The Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) share price is in the green in Tuesday lunchtime trade. At the time of writing, the shares are 2.23% higher for the day, at $84.65 a piece.

For the year-to-date, the shares are now 3.59% higher, and for the year, they are just over 12% higher. But after peaking at an all-time high of $94.76 in August last year, the Wesfarmers share price has dropped 10.83%.

What happened?

Following its peak in 2025, the Wesfarmers share price hopped around a little until the company’s annual general meeting in late October slashed investor confidence and triggered a sharp 15% sell-off. The update revealed that some of Wesfarmers’ business segments saw year-to-date growth, while others faced challenging trading conditions.

The share price has recovered some ground since then, but Wesfarmers was pushed back into the spotlight last week when the AFR reported that it had abruptly called off plans to support the largest franchisee in its Priceline pharmacy network, Infinity Pharmacy Group. 

In a later update, the AFR also said that Wesfarmers reportedly “accused the owner of the largest Priceline franchisee of embarking on a debt-fuelled acquisition spree even as the business teetered on the brink and was falling behind in paying suppliers”.

The news appeared to have temporarily knocked investor confidence, but it quickly rebounded. On Wednesday last week, the shares closed 2.65% lower for the day and have climbed over 4% since. 

All eyes are now on the company’s next update, scheduled for the 19th of February. 

What’s ahead for Wesfarmers in 2026?

Wesfarmers’ growth plans for 2026 centre on strengthening its core retail businesses while improving efficiency. It’s clear from this month’s news that management is willing to exit from a business that doesn’t fit the group’s long-term plans.

Wesfarmers is moving away from weaker assets and instead plans to allocate more capital to opportunities with the potential for higher returns.

The business also plans to continue improving its stores and product ranges across its key divisions, including Bunnings, Kmart and Officeworks.

Is the Wesfarmers share price a buy, hold or sell this year?

TradingView data shows that analysts aren’t too optimistic about whether Wesfarmers can deliver this year, though.

Out of 15 analysts, 7 have a sell or strong sell rating on Wesfarmers shares, and another 6 have a hold rating.

The average target price is $81.64, implying a 3.71% downside over the next 12 months at the time of writing. However, some analysts think the shares could fall another 24.96% to $63.60 over the next 12 months, and others are much more optimistic and expect the Wesfarmers share price to jump 18.01% to $100 per share.

The post Wesfarmers share price down 11% from its peak: Buy, hold or sell for 2026? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Forget BHP shares! Buy these ASX dividend shares instead for passive income
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• 1 ASX dividend share set to excel long term, even while down 13%
• 5 ASX stocks to hold for the next decade

Motley Fool contributor Samantha Menzies 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 Wesfarmers. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Wesfarmers. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Markets are pricing in a 56% chance of an interest rate rise next week when the Reserve Bank Board meets for the first time in 2026.

The ASX rate tracker shows the market was factoring in just a 25% likelihood of a 25-basis-point rise early last week.

That changed on Thursday after new data showed a fall in Australia’s unemployment rate in December.

The ABS reported a 0.2% fall in the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate from 4.3% in November to 4.1% in December.

The market’s prediction of a February interest rate rise lifted dramatically to 60% on this news, before easing to 56% on Friday.

Lower unemployment indicates people have more capacity to spend.

The RBA may consider this problematic after resurgent inflation began showing up in the data late last year.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 3.8% over the 12 months to October, which was the fourth month in a row of price gains.

Annual inflation dipped back to 3.4% in November, and tomorrow, we’ll get the numbers for December.

Here’s what CBA is forecasting for inflation, and the implications for interest rates.

CBA forecast for inflation

In an update released today, CBA senior economist Trent Saunders said:

The December 2025 CPI release will be closely watched, given its importance for the near‑term monetary policy outlook.

We expect headline inflation to rise 0.3%/mth in December on a seasonally adjusted basis, with the annual inflation rate increasing to 3.8%.

The more policy-relevant quarterly trimmed mean CPI is expected to have risen by a firm 0.9%/qtr.

While this represents a modest step down from the 1.0%/qtr increase in Q3 2025, it remains well above the pace consistent with the RBA achieving its inflation target.

