The Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS) share price is rising again, up by 3.66% so far today.

This compares to the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) which is currently only 0.04% higher, so Woodside is delivering sizeable outperformance today.

It’s a strong day for ASX shares involved with producing energy for the global market. The Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price is currently up around 3% while the Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC) share price is 7.65% higher at the time of writing.

It comes as the war in Ukraine rumbles on and Russian energy flows are still being disrupted, for one reason or another.

As reported by various global media, including the BBC, Russian gas giant Gazprom announced an “indefinite extension to a three-day maintenance halt to flows of gas through the continent’s key energy artery, hours after leading western finance ministers vowed to escalate sanctions on Russian oil”.

The reason Gazprom gave was that an oil leak had been discovered and that the pipeline cannot work without German imports of technology, which are currently blocked due to the trade sanctions.

Rising energy prices

As a commodity business, Woodside generates its revenue, and particularly its profit, based on how much money is paid for its resources. This also has a direct impact on the Woodside share price.

Higher prices obviously help Woodside make more money.

As reported by Commsec, overnight the Brent oil price increased by 0.7% to US$93.02 per barrel of oil equivalent.

That’s just one day’s movement, but higher energy prices are helpful for the ASX oil share.

Asset sale?

There’s another factor that may be making an impact on the Woodside share price today.

According to reporting by The Australian, Woodside may decide to pursue divestment of an oil and gas joint venture in the Gippsland Basin that was previously owned by BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP). It’s now owned by Woodside after the merger of BHP’s petroleum assets, completed in June.

Woodside is strategically reviewing its portfolio “holistically”, ensuring that it is focusing on the “highest priority opportunities”.

According to reporting, BHP hired Goldman Sachs around two years ago to consider selling oil assets, which included a possible sale of the Gippsland Basin assets in the Bass Strait. Some time ago, these assets may have been valued at around US$2 billion. But “large remediation costs have always been an impediment”, according to the report.

Woodside share price snapshot

Over the last month, Woodside shares have gone up around 12%.

The post Why is the Woodside share price surging ahead on Monday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• Are ASX 200 energy shares a good investment right now?
• Why is the Woodside share price sliding this week?
• ASX 200 shares declared $42b of dividends in August. Here’s how you can get a slice
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday

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

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It’s been a pleasing start to the trading week for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) so far this Monday. At the time of writing, the ASX 200 has gained a tentative 0.09% and is back over 6,830 points. But we can’t say the same for the Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Ltd (ASX: BEN) share price.

Bendigo Bank shares closed at $8.97 each last week. But today, the ASX 200 bank share opened at $8.76, and is now going for $8.69 each. That’s a hefty loss of 3.1% so far.

So why are Bendigo Bank shares underperforming the ASX 200 so comprehensively today?

Well, luckily for investors, it’s because Bendigo Bank shares have just traded ex-dividend for the bank’s upcoming final dividend payment.

Bendigo Bank share price drops as bank trades ex-dividend

As we flagged last week, Bendigo Bank is scheduled to fork out its final dividend for FY22 later this month on 29 September. But because the bank is trading ex-dividend today, only investors that held Bendigo Bank shares before this trading session are eligible to receive Bendigo Bank’s final dividend.

When an ASX share trades ex-dividend, all new investors are cut off from receiving the said dividend payment. As such, we normally see the value of this dividend leave the company’s share price. That’s because its value is now lost to new investors. This is what is happening to Bendigo Bank shares today.

Bendigo Bank shareholders can now look forward to receiving Bendigo Bank’s final dividend of 26.5 cents per share, fully franked, later this month.

This latest dividend payment will bring Bendigo Bank’s total dividends for FY22 to 53 cents per share. That follows on from the interim dividend of 28 cents per share investors received back in March. This represents a small drop from the previous financial year’s dividend total of 54.5 cents per share.

At the current Bendigo Bank share price, this ASX 200 bank share now has a dividend yield of 6.09%.

The post Why is the Bendigo Bank share price dipping on Monday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• These ASX 200 shares are going ex-dividend on Monday
• Hoping to deposit the latest Bendigo Bank dividend? Here’s what you need to know
• Reason for hope as ‘worst month of the year’ starts off badly
• After falling 16% in 2 weeks, is the Bendigo Bank share price too cheap to miss?
• ASX reporting season weekly wrap: Winners and losers

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 positions in and has recommended Bendigo and Adelaide Bank 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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The BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price is rebounding on Monday after the iron ore giant gave up some serious gains late last week.

