It has been a great day for investors on Thursday, with lower US interest rate expectations putting a rocket under many ASX 200 shares.

In fact, some ASX 200 shares have climbed so much today that they have reached new 52-week highs.

Here are eight that accomplished this feat on Thursday:

Altium Limited (ASX: ALU)

The Altium share price has hit a 52-week high of $39.96 on Thursday thanks to a rebounding tech sector.

Auckland International Airport Limited (ASX: AIA)

The Auckland International Airport share price has risen to a 52-week high of $7.90 this afternoon. Investors appear optimistic that this airport operator will be benefitting greatly from the travel market recovery.

CSL Limited (ASX: CSL)

The CSL share price has continued its positive run and climbed to a 52-week high of $304.75. Morgans is tipping 2023 to be a “break-out” year for the biotherapeutics giant.

Lottery Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLC)

The Lottery Corporation share price has hit a 52-week (and record) high of $4.91 on Thursday. Last week, Macquarie reiterated its outperform rating with an improved price target of $5.10.

Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST)

The Northern Star share price has hit a 52-week high of $13.31. As you can see below, this means the ASX 200 gold miner’s shares are now up 52% over the last 12 months.

Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME)

The Pro Medicus share price is on form again and charged to a 52-week (and record) high of $67.99. A rebounding tech sector and some big contract wins have sent this ASX 200 healthcare technology company’s shares hurtling higher.

Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS)

The Telstra share price has risen to a 52-week high of $4.18. Earlier this week, Goldman Sachs upgraded the telco giant’s shares to a buy rating with a $4.60 price target.

WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC)

The WiseTech share price has stormed to a 52-week (and record) high of $64.70 this afternoon. This brings the ASX 200 tech share’s 12-month return to a sizeable 40%.

The post Happy days! 8 ASX 200 shares smashing new 52-week highs on Thursday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• Telstra shares just rung in a new ASX 200 high. Here’s the tea…
• CSL share price surges to new 52-week high on Thursday
• 3 ASX 200 tech shares going gangbusters on Thursday
• How I’d invest $20k in ASX 200 shares in 2023 to aim for a million
• Goldman reveals the ASX shares that could surprise to the upside (and downside) this reporting season

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Altium and CSL. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Altium, CSL, Pro Medicus, and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Pro Medicus, Telstra Group, and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/yxomhpw

ASX 200 iron ore shares including Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO) are slipping today on news of lower shipments and a fall in the commodity price overnight. 

Meantime, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is up 0.18%.

Iron ore shares are down because the value of 62% fe iron ore fell by 0.78% overnight. It now sits at US$128 per tonne.

On top of that, The Australian reports that iron ore shipments from Australia are down.

Shipments totalled 17.8 million tonnes in the week to 20 January, according to Marcura data compiled by Bloomberg. Preliminary data for the week to 27 January shows 17.9 million in shipments.

Both results are down on the $18 million recorded in the week to 13 January.

How far are ASX 200 iron ore shares dropping today?

Right now, all the big-name ASX iron ore shares are down but Rio Tinto is down the most.

The Rio Tinto share price is down 2.3% to $125.46.

Shares in fellow mining giant BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) are down 1.4% to $48.85.

Iron ore pure-play Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) shares are down 0.2% to $22.29.

Mid-cap iron ore share Champion Iron Ltd (ASX: CIA) is down 0.6% to $7.34.

Why is the Rio Tinto share price falling the most?

Rio shares may also be down following news reports that the company will be picking up the tab for the search in the Western Australian outback for a radioactive tablet that fell off one of its trucks.

It was recovered yesterday in a remarkable feat, given its tiny size of just 8mm long and 6mm in diameter.

The tablet is part of an industrial gauge commonly used in the mining industry. The gauge was recently used to measure iron ore feed at Rio Tinto’s Gudai-Darri mine.

In a press release, the CEO of Rio Tinto’s iron ore division, Simon Trott said the company was “incredibly grateful for the hard work of everyone involved in finding the missing capsule”.

Trott said:

We are taking this incident very seriously and are undertaking a full and thorough investigation into how it happened.