On an annual basis, trimmed‑mean inflation is expected to lift to 3.3%, from 3.0% in Q3 2025.

Saunders said the RBA is focused on the medium‑term inflation outlook and is concerned about underlying inflationary pressures.

In our view, this release is likely to confirm that these pressures remain strong.

Saunders concludes that it is likely the RBA will raise interest rates this year, and most likely next week.

We continue to expect the RBA totighten monetary policy in 2026, with the most likely timing for the first cash rate hike being February 2026.

A hike in February will hinge on both the size and composition of the inflation print, as well as the RBA’s assessment of the broader economic environment.

In 2025, the RBA cut interest rates three times in February, May, and August.

The RBA will announce its interest rate decision next Tuesday.

The post Interest rate rise narrowly ‘odds on’ for next week appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• My 3 best ASX dividend-focused stocks to buy in February
• Wesfarmers share price down 11% from its peak: Buy, hold or sell for 2026?
• Buying silver? Here’s why you might want to think again
• Morgans names 3 ASX shares to buy
• Why the St Barbara share price is halted today

Motley Fool contributor Bronwyn Allen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has 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.

If you started 2026 hoping to buy silver, or even buy more of the precious metal, you probably wouldn’t be alone. As we discussed last week, the rise of silver has been one of the most shocking events on global financial markets in recent months.

Silver has risen from under US$31 an ounce in early 2025 to the latest record high of over US$117 for that same ounce that we’ve seen in just the past 24 hours. Yep, silver looks like it is on the verge of a quadrupling in value in just the past 12 months. This extraordinary run means that silver has outpaced gold, platinum, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) and almost every major stock market index in the world over the past year. Many silver shares have done even better.

As such, many investors out there might be thinking that silver might just be the hottest trade in 2026.

One can certainly see the appeal. Apart from the temptation to just hop on a bandwagon that has been so lucrative for investors, silver is a precious metal with many of the same attractions as gold. It has a finite supply, a history of underpinning and being used as money, and as a hedge against inflation, geopolitical uncertainty and financial instability more broadly.

Silver’s narrow supply, thanks to its nature as a byproduct of mining other commodities, also makes the metal vulnerable to sharp price movements. As we discussed regarding gold this morning, putting all of these factors together, one might conclude that there is still time to buy silver in early 2026.

Buying silver in 2026?

However, I don’t think the thesis for silver remaining a buy today is as strong as the one I posited for gold this morning. Any investor who is indeed considering buying silver bullion or a silver exchange-traded fund (ETF) today needs to keep one very important factor in mind.

One of the aspects that makes gold such a unique investment is its use profile. The vast majority of annual gold production goes towards one of two uses. The first is investment-grade bullion. The second, jewellery. In fact, industrial uses of gold only account for about 10% of global demand for the precious metal. This makes gold demand uniquely uncorrelated to the health of the economy amongst commodities. This is partly why gold is viewed as an effective safe-haven asset.

Silver does not share this characteristic, however. The white metal has a myriad of industrial uses. After all, silver is one of the best conductors of electricity on the periodic table, even better than copper. That makes it an essential ingredient of everything from circuit boards and solar panels to electric vehicles and data centres.

Right now, demand for these goods is soaring, which partially explains silver’s record run. However, if there were a recession tomorrow, its highly likely we would see a sharp reduction in the demand for industrial silver. This could lead to a sharp correction in the price of silver itself. Gold, which would not experience such a drop-off, would arguably be the better ‘safe haven’ asset to hold in such a scenario

Foolish takeaway

No one, particularly this writer, knows what will happen in 2026 when it comes to the global economy or the prices of gold or silver. But investors should keep in mind that gold and silver are two different asset classes, whose supply and demand curves are influenced by inconsistent factors. You don’t want to find out that you haven’t invested in a safe-haven asset the hard way.

The post Buying silver? Here’s why you might want to think again appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• My 3 best ASX dividend-focused stocks to buy in February
• Wesfarmers share price down 11% from its peak: Buy, hold or sell for 2026?
• Interest rate rise narrowly ‘odds on’ for next week
• Morgans names 3 ASX shares to buy
• Why the St Barbara share price is halted today

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has positions in Bitcoin. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Bitcoin. 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.

