It’s turning out to be another solid day for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) and most ASX 200 shares so far this Tuesday. At the time of writing, the index has risen by a strong 0.53%, pushing it back over 7,800 points. But that’s quite different to what is happening to the Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price.

Santos shares are missing out on today’s market optimism, and decisively so. At present, the ASX 200 energy stock is down a hefty 1.66% to $7.72 a share after closing at $7.85 yesterday afternoon.

This seems to be a Santos problem, as most other ASX 200 oil and gas stocks, including Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS), Karoon Energy Ltd (ASX: KAR) and Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT), are currently well in the green.

So what’s up with the Santos share price today?

Why is the Santos share price dropping so heavily on Tuesday?

Well, there’s been no fresh ASX news or announcements out of Santos itself today. However, there has been some news regarding Santos that could be weighing on investors.

One of Santos’ major projects is the Papua LNG joint venture, located in Papua New Guinea. Santos has a 22.8% interest in this joint venture, with the other partners being international energy heavyweights TotalEnergies and ExxonMobil.

Santos told investors last month that engineering and design work has commenced at Papua LNG. However, yesterday saw Total Energies release a statement regarding the project. This statement told investors that Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies, held a meeting with the PNG Prime Minster James Marape over the project’s future.

It didn’t exactly paint a flattering picture of the project’s commercial viability. Here’s what some of the statement said:

[Pouyanné] also informed the Prime Minister that, after receiving first EPC [engineering, procurement and construction] offers, it appears that the project will need to keep working with contractors to obtain commercially viable EPC contracts and requires more work to reach FID [a final investment decision].

In that view, the project will review the structure of some packages and open the competition to an enlarged panel of Asian contractors. As a consequence, FID  of Papua LNG project is now expected in 2025.

So this could be what is weighing on investor sentiment regarding the Santos share price today. It’s certainly not the news Santos investors were probably hoping to hear this April.

Regardless, the Santos share price remains up 0.6% in 2024, and up 7% over the past 12 months. At the current pricing, this ASX 200 energy stock has a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 11.77, and a dividend yield of 3.65%.

The post Why is the Santos share price tanking on Tuesday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• How ASX 200 energy stocks could soon enjoy US$100 oil prices
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• Here’s how the ASX 200 market sectors stacked up last week
• Is now the time to invest in these ASX 200 energy 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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Over the last decade and a half, CSL Ltd (ASX: CSL) shares have been a great place to park your money.

During this time, the biotechnology giant’s shares have generated a total average annual return of 16.4% per annum.

This means that if you had invested $5,000 into CSL’s shares all the way back in 2009 and held tightly to them until today, your investment would have grown to be worth a mouth-watering ~$49,000.

This has been driven by the company’s consistently strong performance underpinned by its in-demand plasma therapies, acquisitions, and its annual investment in research and development (R&D).

In respect to the latter, CSL reinvests in the region of 12% of its sales back into R&D activities each year. This has led to the development of some lucrative and life-saving therapies and vaccines, as well as a pipeline of future products to drive its growth.

But those gains have been and gone. What could happen if I invested $5,000 into the company’s shares today? Would they be a good place to put my hard-earned money? Let’s find out what analysts are saying about the biotechnology giant.

Should I invest $5,000 into CSL shares?

The majority of analysts in Australia are positive on CSL and see plenty of value in its shares at current levels.

For example, Morgans has an add rating and $315.40 price target on them. It recently described CSL as a key holding and named it on its best ideas list. The broker commented:

While shares have struggled of late, we continue to view CSL as a key portfolio holding and sector pick, offering double-digit recovery in earnings growth as plasma collections increase, new products get approved and influenza vaccine uptake increases around ongoing concerns about respiratory viruses, with shares trading at 25x, a substantial discount (20%) to its long-term average.

Big returns are possible

Analysts at UBS and Macquarie see even more value in the company’s shares at current levels. They both recently put the equivalent of buy ratings and $330.00 price targets on them.

