Author: openjargon

The Atlas Arteria Group (ASX: ALX) share price is in focus today following an update on the ongoing Dulles Greenway litigation, with the US District Court dismissing the 2024 rate case. Notably, recent legislative reforms have streamlined the regulatory process, offering more certainty for the company and its stakeholders.

What did Atlas Arteria report?

• The US District Court dismissed the Dulles Greenway 2024 rate case litigation against TRIP II.
• TRIP II is reviewing the decision and considering an appeal.
• Legislative reforms now allow for two-year toll applications and set defined timelines for regulatory decisions.
• The latest Dulles Greenway rate case, submitted in December 2025, continues as scheduled.

What else do investors need to know?

The dismissal relates directly to Atlas Arteria’s Dulles Greenway asset in the US, part of its portfolio spanning France, Germany, and the United States. Earlier this year, regulatory changes were enacted in Virginia that make toll application processes faster and more predictable, which could reduce costs and improve planning for the company.

Atlas Arteria remains active in engaging with the Commonwealth of Virginia, local governments, and communities to build and maintain positive partnerships. Its approach emphasises long-term stakeholder and shareholder value through constructive engagement and disciplined management.

What’s next for Atlas Arteria?

Atlas Arteria’s focus is now on evaluating legal options while working within the revised regulatory environment in Virginia. The latest toll rate application process is continuing, and management says it is progressing in line with schedules.

The company has reiterated its commitment to sustainable business practices and stakeholder value, signalling ongoing dialogue with authorities and communities across its global portfolio.

Atlas Arteria share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Atlas Arteria shares have remained flat, trailing the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which has risen 3% over the same period.

View Original Announcement

The post Atlas Arteria reacts to Dulles Greenway litigation outcome appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Laura Stewart 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. This article was prepared with the assistance of Large Language Model (LLM) tools for the initial summary of the company announcement. Any content assisted by AI is subject to our robust human-in-the-loop quality control framework, involving thorough review, substantial editing, and fact-checking by our experienced writers and editors holding appropriate credentials. The Motley Fool Australia stands behind the work of our editorial team and takes ultimate responsibility for the content published by The Motley Fool Australia.

Elevra Lithium Ltd (ASX: ELV) shares are in the spotlight on Monday.

In morning trade, the ASX lithium share is up by 5% to $10.04.

This compares to a solid performance from the ASX 200 index, which is up 0.5% at the time of writing.

Why is this ASX lithium share getting a lot of attention?

Investors have been buying the lithium miner’s shares following the release of a big update on its North American Lithium (NAL) operation.

According to the release, the ASX lithium share has reached a milestone in the expansion of the NAL operation with the official groundbreaking of the NAL Expansion Project.

It notes that the groundbreaking follows the successful completion of its May capital raise, which fully funded the NAL Expansion and strengthened its balance sheet to support execution of its staged growth strategy.

As part of ongoing project execution, equipment for the expansion has been ordered to enable the planned development timeline and reduce schedule risk.

This certainly could be worth the hard work. The company highlights that upon completion in mid 2027, Stage 1 of the NAL Expansion is expected to deliver a 15% to 20% increase in annual spodumene concentrate production capacity.

Importantly, it is also expected to result in a reduction in unit operating costs through improved scale and efficiency.

Furthermore, management believes that as North America seeks to strengthen domestic battery materials supply to reduce reliance on external sources, the NAL expansion will help by delivering increased supply of traceable and transparent lithium to the rapidly growing electric vehicle and energy storage markets.

Management commentary

The ASX lithium share’s managing director and CEO, Lucas Dow, was pleased with the news. He commented:

The groundbreaking of the NAL Expansion marks a milestone for Elevra and reflects the progress we have made since announcing our staged expansion strategy. With funding secured and equipment orders being placed, we are focused on disciplined execution to deliver Stage 1. This expansion will increase production capacity and further strengthen NAL’s position as a strategically important source of lithium supply in North America.

Elevra Lithium’s shares have been on fire over the past 12 months. Following today’s move, the company’s shares are now up almost 350% since this time last year.

That’s despite its shares trading almost 30% below their 52-week high of $14.06.

The post Which ASX share is racing 5% higher on big news? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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.

Investing for solid dividend yields can be a great strategy for some investors, and if you’re looking to follow this strategy, selecting companies with solid underlying businesses and a track record of performance is a good place to start.

