The All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is tracked lower today and now sits less than 1% in the red at 7,356 points at market close. After clawing back gains over the previous week, the All Ords is still down more than 2% for the month.
But one All Ords share is overtaking the pack in 2022 and is currently well on the way to nudging past its record highs.
Shares in Hotel Property Investments Ltd(ASX: HPI) are surging higher in 2022 and are now sitting almost 3% in the green since trading restarted on January 4.
Why is the HPI share price soaring higher?
The company posted a robust set of interim results last month that saw funds from operations (FFO) printed at $19.5 million for the period ending 31 December 2021.
This meant the group affirmed its FY22 distribution per share (DPS) guidance of 20.5 cents per share, signifying a 6% gain year on year.
Net tangible assets (NTA) also climbed by 16% to $3.82 following an active half for the company after it raised capital to finance transactions for two pubs.
The $36 million raised plus an additional $69 million injected into the portfolio via capital expenditures was surely a sign of this activity.
HPI also offloaded two property assets for approximately $30 million which equated to an ‘exit yield’ of roughly 5%, which was reinvested into other sections of the portfolio.
Not only that, but the S&P/ASX 200 Real Estate Index (ASX: XRE) is one of the best performing sectors this past week, having climbed 3%, after faltering hard in January.
The upside has analysts at JP Morgan noticing the stock, particularly after the group’s most recent earnings results.
The broker is overweight on HPI shares and values the company at $4 per share in a recent note to clients. It reckons the group’s enormous portfolio and income stream are attractive points in the debate.
“HPI owns a ~$1.2bn portfolio of 56 properties located predominantly in QLD. HPI has a~11-year WALE with minimal near-term expiry risk”, the firm said.
“We like HPI for its defensive income stream and long WALE and believe its book cap rate is too high given the security of its income and high fixed growth (lower of 4% pa or 2x CPI)”.
According to Bloomberg, 60% of brokers have HPI as a buy right now, whereas just 1 broker each have it as a hold and sell.
HPI share price snapshot
In the last 12 months this All Ords share has climbed more than 30% and has continued another 3% gain this year to date.
Over the past month, shares have climbed 8% and HPI is now in the green across all major timeframes.
Should you invest $1,000 in Hotel Property Investments right now?
Before you consider Hotel Property Investments, you’ll want to hear this.
Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and Hotel Property Investments wasn’t one of them.
The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.
Motley Fool contributor Zach Bristow 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 owns and has recommended Hotel Property Investments Ltd. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.
from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/8CqBlUf
In case you missed it, the price of nickel went vertical on 8 March and briefly topped US$100,000 per tonne for the first time ever.
There hasn’t been this kind of calamity on commodities exchanges since previous crises for tin, oil and gold back in the 70s and 80s.
The London Metal Exchange (LME) promptly halted trading after prices went parabolic, as brokers struggled to fill orders and collect margin calls from traders being liquidated en masse. Billions were lost from short sellers as the price eventually spiked 250% in around 24 hours.
Afterwards, trading of the metal could only occur within European hours and with a 10% cap on volatility.
Obviously, the conflict in Europe has the market jittery over supply concerns on the industrial metal, that is used in applications ranging from batteries to steel production.
Nickel had already been strong for more than 12 months prior to the conflict. However, Russia is the world’s largest supplier of nickel and the events sparked a frenzy on the LME last week.
At the time of writing, Nickel is fetching US$48,226 as things have ‘settled’ and trading has somewhat returned to normal.
But there’s a bit more at play than just the forces of supply and demand in this case. Firstly, it appears to be more market mechanics instead. And second, there wasn’t that much of a spread between buyers and sellers in early March anyway.
There was, however, a large amount of short interest on the price of nickel from one particular steel and nickel juggernaut out of China, Xiang Guangda.
Guangda is the owner of Chinese steel and nickel giant Tsingshan Holding Group Co. The company is actually a large buyer of the metal, being the world’s largest steel producer, but held a large short position in nickel futures as well.
It’s not entirely clear if this was as a hedge against falling nickel prices or if there was some speculation involved, now that some time has passed and more details have emerged on the matter.
Instead, what happened was a classic but rare ‘short squeeze’ – not unlike that seen in the GameStop Corp.(NYSE: GME) saga in early 2021.
Back then, GameStop shares rose from around US$17 to US$325 per share in less than a month as retail traders squeezed out hedge funds that held large positions on the company.
In other words, we’ve seen this movie before. But what is a short squeeze? And will it impact ASX shares? Let’s take a look.