At present, CSL shares are changing hands for $280.33. This means that for an investment of $5,045.94, I could pick up 18 units.

If those shares were to rise in value to UBS and Macquarie’s price targets, they would have a market value of $5,940. That’s approximately $900 more than my original investment.

But it gets better. Macquarie is so positive on the outlook for the key CSL Behring business that it believes the CSL share price could climb beyond $500 within three years. If this proves accurate, those 18 shares would have a market value of $9,000 in 2027.

All in all, it seems that the company’s shares could be worth holding tightly to for some time to come.

The post What could $5,000 invested in CSL shares become in 1 year? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in CSL. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended CSL and Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended CSL. 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 500 Index (SP: .INX) is up 9.7% already this year after a spectacular 24% gain in 2023.

Last year’s gain was triple the pace of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which rose by 8.1%.

The Australian share market tends to follow US stocks in trend terms, so it is not surprising that both markets are up, but each market can move at a different pace, as the results show.

Both markets have recently hit record levels due to investor excitement over potential interest rate cuts later in the year.

But one big difference between the US markets and the ASX 200 is they are home to some of the world’s most successful technology companies and many of them are shooting the lights out with earnings.

The Magnificent Seven, which includes Microsoft Corp, Apple Inc, and Amazon.com Inc, has generated much excitement among investors due to their outsized earnings growth.

NVIDIA Corp (NASDAQ: NVDA) is a case in point, with the company reporting an ‘insane result‘ with a 769% net income increase in its latest quarterly update.  

But can all this growth continue for the S&P 500?

The S&P 500 bull: Wells Fargo

As reported in The Australian, Wells Fargo equity head Christopher Harvey is predicting this rally will continue.

He reckons the S&P 500 will be at 5,535 points by December. His previous forecast was 4,625 points. The index closed last night at 5,202.39 points.

Harvey has become more ambitious due to the explosive growth of artificial intelligence and better-than-expected company earnings.

In a note to investors (courtesy Bloomberg), Harvey said:

In our view, the bull market, AI’s secular growth story, and index concentration have shifted investors’ attention away from traditional valuation measures and toward longer-term growth and discounting metrics.

The latest US jobs report was surprisingly strong, leading some traders to reduce their expectations of rate cuts to just one or two this year. Some reckon the US Fed could even leave them as they are.

Ophir Asset Management is another broker expecting the rally to continue, despite some analysts now saying rate cuts may come later than initially expected, according to the Australian Financial Review (AFR).

Some analysts believe the US is in for a ‘no landing’ – when activity expands despite higher interest rates – instead of a ‘soft landing’ when the economy and inflation both slow.

Luke McMillan, head of research at Ophir, said US shares have risen seven times during periods where the economy experienced a soft landing and rate cuts with no immediate recession.

McMillan added:

And after last week’s hot US jobs data report, there is increasing chatter of no landing and no rate cut.

Bottom line: markets like Fed cuts, so long as they are not emergency cuts to stave off a recession.

The S&P 500 bear: JPMorgan Chase

JPMorgan strategists have an end-of-year target of 4,200 points for the S&P 500.

Overnight chief executive Jamie Dimon said US interest rates could rise to 8% or higher over the coming years due to the cost of the green energy transition and the wars in Ukraine and Gaza.

In his annual letter to JPMorgan Chase shareholders overnight (courtesy Wall Street Journal), Dimon said:

Huge fiscal spending, the trillions needed each year for the green economy, the remilitarization of the world and the restructuring of global trade—all are inflationary.

Dimon said the US economy had remained resilient but geopolitical tensions were a threat to the world economy, so today’s market optimism may be overdone.

He said:

These markets seem to be pricing in a 70 per cent to 80 per cent chance of a soft landing. I believe the odds are a lot lower than that.

Interested in US shares?