At the time of writing, shares in the world’s largest miner are up 2.16%, trading at $37.53.

For context, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is 0.2% higher to 6,842.2 points.

Let’s look at what may drive the miner’s shares to race past the benchmark ASX 200 index today.

Why are BHP shares gaining ground?

There are a couple of likely reasons why the BHP share price is heading north during midday trade despite no company announcements.

Firstly, the S&P/ASX 200 Resources (ASX: XJR) sector is the second-best performing index across the ASX today, with a 1.42% gain at the time of writing.

This also sees shares in BHP’s iron ore rival Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO) lifting 1.05% to $91.14.

On the other hand, shares in Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (ASX: FMG) are currently down 5.23% after trading ex-dividend today.

Today’s strong turnaround for the benchmark index of Australian resource companies comes after a tumble of 8% since 26 August.

Recently, bearish sentiment impacted global markets following investor concerns about China’s property and COVID-19 crisis.

BHP shares retreated 7.61% last Thursday on the back of going ex-dividend. The share fell again 2.05% the following day, making it five days of consecutive losses.

However, those worries have been alleviated for now as several blue-chip shares trade in bargain territory.

BHP share price snapshot

Since the beginning of the year, the BHP share price has struggled to take off amid a challenging economic environment.

The mining giant’s shares are up 2% year-to-date but down 12% over the past week.

Based on today’s price, BHP has a market capitalisation of around $190 billion.

The post Why are BHP shares off and racing on Monday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• How I’d invest $50,000 in ASX dividend shares for retirement, if I had to start from scratch
• Why did the BHP share price smash the ASX 200 in August?
• 27% of ASX 200 shares cut dividends during earnings season. What’s next?
• Why are ASX 200 mining shares getting hammered on Friday?
• Is the BHP share price 7% cheaper after trading ex-dividend? 

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras 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 PointsBet Holdings Ltd (ASX: PBH) share price is faltering on Monday amid news the company will soon lose its title as one of the ASX’s top stocks.

The bookmaker will be dumped from the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) later this month as part of S&P Dow Jones Indices’ quarterly shakeup.

At the time of writing, the PointsBet share price is $2.18, 6.44% lower than its previous close.

For context, the ASX 200 has lifted 0.09% right now.

So, what does the company’s exclusion mean and what stock will take its place on the index? Let’s take a look.

PointsBet share price slumps as company ousted from ASX 200

Embattled bookmaker PointsBet was dealt yet another blow over the weekend.

News its days on the ASX 200 are numbered was released after the market closed on Friday. The company will be ditched from the index in just under two weeks.

And that’s bad news for the PointsBet share price. It means funds tracking the index will be forced to dump the stock before the market opens on 19 September.

That will likely see supply of the company’s securities increase, thereby reducing demand and, as a result, its share price.

PointsBet is one of eight shares to be removed from the ASX 200 later this month.

Other ASX 200-leavers include tech stocks Zip Co Ltd (ASX: ZIP), Life360 Inc (ASX: 360), and EML Payments Ltd (ASX: EML), as well as retailer City Chic Collective Ltd (ASX: CCX) and asset manager Janus Henderson Group (ASX: JHG).

They will be replaced by Lovisa Holdings Ltd (ASX: LOV), Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA), and Spark New Zealand Ltd (ASX: SPK), among others.

The bookmaker’s exclusion from the index follows a period of poor performance.

The PointsBet share price has fallen 69% since the start of 2022. It’s also currently trading 80% lower than it was this time last year.

For comparison, the ASX 200 has slumped 10% year to date and 9% over the last 12 months.

The post Here’s why the PointsBet share price is stumbling on Monday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why these 3 ASX shares could be in for a massive boost this month
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• Zip and these shares have been kicked out of the ASX 200 index
• Why Core Lithium, Mineral Resources, PointsBet, and Strike Energy are dropping
• Broker tips PointsBet share price to double

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper 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 EML Payments, Life360, Inc., Pointsbet Holdings Ltd, and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended EML Payments. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Lovisa Holdings Ltd and Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. 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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This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

If you want to get rich with stocks, you’re not alone — and you have a reasonably achievable goal, too, because the stock market is one of the best ways to build wealth over the long-term, if not the best way.

