the stock has suffered considerable losses over the past 12 months.

The shares have fallen around 22% over the past month, are down 49% for the year-to-date, and are also a huge 63% lower than this time last year.

What on earth is going on with Xero shares?

The cloud-based accounting software company has been smashed by a tech-sector wide selloff over the past year. This was driven by concerns that AI could replace the core services of companies like Xero. At the same time, investors were spooked that tech companies had quickly become overinflated and far above fair value.

There was also an investor rotation away from growth stocks and into defensive assets earlier this year, fuelled by ongoing global volatility and inflation concerns.

There hasn’t been any price sensitive news out of the company since May, so there isn’t any indication that the continued share price decline recently is down to any company specific factors.

It’s likely that, more recently, investors have been taking their profits off the table after the shares briefly rebounded in July and part of August.  

Over the past month, there has also been a renewal of macroeconomic pressures. These include the September interest rate hike, higher-than-expected inflation figures, and sky-high 10-year bond yields. 

Is there any upside left for the ASX tech shares? Or can we expect another rebound?

If expert sentiment is anything to go by, we could see a strong share price rebound over the next 12 months.

Market Index data shows the majority of brokers have a buy rating on the stock. The $112 average target price implies an upside of around 92%, at the time of writing.

Data is similar on TradingView. The majority (six out of seven) of analysts have a buy/strong buy rating on Xero shares. The $113.34 average target price implies an upside of around 94%. But some think the shares have the potential to jump 148% higher to $144.40 each, at the time of writing.

Last month, the team at Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) flagged that US growth and AI monetisation could act as key catalysts for Xero shares. They added that the acquisition of Melio has dramatically expanded what Xero can chase in terms of market size.

Citi, Morgan Stanley and UBS are also positive on Xero shares. The three brokers both have a buy rating on the stock and forecast a target price of $113.60, $130, and $125 respectively.

Michael Gable from Fairmont Equities is less optimistic. He has a sell rating on Xero shares and is concerned that increasing bond yields and interest rates could continue to be a headwind for technology stocks like Xero.

The post Xero shares crash 63% in a year: Is there any upside left? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

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• 2 ASX shares tipped to grow 62% or more in the next 12 months
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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 and Xero. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Xero. 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.