As part of our investigation, we will be assessing whether our processes and protocols, including the use of specialist contractors to package and transport radioactive materials, are appropriate.

The outlook for iron ore

As every investor in ASX 200 iron ore shares knows, daily stock prices tend to move in line with commodity prices. And shipment volumes will vary from week to week. So, today’s price movements simply represent the swings and roundabouts of commodity-stock investing.

What’s more important for iron ore shares investors is long-term trends, and news and events that will support iron ore prices, like China’s reopening.

Looking ahead, top broker Goldman Sachs is forecasting a commodity price recovery in 1H 2023:

While we continue to think 1Q23 will be a tough quarter for base metals and steel due to ongoing weak European and global demand, our expectation of a China reopening in 2Q, extreme lows in global base metal inventories and ongoing supply side disruptions make us positive on a 2H commodity price recovery.

Goldman expects iron ore demand to increase in line with increased Chinese steel production. The broker was “most positive” on 62% fe and high-grade iron ore.

As we reported last month, Goldman upped its share price target for Rio Tinto by 9% to $130 per share. It raised the target on BHP shares by 12% to $48.10 and Champion Iron shares by 22% to $8.40.

The post Why are ASX 200 iron ore shares like Rio Tinto sliding lower today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• Telstra shares just rung in a new ASX 200 high. Here’s the tea…
• Why QBE, Pinnacle, Rio Tinto, and Virgin Money shares are dropping
• How I’d invest $20,000 in ASX 200 dividend shares in 2023
• Here’s the Fortescue dividend forecast through to 2025
• Up 37% in 12 months: Here’s why this fundie still sees value in Woodside shares

Motley Fool contributor Bronwyn Allen has positions in BHP Group and Fortescue Metals Group. 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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/uzRxXcM

It’s been a positive day for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) and ASX shares this Thursday. At the time of writing, the ASX 200 has lifted by 0.18% to 7,515 points after climbing as high as 7,548 points earlier in the session. But one ASX 200 share that is doing even better is Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS).

Telstra shares are on a roll today. Sure, the 0.12% gain the telco has recorded at present doesn’t look that impressive. But earlier this morning, Telstra hit $4.18 a share. That’s a new 52-week high for the ASX 200 blue-chip veteran.

Telstra shares are now up around 15.5% since the company’s last 52-week low of $3.62 that we saw back in September last year.

It’s also very close to a new five-year high for Telstra. Back in January 2022, the company rose as high as $4.22 a share. But you’d have to go back to 2017 to find the last time the Telstra share price was above $4.31 a share:

Of course, this is not an all-time high for the company. Not even close. Back in Tesltra’s early ASX days in the late 1990s, the company got pretty close to asking $9 a share. We’re not even halfway to that historical high water mark today.

But it’s been a long time since Telstra was at those kinds of prices. The closest the telco got to those heights was back in early 2015 when it looked like the company was closing in on $7. But it wasn’t to last, and Telstra fell a nasty 60% or so between early 2015 and mid-2018.

But enough history. So why are Telstra shares tilling new highs today?

Why are Telstra shares at a new 52-week high today?

Well, it’s got nothing to do with anything out of the company itself, since Tesltra’s last ASX announcement was back on 4 January. So perhaps investors are taking note of what ASX brokers have been saying of late.

As my Fool colleague James covered this morning, ASX broker Morgans has given Telstra shares a buy rating, complete with a 12-month share price target of $4.65.

The broker reckons Telstra shares are undervalued today, given the value of the company’s underlying infrastructure assets. It’s also predicting Tesltra will maintain its generous dividend policy over the next few years.

Fellow broker Goldman Sachs has an equally bullish outlook on the telco as well, with its own share price target of $4.60.

So it’s possible that investors are taking these brokers at their word and are buying into Telstra and driving up its share price. No doubt Telstra investors will be unable to find too much fault in what is happening.

At the current Tesltra share price, this ASX 200 telco has a market capitalisation of $48 billion, with a dividend yield of 3.97%.

