In late morning trade the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a very strong gain. At the time of writing the benchmark index is up 2.7% to 6,158.9 points.

Four shares that are climbing more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are zooming higher:

The Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Ltd (ASX: BEN) share price has jumped 8% to $7.91. Investors have been buying the regional bank’s shares thanks to improving investor sentiment and a positive broker note. In respect to the latter, this morning Ord Minnett upgraded Bendigo and Adelaide Bank’s shares to an accumulate rating with an improved price target of $8.10.

The BWP Trust (ASX: BWP) share price is up 3% to $3.88. This gain also appears to have been driven largely by a broker note out of Ord Minnett. This morning the broker upgraded its shares to a buy rating with a $4.40 price target. It believes that BWP is undervalued based on its long weighted average lease expiry.

The G8 Education Ltd (ASX: GEM) share price has jumped 12% higher to $1.16. This morning the childcare centre operator revealed that the end of the free childcare scheme would not necessarily be a bad thing. The company notes that the revised government support packages are structured in a way that means G8 expects to be in no worse a position relative to the prior support measures. This is even if occupancy levels were to deteriorate.

The Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price has stormed a further 6% higher to $19.97. Investors have continued to pile into the banking sector again on Tuesday on the belief that they have been oversold. All the big four banks are trading notably higher at the time of writing and are helping drive the ASX 200 higher.

More reading

• ASX 200 jumps 2.5%: Big four banks surge higher, CSL announces an acquisition
• 3 ASX 200 shares to watch this week
• G8 Education share price jumps higher despite the government ending its free childcare scheme
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX bulls crash through 6,000 points
• ‘Westpac share price undervalued’, says analyst

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of Westpac Banking. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The post Why Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, BWP, G8 Education, & Westpac are zooming higher appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has returned from the long weekend in fine form. In late morning trade the benchmark index is up over 2.5% to 6,150.9 points.

Four shares that have failed to follow the market higher today are listed below. Here’s why they are dropping lower:

The CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) share price is down 2.5% to $277.77. This appears to be down to concerns that the company’s plasma collection network has been disrupted by the pandemic. This could have a knock-on effect on its FY 2021 performance. These concerns have offset an announcement that reveals that CSL has agreed to acquire biotech company Vitaeris this morning.

The Elders Ltd (ASX: ELD) share price has fallen over 3% to $9.22. This decline could be down to profit taking after a strong share price gain year to date. Prior to today, the agribusiness company’s shares were up over 47% since the start of the year. Investors have been buying agriculture shares due to improving trading conditions and their defensive qualities.

The Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) share price is down 3% to $5.43. The catalyst for this decline was a sharp pullback in the gold price on Friday night. And although the precious metal rebounded last night, it wasn’t enough to stop the gold miners from being sold off today. Especially with investors switching to risk on assets en masse today. The S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Gold index is down 1.75% on Monday.

The Xero Limited (ASX: XRO) share price has fallen almost 3% to $85.05. Investors may be taking profit off the table after some strong gains by the business and accounting platform provider’s shares in recent weeks. In fact, last week the Xero share price climbed to a record high of $91.49. When its shares hit that level, they were up 15% year to date.

More reading

• 2 ASX 200 biotech shares to consider buying today
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX bulls crash through 6,000 points
• ASX shares could be the best way to grow your wealth in 2020
• Could these ASX shares be the future dividend stars that make you rich?
• 10 ASX 200 shares that are fit for the Queen

James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of CSL Ltd. and Xero. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Elders Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The post Why CSL, Elders, Evolution, & Xero shares are dropping lower appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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There are a couple of ASX 200 biotech shares that could be in the buy zone right now. The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is down -10.25% this year but many Aussie healthcare companies have surged in value.

This is partly due to the nature of the coronavirus pandemic. Many healthcare services are in high demand even as the economy falls on hard times.

While not all Aussie biotech companies are created equal, here are a couple of my top picks to buy today.

2 ASX 200 biotech shares to buy today

I like the look of CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) right now. CSL is one of the largest companies by market capitalisation on the ASX and weighs in at $129.55 billion.

The ASX 200 biotech share doesn’t always look like good value. However, CSL shares have dropped below the $300 per share mark and are trading at $276.45 at the time of writing.

We’ve seen some strong investor support around the $270-280 per share mark in recent months. That could mean now is a good chance to buy CSL at a 16.75% discount to its all-time high.

It’s not just the Aussie biotech giant that is in the buy zone. I also like the look of Polynovo Ltd (ASX: PNV) shares right now.

Polynovo designs develops and manufactures dermal regeneration solutions using its patented NovoSorb BTM biodegradable polymer technology.

In plain English, the ASX 200 biotech share develops solutions for burns, skin grafts and similar medical issues.

The Polynovo share price crashed hard in the recent bear market. In fact, shares in the company fell 56.29% from 25 February to 23 March. 

However, Polynovo’s value has surged higher in recent months. The ASX 200 biotech share boasts a market capitalisation of $1.75 billion and has climbed 94.70% since that March 23 bottom.

Foolish takeaway

I think for buy and hold investors, both CSL and Polynovo could be good value buys.

Both ASX 200 biotech shares have a track record of success and a solid growth outlook.

I would say CSL is more of a tactical buy for $285.33 per share. In contrast, the Polynovo share price has already rebounded but I think it’s a potential ASX 50 share in the coming decade.

More reading

• Why CSL, Elders, Evolution, & Xero shares are dropping lower
• 3 ASX 200 shares to watch this week
• Is the Webjet share price a cheap buy today?
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX bulls crash through 6,000 points
• Cheap ASX 200 retail shares to buy today

Ken Hall has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The post 2 ASX 200 biotech shares to consider buying today appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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