Companies in infrastructure or with infrastructure-like qualities can be good investments as they tend to have businesses with a high barrier to entry and arguably good visibility of future revenues.

I’ve selected three companies which are currently paying dividend yields of better than 5% for you to consider.

AGL Energy Ltd (ASX: AGL)

AGL is one of the country’s major energy suppliers, with a market position which ensures it is likely to have a steady stream of income over the long-term barring unforeseen events.

That’s not to say the business does not have its challenges, with investing in the energy transition and managing energy supply and pricing all factoring into the company’s financial performance.

The stock is down 13.9% over the past year to $8.42.

Managing Director Damien Nicks told a recent conference that the company was expecting growing demand from the data centre sector in coming years as the emerging industry’s need for power doubled from current levels.

Mr Nicks said during the update that AGL expected underlying net profit to be $610-$680 million, tigthening the guidance from $580-$680 million.

AGL is currently paying a 5.81% trailing dividend yield with its next dividend payment scheduled for September.

APA Group Ltd (ASX: APA)

Another energy company here but this time in the gas pipeline game.

APA has performed quite well from a share price standpoint over the past year, adding 32.3% to be changing hands for $10.77.

That level is just higher than Macquarie’s price target for the company, which it recently pegged at $10.41.

Encouragingly Macquarie expects the APA dividend yield to grow from 5.7% this year to 5.9% by FY28.

One of the drivers for the company, Macquarie said, is the growth in data centre demand for power, and from the retirement of the nation’s coal fleet.

Macquarie said the federal gas reservation policy also creates incentives for energy companies to develop new gas fields, while adding that APA has improving balance sheet capacity.

Stockland (ASX: SGP)

Morgan Stanley analysts think there is upside to be had in Stockland’s share price, with a price target of $4.90 compared with the current price of $4.32.

The broker thinks there could be some residential settlements headwinds for the property development company following recent interest rate increases and changes to tax laws in the Federal Budget.

They say Stockland has in the past mitigated downturns with land selldowns or joint ventures, but say this might be far off at this stage.

They said:

We see limited scope for material land profits in FY27, as Kogarah/Waterloo/DCs all still require detailed planning, power, and/or tenant commitments. However, the FY28+ pipeline looks robust and could drive a higher weighting to development profits vs traditional resi over the next cycle.

Morgna Stanley is forecasting the Stockland dividend to stay steady at 25.2 cents out to FY28, which at the current share price is a 5.8% dividend yield.

The post Buy these 3 blue-chip shares for better than 5% dividend yields appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 positions in and has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Apa 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.

In my view, Future Generation Australia Ltd (ASX: FGX) is one of the most reliable ASX dividend stocks available to Aussies.

It may not be as famous as Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) or BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), but I think it’s a better pick for both reliability and dividend yield.

Future Generation Australia is a listed investment company (LIC) with a big difference. Instead of a typical arrangement where investors pay management fees to a fund manager, this LIC charges no fees (including no performance fees). Instead, it donates 1% of net assets each year to youth-focused charities.

The LIC is invested in the funds of 16 different fund managers, giving it excellent diversification. Future Generation Australia gives exposure to more than 430 underlying shares across different sectors, meaning it’s significantly more diversified than the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO)

It also gives access to variety of companies across different market capitalisations – at the end of May, more than 19% of the portfolio came from outside the S&P/ASX 300 Index (ASX: XKO).

Let’s get into what makes it such an appealing choice for dividends.

Reliability

Both CBA and BHP have given their shareholders dividend cuts this decade, so they haven’t been very reliable, despite having reputations as Australia’s biggest and bluest of ASX blue-chip shares.

As a LIC, Future Generation Australia is capable of smoothing out its dividends because it can build up its profit reserve with investment gains during positive years, allowing it to pay a rising dividend even in more difficult years.

It has increased its annual dividend per share each year since 2015 – that’s more than a decade of consistent dividend growth.

The ASX dividend stock has built up a profit reserve of 41.8 cents per share as of May 2026 – it could keep funding the same size dividend for more than five years.

Dividend yield

Future Generation Australia is attractive not just for its reliability but also for its strong dividend yield.

In 2025, the business paid an annual dividend per share of 7.2 cents. That translates into a grossed-up dividend yield of 7.6%, including franking credits.