The post Telstra shares just rung in a new ASX 200 high. Here’s the tea… appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• Why are ASX 200 iron ore shares like Rio Tinto sliding lower today?
• How I’d invest $20,000 in ASX 200 dividend shares in 2023
• Up 37% in 12 months: Here’s why this fundie still sees value in Woodside shares
• 3 ASX 200 tech shares going gangbusters on Thursday
• Why is the AFIC share price tumbling 2% on Thursday?

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has positions in Telstra Group. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has 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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/ydsUVP6

The Xero Limited (ASX: XRO) share price is having a sensational day.

At the time of writing, the cloud accounting platform provider’s shares are up 9% to a four-month high of $84.16.

Why is the Xero share price surging today?

Investors have been scrambling to buy Xero shares today following a rebound in the tech sector after the US Federal Reserve hinted that its rate hikes could soon be coming to an end.

This saw the technology-focused Nasdaq index rise 2% overnight and the S&P/ASX All Technology Index rise 3.5% this afternoon.

In addition, the Xero share price may be rising more than most in the tech sector thanks to some recent broker commentary.

Earlier this week, Goldman Sachs added the company to its coveted conviction list with a buy rating and $109.00 price target. This suggests that its shares could still rise 30% over the next 12 months even after today’s gain.

Its analysts commented:

We see Xero as very well-placed to take advantage of the digitisation of SMBs globally, driven by compelling efficiency benefits and regulatory tailwinds, with >100mn SMBs worldwide representing a >NZ$76bn TAM. Following the recent underperformance (absolute/relative), we see an attractive entry point into a compelling global growth story and our preferred large-cap technology name in ANZ, and are Buy rated (on CL).

The post Xero share price jumps 9% to four-month high appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• 3 ASX 200 tech shares going gangbusters on Thursday
• How I’d invest $20k in ASX 200 shares in 2023 to aim for a million
• The Nasdaq just had its best January in over 20 years. Are ASX tech shares back?
• ‘Incredible value’: 3 ASX 200 shares expert would buy now for long-term growth
• The ASX 200 is still full of cheap shares despite this year’s surge and I’m ready to buy more

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

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/BsdflpX

We’re still fairly new to 2023, despite the first month just passing us by. But what a year it has been for the ASX share market thus far. Since the start of 2023, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has rallied by an impressive 8.35%. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be thinking about which ASX 200 dividend shares to buy next.

Overall, shares go up far more often than they go down. So if we’re always waiting for a cheap time to enter the market, we could be waiting years. And that’s years of valuable dividend compounding we could miss out on.

So here is where I would think about deploying $20,000 in ASX dividend shares this year if I was lucky enough to have some cash fall in my lap.

2 ASX 200 dividend shares I would buy in 2023

National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB)

I already own some NAB shares, but I would happily buy more in 2023 with some of that $20,000. Under NAB’s CEO Ross McEwan, I think this ASX bank share has built itself into one of the best options out of the big four.

Unlike its rival Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), NAB is less reliant on the massive mortgage market, with its historical focus on business lending. As such, I consider it to be a classic blue-chip investment that should prosper alongside the Australian economy over time.

There’s also NAB’s fat, fully franked 4.8% dividend yield to consider as well. This comes from NAB jacking up its dividends meaningfully in 2022. The bank paid out $1.27 in dividends per share in 2021, but hiked this to $1.51 per share last year.

Harvey Norman Holdings Limited (ASX: HVN).

Of all the ASX 200 dividend shares out there, Harvey Norman would have to be one of the cheapest on the market today. The veteran ASX retailer currently trades with a price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple of just 6.9. That’s stupendously cheap for a long-term stalwart like Harvey Norman in my view.

This cheap share price has resulted in the company possessing a monstrous trailing dividend yield of 8.42%, based on the company raising its dividend from 35 cents per share in 2021 to 37.5 cents per share in 2022. Those dividends come fully franked too. So this ASX 200 share I would find hard to turn down as well.