You might still need a few specific pointers, though, so here are three investments that can help your portfolio grow faster.

1. Invest in index funds

First, make it easy on yourself by investing in index funds. They’re mutual funds (or their cousins, exchange-traded fund (ETF)) that are passively managed, simply holding the same securities that are in a particular index, allowing the fund to deliver roughly the index’s return, less fees. (And index funds tend to sport very low fees.)

So consider that the stock market’s long-term average annual return is close to 10%. Parking much (or all) of your long-term dollars in, say, an S&P 500 index fund will get you returns very close to those of the S&P 500, an index that includes 500 of America’s biggest companies and encompasses about 80% of the value of the entire U.S. stock market.

Index funds are hard to beat — figuratively, because they’re so easy to invest in, and literally, because most actively managed stock mutual funds underperform their benchmark indexes. If you want to amass significant wealth but don’t want to study investing and make lots of buy-and-sell decisions on your own, just stick with index funds.

2. Invest in stocks you choose yourself

If you do have the time and interest in becoming a better investor, shooting for above-average returns, you might add some or a lot of individual stocks to your mix. You can keep some or much of your long-term dollars in index funds and simply add on to that, or you can put much of your money in individual stocks.

To go this route, you’ll need to learn more about how to research a stock and about stock valuation. Learning how to make sense of financial statements will also serve you well.

You might decide to be primarily a value investor, or a growth investor, or you might aim for the best of both worlds, seeking undervalued growth stocks. Don’t put too much of your money in any one or a few stocks, though, because even seemingly wonderful businesses can falter, and you don’t want all your eggs in just a few baskets. The less you know about investing, and the less confidence you have, the more you should diversify.

Our Motley Fool investing philosophy recommends that you buy into at least 25 different stocks, while planning to hold them for at least five years. Doing so can reduce your risk and increase the chance that you’ll have selected one or more companies that turn out to be terrific performers. It will also give them time to perform. (Many people just get impatient and sell out of great stocks if they don’t zoom upward within a few months. Plan to be patient.)

3. Invest in learning

Finally, for best results, don’t just learn the basics about value and growth investing. Commit to being a lifelong learner about investing. It can help you get better and better at it over time.

What should you read? Well, if you’re going beyond index funds into individual stocks, read at least the quarterly and annual reports of your companies — and, ideally, read up on news about the companies, too, from time to time. You don’t want to end up surprised if they change direction or become less promising.

Beyond that, read about great investors and their strategies. Read about great businesses and how they became great — that can help you learn to spot other great businesses in which to invest. Reading even more broadly, about science, history, psychology, economics, and more, can also make you a savvier investor, with insights into how investors in the stock market might behave and how consumers might behave, as well.

Any of these investment ideas can help you amass much more money than you otherwise would. Acting on all three of them might maximize your returns — but just parking most of your hard-earned dollars in one or more good index funds can be all you need to grow your money powerfully over many years.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post Ready to get rich with stocks? You can’t go wrong with these 3 investments appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Here’s why the PointsBet share price is stumbling on Monday
• Why is the Santos share price off to a flying start this week?
• Here’s why the Lovisa share price leapt 8% on Monday
• Why are ASX 200 coal shares smashing the market on Monday?
• Dreadnought share price pops then drops despite ‘significant’ discoveries

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

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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The Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price is stretching higher to start the trading week.

At the time of writing, shares in the oil and gas giant are trading at $7.93 apiece, a 3% gain on the day.

In broader market moves, the S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) is the best performing sector so far on Monday, up 3.51% as well.

What’s up with the Santos share price?

Energy stocks are catching a bid today as energy-backed commodities continue their strong performance during today’s session.

Brent Crude Oil is up more than 1.43% to US$94.35/Bbl and continues to trade within a two-month range. Meantime, US natural gas futures is also up more than 2% to US$8.97/MMBtu – a shade off 10-year highs.

The gains are partially offset by a substantial decline in European and UK gas contracts, down 11% and 15% at last check during Monday’s session.