But, I’m expecting the business to hike its payout in 2026 to 7.4 cents per share, which would equate to a grossed-up dividend yield of 7.8%, including franking credits.

It’s hard to find another ASX dividend stock that offers a good a dividend yield as that, and has increased the dividend for as many years in a row.

Is this a good time to invest?

We can already see that the business offers compelling dividend income.

The business is trading fairly closely to its net tangible assets (NTA) – I’d prefer to buy when it’s trading at a discount, but today’s price is still solid, in my view.

With $1,000, an investor could buy 735 shares of this appealing LIC. Plus, it’s providing a great philanthropic service.

The post $1,000 buys 735 shares in an incredibly reliable ASX dividend stock appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in Future Generation Australia. 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.

When it comes to copper, many investors will turn to Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO) shares.

That makes sense, the mining giant owns Oyu Tolgoi in Mongolia, which is one of the largest known copper-gold deposits in the world.

But there’s another name that could be worth considering if you’re looking for copper exposure according to Bell Potter.

Which ASX copper share?

The share that Bell Potter is recommending to investors is AIC Mines Ltd (ASX: A1M).

It is a copper production and exploration company focused on the 100%-owned Eloise Copper Project (ECP) in Queensland.

Bell Potter is feeling positive following a site visit to the Eloise copper mine, which is undergoing an expansion to its production capacity. It said:

We attended a recent site visit to A1M’s 100%-owned Eloise copper mine in QLD. It is currently being expanded from nameplate of 725ktpa to nameplate of 1.1Mtpa. The expansion is targeting to lift Eloise’s copper production from ~12-13ktpa to ~20ktpa. The expansion commenced during the September quarter 2025, with a scheduled 18- month construction period targeting commissioning in the December quarter 2026, for which it remains on schedule.

The good news is that Bell Potter believes the expansion is on target. It explains:

Based on our observations at the site visit, we are comfortable with the view that the Eloise mine expansion is on schedule and mill commissioning will commence in the December quarter 2026. Major components of the process plant are on site, including the recent installation of the ball mill onto its foundations, marking a key critical path milestone. Structural steel erection is largely complete with the crushing circuit 95% mechanically complete and dry commissioning planned for July.

Integration of the new crushing and grinding circuit with the existing circuit is well progressed, with 8 of 9 tie-ins complete. Much of the plant is sized for 1.5Mtpa throughput, providing optionality for a low-cost staged expansion later in Eloise’s mine life.

Time to buy

According to the note, the broker has retained its buy rating on the ASX copper share with an improved price target of $1.00.

Based on its current share price of 70.5 cents, this implies potential upside of approximately 42% for investors over the next 12 months.

Commenting on its recommendation, the broker said:

EPS changes with this update are: FY26: -1%, FY27: +5% and FY28: +8%, on a less conservative ramp-up schedule. A1M represents leveraged copper exposure via its Eloise Copper Project with a clear, organic growth strategy being advanced. We retain our Buy recommendation and lift our NPV-based target price to $1.00/sh.

The post Forget Rio Tinto and buy this ASX copper share appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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.

Owning Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) shares has been a pleasing choice for earnings growth over the last 30 years – it has been an excellent long-term performer.

The ASX bank has a closer connection with customers than many other banks, as shown by its high percentage of loans originated through proprietary channels. In other words, it doesn’t rely on brokers for most of its loan flow.

I think its ability to connect with customers, including winning many new customer transaction accounts each year, is key to the bank continuing to grow strongly while also achieving a good profit margin.

Let’s look at what’s expected of the ASX bank share in the coming years and how much it could grow earnings.

FY26

The 2026 financial year has nearly finished for Commonwealth Bank, but it’ll still be a month or so until we hear how the company has performed in the period to June 2026.

The projection on Commsec suggests that CBA’s earnings per share (EPS) could rise in FY26. The independent forecast implies that the business could generate $6.54 of EPS for the financial year. At the current CBA share price, it’s valued at close to 25x FY26’s estimated earnings.

The latest update from the bank was for three months to 31 March 2026. It reported statutory net profit of $2.6 billion, while cash net profit was $2.7 billion – this was up 4% year-over-year, but down 1% on the quarterly average of the FY26 first half.

Impressively, the bank reported excellent growth in both loans and deposits. Annual growth to March 2026, business lending grew 12.5% (1.2x the overall loan system), household deposits grew 9.1% (1.1x the banking system), and home lending increased 7.1% (1x the loan system).