The post How I’d invest $20,000 in ASX 200 dividend shares in 2023 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• Up 37% in 12 months: Here’s why this fundie still sees value in Woodside shares
• 3 ASX 200 tech shares going gangbusters on Thursday
• Why is the AFIC share price tumbling 2% on Thursday?
• Why I’m preparing now for a 2023 stock market correction
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has positions in National Australia Bank. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Harvey Norman. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Harvey Norman. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/F7zTLdP

S&P/ASX 300 Index (ASX: XKO) uranium share Deep Yellow Ltd (ASX: DYL) is charging higher today.

Shares in the uranium miner were up 7.8% in earlier trade today and remain up 5.5% at the time of writing.

Here’s what’s driving investor interest in the ASX 300 uranium share.

What did Deep Yellow report?

The Deep Yellow share price is soaring after the miner reported that its “highly positive” Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) at its Tumas uranium project in Namibia has been completed.

Deep Yellow noted that the DFS, compared to the earlier Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS), resulted in increased production capacity of its plant from 3 Mlbpa of uranium (U3O8) to 3.6 Mlbpa U3O8, a 20% increase. The plant’s throughput also increased by 11% from the PFS, to 4.15Mtpa from the prior 3.75Mtpa.

Atop uranium, the DFS indicated annual production capacity of 1.15 Mlb V2O5, a vanadium by-product.

Based on existing ore reserves, the project Life of Mine (LOM) currently stands at 22.25 years. But the ASX 300 uranium share expects that to increase to 30-plus years amid additional future resources.

Commenting on the DFS results, CEO John Borshoff said:

We believe this is a very robust DFS and underscores the value of our conviction to apply effort in contrarian fashion, with a proven team, to discover the expanded Tumas Project that now demonstrates its potential to be a long-life, world-class uranium operation.

Importantly, we have used appropriate assumptions and our costings are highly accurate, having been largely based on quotes received in the last quarter of 2022 and in January 2023, resulting in a very realistic outcome against the inflationary and supply headwinds that have hit the mining sector.

Borshoff expects Deep Yellow’s application for a Mining Licence will be granted by mid-2023. The company is awaiting the Environmental Impact Assessment and approval by the authorities.

On the sustainability front, Borshoff added:

We intend for Tumas to be a best-in-breed uranium operation with world-leading extractive technologies and sustainability initiatives applied, including a specific process route that will produce a benign tailings stream to allow for the eventual safe closure and rehabilitation.

Deep Yellow said it will now focus on detailed Front End Engineering and Design, project financing, and product offtakes ahead of a Final Investment Decision expected in the first half of 2024.

How has this ASX 300 uranium share been tracking?

As you can see in the below chart, the Deep Yellow share price is off to a cracking start in 2023, up 16%.

The post ASX 300 uranium Deep Yellow share just surged 7%. Here’s why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• CSL share price surges to new 52-week high on Thursday
• The ASX 200 jumped 6% in January. Analysts reveal what this could mean for the rest of 2023
• ASX 200 investors are selling off CBA shares! What should I do?
• Meta stock price rockets 19% on $56 billion buyback
• Here’s the Fortescue dividend forecast through to 2025

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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/aB3g4UP

It has been another positive session for the CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) share price.

At the time of writing, the biotherapeutics company’s shares are up 1% to a 52-week high of $304.75.

As you can see below, this means the CSL share price is now up 16% since this time last year.

Why is the CSL share price hitting a 52-week high?

As well as getting a boost from a rising share market today, investors have been buying the company’s shares due to the release of a series of positive broker notes.

One of those came from Morgans yesterday, with its analysts adding CSL to its best ideas list for February. Morgans has an add rating and $312.20 price target on its shares.

The broker believes that 2023 could be the break-out year for CSL after facing some challenging times during the pandemic. The broker commented:

A key portfolio holding and key sector pick, we believe CSL is poised to break-out this year, a COVID exit trade, 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 offering good value trading around its long term forward multiple of 31.5x.

Elsewhere, analysts at Morgan Stanley believe the CSL share price can climb even higher. Yesterday, the broker reiterated its overweight rating and $354.00 price target. This implies potential upside of 16% from its 52-week high.

