Category: Stock Market

The Mesoblast Ltd (ASX: MSB) share price is having a tough finish to the week.

In afternoon trade, the stem cell focused biotechnology company’s shares are down almost 4% to 86.5 cents.

While this is disappointing, shareholders won’t be too concerned.

After all, even after today’s decline, the Mesoblast share price is up approximately 190% since this time last month.

To put that into context, a $10,000 investment a month ago would now be worth around $29,000.

But if you thought the gains were over, think again. That’s because analysts at Bell Potter are tipping the company’s shares to continue their meteoric rise.

Mesoblast share price tipped to rise

According to a note out of the broker this afternoon, its analysts have retained their speculative buy rating and lifted their price target by 141% to $1.40 (from 58 cents).

Based on the current Mesoblast share price, this implies potential upside of 62% for investors over the next 12 months.

The broker made the move in response to feedback the company received from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last month. It explains:

Using carefully chosen words, the FDA has informed MSB that the available clinical data from its Phase 3 study MSB-GvHD001 in children with steroid refractory acute graft versus host disease (SR a GvHD) appears sufficient to support resubmission of the Biological Licence Application (BLA) for Remestemcel.

It believes the timing of the correspondence is not a coincidence.

The timing of the correspondence coincides with refreshed leadership at the newly formed Office of Therapeutic Products (OTP) within CBER at the FDA and the release of draft industry guidance for demonstrating effectiveness in one adequate, well controlled clinical investigation with confirmatory evidence.

When could Remestemcel be approved?

While approval is by no means guaranteed, Bell Potter is feeling a lot more confident now.

Approval would be good for investors for a couple of reasons. One is that it means meaningful revenue generation may not be far away. The other is that it could open the door to further use cases in the near future. The broker concludes:

Our best estimate for approval of Remestemcel is mid August 2024. The planned adult study in GvHD has for the moment been postponed pending the outcome of the resubmitted BLA. Valuation is increased from $0.58 to $1.40 reflecting significant changes to revenue forecasts bought about by renewed confidence for a prospective approval for Remestemcel in Paediatric GvHD later this year. A first approval may represent a gateway to a series of label expansions in the ensuing period as reflected in the share price movement in recent days.

The Mesoblast share price remains down 11% over the last 12 months despite its recent surge.

The post Why the Mesoblast share price can rise another 60% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy now
• Why Mesoblast, Regis Resources, Westgold, and WiseTech shares are sinking today
• Mesoblast share price dumps 10% as excitement simmers on FDA submission
• Why Austal, Mesoblast, Novonix, and Paladin Energy shares are racing higher
• Blast off! Mesoblast share price surging 60%

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.

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It has been another busy week for Australia’s top brokers. This has led to the release of a number of broker notes.

Three broker buy ratings that you might want to know more about are summarised below. Here’s why brokers think these ASX shares are in the buy zone:

Electro Optic Systems Holdings Ltd (ASX: EOS)

According to a note out of Bell Potter, its analysts have retained their buy rating on this defence and space company’s shares with a trimmed price target of $2.20. The broker believes that the company’s equity raise and investment in long lead time critical supplies is a prudent decision from management. It also feels it is reflective of its strengthened financial position and improved visibility over near-term sales opportunities. The Electro Optic Systems share price is trading at $1.59 on Friday afternoon.

Mesoblast Ltd (ASX: MSB)

Another note out of Bell Potter reveals that its analysts have retained their speculative buy rating on this biotechnology company’s shares with a significantly improved price target of $1.40 (from 58 cents previously). Bell Potter notes that the FDA has used carefully chosen words to inform Mesoblast that the available clinical data from its Phase 3 study MSB-GvHD001 in children with steroid refractory acute graft versus host disease (SR a GvHD) appears sufficient to support a resubmission of the Biological Licence Application (BLA) for Remestemcel. It points out that the timing of the correspondence coincides with refreshed leadership at the newly formed Office of Therapeutic Products at the FDA. In light of this, the broker has renewed confidence for a prospective approval for Remestemcel later this year. It feels that a first approval may represent a gateway to a series of label expansions in the ensuing period. The Mesoblast share price is fetching 86.7 cents on Friday.