Looking for new portfolio additions but can’t decide which ASX shares to buy?

To narrow things down, let’s take a look at three shares that Morgans recently recommended to clients. They are as follows:

Guzman Y Gomez Ltd (ASX: GYG)

Morgans see a lot of value in this quick service restaurant operator’s shares at current levels. It has a buy rating and $32.30 price target on them, which implies potential upside of over 30%.

The broker was pleased with its latest limited time offer and feels that it could support the company’s margins given that it uses existing ingredients. It explains:

GYG has launched its latest limited-time offer (LTO): the BBQ Chicken Double Crunch (BBQ CDC). Early feedback suggests the item is one of GYG’s more indulgent menu items and taste tests have been overwhelmingly positive. The product leverages existing ingredients, meaning no incremental complexity or cost for stores, a margin-friendly innovation that aligns with GYG’s operational discipline. Management has repeatedly emphasised that menu innovation is a key lever for same-store sales (SSS) growth, and this launch reinforces that commitment. We reiterate our BUY rating.

South32 Ltd (ASX: S32)

Another ASX share that Morgans is recommending to clients is diversified miner South32. The broker has a buy rating and $5.00 price target on its shares, which suggests that upside of 11% is possible in 2026.

Morgans was pleased with the company’s performance during the second quarter and believes it is well-placed to benefit from strong commodity prices. It said:

2Q26 was a modest beat at a group level operationally. Supported by strong alumina and silver output. FY26 guidance on operated assets unchanged, Brazil Aluminium under review. We have applied updated house precious metal forecasts to our estimates. Post-Illawarra divestment, S32 is ~90% base metal producer with limited execution risk (ex-Hermosa) and enjoying a healthy (and material) upgrade cycle from copper, aluminium and silver prices. Positioned to benefit from the upcycle, we maintain our BUY rating with a A$5.00 Target Price (was A$4.30).

WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC)

A final ASX share that has been given the thumbs up by analysts at Morgans is WiseTech Global.

The broker has a buy rating and $112.50 price target on the logistics solutions technology company’s shares. This implies potential upside of over 75% for investors over the next 12 months.

It was pleased with the company’s investor day event late last year and remains confident in its growth outlook. Morgans said:

WTC’s FY25 investor day highlighted the group’s progress and broader outlook for a number of key near to medium-term growth initiatives, which in our view continues to see the group in a solid position to drive value. We retain our BUY rating, with a revised PT of $112.50ps.

The post Morgans names 3 ASX shares to buy appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

Shares in St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) were placed into a trading halt during midday trade today after the Australian gold miner requested a temporary pause in trading.

The shares were last trading at 74 cents, down about 3.89 % before the halt. Investors appear cautious as they wait for clearer news on developments at the company’s Simberi Gold Project in Papua New Guinea (PNG).

According to the ASX notice, trading will resume once the announcement is released, or at the latest by Thursday morning.

A key project back in focus

Simberi is St Barbara’s most important operating asset. The open-pit gold mine is located on Simberi Island in Papua New Guinea and has been producing gold for more than a decade.

Over the past two years, St Barbara has been working on plans to significantly expand Simberi by moving into sulphide ore mining. This expansion is designed to lift production, extend the mine’s life, and improve long-term cash flow.

However, none of this can move ahead unless St Barbara secures a long-term extension to the Simberi mining lease.

Why the mining lease is so important

The current Simberi mining lease is due to expire later this decade. Without an extension, St Barbara would be unable to justify the large investment needed for the next phase of the mine.

In 2025, Papua New Guinea’s Mining Advisory Committee recommended extending the Simberi mining lease out to 2038. That recommendation was an important step forward and aligned with the company’s long-term mine plans.

Formal paperwork was later submitted to the PNG Minister for Mining. However, final approval has been delayed due to an unresolved tax reassessment issue with the PNG tax office.

St Barbara has previously told investors it expects the revised tax assessment to be reissued, which would allow the lease approval process to move forward.

What investors are waiting to hear

The trading halt suggests St Barbara is close to an important update. This could involve progress on the mining lease, movement on the tax issue, or another development linked to Simberi’s future ownership or funding structure.