What is a ‘short squeeze’?
Those holding a short position in the futures markets are either protecting against price movements or wagering that prices will fall.
Obviously, those speculators will see their capital evaporate if prices suddenly shoot up, if they aren’t hedged themselves.
In a squeeze, rising prices put these speculators in between a rock and a hard place. In order to stay in the trade, they (or their brokers) must buy (or go long) on the asset in a process known as ‘covering the short’.
However, if the short interest is high enough, the process forms a negative feedback loop – as prices rise, the huge wager forces the trader to buy more of the asset — pushing prices up even further, and compounding losses on the short side.
The same happened with GameStop stock, albeit in a more architected fashion. This time, however, it was with nickel, a global commodity that is essential to our day-to-day lives.
Not to mention it’s requisite in the future of energy production and the likes.
So as prices began to rise, the short seller had to cover his position by buying nickel, sending prices higher. Other speculators joining in may have also helped the rise.
What actually happened?
It was a fairly interesting set of affairs. As the events unfolded on 8 March, many in the industry were talking of an all-out meltdown in nickel markets.
If we backtrack a bit just before the jump, we see that nickel has been in an uptrend with strong support. Despite the gain in price, Tsingshan was able to meet its margin calls at that time, Bloomberg reported.
It wasn’t until the enormous surge began on 7 March that LME brokers began to feel nervous and started ringing their clients to post more margin in their accounts. Margin is just a cash balance that futures traders must maintain as they trade on leverage.
Tsingshan got a margin call for $3 billion, according to Bloomberg, meaning it had exposure to more than 150,000 tonnes of nickel.
The problem for Tsingshan was that $3 billion was a little too much for this steel giant’s bank account. Plus, no banks were going to answer their calls to lend that amount on credit.
Unfortunately, it’s the brokers who first have to pay the margin calls, but to the exchange. They then receive the margin top-up from their clients.
In this case, the banks and brokers were paying, but receiving no margin top-up from their client. These banks had “offset their deals with Tsingshan by placing their own short positions on the LME”, according to Bloomberg reports.
“Now they had to pay big margin calls on the exchange while receiving no margin from their client,” Bloomberg said.
Some of these banks started to rapidly buy back nickel contracts in order to cover themselves, and this sent prices soaring even higher.
“It was a classic short squeeze, as the pain for Tsingshan, its brokers, and other shorts created a self-reinforcing cycle,” Bloomberg said.
The LME promptly intervened and froze the price of nickel at US$80,000 per tonne, afterwards cancelling all trades that took place on the Tuesday morning – almost $4 billion, according to Bloomberg.
What’s happened to ASX shares since?
The fallout has been that the price of nickel is now at unprecedented highs and those nickel producers, such as ASX shares Nickel Mines Ltd (ASX: NIC), Poseidon Nickel Ltd (ASX: POS) and BHP Group Ltd(ASX: BHP), each incurred losses in the days following.
With Nickel Mines, it was due to the association with Tsingshan, such that the company released a statement after its shares were placed in a trading halt. The trading halt came after the Nickel Mines share price had slumped 22%.
Aside from that, the S&P/ASX 300 Metals & Mining Index (ASX: XMM) also took a sharp downturn on the same day and has fallen more than 9% since – even as many commodities surge to decade-long highs.
Much of the reason why ASX commodity shares – particularly those involved with nickel – haven’t received the news well boils down to how these markets operate.
One might presume higher prices is a huge positive for miners and producers, for instance.
However, that’s not necessarily the case. Miners, manufacturers, producers and the like each use futures markets to place short trades, in order to hedge their exposure to the commodity.
Nickel miners, for example, want to ensure that, when it comes time to sell their product, they can get the best price. If prices fall, they are out of pocket.
That’s why they short futures to effectively ‘lock-in’ the price they can sell at if this were to occur — an insurance of sorts. Buyers of nickel will do the opposite except to lock in a buying price.
Both sides will even ‘carry’ the trade forward, so to keep the hedging position active as time rolls on.
But when the market makes huge moves in the opposite direction – as it did on March 8 – they will be hit with margin calls or requests to put down more cash to keep the trades open.
No one is immune. It’s not just the traders and speculators. It’s the largest commodity players each having to scramble to cover their bases.
With this most recent saga, ASX nickel producers who participate in these markets are going to see some impact from the calamity at the earnings level, seeing as their short positions were more than likely taken out with the price surge.
Plus there’s no certainty the gain in price will equate to higher sales figures for the companies involved. Sales have to be realised at these record prices for anything to occur.