One of the main negatives of that result was a $316 million loan impairment expense, with higher collective provisions reflecting “heightened geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty”. Its underlying portfolio credit quality remained “sound”.

The higher RBA cash rate can help CBA earnings because it means it can lend out money from balances that CBA doesn’t pay interest on (namely transaction accounts) at a higher loan interest rate. However, the higher rates also come with a higher risk of loan defaults by borrowers.

Pleasingly, the bank’s lending growth has been strong enough to drive year-over-year earnings higher.

Can it continue to deliver good growth amid the Federal budget changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax?

Let’s look at the profit forecast for next year.

FY27

According to the projection on Commsec, the business could grow EPS by (just) 2.7% in FY27.

Earnings growth is essential to push the CBA share price higher over time, but 2.7% growth is not exactly exciting. Higher profit can also help fund larger dividend payments from the ASX bank share.

According to that forecast for FY27, the business is valued at 24x FY27’s estimated earnings.

It’s a great bank, but there are many other ASX shares that could grow earnings faster and trade at more attractive valuations.

The post Here’s the earnings forecast out to 2027 for CBA shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison 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) shares have finally taken a breather.

The Rio Tinto share price has slipped around 8% over the past month, but that barely dents what has been an outstanding run. The mining heavyweight is still up an impressive 67% over the past 12 months, making it one of the best-performing ASX blue chips and even outpacing rival BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP).

So, after such a stellar rally, is there still a case for buying Rio Tinto shares?

Here are three reasons long-term investors may think so.

World-class iron ore assets

Rio Tinto’s biggest strength remains its iron ore business.

The company owns some of the world’s highest-quality, lowest-cost mines in the Pilbara, giving it a significant competitive advantage over many global rivals.

Because these operations sit so low on the cost curve, Rio Tinto can continue generating healthy profits even when iron ore prices soften. When prices rise, those same assets become cash-generating machines.

Its scale, infrastructure, and decades of operational expertise create barriers to entry that few competitors can match.

Reliable cash flow and dividends

Rio Tinto shares have long been one of the ASX’s premier dividend stocks.

While dividends naturally fluctuate with commodity prices, the company has consistently returned a substantial share of its profits to shareholders through dividends and, at times, share buybacks.

That shareholder-friendly approach is supported by a strong balance sheet, disciplined capital allocation, and exceptional cash generation.

For income investors, few miners have Rio’s track record of rewarding shareholders throughout the commodity cycle.

Growing exposure to future-facing commodities

Although iron ore remains Rio Tinto’s biggest earnings driver, the company is steadily broadening its portfolio. It is investing heavily in commodities expected to benefit from the global energy transition, including copper, lithium, and aluminium.

Copper is essential for electrification, renewable energy, and electric vehicles. Lithium demand continues to grow as battery production expands, while aluminium is increasingly used in lightweight transport and clean-energy infrastructure.

These investments give Rio Tinto shares exposure to long-term structural growth trends while its iron ore business continues funding expansion.

The key risk

Investing in Rio Tinto shares is not without risk. Rio Tinto still derives the majority of its earnings from iron ore, making the company highly sensitive to Chinese steel demand and fluctuations in iron ore prices.

If either weakens significantly, profits and dividend payments could come under pressure.

Foolish takeaway

Rio Tinto combines three qualities that long-term investors often seek: world-class mining assets, exceptional cash generation, and growing exposure to commodities that should remain in demand for decades.

While its fortunes will continue to rise and fall with the iron ore cycle, Rio’s diversified growth strategy and history of rewarding shareholders make a compelling case that the recent pullback could present another opportunity for patient investors.

The post Why Rio Tinto shares could be a smart long-term buy 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.

Ready to make some new additions to your investment portfolio? Then it could be worth considering the three ASX 200 shares in this article.

That’s because they have just been named as buys by experts according to The Bull. Here’s what they are saying about them:

Aristocrat Leisure Ltd (ASX: ALL)

The team at Medallion Financial Group is positive on this gaming technology company and has named it as an ASX 200 share to buy.

It likes the company due to its belief that it offers quality, growth, and attractive returns. It explains:

Aristocrat is a gaming content creation company. It holds market leading positions across land based gaming and digital social casino. The company recently announced a substantial and extended on-market share buy-back, signalling management’s confidence in the underlying business and providing a meaningful tailwind to earnings per share growth. Combined with strong cash generation, disciplined capital allocation and ongoing digital expansion opportunities, we believe Aristocrat offers quality, growth and appealing shareholder returns.