The Simberi project has already attracted interest from major partners. Previous disclosures showed plans for PNG’s state-owned Kumul Minerals to take a stake in the project, alongside a proposed investment by China’s Lingbao Gold Group.

Any confirmation around approvals or ownership would be highly relevant for investors.

Foolish bottom line

St Barbara shares have delivered a strong run over the past year, supported by higher gold prices and renewed optimism around Simberi.

Today’s halt highlights how closely St Barbara’s outlook is tied to regulatory decisions and project approvals. If the Simberi lease extension is finalised, it could remove a major uncertainty hanging over the stock.

The post Why the St Barbara share price is halted today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Why is this gold miner’s share price heading higher today?

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.

S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) shares are up 1.1% and the materials sector is outperforming again today.

ASX 200 materials is up 1.5% as mining shares continue their remarkable run on the back of strongly increasing commodities.

The market’s largest miner, BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), rose to a two-year high of $50.08 per share this morning.

Amid this rosy backdrop, here are two outperforming ASX mining shares that have more than tripled in value over the past year.

And Canaccord Genuity reckons they still have more room to run.

Sun Silver Ltd (ASX: SS1)

Sun Silver is developing the Maverick Springs silver-gold deposit in Nevada, US.

The deposit has a JORC Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate of 539 Moz silver equivalent (AgEq) at 71g/t AgEq.

This includes 347.5Moz Ag at 45.5g/t Ag and 2.25Moz gold at 0.30g/t Au.

Sun Silver says this makes Maverick Springs the largest pre-production primary silver deposit listed on the ASX and within the US.

This month, Sun Silver tripled its landholding by staking 427 additional lode claims to the north and south of the existing project.

The Sun Silver share price is $2.39, up 3.01% after reaching a record $2.44 in earlier trading.

This ASX silver mining share has soared 237% over the past 12 months.

Sun Silver is benefiting from the gallivanting silver price, which leapt beyond US$100 per ounce for the first time yesterday.

Silver is supply-constrained at a time of rapidly rising global demand, largely due to its industrial usage in the green energy transition.

Silver is a key input in solar panels, tech devices, electric vehicles, and data centres due to its superior electrical conductivity to copper.

The silver price is up 256% over the past 12 months.

Like gold, silver is also a precious metal finding favour with investors as a safe haven amid volatile global geopolitics and economics.

This month, Canaccord Genuity reiterated its buy rating on Sun Silver with a share price target of $4.15.

This implies a potential upside of close to 75% over 12 months.

Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO)

The Core Lithium share price is 28 cents, down 3.5% on Tuesday and up 211% over the past year.

This ASX lithium mining share is riding the wave of increased demand for lithium since mid-2025.

The global oversupply that smashed lithium commodity prices in 2023 is over, and demand for batteries and electric vehicles is rising.

Analysts at Trading Economics say the lithium carbonate price is now at a two-year high and up 30% already in 2026.

Core Lithium put its flagship Finniss Project into care and maintenance in early 2024 due to weak lithium prices.

The miner released a restart plan last year and says it will only take a month to resume production, once it finds new financial partners.

This month, Canaccord Genuity reiterated its buy rating on Core Lithium and lifted its share price target from 27 cents to 40 cents.

This implies a potential upside of more than 40% over 12 months.

The post 2 ASX mining shares up 200% in a year and tipped to keep rising appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• One of the ASX’s biggest losers today. What is happening at Core Lithium?
• Up 365% since April, should you buy the recent dip in Core Lithium shares?
• Silver, lithium, and critical minerals commodities book double digit gains in just one week

Motley Fool contributor Bronwyn Allen has positions in BHP Group and Core Lithium. 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 BHP Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Boss Energy Ltd (ASX: BOE) shares are in retreat today.

Shares in the S&P/ASX 300 Index (ASX: XKO) uranium miner closed on Friday trading for $1.87. In early afternoon trade on Tuesday, shares are swapping hands for $1.82 apiece, down 2.9%.

For some context, the ASX 300 is up 1.0% at this same time.

Despite today’s underperformance, shares remain up 54.2% since the stock plumbed multi-year closing lows of $1.18 apiece on 18 December. Those lows were driven by ongoing concerns over Boss Energy’s flagship Honeymoon uranium project, located in South Australia.