We recently canvassed a bunch of ASX ETFs that offer good exposure to US shares, ranging from simple index funds like iShares S&P 500 ETF (ASX: IVV) to strategic themed funds like VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (ASX: MOAT), which specialises in companies with big competitive advantages (i.e., moats).

The post Bull vs. bear: Can the S&P 500 keep rising in 2024? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Buying ASX 200 gold stocks? Here’s why the record gold price could keep charging higher
• Why Ansell, Elders, Predictive Discovery, and Rio Tinto shares are storming higher
• 6 ASX shares owned by Aussie billionaires
• Is there any hope for Core Lithium shares?
• Why Brickworks, Flight Centre, Heartland, and Spartan Resources are falling today

John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. 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 positions in and has recommended Amazon, Apple, JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft, Nvidia, and iShares S&P 500 ETF. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Amazon, Apple, Nvidia, VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF, and iShares S&P 500 ETF. 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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S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) gold stocks have been enjoying some heady tailwinds from a soaring gold price.

Indeed, it seems the yellow metal is notching new record highs almost daily lately.

After trading at recent lows of US$1,820 per ounce on 5 October, gold rebounded to US$2,059 per ounce by 2 January.

And it kept on going.

At time of writing bullion is fetching US$2,344 per ounce, having hit US$2,347 per ounce just a few hours ago.

The gold price, and gold shares, really took off on 28 February, when gold was worth US$2,034 per ounce.

This has seen the S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD) – which also contains some smaller gold miners outside of the ASX 200 gold stocks – rocket 25.6% since the closing bell on 28 February.

For some context, the ASX 200 has gained 2.2% over that same period.

Here’s how these top ASX 200 gold stocks have performed since 28 February:

• Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) shares have gained 20.0%
• Newmont Corp (ASX: NEM) shares have gained 30.9%
• De Grey Mining Ltd (ASX: DEG) shares have gained 5.8%
• Ramelius Resources Ltd(ASX: RMS) shares have gained 40.7%
• Gold Road Resources Ltd (ASX: GOR) shares have gained 19.2%
• Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) shares have gained 35.9%
• Bellevue Gold Ltd (ASX: BGL) shares have gained 32.2%

Take that, inflation!

With the big Aussie gold producers clearly enjoying the rocketing gold price, what can investors expect next?

ASX 200 gold stocks could see gold charge far higher

A range of factors have aligned to send global gold prices to a series of all-time highs.

While my crystal ball is no more functional than any other, it looks like these tailwinds could continue blowing for ASX 200 gold stocks for some time yet.

First, we have the growing prospect of interest rate cuts from the US Fed, the RBA, and numerous other influential central banks.

Gold, which pays no interest itself, tends to perform better in a low or falling rate environment.

Second, we have gold’s classic safe haven status, which has come to the fore amid rising geopolitical conflicts across much of the globe.

“The sabre-rattling from Putin, conflict in Ukraine and Gaza, all of that adds to the background noise. The mood music is bullish for gold now from the safe haven perspective,” Adrian Ash, director of research at BullionVault said (quoted by Bloomberg).

Third, we have ongoing strong central bank bullion purchases, supporting overall demand.

The fourth factor sending the gold price higher and supporting ASX 200 gold stocks is strong consumer demand from China, where people are concerned over the nation’s currency outlook, alongside its shaky property and stock markets.

“The gold market hasn’t been driven by western investors. China, so far this year and through last year has been the engine behind gold prices,” Bernard Dahdah, a commodity analyst at Natixis noted.

Finally, gold also appears to be gaining support from investors concerned that the Fed and US government may not be able to engineer the so-called soft landing for the world’s biggest economy.

According to Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank (courtesy of Bloomberg):

The rally is defying a lot of normal thinking, especially when it comes to still-elevated rates. I think the narrative is changing towards sticky inflation and perhaps a hard landing, spiced with a lot of geopolitical uncertainty and de-globalisation driving central bank demand.