Suncorp Group Ltd (ASX: SUN)

Analysts at Morgan Stanley have retained their overweight rating and $17.05 price target on this insurance giant’s shares. This follows news that the company has signed an agreement to sell its New Zealand life insurance business to Resolution Life for approximately $375 million. The broker feels the selling price is fair and expects it to result in a simplified business structure. Combined with the Suncorp Bank sale to ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: ANZ), it believes there could be some big capital returns to come in the near future. The Suncorp share price is on course to end the week at $16.25.

The post Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy now appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Suncorp share price hits new 52-week high amid $375m asset sale
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Here are the top five ASX 200 stocks in Macquarie’s model income portfolio
• Why Mesoblast, Regis Resources, Westgold, and WiseTech shares are sinking today
• Mesoblast share price dumps 10% as excitement simmers on FDA submission

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 positions in and has recommended Electro Optic Systems. 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.

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After a decade of dormancy, inflation reared its ugly head as a major economic issue investors had to confront and deal with over 2021 and 2022. Whilst the decades-high levels of price rises that we saw in 2022 are receding, inflation still remains uncomfortably elevated – which is the main reason why interest rates also remain at decade-highs today.

So how should ASX investors approach this conundrum? After all, inflation eats into our wealth and our wages, and certainly throws a spanner or two into the investing mix.

Well, I think a good solution remains to invest in ASX dividend shares. The share market gives us the best shot at overcoming any economic malady to build wealth, whether that be inflation or deflation.

But that’s only if you have the right shares of course. So today, let’s discuss two ASX dividend shares that I think offer some of the best inflation protections on the stock market.

2 ASX dividend shares to hedge against inflation

Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL)

First up is ASX 200 supermarket stock Coles. High-quality shares in the consumer staples sector are always going to have inherent inflation resistance built into their business models, thanks to the essential nature of the goods and services that they sell. In other words, these companies can increase prices in line with inflation without fear of a significant loss of sales. This label, in my opinion, applies to Coles.

This company’s most recent earnings report was encouraging, showing Coles potentially snatching market share gains from its arch-rival Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) over the second half of 2023.

Given Coles’ ability to increase earnings over time, coupled with its fully-franked dividends, which have increased almost every year since 2018, I think this is a great stock to help protect a share portfolio against inflation.

Transurban Group (ASX: TCL)

It’s not too often that a company’s earnings are completely insulated from the corrosive effects of inflation. Yet we can say this about ASX 200 toll road operator and dividend share Transurban. Transurban has a huge portfolio of toll roads across North America, Brisbane, Melbourne and particularly Sydney. Most of these toll roads are arterial routes that are difficult to avoid for motorists.

The beauty of Transurban’s business model is that it has decades-long contracts on these roads, most of which allow Transurban to increase its tolls quarterly by at least the rate of inflation (and often by 4% per annum if inflation is lower).

This provides an incredible amount of certainty for Transurban investors. Barring a major catastrophe resulting in huge traffic volume falls (the pandemic for example), Transurban arguably has one of the most reliable earnings bases on the ASX. And thus, one of the most reliable dividends.

These are all ingredients that combine to make Transurban a highly effective inflation hedge, and a company you’d be happy to have in your portfolio if high inflation persists.

The post 2 ASX dividend shares to beat inflation appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Bell Potter names the best ASX 200 shares to buy in April
• 3 lower-risk, high-yield ASX dividend shares to consider buying now
• Want an income boost? Buy ANZ Bank and these ASX dividend stocks
• If I invest $10,000 in Transurban shares, how much dividend income will I receive?
• 5 excellent ASX dividend stocks to buy in April

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

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Like many tech-oriented stocks, Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS) shares are likely to enjoy some significant benefits from the rapid advances in artificial intelligence (AI).

So, it won’t come as a surprise that the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) telco is looking to AI to improve efficiency and customer service, among other benefits.

Which brings us to Telstra Ventures, a venture capital firm that runs independently but collaborates closely with Telstra and its enterprise customers.

Here’s what’s happening.

Making AI more accessible

Telstra shares could get a lift down the road from United States-based data transformation startup Coalesce.

This comes as Coalesce announced that it has successfully raised US$50 million (AU$77 million) in Series B funding to “drive growth and platform innovation”. The funding was backed in part by Telstra Ventures.

Commenting on why Telstra Ventures participated in the fundraising, Saad Siddiqui, general partner at Telstra Ventures said, “The industry is moving from labour-intensive data engineering to automated, enterprise-grade solutions.”