All in all, this could just be one of many new 52-week highs the company’s shares make in 2023 if Morgan Stanley is on the money with its recommendation.

The post CSL share price surges to new 52-week high on Thursday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• How I’d invest $20k in ASX 200 shares in 2023 to aim for a million
• Should I buy CSL shares before this month’s earnings update?
• ‘Incredibly cheap’: 2 ‘strong’ ASX shares expert would pounce on right now
• 3 ASX shares I dream of owning at the right price
• Jun Bei Liu’s 2 ‘structural growth’ ASX shares to buy now

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. 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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/mwt69je

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is off to a smashing start in 2023.

In January, the benchmark index gained a stellar 6.2%. That marks its best first month of the year ever.

And with the first two days of February also delivering gains, the ASX 200 is now up 7.2% since the closing bell on 30 December.

That strength has been driven by a resilient Australian economy and early signs that inflation is easing across the developed world. Meaning investors might expect a more dovish stance from the RBA, the Fed, and other leading central banks.

But with those outsized gains already booked, what can ASX 200 investors expect for the rest of 2023?

A bullish outlook for ASX 200 shares

A strong January performance historically tends to support strong share market performance for the remainder of the year.

According to Bell Potter analyst Richard Coppleson (courtesy of The Australian), investors can look forward to a positive share market performance – with an average gain of 7.5% – 73% of the time when the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) gains at least 6.5% in January.

The All Ords came within a whisker of that, gaining 6.43% in January. It’s currently up 7.38% in 2023.

Wilsons Advisory analyst David Cassidy points to China’s reopening as offering some healthy tailwinds for ASX 200 shares. Cassidy is also optimistic that easing inflation could see the RBA and Fed cut interest rates.

Markets should also be supported by resilient consumers and the potential for the RBA to deliver a soft landing for the Aussie economy.

According to Cassidy:

Consumers continue to spend at a decent clip. This is supportive for the local sharemarket, though sector-specific headwinds in respect of mining – from a frothy iron ore price – and banking – from slowing revenue growth – will likely cap the degree of upside for the local market this year.

Sounding a note of caution for the ASX 200

Former treasurer and current chair of the Future Fund Peter Costello makes the case for ASX 200 investors to think defensively in 2023.

Costello says interest rates are still going up, inflation remains well above central bank target ranges, and investors should not ignore the downside risks of a potential global recession.

“Real returns to investors, with the context of significant inflation, will be substantially below the experience of recent years,” he said (quoted by The Australian).

“The cycle of rising rates to control inflation is not yet complete and brings with it the possibility of recessions in much of the developed world.”

Foolish takeaway

We know that the ASX 200 has had its best start to the year in its history.

We can only speculate on how the benchmark index will finish out the rest of the year.

But we do know that some stocks will widely outperform the pack while others trail.

Invest wisely.

The post The ASX 200 jumped 6% in January. Analysts reveal what this could mean for the rest of 2023 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• ASX 200 investors are selling off CBA shares! What should I do?
• Meta stock price rockets 19% on $56 billion buyback
• Here’s the Fortescue dividend forecast through to 2025
• Up 37% in 12 months: Here’s why this fundie still sees value in Woodside shares
• 3 ASX 200 tech shares going gangbusters on Thursday

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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/DjztyiT

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) shares have been on form again this week.

So much so, Australia’s largest bank’s shares climbed to a record high of $110.81 on Wednesday.

This means the CBA share price now up 16% since this time last year.

Have CBA shares peaked?

Interestingly, it appears as though some retail investors have started to take profit on the belief that CBA’s shares may have peaked.

According to CommSec data, Commonwealth Bank was the 14th most traded ASX share on its platform last week.

However, only 26% of trades involving the bank were buys. The remaining 74% of trades were CommSec customers selling the bank’s shares.

And given that CommSec is the most widely used brokerage platform in Australia, this is arguably a fair representation of what’s happening across other platforms.

What are brokers saying?

The broker community is likely to be supportive of this profit taking. At present, I’m not aware of a single broker with a buy rating on the bank’s shares.