Although the gold price is at all-time nominal highs, the yellow metal has a way to go before reaching new records in real (inflation adjusted) terms.

That record was set more than 44 years ago, in January 1980 when gold was trading for US$850 per ounce, or some US$3,000 in 2024 terms.

As always, whether you’re looking at buying ASX 200 gold stocks or any other shares, make sure to do your own research first. Or simply reach out for some expert advice.

The post Buying ASX 200 gold stocks? Here’s why the record gold price could keep charging higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
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• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday

Motley Fool contributor Bernd Struben has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on form again and on course to record another gain. In afternoon trade, the benchmark index is up 0.55% to 7,830.8 points.

Four ASX shares that are rising more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are pushing higher:

Ansell Ltd (ASX: ANN)

The Ansell share price is up 7% to $25.53. Investors have been buying this health and safety products company’s shares following the completion of a capital raising. Ansell has successfully completed a A$400 million (US$263 million) fully underwritten institutional placement to eligible institutional investors. This was undertaken at a 6% discount of A$22.45 per new share. The proceeds will be used to acquire the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) business of Kimberly-Clark Corp (NYSE: KMB) for US$640 million (A$970 million). Management expects the acquisition to be mid-to-high single-digit earnings per share accretive pre synergies and low-teens earnings per share accretive including run-rate net cost synergies on a FY 2024 pro forma basis.

Elders Ltd (ASX: ELD)

The Elders share price is up 7% to $7.94. This agribusiness company’s shares are rebounding on Tuesday after being sold off yesterday due to a poor trading update. The team at Citi believes the weakness has created a buying opportunity. This morning, its analysts upgraded Elders’ shares to a buy rating with an $8.50 price target. Elsewhere, Morgans has upgraded the company’s shares to an add rating with a $9.00 price target. This implies potential upside of 13% for investors from current levels.

Predictive Discovery Ltd (ASX: PDI)

The Predictive Discovery share price is up over 6% to 24.5 cents. This has been driven by the release of further regional drilling results from the company’s Bankan Gold Project in Guinea. According to the release, the drilling delivered excellent initial results along strike to the north-east at Sanifolon South. This includes some of the best intercepts so far from Argo, which add to the potential of the Argo Central Trend. Predictive Discovery’s Managing Director, Andrew Pardey, said: “We are delighted with the latest exploration results from Argo, which pleasingly includes both follow-up drill holes at promising targets and first-pass results from new areas.”

Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO)

The Rio Tinto share price is up 3.5% to $126.11. This appears to have been driven largely by a strong night of trade for iron ore. According to CommSec, iron ore futures climbed US$2.71 or 2.7% to US$102.68 a tonne. This was driven by hopes of potential measures to bolster the steel industry in China and expectations of a wave of post-holiday restocking from the country’s steelmakers.

The post Why Ansell, Elders, Predictive Discovery, and Rio Tinto shares are storming higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• 2 ASX mining stocks smashing the market on Tuesday
• Why top brokers say Rio Tinto stock is a better buy than BHP
• These 2 ASX 200 shares just got big upgrades from top brokers
• Are Elders shares a bargain following Monday’s crash?
• Ansell shares jump 14% amid blockbuster acquisition

Citigroup is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. 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 Ansell and Elders. 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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Many ASX investors like to turn to others for stock-picking ideas and counsel. That’s fair enough. Successfully investing in ASX shares is a tricky endeavour and can take years to build confidence and ability. Leaning on others’ views, opinions and advice can be a great way to speed up the process.

But relying on the picks of friends and family can also be a dangerous business. There’s a good chance that your nearest and dearest are inexperienced in the way of investing, and might impart some less-than-prudent advice.

In this light, perhaps looking to the people who already have runs on the board might be a more lucrative path to go down. After all, people who have money tend to know how to make more of it.