He added, “Coalesce leads this shift, offering comprehensive extensibility for complex ETL/ELT [extract, load, transform] scenarios and an easy-to-use interface for a wider, less technical audience.”

Coalesce CEO Armon Petrossian highlighted the potential of the technology to improve efficiency, which could help boost Telstra shares if the telco rolls out the tech in Australia.

“During a challenging VC market period, we’ve successfully raised capital by demonstrating explosive growth and an innovative product that significantly enhances the efficiency of data teams,” Petrossian said.

Fanni Fan, principal at Industry Ventures which co-led the US$50 million funding round, added, “We’ve had a front-row seat to Coalesce’s success, seeing them consistently outperform targets.”

According to Fan:

Their customers regularly cite them as the most vital part of their data stack, and their mature partner ecosystem is impressive for their stage. Encouraged by this, we confidently led their Series B investment.

Coalesce launched in Australia and New Zealand in April 2023.

According to the company, it has “revolutionised data transformation within the ELT workflow on the Snowflake data cloud”.

Snowflake Ventures also participated in the fundraising.

“Snowflake Ventures invests in our ecosystem partners to accelerate innovation,” Harsha Kapre, director of Snowflake Ventures said.

“Coalesce is designed to complement the performance and scalability of Snowflake and is well positioned to harness the power of the data cloud,” Kapre added, offering some insight into why Telstra wants a solid foot in the door here.

How have Telstra shares been tracking?

Telstra shares came under selling pressure in early February. Despite a modest uptick since late March, shares in the ASX 200 telco are down 4% in 2024.

The post Own Telstra shares? Here’s why the ASX 200 telco just backed this AI startup appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 3 lower-risk, high-yield ASX dividend shares to consider buying now
• 2 ASX shares I’d buy to quickly add diversification
• These ASX 300 dividend shares offer yields of 5% to 8%
• Here are the top five ASX 200 stocks in Macquarie’s model income portfolio
• Should ASX investors buy the dip in Telstra stock?

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

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The APM Human Services International Ltd (ASX: APM) share price will remain suspended until Monday after the company revealed it is expecting a fresh takeover offer from a new suitor this evening.

This follows last week’s revelations that CVC Asia Pacific was walking away from its revised takeover bid to acquire APM for a price of $2 per share.

The employment and health services provider had granted CVC a four-week exclusivity period until 27 March with the offer conditional on several factors including due diligence and debt financing.

The APM share price has been frozen at $1.63 since last Wednesday when the exclusivity period ended.

APM requested a trading halt and advised investors of “the receipt of a letter from CVC advising that they are unable to proceed to finalise a transaction on terms consistent with their non-binding Offer as disclosed to the ASX on 28 February 2024, and the ending of CVC’s exclusivity period”.

APM asked for the trading halt to remain in place until it released an update or until the commencement of trading on Tuesday this week.

A new suitor comes to the party…

Since then, a new potential buyer has surfaced.

On Tuesday, the company asked the ASX for a voluntary suspension of trading and advised it had “received approaches from parties to assess the potential for a transaction”.

APM said those discussions were continuing and a suspension was therefore appropriate until it could release an update, or until the start of trading today.

Before the market open this morning, APM asked the ASX to extend the suspension until Monday.

It explained that it had received a letter from United States private equity firm Madison Dearborn Capital Partners (MDP).

The letter states MDP’s intention to submit a non-binding indicative offer (NBIO) to acquire 100% of APM shares.

APM is expecting to receive MDP’s NBIO this evening and needs time to “consider the terms of the NBIO and disclose those terms to the ASX …”.

What’s next for the APM share price?

If things go to plan, we’ll find out at the commencement of trading on Monday.

Presumably by then, we will have an update from APM on the NBIO and the potential price on offer to buy up all its shares.

The APM share price has been on a rollercoaster this year.

Overall, it’s up 29.4%. But it’s been a bumpy ride.

On 18 January, APM stock plummeted by just over 40% to a new all-time low at the time of 79 cents after the company released its 1H FY24 trading update.

The price fell further to a new low of 68 cents on 23 January.

The next month, everything changed.

On 19 February, the APM share price leapt 48.2% after press speculation led to the company confirming it was in discussions with CVC. At the time, CVC was offering $1.60 per share.

The APM share price moved 13.5% higher on 28 February when CVC upped its offer to $2 per share.

That same day, APM released its 1H FY24 results.

