Cochlear Ltd (ASX: COH) shares are up around 1% and changing hands at $141.96 a piece, at the time of writing on Wednesday morning.

The latest increase comes off the back of a 8% share price hike on Tuesday, following the company’s latest FY26 results announcement.

Cochlear posted a 2% increase in sales revenue and a 22% decrease in its underlying net profit, which came in right at the top end of guidance.

There were some significant positives though. Cochlear’s operating cash flow surged $130 million to $368 million, while free cash flow also improved substantially. The company also continued to invest aggressively in research and development, lifting R&D spending 15% as it accelerated work on its product pipeline.

Clearly investors were pleased with the results and its shares have kept climbing higher.

It’s great news for the stock after Cochlear shares suffered a huge 41% one-day crash in late-April after the company downgraded its guidance figures. 

Since hitting a 10-year low of just $90 cents per share in late-April, Cochlear shares have now rebounded 52%. There is still a long way to go, however. The shares are now down around 46% for the year-to-date and are roughly 52% lower than this time last year.

The question now is, can Cochlear shares keep climbing higher?

What do analysts tip next for Cochlear shares?

It’s possible that brokers and analysts could revise their stance on Cochlear shares in coming days, following the company’s FY26 update yesterday.

But at the time of writing, it looks like the experts are still on the fence about the outlook for the hearing implant company’s shares over the next 12 months.

Many are now uncertain that Cochlear shares can stage a meaningful recovery over the next 12 months. And some believe the shares are now above fair value.

Market Index data shows the majority of brokers have a hold rating on Cochlear shares. The $116.08 average target price now implies a potential 18% downside from the current trading price, at the time of writing.

TradingView data shows something similar, although the figures are a little less pessimistic. Again, the majority of analysts have a hold rating on the shares. The $139.21 average target price implies a potential 2% downside over the next 12 months, at the time of writing.

So, if I invest $5,000 into Cochlear shares today, what could it be worth in 12 months?

These forecasts suggest that a $5,000 investment into Cochlear shares today, could fall to somewhere around $4,100 to $4,900 by this time next year. That implies a loss of up to $900.

What could drive Cochlear shares higher?

It’s been a difficult year for the medical hearing implant device company. Cochlear has suffered from a number of strong headwinds, including a sector-wide rotation away from ASX healthcare shares this year. 

Looking ahead, I still see Cochlear as a strong, globally dominant business with its long-term outlook intact. I think the steep sell-offs this year were overdone and that the share price could quietly keep climbing higher.

The post Buy $5,000 of Cochlear shares today and it could be worth this much in 12 months appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Why are Cochlear shares flying 7% higher today?
• Cochlear posts FY26 profit at top end of guidance with new product momentum
• Down 50% – Are these the best value ASX 200 shares right now?
• Reporting season half-time report: 5 lessons from August so far

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

Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN), Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC), and Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) shares are turning heads today.

Two of the big-name ASX shares are charging higher today, while one is trailing the 0.4% losses posted by the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) as we head into the Wednesday lunch hour.

Here’s what’s catching investor interest.

Santos shares lift on growth outlook

Santos shares are jumping higher today.

At the time of writing, shares in the ASX 200 oil and gas stock are trading for $8.37 apiece, up 3.2%.

This follows the release of Santos half year results (H1 2026).

On the positive side of the ledger, the company reported a 2% year-on-year boost in sales revenue to US$2.62 billion.

Production volumes were up as well, with sales volumes increasing by 1.7% to 48 million barrels of oil equivalent (mboe).

And investors appear to be eyeing the forecast future growth and shrugging off the 19% decline in Santos’ half-year statutory net profit after tax (NPAT), which fell to US$355 million.

As for that growth that could support Santos shares longer-term, the company revealed that Barossa has reached 97% of planned rates since the end of June. And in Alaska, the company’s Pikka Phase 1 project achieved first oil. Management expects the project to hit plateau production in the third quarter of 2026.

Santos CEO Kevin Gallagher noted:

The first half marked an important step forward for Santos. We brought the Pikka project online safely and continued to progress Barossa through commissioning towards steady-state production, while the base business continued to perform strongly.

Whitehaven Coal shares slide on revenue decline

Unlike Santos shares, Whitehaven shares are slipping following the release of the ASX 200 coal stock’s full-year FY 2026 results.

At time of writing, the Whitehaven share price is down 1.8% at $7.62.

For the 12 months the company reported revenue of $5.40 billion, down 7% from FY 2025.

And underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $1.25 billion were down 8%.