Goodman Group (ASX: GMG)

Another ASX 200 share that Medallion Financial Group rates as a buy is Goodman Group.

It believes the market is undervaluing the industrial property giant’s long-term growth potential, which is being underpinned by its data centre strategy. Medallion said:

GMG is a global industrial property group and data centre developer. Recent acquisitions and development activity have further strengthened the group’s exposure to data centres, artificial intelligence infrastructure and cloud computing demand. Work in progress of $14.5 billion at March 31, 2026 is expected to increase to $18 billion by the end of June. We believe the market is still undervaluing the long term earnings potential of Goodman’s data centre strategy.

Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS)

A third ASX 200 share that has been given the thumbs up is energy giant Woodside.

Fairmont Equities believes that Woodside’s shares have been oversold recently, creating a buying opportunity for investors. It explains:

We were a buyer of this major energy company prior to the war in Iran. In our view, the recent share price fall presents another buying opportunity. Moving forward, we’re expecting tighter crude oil supplies to lead to higher prices. Recent weaker crude oil prices is a response to governments releasing oil from strategic reserves, but they now need to be replenished. As the biggest oil stock on the ASX, Woodside Energy will attract investors when they conclude crude oil prices will be higher for longer.

The post Experts name 3 top ASX 200 shares to buy this week appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

A bad week on the Nasdaq tends to ripple straight through to ASX tech stocks, but not always in the way the headlines suggest.

The Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC) posted its fifth consecutive losing session on Friday, dropping 0.24% to close at 25,297.62. Investors rotated out of major technology stocks and into more defensive areas of the market.

For the week, the Nasdaq fell 4.6%, its worst weekly performance in months, even as the Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) actually rose 0.6% over the same period.

That rotation also affected ASX stocks, with the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) falling 0.42%, led by many well-known tech stocks.

What drove the selloff, and what this means for ASX tech stocks

A lot of this sell-off can be attributed to renewed caution about the entire AI infrastructure trade.

Chip stocks were weaker after reports that OpenAI is considering delaying its IPO to next year. This is due specifically to SpaceX’s poor performance following its own debut and broader volatility in AI-related shares.

That report raised concerns about the sustainability of AI infrastructure spending given the delay in funding from the capital markets.

This is a challenge to the thesis behind buying ASX data centre and AI infrastructure stocks this year: that mega-cap AI IPOs would keep validating and funding the buildout.

When the US sneezes, Australia catches a cold. These three ASX tech stocks all reacted in different ways to last week’s underperformance.

What it means for NextDC Ltd (ASX: NXT)

NextDC is the ASX tech stock most directly exposed to this specific news. This is because OpenAI is the foundational customer for its Western Sydney AI data centre campus.

A delayed OpenAI IPO does not cancel that contracted relationship, but it does remove, at least for now, one of the strongest near-term catalysts that has supported sentiment around NextDC’s AI infrastructure thesis.

The contracted capacity and capital expenditure NextDC has already committed to remain unchanged regardless of OpenAI’s listing timeline.

But investors should not assume the AI IPO wave will keep providing an automatic tailwind for the stock in the way it has over recent months.

What it means for WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC)

WiseTech is sensitive to broad technology sector rotation given its premium valuation and exposure to global growth-stock sentiment. But this week the company also gave the market its own, separate reason to worry.

Reports emerged that the Australian Federal Police is investigating founder Richard White over serious allegations involving a former employee.

This sent WiseTech shares down almost 13% in a single session, on top of an already difficult year for the stock.

Until there is clarity on both the investigation and the board’s response, the stock’s near-term moves are likely to reflect that overhang as much as any broader rotation out of growth names.

What it means for Xero Ltd (ASX: XRO)

Xero sits closer to the US SaaS peer group than either WiseTech or NextDC. This makes it the most directly comparable of the three to whatever is driving Nasdaq software valuations specifically.

When US growth software names sell off on rate or rotation concerns, Xero’s share price  tends to move in parallel. This is despite the fact that the company’s own performance has remained solid through the volatility.

Xero delivered operating revenue growth of 31% to NZ$2.8 billion in its most recent full-year result. The US stood out as its fastest-growing market on the back of its Melio bill pay integration.