In other words, it’s not all just about demand and supply with commodities – it boils down to factors of hedging, speculation and market mechanics as well.
Thankfully, zooming out and scoping the wider market, there doesn’t appear to have been a large spillover into other pockets of the ASX outside of the mining sector.
The S&P/ASX 200 Index(ASX: XJO) is trading sideways and is actually up 1% for the month, while the S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) has soared around 7.5%.
Before you consider ASX shares, you’ll want to hear this.
Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and ASX shares wasn’t one of them.
The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.
Motley Fool contributor Zach Bristow 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 Bruce Jackson.
from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/846gqvX
When it comes to choosing an exchange-traded fund (ETF) to invest in, the preferred choice by far for ASX investors is the Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF (ASX: VAS). We know this because VAS has just under $10 billion in assets under management. Its closest competitor for the dollars of Aussie investors, the iShares S&P 500 ETF(ASX: IVV), has just under $5 billion.
But if you’re a fan of ASX tech shares, and you either own VAS or are looking at owning it, then you might be in for a nasty shock. This ETF owns almost any public Australian company you can think of. Its top shares include names like Telstra Corporation Ltd(ASX: TLS), Commonwealth Bank of Australia(ASX: CBA), and Woolworths Group Ltd(ASX: WOW).
Yet if you look at this ETF’s top 10 holdings, you will see not one ASX tech name.
Indeed, you won’t see any tech if you look at its 20 largest holdings. Our first tech name comes up at number 27 on VAS’s latest portfolio data – Block Inc(ASX: SQ2). And that’s not even technically an Australian company. It’s only on our ASX due to its recent acquisition of the homegrown buy now, pay later (BNPL) company Afterpay.
Overall, the Tech (or Information Technology) sector only makes up 3.9% of VAS’s total weighting. Compare that to Materials at 24.3% or Financials at 27%.
VAS ETF: Why are ASX tech shares missing in action?
So what’s going on? Why doesn’t this ETF invest even $4 in every $100 it receives into tech?
Well, it’s not VAS’s fault. The Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF is, well, an index fund. That means it has to mirror the composition of the S&P/ASX 300 Index (ASX: XKO). And the ASX 300, in turn, has to rank the top 300 companies on our share market purely on market capitalisation (size). It just happens that our largest public companies here in Australia tend to be banks and miners. Thus, these are the ASX 300’s (and VAS’s) largest holdings too. The ASX’s tech shares are all there. But they just don’t occupy a huge presence in VAS’s portfolio.
So if you want outsized exposure to the tech sector, you’ll either need to buy the shares yourself, or else find an index ETF that mirrors a different index with a heavier weighting to the tech space. The IVV iShares S&P 500 ETF that we mentioned earlier is also an index ETF, but this one covers the US markets, not the ASX. In stark contrast, IVV has a 27.21% weighting to tech shares, since it is dominated by companies like Apple Inc(NASDAQ: AAPL), Alphabet Inc(NASDAQ: GOOG)(NASDAQ: GOOGL), and Amazon.com Inc(NASDAQ: AMZN).
But there are tech-specific ETFs that cover ASX shares too. One example is the BetaShares S&P/ASX Australian Technology ETF(ASX: ATEC).
So, like with any investment, make sure you know what you’re buying before you buy it. You might get a surprise you weren’t preparing for!
Before you consider VAS, you’ll want to hear this.
Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and VAS wasn’t one of them.
The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.
John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen owns Alphabet (A shares), Amazon, Apple, and Telstra Corporation Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Amazon, Apple, and Block, Inc. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Alphabet (C shares) and has recommended the following options: long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple and short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Block, Inc. and Telstra Corporation Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Alphabet (C shares), Amazon, Apple, and iShares Trust – iShares Core S&P 500 ETF. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.
from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/cNr0LtU
The Metalstech Ltd(ASX: MTC) share price had a stellar day on the market today. The micro-cap ASX mining share surged 13.95% to close at 24.5 cents.
So why did this miner of lithium, cobalt, and gold have such a good day?
Let’s take a look.
Gold update
The Metalstech Ltd(ASX: MTC) share price exploded today. Investors appeared to react positively to an update released before market open this morning.
The company provided a drilling update from its 100%-owned Sturec gold mine in Slovakia.
Metalstech said diamond core drilling is continuing to “progress well” during the Slovakian winter. Explorers are completing a drill hole known as UGA-30 within drill chamber three. Metalstech said the drilling has targeted areas “both within and outside” the existing mineral resource boundary.