So today, let’s check out six ASX shares that various billionaires in Australia reportedly own. You don’t, and perhaps shouldn’t, have to follow these billionaires and buy the shares straight away.

After all, these peoples’ risk tolerances are obviously far higher than ours, thanks to an abundance of surplus cash. But just getting an insight into how the rich invest may help your own investing practice.

6 ASX shares that billionaires own

Let’s start with ASX retail stock Lovisa Ltd (ASX: LOV). This discount jewellery retailer has been a famous winner on the ASX for a few years now. But what those on the sidelines might not realise is that this company has some serious billionaire involvement.

Lovisa founder and billionaire Brett Blundy still owns just over 43 million Lovisa shares, worth approximately $1.39 billion today. According to a report from The Australian last year, as of September 2023, Blundy also owned roughly $67 million worth of candle and homewares retailer Dusk Group Ltd (ASX: DSK).

That same report names another billionaire ASX stock. Fabric and sewing connoisseurs might be familiar with retailer Spotlight. Spotlight is private, but its deputy chair Zac Fried is also a director and major shareholder of asset manager HMC Captial Ltd (ASX: HMC).

Fried owns just over 31,000 shares of HMC (worth ~$208,000 today), as well as almost 10,000 performance rights. He’s done very well on HMC’s 77.5% rise over the past 12 months.

Let’s turn to TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPG) founder David Teoh. Teoh was formerly the TPG boss but stepped down a few years ago. Teoh still owns just over 241 million TPG shares or 14.1% of the business’ issued capital.

But he also currently chairs TPG-spinoff Tuas Ltd (ASX: TUA), which was the former Singaporean arm of TPG Telecom. Teoh, as of 31 July 2023, also owns close to 173 million Tuas shares, for a current value of $664.27 million.

According to The Australian report, another ASX billionaire stock is Premier Investments Limited (ASX: PMV). You might know Premier by its founder Solomon Lew. Lew, a billionaire, owns 4.44 million Premier shares, worth approximately $136.22 million.

But another major shareholder is fellow billionaire Lindsay Fox. Fox is best known for the eponymous shipping brand LinFox, which is privately owned. But Fox also owns 2.58 million Premier shares, worth around $79.8 million.

The post 6 ASX shares owned by Aussie billionaires appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 Lovisa. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Lovisa and Premier Investments. 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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Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO) shares may not be set to return to their glory days of 2022.

But is there any hope for the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) lithium stock?

Let’s dig in.

Core Lithium shares still losing ground

11 November 2022 was a great day to own Core Lithium shares.

And a great day to unload them.

The ASX lithium stock closed the day trading for $1.67 a share, having gained 183% over the prior 12 months.

That high water mark was achieved amid all-time high lithium prices, following a period of surging demand and limited new supplies of the battery-critical metal.

Then, as you’re likely aware, lithium prices crashed by some 80% over the following year.

And while lithium bearing spodumene prices have moved higher over the past few months, most analysts don’t expect them to come back anywhere close to the 2022 highs. In fact, many analysts forecast a further retrace if lithium miners opt to ramp up production.

All told this has seen Core Lithium shares tumble to just 15 cents a share today, having kicked off 2024 trading for 24 cents a share.

With Core Lithium’s market cap now down to $321 million, the miner was also removed from the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) last month as part of the regular quarterly rebalance. That will throw up another headwind for the stock, as many fund managers are restricted to trading on the ASX 200.

2024 also saw Core suspend mining operations at its Finniss project in the Northern Territory, as the company awaits stronger market conditions.

It’s quite unclear when those better conditions may arrive, however, and management has not yet decided on when lithium mining might recommence at Finniss.

Last month, Core Lithium shares came under renewed pressure following the release of the company’s half-year results and the abrupt departure of CEO Gareth Manderson.

With a 75% fall in its spodumene concentrate realised price over the six months, the miner reported an after-tax loss of $167.6 million.

All up this doesn’t bode well for the medium-term outlook.