This gives the Xero shares a company-specific growth story that has little to do with whatever is driving sentiment on the Nasdaq this week.

Foolish takeaway for ASX tech stocks

The Nasdaq’s worst week in months was driven by a rotation away from growth and AI-adjacent names, sharpened by a specific report that OpenAI may delay its IPO because of SpaceX’s shaky debut.

That detail matters more for NextDC than for WiseTech or Xero, given its direct contractual link to OpenAI.

For all three, however, the broader lesson is the same: ASX tech stocks are not immune to what is happening across the pond in the US.

The post The Nasdaq just had its worst week in months. Here’s what that means for ASX tech stocks appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Mark Verhoeven 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 WiseTech Global and Xero. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended WiseTech Global and Xero. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

It has been a rough few weeks for investors in DroneShield Ltd (ASX: DRO) shares.

The ASX defence stock has fallen around 16% over the past week and 29% over the past month. It is now down approximately 26% in 2026, leaving its once-spectacular 12-month gain almost completely erased at just 4%.

That’s a painful reversal for investors who piled into the ASX stock during this year’s defence rally.

But there’s another way to look at it. With much of the hype now gone, the recent pullback arguably makes the risk-reward equation more attractive for long-term investors. While DroneShield remains a higher-risk stock, its position in one of defence’s fastest-growing niches continues to make it an intriguing opportunity.

Here are three reasons investors may want to take a closer look at DroneShield shares this July.

1. Specialist in one of defence’s fastest-growing markets

DroneShield isn’t trying to compete across the entire defence industry.

Instead, it has focused almost exclusively on counter-drone technology. This is a market that has moved from niche to strategic priority in just a few years.

Demand for counter-drone systems has surged as conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East demonstrated how inexpensive drones can threaten military forces, critical infrastructure, airports, and public events.

Industry researchers estimate the global counter-UAS market could exceed US$15 billion annually by the early 2030s, driven by rising defence budgets and increasing adoption by military and civilian customers alike.

Those are powerful structural tailwinds for DroneShield shares that aren’t likely to disappear anytime soon.

2. DroneShield has built a genuine competitive niche

DroneShield is hardly the biggest name in defence. It competes with giants such as RTX Corp (NYSE: RTX), Lockheed Martin Corp (NYSE: LMT), and Thales SA (XPAR: HO), all of which have vastly greater financial resources and decades-long government relationships.

Yet DroneShield has successfully carved out a reputation as an agile counter-drone specialist. Rather than offering a single product, the company provides an integrated suite of technologies, including drone detection, electronic warfare systems, AI-enabled tracking software, and command-and-control platforms.

That breadth has helped it secure an increasing number of contracts with defence agencies and government customers.

Recent wins for DroneShield shares include multi-million-dollar contracts across Europe, Latin America, and Asia-Pacific, as well as ongoing supply agreements with military customers responding to heightened geopolitical tensions.

For a business of DroneShield’s size, those contract wins demonstrate growing credibility on the global stage.

3. The valuation looks more reasonable

Earlier this year, DroneShield shares were pricing in almost flawless execution. After the recent sell-off, expectations have become considerably more realistic.

That’s not to say the shares are cheap – they still carry meaningful execution risk – but investors are no longer paying peak multiples for the business.

If the company continues converting growing defence demand into larger, more frequent contract wins, today’s valuation could prove much more attractive than it appeared just a month ago.

Foolish takeaway

Investing in DroneShield shares is not without risks. Revenue remains lumpy because defence contracts are often awarded irregularly. Procurement decisions can be delayed, larger competitors may invest more heavily in counter-drone technologies, and rapid innovation means the company must continually invest in research and development.

But the long-term investment case remains compelling. Counter-drone technology is becoming an increasingly important part of modern defence. DroneShield has established itself as a recognised specialist in the field, and the recent share price correction has significantly lowered investor expectations.

For investors comfortable with volatility, July could present an opportunity to buy a quality defence growth stock after a sharp reset.

The post 3 reasons to buy DroneShield shares in July appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Why DroneShield, WiseTech and Judo shares are leading the ASX 200 lower this week
• Is DroneShield the ASX growth share investors should be buying?
• Should I invest $5,000 in DroneShield shares before the end of June?

Motley Fool contributor Marc Van Dinther 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 and RTX. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Lockheed Martin. 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.