The company expects to report a “significant batch” of drill results in the future. Construction of a fourth drill chamber is also underway.
In the announcement that drove up the Metalstech share price today, the miner said:
The company is currently working with an independent consultant to model a JORC exploration target for the historic mineralisation identified outside the current Sturec Mineral Resource Estimate area, including Wolf, Katerina, Volle Henne and Vratislav where extensive historical drilling and production has occurred.
The company has also engaged Measured Group to complete a scoping study based on a high grade, low impact, bulk underground mining operation at Sturec focussing on the higher grade zones within the mineral resource estimate.
Metalstech said this scoping study is going well and earmarked for completion in April. Finally, the company provided an update on the gold price.
It said the gold price is trading above US$1,980 per ounce. The company noted multiple analysts are increasing long-term forecasts to more than US$2,000 per ounce.
Metalstech share price snapshot
The Metalstech share price has leapt 90% in a year but has fallen nearly 14% year to date.
In the past month, Metalstech shares have slipped by nearly 6%, while they are surging 28% over the past week.
MetalsTech has a market capitalisation of about $41.7 million based on its current share price.
Before you consider Metalstech, you’ll want to hear this.
Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and Metalstech wasn’t one of them.
The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.
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 Bruce Jackson.
from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/oM7E81e
The Bitcoin(CRYPTO: BTC) price is up 1.6% since this time yesterday.
The world’s first digital token is currently trading for US$38,797 (AU$53,998). That gives it a market cap of just over US$736 billion.
The muted reaction of the Bitcoin price to the European Union’s voting down of banning proof of work (PoW) crypto mining may come as a surprise to some enthusiasts.
How the EU vote could have impacted the Bitcoin price
As Euro News reported, yesterday (overnight Aussie time) the European parliament’s economic and monetary affairs committee voted down a last-minute amendment to its draft Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) legislation.
That amendment would have all but banned the type of PoW mining activity that Bitcoin relies on.
When China banned crypto mining last year, the Bitcoin price fell more than 45% between May and August. Prices then recovered into November when Bitcoin reached all-time highs.
The global annual energy use of Bitcoin mining using PoW is approaching the annual energy use of all of Australia. And in sustainable focused Europe, that’s been drawing some heat amongst legislators.
Still the amendment failed to make it onto the draft crypto regulation legislation, which passed on to the next stage without the PoW mining ban.
What the industry insiders have been saying
eToro’s crypto expert Simon Peters warned of “huge” implications if the amendment were to pass.
The bill would have required “miners to submit environmental sustainability compliance plans. Failing to submit them would prevent their operation within the EU. The implications of this are huge – the EU is a major jurisdiction for crypto mining and crypto more generally, with over 10% of global bitcoin hash power emanating from the region,” Peters said.
While not turbocharging the Bitcoin price today, the failed passage of the amendment will come as welcome news to many crypto enthusiasts, including those at crypto wallet provider Ledger.
Prior to the vote, the company said (quoted by Euro News):
Individuals and organisations should be free to choose the technology most appropriate to their needs. Policymakers should neither impose nor discriminate in favour of a particular technology. This is deeply concerning and would have serious consequences for Europe.
Wondering where you should invest $1,000 right now?
When investing expert Scott Phillips has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the flagship Motley Fool Share Advisor newsletter he has run for over ten years has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.*
Scott just revealed what he believes could be the five best ASX stocks for investors to buy right now. These stocks are trading at near dirt-cheap prices and Scott thinks they could be great buys right now.
The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Bitcoin. The Motley Fool Australia wns and has recommended Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.
from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/swV0t8y
The Archer Materials Ltd (ASX: AXE) share price sunk on Tuesday, closing 7.37% in the red at 88 cents.
Investors offloaded Archer shares at a trading volume almost double the company’s 4-week average with more than 961,000 shares changing hands.
Today, the materials technology company released an announcement regarding its “operations and growth”. The post was labelled non-price sensitive although investors didn’t appear to react positively to it.
What did Archer announce?
The premise of the announcement was to provide shareholders with an update on the company’s progress on its operations and growth, Archer said.
The company raised $25 million in October to execute its growth strategy which involves “domestic and international capabilities in advanced semiconductor design, fabrication, and prototyping”.
Archer also noted it has proceeded to gain access to the Australian Nanofabrication Facility, UNSW Sydney node.
The facilities should help Archer transition from single device-oriented research and development towards small-batch, high-resolution fabrication of nanodevice prototyping.