Indeed, of the eight analysts covered by CommSec, six rate Core Lithium stock as a strong sell and two rate it as a moderate sell. No one appears eager to recommend the company as buy today.

And Goldman Sachs believes the miner is more likely to lose share price than gain it. The broker has a 12-cent price target on Core Lithium shares, some 20% below current levels.

Morphing into an ASX uranium share?

There could be some hope for Core Lithium shares in other metals, like gold and uranium, both of which have seen strong gains over the last year.

Outside of its Finniss project near Darwin, Core owns a number of mining assets across Australia.

When reporting its half-year results, management noted:

The Core exploration team is reviewing the local and regional prospectivity of the company’s lithium tenements and the potential of the company’s 100% owned gold, uranium and base metal projects.

The company has received multiple inbound enquiries about the Napperby and Fitton Uranium Projects. Updates will be provided as the review continues and the exploration plan is finalised.

In my opinion, if there is any medium-term hope for Core Lithium shares, it could well come on the back of promising uranium news.

The post Is there any hope for Core Lithium shares? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 Goldman Sachs Group. 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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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record another gain. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 0.5% to 7,825.6 points.

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

Brickworks Limited (ASX: BKW)

The Brickworks share price is down over 2% to $27.02. This has been driven largely by the building products company’s shares going ex-dividend this morning for its upcoming interim dividend. Last month, the company released its half-year results and declared a fully franked interim dividend of 24 cents per share. This was up 4% on the prior corresponding period, representing its 10th annual increase in a row. Brickworks shareholders can look forward to receiving this dividend at the very start of next month on 1 May.

Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT)

The Flight Centre share price is down 2% to $21.20. This appears to have been caused by a bearish broker note out of Goldman Sachs this morning. According to the note, its analysts have downgraded the travel agent’s shares to a sell rating with a trimmed price target of $18.30. This implies potential downside of approximately 14% for investors from current levels. Goldman Sachs warned that “moderating corporate travel and intensifying SME competition could lead to margin disappointment.”

Heartland Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: HGH)

The Heartland share price is down 5% to $1.06. This morning, this New Zealand based financial services company successfully completed the institutional component of a capital raising. Its placement and institutional entitlement offer raised gross proceeds of approximately NZ$131 million thanks to strong support from existing institutional shareholders and new institutional investors. It notes that eligible institutional shareholders elected to take up 98% of their entitlements. Heartland will now push ahead with its retail entitlement offer.

Spartan Resources Ltd (ASX: SPR)

The Spartan Resources share price is down over 10% to 60 cents. This follows the release of drilling results from the gold explorer’s 100%-owned Dalgaranga Gold Project in the Murchison region of Western Australia. The assays include significant intercepts from exploration and resource extension drilling at the high-grade Never Never Gold Deposit, West Winds Gold Prospect, and the Sly Fox Gold Deposit. However, it seems that some investors were pricing in even stronger grades from the Never Never Gold Deposit. Nevertheless, Spartan’s Chief Executive Officer, Simon Lawson, was “absolutely delighted to see a plus-20-metre down-hole intercept of typical Never Never-style mineralisation with visible gold logged in two areas.”

The post Why Brickworks, Flight Centre, Heartland, and Spartan Resources are falling today 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 positions in and has recommended Brickworks and Goldman Sachs Group. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Brickworks. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Flight Centre Travel 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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S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) stock Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL) has just received major backing from one of its leadership figures with share purchases.

Robert Millner has been a non-executive director of the business since 1984, and the chair since 1998. Lewy Pattinson listed Soul Patts (as a pharmacy business) in 1903. Rob Millner is Lewy’s great-grandson and is the fourth generation of the family to chair the company.

Millner recently increased his already-sizeable stake in the company.

Insider buying

It was announced yesterday that entities related to Rob Millner had bought a total of 520,000 Soul Patts shares between 2 April 2024 to 4 April 2024.