One of the most positive brokers out there is UBS with its neutral rating. However, with a price target of $100.00, CBA shares are trading 10% ahead of this level.

Elsewhere, Goldman Sachs is one of the more bearish brokers with its sell rating and $91.60 price target. This suggests that the banking giant’s shares could tumble almost 24% from current levels.

Goldman believes that the company’s shares don’t deserve to trade at such a premium to the rest of the big four banks. Particularly given the sector headwinds it is facing. Last month, it commented:

We are Sell rated on CBA given: i) while operating trends remain strong with volume growth best amongst the major bank peer group , and ii) CBA has the best leverage of the major banks to higher rates, iii) it is also more exposed to sector wide headwinds such as intense mortgage price competition, as well as further potential macro downside that appears likely to more adversely impact the household this cycle. Overall, we do not believe its fundamentals justify the 12-mo forward PER premium it is currently trading on versus peers, compared to the 19% historic average.

Food for thought for CBA shareholders.

The post ASX 200 investors are selling off CBA shares! What should I do? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• Top ASX dividend shares to buy in February 2023
• 5 ASX 200 shares smashing new 52-week highs on Wednesday
• CBA share price hits new record high again on Tuesday
• Why did the CBA share price just hit a new 52-week high?
• Investing in ASX 200 bank shares? Here’s the dividend outlook for 2023

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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/Be0wMXs

The US markets had a very pleasing day of trading last night (our time). By the end of the trading day, the S&P 500 Index has risen by 1.05%, while the NASDAQ 100 was up an even rosier 2.16%. But let’s talk about the Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ: META) stock price.

Meta, the company formerly known as Facebook, looked like it had a pretty decent day on the surface. The company closed at US$153.12 a share, up a robust 2.79%. But in after-hours trading, the story was dramatically different.

By the time after-hours trading finished up, Meta shares had risen by a whopping 19.81% all the way up to US$183.45 each.

So what was behind this dramatic jump in value?

Well, the company’s latest earnings report, of course.

Meta has been under intense pressure over the past two years or so. Between September 2021 and November 2022, the company’s shares fell from close to US$380 to just over US$88. That’s a fall of over 76%:

Ouch.

Investor concerns ranged from increased competition to Meta’s social media apps like Facebook and Instagram from rivals like TikTok to Meta’s ambitious and expansive plans to expand into the ‘metaverse‘.

But it appears that the company’s latest quarterly earnings report has restored a lot of faith.

Meta stock jumps, but why?

But, initially, it’s not too easy to see why.

Meta reported falls in revenue, income and earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter ending 31 December 2022. Against the prior corresponding quarter, the company’s revenue fell 4% to US$32.17 billion. Net income dropped 55% from US$10.29 billion to US$4.65 billion. Diluted EPS also fell, sliding from US$3.67 per share to US$1.76.

The only positive metric was a big reduction in costs and expenses. These dropped from US$12.59 billion for the three months to December 2021 to US$6.4 billion for the three months to 31 December 2022.

So what then has gotten investors so excited with Meta shares?

The company has announced a massive increase to its share buyback program.

Meta reported that over the quarter just gone, the company bought back US$6.91 billion of its own stock. That took 2022’s annual total to US$27.93 billion, with US$10.87 billion left in the kitty for further buybacks.

But Meta announced this morning that it would be increasing its funds available for buybacks by a whopping US$40 billion ($56 billion).

Investors love share buybacks because they reduce the total share count of a company. This has the effect of reducing supply, therefore pushing up share prices over time. Further, a reduced share count increases earnings per share, since there are fewer shares to divide a company’s earnings amongst.

So it’s this monster expansion to Meta’s share buyback program that has probably gotten investors so hot under the collar for Meta stock.

The post Meta stock price rockets 19% on $56 billion buyback appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• 3 ASX 200 tech shares going gangbusters on Thursday
• What to watch on the US stock market this week: ANZ
• Why Fortescue shares could be facing a Meta-like problem

Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has positions in Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/uMlSbZ6