APM reported a 31% lift in revenue to $1,116.8 million but a 12% decline in underlying EBITDA to $147.8 million. Its statutory net profit after tax and amortisation (NPATA) plummeted 41% to $43.6 million.

The company cited ongoing low unemployment and higher interest rates as drags on its business.

APM shares were listed in November 2021 at a share price of $3.55.

The post APM share price freeze extended amid new takeover bid appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• APM share price placed on ice as $1.8 billion deal goes dud

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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended APM Human Services International. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is having a tough session and is on course to end it deep in the red. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 0.9% to 7,748.5 points.

Four ASX shares that are falling more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are dropping:

Arcadium Lithium (ASX: LTM)

The Arcadium Lithium share price is down 5% to $6.43. This follows a poor night for the lithium miner’s shares on the NYSE on Thursday. Given how lithium stocks are at the very high end of the risk scale, they often fall hardest when markets become volatility. In addition, there are concerns that interest rates will remain higher for longer. This could put pressure on spending and ultimately electric vehicle sales, which would not be good news for lithium demand in an already oversupplied market.

Block Inc (ASX: SQ2)

The Block share price is down almost 4% to $114.11. This has also been driven by a poor night of trade for the payments company’s shares on the NYSE on Thursday. In addition, the company has revealed some heavy insider selling this week. This includes from its CFO Ahuja Amrita. A change of ownership notice reveals that Amrita offloaded a total of 7,961 units at an average price of approximately US$78.63. This equates to a total consideration of approximately US$626,000 (A$950,000). And in other news, Morgan Stanley downgraded its US shares to an underweight rating with a US$62.00 price target.

Capricorn Metals Ltd (ASX: CMM)

The Capricorn Metals share price is down 4% to $5.27. This morning, this gold miner released its quarterly update and revealed a disappointing quarter on quarter production decline. According to the release, Capricorn’s Karlawinda Gold Project in Western Australia achieved 26,017 ounces of gold production for the March quarter. This is down 14.5% from 30,399 ounces in the December quarter. Management blamed this on the negative impacts of heavy rainfall. It highlights that there was in excess of 280mm of rain in the quarter impacting open pit mining activities.

Kogan.com Ltd (ASX: KGN)

The Kogan.com share price is down 2.5% to $7.71. After the market close on Thursday, this ecommerce company revealed that it plans to pay its CEO and CFO a big cash bonus in place of their executive retention options. It explains: “Given the Company’s strong Balance Sheet, ongoing on-market buyback and desire to avoid further dilution for Shareholders, the Board (excluding the Executive Directors) has exercised its discretion under the Company’s Equity Incentive Plan (Plan) to make a payment to the CEO and CFO in lieu of allocation of Shares upon exercise of the Options.”

The post Why Arcadium Lithium, Block, Capricorn, and Kogan shares are dropping today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why is the Block share price getting pulped on Friday?
• Why is this ASX 200 mining share sinking 7% today?
• 4 ASX All Ords shares with ex-dividend dates next week
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Why has the lithium price quietly risen 20% in 2024?

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 positions in and has recommended Block and Kogan.com. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Block. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Kogan.com. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Block Inc (ASX: SQ2) share price is getting pulped today.

Shares in the global S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) buy now, pay later (BNPL) stock – which acquired Afterpay in January 2022 – closed yesterday trading for $118.46. In early afternoon trade on Friday, shares are swapping hands for $114.00 apiece, down 3.8%.

Unless there’s a remarkable late-day turnaround, this will mark the fourth consecutive day of losses for Block shareholders, with the stock currently down 11.5% since the closing bell on 28 March.

For some context, the ASX 200 is down 0.5% at this same time today and down 1.6% this week.

Here’s what’s happening.

Block share price catching headwinds

ASX 200 investors are following the lead of US investors in bidding down the Block share price today.

The BNPL company is dual-listed, both on the ASX and on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). The Block share price closed down a painful 6.2% in US markets overnight.

Today’s falls are part of a broader market sell-down fuelled in part by investor concerns over sticky inflation in the United States leading to fewer interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. And possibly delaying the first cuts until 2025.

Jittery investors sent the Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC) down 1.4% overnight, while the S&P 500 Index (SP: .INX) closed down 1.2%.

This came following some sobering analysis from US Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis president Neel Kashkari, who said that the past few months of inflation data had been “a little bit concerning”.