The first investment to buy 181,635 shares on 2 April 2024 cost $6.15 million, the second investment to buy 218,365 shares cost $7.33 million, and the third investment to acquire 120,000 shares amounted to $4.1 million.

Those three on-market trades cost around $17.6 million in total. Typically, insiders buying shares on the market may suggest they think the share price is good value.

By most people’s standards, that’s a huge investment and provides backing to the ASX 200 stock.

Significant ownership

Millner’s latest investments are large transactions, but they represent a small amount of his overall ownership of Soul Patts shares.

According to the ASX announcement, Millner now has a direct interest in 371,076 Soul Patts shares and indirect interests in 22,459,692 shares.

At the current Soul Patts share price, all of those shares are worth $783 million.

Ex-dividend date approaching

Interestingly, this investment was made just before the ex-dividend date for the interim dividend, which is the cut-off date for eligibility to receive the upcoming dividend.

The payout from the ASX 200 stock is going to be 40 cents per share – the ex-dividend date is 17 April 2024, so investors have until 15 April 2024 to acquire shares if they want a piece of that payout.

The business recently reported its FY24 first-half result, which came with two important positives. Soul Patts’ net cash flow from its investments grew by 6.9% to $263.4 million for the six-month period – it uses this cash flow to fund larger dividends. The net cash flow grew thanks to continued growth of the credit portfolio and income from its strategic portfolio (where it owns large stakes in some businesses).

The HY24 pre-tax net asset value (NAV), meaning the underlying value, grew by 10% to 10.5 billion.

The ASX 200 stock’s active management style aims to deliver returns that are better than the market.

The post Guess which ASX 200 insider has bought $17 million of company shares before the ex-dividend date appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. 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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Bank of Queensland Ltd (ASX: BOQ) shares are under pressure on Tuesday afternoon.

At the time of writing, the ASX 200 bank share is down over 1% to $6.12.

Why is this ASX 200 bank share falling?

The weakness in the Bank of Queensland share price today could have been driven by a bearish broker note out of Goldman Sachs this morning.

According to the note, the broker believes investors should be selling the ASX 200 bank share ahead of the release of its half-year results release later this month.

Goldman is expecting the bank’s earnings to come in well short of expectations during the first half.

For example, its analysts have pencilled in cash earnings of $154 million for the half. This is 6.1% lower than the consensus estimate of $164 million.

In light of this, it also expects the ASX 200 bank share’s dividend to disappoint. Goldman is forecasting an interim dividend of 16 cents per share, which is 7.5% lower than the consensus estimate of 17.3 cents per share.

This is expected to be driven by a combination of lower than consensus average interest earning assets and a softer than expected net interest margin (NIM).

Major downside

Goldman has reiterated its sell rating with a price target of $5.04. Based on where the ASX bank share currently trades, this implies 18% downside for investors.

Its analysts explained their bearish stance of Bank of Queensland. They said:

BOQ is an Australian bank offering retail and commercial banking, financial services and insurance. We are Sell-rated on BOQ given: i) while the company’s transformation program is the right long-term strategy to deliver a strong and simpler bank, we believe it does leave the bank more exposed to inflation in third party distribution costs, and ii) we are concerned by the operational risks and costs pressures involved in undertaking such an initiative, furthermore iii) BOQ’s volume momentum remains weak, and while this is partly due to management’s efforts to protect profitability, BOQ’s FY23/2H23 NIM fell materially (notably below market expectations) and we do not expect margin pressures to ease given the current challenging environment (intense competition in both lending and deposits). Our 12-month target price offers downside to the current share price, towards the bottom end of our A&NZ Financials coverage.

All in all, the broker feels that this is one ASX 200 bank share that investors should stay away from right now.

The post This ASX 200 bank share could drop 20%! appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Should you wait for a dip to buy ASX 200 bank shares?

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 Goldman Sachs Group. 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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