However, despite today’s volatility, both oil and gas benchmarks remain heavily elevated over the 12 months to date, as seen on the chart below, alongside the Santos share price in blue.

Noteworthy is that Santos also released an announcement today.

Whilst it wasn’t deemed price sensitive, Santos says that it’s been awarded permits for evaluation and appraisal work for the potential storage of carbon dioxide in the offshore Carnarvon and Bonaparte basins.

Both sites are located off the coast of Western Australia and the permits allow Santos to “pursue potential carbon capture and storage (CCS) opportunities with its joint venture partners”.

Santos CEO Kevin Gallagher noted there were potential strengths arising from both projects.

Carbon capture and storage is critical for the world to reduce emissions and in line with Santos’ net-zero scope 1 and 2 equity-share emissions by 2040 target, we are committed to looking at all options for CCS capabilities.

At Santos, we have the technology, infrastructure and knowledge to be able to deliver lowcost CCS competitively on a global scale. We know a large scale-up of CCS is required to meet the world’s climate objectives.

Santos share price snapshot

In the last 12 months, the Santos share price is up almost 27%.

That’s well ahead of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) which has lost 9% over the same period.

The post Why is the Santos share price off to a flying start this week? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• Are ASX 200 energy shares a good investment right now?
• Blocked again: Here’s what happened to ASX 200 shares last time the Suez was cut off
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday
• Why is the Santos share price sliding lower today?

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 Scott Phillips.

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The Lovisa Holdings Ltd (ASX: LOV) share price is one of today’s strong performers. It’s up by 6% at the time of writing, after touching nearly 8.5% in early trade on Monday.

The affordable jewellery retailer has received a boost thanks to news announced after the market closed on Friday last week.

Index inclusion

Every three months, the ASX indices are reviewed by the S&P Dow Jones Indices to see if any changes need to be made.

A large increase in a company’s market capitalisation can lead to a business being included in an index. Meanwhile, a large decrease in the share price of a business can lead to it being kicked out of an index.

It’s good news for Lovisa that its share price has gone up so much – over 80% since mid-June. That means it will be included in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO). It’s not the only company being added. Names like Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA) and Johns Lyng Group Ltd (ASX: JLG) are also joining the ASX 200.

Names getting kicked out of the ASX 200 include Life360 Inc (ASX: 360), EML Payments Ltd (ASX: EML) and Zip Co Ltd (ASX: ZIP).

The changes will happen on 19 September 2022.

What has driven the Lovisa share price higher?

Investors had been expecting Lovisa to report a significant increase in profit in FY22. This was proven when it released its report at the end of August.

Revenue went up by 59.3% to $458.7 million, gross profit increased 63.8% to $361.8 million, and earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) grew 86.6% to $79.7 million, and net profit after tax (NPAT) soared 116.3% to $59.9 million. The company more than doubled its dividend to 37 cents per share.

Lovisa explained that once stores were able to open, and trading and restrictions were lifted, it was able to deliver “strong growth” across all markets as economic conditions improved. It maintained growth across the financial year.

Growth has continued strongly in FY23.

Trading for the first seven weeks of FY23 has seen a continuation of the strong performance of FY22, with comparable store sales growth of 21% compared to FY22. Total sales for the FY23 period were up 66.1%, with the prior year impacted by lockdowns.

Since the end of FY22, it has opened in two new markets. It has opened two stores in Hong Kong and one store in Namibia. It has opened 22 new stores year to date, reaching a total of 651 stores.

Lovisa said:

We continue to focus on opportunities for expanding both our physical and digital store network, with structures in place to drive this growth in existing and new markets and expect rollout momentum to increase going forward. Our balance sheet remains strong with available cash and debt facilities supporting continued investment in growth.

Lovisa share price snapshot

Since the beginning of 2022, the Lovisa share price has risen around 17%.

The post Here’s why the Lovisa share price leapt 8% on Monday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why these 3 ASX shares could be in for a massive boost this month
• Top ASX shares to buy in September 2022
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• Here’s why analysts have slapped buy ratings on these ASX shares
• Why A2 Milk, Lovisa, McMillan Shakespeare, and Tyro are storming higher

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 positions in and has recommended EML Payments, Johns Lyng Group Limited, Life360, Inc., and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended EML Payments. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Johns Lyng Group Limited and Lovisa Holdings Ltd. 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) coal shares are having another strong run today.