The Fed’s inflation target is 2%, and officials are awaiting more hard data to ensure it’s on track to return to that target before they begin easing.

And as the past two years have shown, BNPL companies like Block have proven highly susceptible to higher interest rates.

“In March I had jotted down two rate cuts this year if inflation continues to fall back towards our 2% target,” Kashkari said.

“If we continue to see inflation moving sideways, then that would make me question whether we needed to do those rate cuts at all,” he added, likely helping fuel the sell-off.

How has the ASX 200 BNPL stock been tracking?

Despite the rough start to April, the Block share price has been a stellar performer in recent months, with the stock really lifting off at the end of October.

Since market close on 31 October, the ASX 200 BNPL stock is up 88%.

The post Why is the Block share price getting pulped on Friday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why Arcadium Lithium, Block, Capricorn, and Kogan shares are dropping today
• If I’d put $5,000 in Block shares 5 months ago, here’s what I’d have now
• Why are these ASX tech shares getting smashed today?
• 4 ASX growth shares I think will benefit from interest rate cuts in 2024
• Do Block shares come with a dividend in 2024?

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

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While the market may have recently been trading at a record high, not all shares are faring as well.

For example, the three ASX growth shares listed below are still down significantly from recent highs.

Here’s why analysts think that they could be too cheap to ignore at current levels:

Domino’s Pizza Enterprises Ltd (ASX: DMP)

This pizza chain operator’s shares are down 20% since this time last year. This has been driven by the company’s underperformance due to inflationary pressures and management’s failure to successfully execute its recovery plans.

The good news is that there are now signs that the company is finally moving on from its issues. This could potentially make it a great time to make a patient investment in the ASX growth share.

Morgan Stanley certainly believes this is the case. It recently put an overweight rating and $68.00 price target on its shares.

IDP Education Ltd (ASX: IEL)

Another ASX growth share that could be a bargain buy according to analysts is IDP Education. It is a leading language testing and student placement company with operations across the globe.

The last 12 months have been very turbulent for IDP Education due to the loss of its language testing monopoly in Canada and regulatory changes to student visas in a number of markets. This has led to its shares losing almost 40% of their value since this time last year.

Goldman Sachs believes the selling has been an overreaction and thinks investors should be snapping them up while they are down. Particularly given its belief that IDP Education “is likely to emerge through this period of short-term regulatory tightening with a more diversified business and stronger SP market position to capitalise on the long-term structural growth in international education.”

It is for this reason that the broker has a buy rating and $26.60 price target on its shares at present.

Readytech Holdings Ltd (ASX: RDY)

Another beaten down ASX growth that Goldman Sachs is positive on is ReadyTech. It is a leading cloud-based ATO and ITO-compliant, human resources, payroll, time and attendance, and rostering software provider.

ReadyTech’s shares are down approximately 15% from their recent highs despite its strong performance continuing in FY 2024.

Goldman believes this means that “RDY remains undervalued compared to SaaS peers on an absolute and growth adjusted basis.”

Its analysts currently have a buy rating and $4.25 price target on its shares.

The post 3 beaten down ASX growth shares that could be dirt cheap appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares
• Goldman Sachs says these ASX tech stocks can rise 18% to 30%
• Own Domino’s shares? Today is pay day!
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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Domino’s Pizza Enterprises. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Domino’s Pizza Enterprises, Goldman Sachs Group, Idp Education, and ReadyTech. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Domino’s Pizza Enterprises, Idp Education, and ReadyTech. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is having a disappointing finish to the week. In afternoon trade, the benchmark index is down 0.7% to 7,760.9 points.

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

Aurelia Metals Ltd (ASX: AMI)

The Aurelia Metals share price is up 16% to 17 cents. This morning, this gold and base metals company released significant results from its recent exploration programs at the Federation deposit. Management notes that two programs in particular have demonstrated the potential for significant further resource growth at Federation. Chief Development and Technical Officer, Andrew Graham, said: “These discoveries have further substantiated our belief in the significant lateral and depth growth potential at the Federation deposit, as we approach development of first stope ore in Q1 FY25.”

Elders Ltd (ASX: ELD)

The Elders share price is up 2% to $9.81. This appears to have been driven by a broker note out of Macquarie this morning. According to the note, the broker has upgraded the agribusiness company’s shares to an outperform rating with an improved price target of $10.45. The broker made the move after boosting its earnings estimates well ahead of consensus expectations due to a better than expected seasonal outlook and higher livestock prices.