As part of its biochip development, the company’s researchers are preparing for “automated testing” across various other genomic facilities in Sydney.
It also recently expanded its Sydney offices to include “The Quantum Terminal”. According to Archer, the terminal is a co-working space that houses organisations within quantum technology, high-performance computing, and artificial intelligence technology spaces.
As well, it will be attending the AusMedtech conference in Melbourne during May 2022 and the BIO international conference in San Diego, scheduled for June 2022.
The market appears to have reacted poorly to the update with investors continuing to offload shares until the closing bell.
Aside from that, the ASX tech sector continued its weakness today, with the S&P/ASX All Technology Index(ASX: XTX) finishing down less than 1% today, taking it 24% lower year to date.
This sector weakness also appears to be plaguing Archer’s share price as part of a longer-term downtrend.
Archer Materials share price snapshot
The Archer Materials share price is down more than 14% in the past 12 months and 22% this year to date.
It’s fallen 16% in the past month alone.
At its current share price, the company has a market capitalisation of $219 million.
Should you invest $1,000 in Archer Materials right now?
Before you consider Archer Materials, you’ll want to hear this.
Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and Archer Materials wasn’t one of them.
The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.
Motley Fool contributor Zach Bristow 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 Bruce Jackson.
from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/WV5dLmK
Investors owning Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) shares may want to know about the progress that the company is making towards acquiring the Australian Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (ASX: API) business.
API shareholders are headed towards a meeting later this week to vote on the offer by Wesfarmers to buy the whole business. This meeting will be held virtually because of COVID-19.
In the absence of a superior proposal and subject to the independent expert continuing to conclude that the scheme is in the best interests of API shareholders, each API director recommends that API shareholders vote in favour of the scheme and intends to vote in favour of the takeover.
What’s the latest on the votes on the Wesfarmers bid for API?
According to reporting by the Australian Financial Review, close to a third of API’s register had voted at the start of this week, with most shareholders being in favour of the deal. However, a few institutional investors have suggested that the takeover offer could have been higher.
Reaching the 30% of shares voted milestone implies that API and Wesfarmers are around halfway through the 60.5% needed for the deal’s approval due to the fact that Wesfarmers owns 19.3% of API.
There is still a bit of uncertainty about the overall total because other shareholders include fund managers which may decide “at the last minute” and there are also pharmacists within the voting blocks.
Last month, the Federal Court of Australia approved a meeting of API shareholders to consider and vote on the scheme. In February 2022, it was also announced that the ACCC would not oppose the API acquisition because of the ongoing competition from players like Chemist Warehouse, Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) and Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW)
How much is the bid?
The initial takeover offer from Wesfarmers was an offer of $1.38 per share. However, that was then raised to $1.55 per share in September 2021.
Wesfarmers and API have entered into a scheme implementation deed that allows for the payment of fully franked dividends up to a maximum of $0.05 per API share, which included the 2 cents per share final dividend declared by API for FY21. The cash consideration of $1.55 would be reduced by the cash component of any such dividends.
The record date for the proposed special dividend date is 25 March 2022.
Why is Wesfarmers buying API?
For Wesfarmers, this acquisition will provide an “attractive opportunity to enter the growing health, wellbeing and beauty sector.”
The giant ASX retail share sees opportunities to invest in and strengthen the competitive position of API and its community pharmacy partners by expanding ranges, improving supply chain capabilities and enhancing the online experience for customers.
Wondering where you should invest $1,000 right now?
When investing expert Scott Phillips has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the flagship Motley Fool Share Advisor newsletter he has run for over ten years has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.*
Scott just revealed what he believes could be the five best ASX stocks for investors to buy right now. These stocks are trading at near dirt-cheap prices and Scott thinks they could be great buys right now.
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 owns and has recommended COLESGROUP DEF SET and Wesfarmers Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.
from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/bNwoTku
The Uniti Group Ltd(ASX: UWL) share price is shooting even higher after returning from its trading halt in late trade.
This morning the telco’s shares were up 17% before being hurried into a trading halt.
The Uniti share price has now returned to trade and is up a whopping 31% to $4.13.
Why is the Uniti share price racing higher?
Investors were bidding the Uniti share price higher this morning amid speculation that the telco was a takeover target.
This speculation has now been confirmed as being accurate following the release of an announcement out of Uniti this afternoon.
According to the release, titled Project Oatmeal, the company has entered into exclusive discussions with Morrison & Co. in relation to a $4.50 cash per share takeover proposal. This represents a 43% premium to Uniti’s last close price.