In morning trade, the Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC) share price is up 7.3% to $8.55 per share.

Meanwhile, rival ASX 200 coal share New Hope Corp Ltd (ASX: NHC) is surging 6.5% to $5.43 per share.

That’s well ahead of the 0.2% gain posted by the ASX 200 at the time of writing and also more than twice the 3.4% gains delivered by the S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) so far today.

So, what’s stoking ASX investor interest in the coal sector today?

What’s piquing ASX investor interest?

If you said surging coal prices, give yourself a gold star.

The New Castle coal price now stands at US$435 per tonne, up from US$400 per tonne a week earlier.

That’s just shy of the record high of US$440 per tonne coal was trading for on 2 March, and more than 600% higher than it was trading for two years ago when a tonne of coal was worth US$62.

Coal prices, alongside the share prices of ASX 200 coal shares, have been rocketing since energy-rich Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February.

Hitting back at Western sanctions on its oil and other exports, Russia has been crimping the supplies of gas it sends through its Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline, which pumps gas from Russia directly into northern Germany.

Now Gazprom, the Russian state-owned company in charge of the pipeline, has shut down the gas indefinitely. Gazprom had been undertaking what it said was unscheduled maintenance on Nord Stream 1 but said due to a “technical fault”, gas may not be flowing again any time soon.

With many European nations heavily reliant on Russian gas, demand for coal to keep the lights on and heaters working is ramping up as northern winter approaches.

A difficult and unfortunate situation, to be sure, but certainly one offering some strong tailwinds for ASX 200 coal shares.

How have these ASX 200 coal shares been tracking longer-term?

2022 has seen ASX 200 coal shares deliver some stellar returns.

Since the opening bell on 4 January, the New Hope share price has surged 134% while Whitehaven Coal shares have rocketed 200%.

For some context, the ASX 200 is down 10% year-to-date.

The post Why are ASX 200 coal shares smashing the market on Monday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Are ASX 200 energy shares a good investment right now?
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Why Coles, Fisher & Paykel, New Hope, and Nitro shares are rising
• Why is the Whitehaven share price burning lower 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.

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The Dreadnought Resources Ltd (ASX: DRE) share price opened higher at 15 cents this morning after the company came out of its trading halt.

However, the Dreadnought share price has not maintained its positive momentum, and currently trades a hefty 5.7% lower at 13 cents.

In contrast, the S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) is having a good start to the week, up 1.03% at the time of writing.

Shares in Dreadnought were frozen last Thursday to give the mineral explorer time to prepare a release regarding its exploration results for its Mangaroon project in Western Australia.

Dreadnought posted two mineral discoveries to the market this morning. Let’s cover what the company announced.

What’s the drill?

Dreadnought Resources announced its drilling intersected REE ironstones at its Sabre discovery site. Previous drilling in Sabre uncovered ironstone deposits 10m to 21m thick over an area of approximately 1km.

These drillings were part of a larger effort of drilling 29 holes in total, of which 19 holes have been completed to date. Checks for mineralisation were completed, and further assays (analysis for composition and quality) are expected in November.

Dreadnought Resources managing director Dean Tuck commented:

The significant scale potential of the Mangaroon Rare Earth Project continues to be underscored with thick mineralised REE ironstones at the Sabre discovery (the prospect formally known as Y3).

With two rare earth discoveries in hand now at the Mangaroon REE Project, we look forward to continuing the discovery drilling program with additional drilling at Sabre, Y8 and then the C1-C5 carbonatite targets all commencing this month.

Second discovery at Mangaroon

In a separate announcement, Dreadnought confirmed further ironstone discoveries following preliminary drilling at the Yin site, also part of the Mangaroon project. Ironstone was discovered after drilling 41 out of 120 planned holes, covering an area of approximately 3km.

The company reported yields of strong rare earth elements such as neodymium and praseodymium, with concentrations ranging from 30% to 38%.

These elements are highly prized commodities for use in creating strong magnets for motors used in electric vehicles and their drive chains.

Tuck also commented on the Yin discovery:

Yin continues to deliver exceptional REE results that exceed expectations for the ironstones of the Gifford Creek Carbonatite Complex. We look forward to receiving the remaining assay results from the 120 RC holes drilled to date which will comprise our initial JORC resource at Yin.