GQG Partners Inc (ASX: GQG)

The GQG Partners share price is up 3% to $2.27. This follows the release of the fund manager’s latest funds under management (FUM) update this morning. According to the update, GQG’s total FUM increased 4.3% month on month to US$143.4 billion. Management has warned investors not to get too excited. It said: “While we have demonstrated a solid start to 2024, net flows in the first quarter of any given year are influenced by seasonality and we caution against simple extrapolation.” Nevertheless, it believes it is well positioned in the market.

Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: TLX)

The Telix Pharmaceuticals share price is up 3% to $12.55. This morning, this biopharmaceutical company released its general meeting presentation ahead of the main event. Management commented: “We see rapid growth in our current and near-term commercial products. By the end of 2024, we expect to have multiple commercial products and considerably expanded territory coverage. As part of growing our revenue streams and maintaining our competitive edge, Telix will invest in products, technologies and service enhancements that enable us to expand our indications for use, reach new customers and deliver new clinical differentiation.”

The post Why Aurelia Metals, Elders, GQG, and Telix shares are storming higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

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Cast your minds back to early 2023. Lithium shares across the ASX were riding high – exemplified by the ASX’s largest lithium stock, Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS), announcing its first-ever dividend payment.

In March 2023, investors received an interim dividend of 11 cents per share (fully franked) from Pilbara Minerals shares. This was a big deal. Dividends from lithium stocks were as rare as hen’s teeth at the time. So investors heralded this payment as a turn of a new leaf for the Australian lithium sector.

Pilbara would go on to pay another final dividend in 2023 – the final payout of 14 cents per share that was doled out in September.

But as we traverse April of 2024, the landscape has tangibly shifted. Most ASX lithium shares, including Pilbara, have had a horrid six months. Between August 2023 and January 2024, the Pilbara share price lost a third of its value.

The back end of 2023 saw lithium prices crater, which dampened investor enthusiasm for this once-hot sector. Just as Pilbara’s maiden dividend seemed to herald a new era for lithium shares, its decision to deny shareholders a third consecutive dividend payment this March epitomised the troubled waters that the sector is navigating this year.

Yes, Pilbara’s February earnings report didn’t contain too many numbers that would get investors excited. The company revealed a 65% drop in revenues to $757 million, as well as a 77% slump in earnings to $415 million. Underlying profits after tax also plunged 78% to $273 million.

So in light of those numbers, it’s perhaps not really a surprise investors weren’t treated to a dividend in the following month.

As such, Pilbara shareholders that have held on through these ups and downs might be wondering when their next dividend might be.

When will Pilbara shares start paying out dividends again?

It’s fairly hard to predict what any company’s future dividends might be, let alone a commodity-based stock like Pilbara. This company’s ability to fund shareholder payouts is almost entirely reliant on the global price of lithium. This, like all commodity prices, is difficult to forecast over a six-month or one-year period.

However, we can look at some expert predictions.

As reported in the Australian Financial Review (AFR) this week, ASX broker Morgan Stanley has done some work on forecasting what the dividends from some of the ASX’s major mining shares over the next year or two might look like.

It’s not pleasant reading for owners of mining shares.

Morgan Stanley estimates that the dividends from big iron miners like Fortescue Ltd (ASX: FMG) and particularly BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) are “at risk” going forward.

But the dividend outlook for Pilbara is even worse. The broker reckons that investors will have to wait until at least 2026 for another dividend. It is predicting the dividend rivers to remain dry over 2024 and 2025, despite the company’s dividend policy of paying out 20-30% of its free cash flow.

This prediction is based upon Pilbara’s ongoing and expensive capital expenditure plans, which Morgan Stanley believes Pilbara will prioritise over dividends amid falling lithium revenues.

As we touched on earlier, these are just predictions. no one knows what PIlbara’s future income payments will look like. But this analysis will no doubt be tough to read for Pilbara investors who have just gotten used to receiving dividends from their shares.

The post When will Pilbara Minerals resume paying dividends? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Own ASX 200 mining shares? Here’s the 5-year forecast for commodity prices
• Are your big ASX 200 mining dividends in for a chop?
• What is the outlook for Pilbara Minerals shares in April?
• Why has the lithium price quietly risen 20% in 2024?
• These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen 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.

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