On the bottom line, Whitehaven’s full year NPAT declined by 29% to $227 million, impacted in part by lower coal prices.

Still, management declared a fully franked final dividend of 6 cents per share, in line with last year’s payout.

Which brings us to…

Evolution Mining shares jump on record profits

Joining Whitehaven and Santos shares in making waves today, we find ASX 200 gold stock Evolution Mining.

Evolution Mining shares are up 1.1% at time of writing, changing hands for $13.80 apiece.

Investors are bidding up the gold stock following the release of Evolution’s own FY 2026 results.

Amid a rising gold price environment and its own operational successes, the miner reported a 44% year-on-year increase in underlying EBITDA to $3.17 billion. And cash flow surged 76% to a record high of $1.39 billion.

Evolution Mining also achieved an all-time high statutory profit after tax of $1.48 billion, up 59% from FY 2025.

This saw management boost the final fully franked dividend to 21 cents per share, up 62% from last year’s payout.

The post Why Evolution Mining, Whitehaven and Santos shares are creating a buzz on Wednesday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Santos posts lower first-half profit as new LNG projects ramp up
• Whitehaven Coal FY26 earnings: profit dips but cost control and dividend highlight result
• Evolution Mining smashes records with FY26 profit and dividend surge
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• Evolution Mining shares are up 76%. Could results spark another surge?

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 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.

Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO) has been one of the stronger performers in the mining sector over the past year.

After a run like that, it is reasonable to wonder whether much of the opportunity has already been captured.

So, would I still put $5,000 into Rio Tinto shares this week?

The valuation still looks reasonable

Rio Tinto shares are currently trading around $168.84.

According to CommSec, consensus earnings per share estimates stand at $12.07 in FY26 and $12.04 in FY27.

That puts the miner on a forward price-to-earnings multiple of around 14 times in both years.

I think that looks reasonable for a global mining company with substantial exposure to iron ore, aluminium and, increasingly, copper.

There is passive income to consider as well. CommSec expects fully franked dividends of $6.63 per share in FY26 and $6.62 in FY27, which would represent a forecast yield of roughly 3.9% at the current share price.

That gives investors something back while waiting for the longer-term growth story to develop.

Copper is where I get more excited

The copper side of Rio Tinto is becoming increasingly important to my investment case.

Demand for the metal should benefit from spending on electricity networks, renewable energy, electric vehicles, data centres and other infrastructure needed as the global economy becomes more electrified.

Rio Tinto already has major copper operations, and Oyu Tolgoi in Mongolia is giving it a meaningful source of production growth.

Copper production from Oyu Tolgoi increased by 31% to 198,000 tonnes during the first half of 2026 as the underground operation continued ramping up.

I think the longer-term opportunity is even more interesting. Rio Tinto expects Oyu Tolgoi to produce around 500,000 tonnes of copper per year on average between 2028 and 2036 from its open pit and underground operations. At that scale, it is expected to become one of the world’s largest copper mines.

That gives Rio Tinto a growth project already moving towards much higher production at a time when I expect copper to become increasingly valuable.

What would make me cautious?

Rio Tinto shares have risen by around 50% over the past 12 months, so expectations are certainly higher than they were a year ago.

Mining earnings can also change quickly when commodity prices move. Iron ore remains an important contributor, while a weaker copper price could reduce some of the excitement around the company’s expanding production.

The relatively flat consensus earnings forecasts for FY26 and FY27 are a reminder of that cyclicality.

But I think Rio Tinto is becoming a more interesting business for the years ahead. Its copper production is growing, Oyu Tolgoi still has a long ramp-up ahead, and the wider portfolio gives the company several major commodities to work with.

Foolish takeaway

I would invest $5,000 into Rio Tinto shares this week.

The strong share price performance over the past year has made the entry point less attractive than it once was, but I still think around 14 times forecast earnings represents good value.

More importantly, I like where the business could be heading over the next several years as copper becomes a larger part of the story.

For investors prepared to accept the ups and downs that come with mining shares, I think Rio Tinto remains a strong long-term buy.

The post Would I invest $5,000 into Rio Tinto shares this week? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why I’d buy these 2 ASX ETFs for $10,000 a year in passive income
• 2 ASX 200 stocks Morgans rates as a buy right now 
• 3 reasons the BHP dividend could surprise on 18 August
• Buying Rio Tinto and BHP shares? Here’s why the ASX mining giants just met with Donald Trump
• ASX shares with ex-dividend dates next week

Motley Fool contributor Grace Alvino 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.