Importantly this initial JORC resource will only cover ~3km of the ~16km of strike of the Yin Trend. We are also excited to announce in a parallel announcement the discovery at Sabre (formally known as Y3) and look forward to drilling the C1-5 carbonatite targets.

Dreadnought Resources share price snapshot

The Dreadnought Resources share price is up 229% year to date. In contrast, the Materials Index is down by around 10.46% over the same period.

The company’s market capitalisation is $410.5 million based on its share price today.

The post Dreadnought share price pops then drops despite ‘significant’ discoveries appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why is the Dreadnought share price on ice today?
• Here’s why the Dreadnought share price is zooming 10% higher today
• 5 ASX shares that could rocket from a rare earths crisis: expert
• Dreadnought share price leaps 5% on rare earths ‘significant growth potential’

Motley Fool contributor Matthew Farley 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 widow trade – shorting the shares of Australian banks – is back in the headlines. 

In an Australian Financial Review article titled “Is it time to short Aussie banks? One Wall St guru says yes”, Bank of America strategist Michael Harnett says that after falls in consumer stocks, the next shoe to drop will be Canadian and Australian banks. 

With Australian house prices having fallen in August at the fastest pace in 40 years, the AFR article notes:

“There’s certainly some appealing logic in the idea that where house prices go, the Australian banks – stacked to the gills with mortgages as they are – will follow.”

Harnett is widely seen as one of the biggest bears on Wall Street and, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices down 18% and 27% respectively so far this year, it’s been a great time to be a bear.

“Harnett’s view is that persistent inflation will force the Federal Reserve to take rates to 4% and hold them there perhaps until 2024, when inflation finally gets back towards the Fed’s 2%,” the AFR article says.

Australian banks have long been in the sights of offshore bears, including the occasional short seller. They have traded at premium valuations compared to overseas banks and, coupled with housing affordability in Australia being amongst the worst in the world, logic says the only way is down.

Is this time different? Rising interest rates are a double-edged sword for banks. Bad debts rise as consumers come under pressure to pay off their loans and mortgages. But net interest profit margins also rise as interest rates increase as banks benefit from a greater spread between funding costs and lending rates.

I’ve said previously the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) looks downright expensive. Even from a dividend yield perspective, CBA shares only trade on a 4% fully franked dividend yield. 

Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ASX: ANZ) shares trade on a much more attractive trailing 6.3% fully franked dividend, but a share price that’s fallen 21% over the past five years hardly inspires confidence. 

It’s mostly the same story with the Westpac Banking Corporation (ASX: WBC) share price; good dividend yield, shares down 31% over the past five years. National Australia Bank (ASX: NAB) shares fare slightly better, being flat over the same period.

We know Australian investors – particularly retirees and SMSFs – love the Aussie banks for their fully franked dividends. 

CBA shares apart, what they’ve been missing – during a heady five-year period when interest rates were falling and house prices were rising – is share price appreciation. 

With inflation high and interest rates on the rise, we’re headed into an altogether different and tougher operating environment for many companies, particularly banks. 

Looking back, the “short Aussie banks” sentiment has actually been mostly on the money, given the poor share price performance of three out of the four big Australian banks over the past five years.

Short sellers are unlikely to target Aussie banks – they prefer fads, loss-makers and frauds, and look for quick profits – so I wouldn’t expect sharp falls in the share prices of the big banks. 

More likely is a slow grind lower as, in the case of the CBA share price, the air comes out of its premium valuation and for the three other banks, they face headwinds from falling house prices and consumers tightening their belts. 

Given their weighting in the ASX 200 index, investors might also expect the benchmark index to struggle to make meaningful headway in the months ahead.

The post Why ASX bank shares are more likely to slowly grind lower than crash, despite famed Wall Street bear saying it’s time to short them appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why is this top broker tipping 27% upside for the ANZ share price?
• Are Westpac shares the answer for investors wanting dividend income?
• Are NAB shares worth buying in September?
• Goldman Sachs says these ASX dividend shares are buys
• Is this why the Macquarie share price was ‘steaming ahead’ on Friday?

Motley Fool contributor Bruce Jackson 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 Westpac Banking Corporation. 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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