However, management has warned that these discussions are non-binding, preliminary, highly conditional, and uncertain as to an outcome.
Furthermore, the indicative proposal is subject to a number of conditions. These include satisfactory completion of the bidder’s confirmatory due diligence, unanimous recommendation of the transaction from the Uniti Board, and entry into a mutually acceptable scheme implementation agreement.
The latter contains customary exclusivity terms, conditions precedent (including but not limited to FIRB), prescribed occurrences, break fee provisions, and receipt by Morrison & Co of its required internal investment approvals.
The exclusivity period runs until 22 April. In the meantime, Uniti will keep shareholders updated in accordance with its continuous disclosure obligations. It also advised that shareholders should not take any action in relation to the proposal.
Before you consider Uniti, you’ll want to hear this.
Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and Uniti wasn’t one of them.
The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.
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 recommended Uniti Group Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.
from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/k9S70Pd
Yesterday we looked at three ASX shares brokers have given buy ratings to this week.
Unfortunately, not all shares are in favour with them right now. Three that have just been given sell ratings are listed below. Here’s why these brokers are bearish on these ASX shares:
According to a note out of Macquarie, its analysts have downgraded this gold miner’s shares to an underperform rating with a $4.30 price target. Although Macquarie has increased its gold price forecasts, it isn’t enough to stop the downgrade to underperform. The broker made the move on valuation grounds following a decent rise by the Evolution share price since the end of January. The Evolution share price is currently trading at $4.36.
Another note out of Macquarie reveals that its analysts have retained their underperform rating and slashed their price target on this fund manager’s shares by over a third to $12.40. This follows the release of another funds under management update which revealed that it continues to experience heavy fund outflows. Macquarie sees little scope for its shares to re-rate given its belief that material outflows are likely to persist for several quarters. The broker is now forecasting second half fund outflows of $28.5 billion. The Magellan share price is fetching $13.92 today.
Analysts at UBS have retained their sell rating and $90.00 price target on this mining giant’s shares. While the broker believes the acquisition of the remaining 49% stake in Turquoise Hill will be a positive for the operation of Oyu Tolgoi operation, it isn’t enough to a change of rating. It continues to see the risk/reward for iron ore as skewed to the downside. The Rio Tinto share price is trading at $106.91 this afternoon.
Wondering where you should invest $1,000 right now?
When investing expert Scott Phillips has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the flagship Motley Fool Share Advisor newsletter he has run for over ten years has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.*
Scott just revealed what he believes could be the five best ASX stocks for investors to buy right now. These stocks are trading at near dirt-cheap prices and Scott thinks they could be great buys right now.
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 Bruce Jackson.
from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/inXHBtj
The company provided an update on its proposed scheme of arrangement in acquiring Western Areas. IGO said both parties are taking a closer look at the details after the price of nickel soared to record heights on 8 March.
The company had previously announced the proposed acquisition back in December last year.
In response to nickel’s price rally, IGO said that it, Western Areas, and an independent expert are “continuing to consider the implications, if any, on nickel market fundamentals and expectations for medium to long-term nickel prices”.
As a result of the process, there will be a slight change in the scheme’s timetable. A first court hearing will now be in April 2022, whereas the implementation date is set for May/June 2022, according to the update.
The review is important, IGO says, because its valuation of $3.36 in cash per share for Western Areas is “based on IGO’s long term view of the nickel market fundamentals and price, which has not changed”.
Despite the recent rally in nickel, the company says it won’t be revising anything in response.
“IGO has no obligation, nor any current intention to increase the consideration in response to these short-term events (although it reserves its right to do so),” the company remarked.
“IGO acknowledges the recent short-term volatility in the [London Metals Exchange] LME nickel market and price, which is primarily attributed to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which in turn has reportedly created the need for a large industry participant to manage a nickel short position on the LME.”
Despite the outcome, IGO’s share price has continued to slip this week and has fallen off its previous high of $13.07 on 9 March, just two days after the trading activity on the LME.
Trading volume is also less than 50% of its 4-week average during today’s session and it appears the bears have it with IGO at the moment.
IGO share price summary
In the last 12 months, the IGO share price has climbed around 83% and is up 3% this year to date.
In the past week, it has slid more than 9%, taking a 3% hit over the last month of trading.
Before you consider IGO, you’ll want to hear this.
Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and IGO wasn’t one of them.
The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.
Motley Fool contributor Zach Bristow 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 Bruce Jackson.
from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/LWbf4q6