That strong rebound will come as welcome news to shareholders, though not to the host of short-sellers betting against the company. Boss Energy shares are the second most shorted on the ASX this week, with a short interest of 16.3%.

So, do the short sellers have it right? Or can the embattled uranium miner keep charging higher in 2026?

Should you buy Boss Energy shares today?

Red Leaf Securities’ John Athanasiou recently ran his slide rule over the ASX 300 stock (courtesy of The Bull).

“Boss Energy remains highly leveraged to uranium market sentiment, with its valuation reflecting optimistic production assumptions and pricing scenarios,” said Athanasiou, who has a sell recommendation on Boss Energy shares.

According to Athanasiou:

Any operational delays or cost over-runs could impact returns. In our view, companies with clearer earnings visibility are a more appealing alternative. The stock has fallen from $4.48 on July 1, 2025 to trade at $1.78 on January 22, 2026.

The shares may remain under pressure in what can be a volatile sector.

And Athanasiou isn’t alone in his concerns that the ASX uranium stock could remain under pressure.

Goldman Sachs recently initiated coverage on Boss with a sell rating.

The broker noted its concern over the outlook for “resource recovery, production rates, and cost structures” at the Honeymoon Uranium Project.

Goldman Sachs has a $1.20 price target on Boss Energy shares, or some 34% below current levels.

The bullish case

Not everyone is bearish on the ASX 300 uranium producer.

Morgan Stanley recently upgraded Boss Energy shares to an overweight rating

The broker believes that the market may be underestimating the production and sales potential at Honeymoon. Morgan Stanley also believes that costs could come in lower than consensus expectations.

With that in mind, the broker has a $2.05 price target on Boss Energy. That represents a potential upside of almost 13% from current levels.

The post Up 54% since December, can Boss Energy shares keep racing higher in 2026? 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.

Shares in Orezone Gold Corporation (ASX: ORE) have surged more than 20% to a new record high after the company announced a deal to acquire the operating Casa Berardi gold mine in Canada.

The company said in a statement to the ASX on Tuesday that it had struck a deal to acquire Hecla Quebec – a subsidiary of the Hecla Mining Company – which would secure its ownership of the gold mine and surrounding exploration properties, all of which were located in Quebec.

Payment in cash and shares

Orezone will pay $352 million upfront and on a deferred basis, and there could also be a further $241 million in contingency payments.

The company explained further:

The upfront and deferred Consideration consists of $160 million in cash and $112 million in Orezone common shares representing 9.9% of the pro forma issued and outstanding shares of Orezone, both payable upon closing of the transaction, and $80 million of deferred consideration in two cash instalments payable at 18 months and 30 months following the closing of the transaction. The contingent consideration consists of $10M million linked to gold prices, and $231 million based on permitting and future gold production from the proposed Principal and WMCP open pits of Casa Berardi.

The company said the transaction represented an “inflection point … as it adds a proven, cash-flow-generating asset to our portfolio, and provides asset diversification in a Tier 1 Jurisdiction”.

Orezone Chief Executive Officer Patrick Downey said it was a major milestone for the company.

The combination of Casa Berardi and Bomboré creates a multi-asset platform with strong production and free cash flow, positioning Orezone for near-term growth and long-term value creation. Casa Berardi’s established operating history, robust resource and reserve base, and substantial exploration upside across a 37km mineralized corridor, provide a foundation for sustained growth. Consistent with recent acquisitions of non-core Canadian operating mines, we believe this transaction represents a defining milestone that will generate meaningful value for all shareholders.

Strong track record

Orezone said the Casa Berardi mine had produced more than 3.2 million ounces of gold since 1988 and had a strong history of resource replacement over that period.

The production guidance for 2026 is for 83,000 to 91,000 ounces of gold, while for the past five years, the mine has averaged 106,100 ounces per annum.

Orezone shares traded as high as $3.15 on the news, up 23%, before settling back to be 14.1% higher at $2.92.

The company was valued at $1.53 billion at the close of trade on Friday.

The post Which gold company’s shares are up more than 20% on acquisition news? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Up 54% since December, can Boss Energy shares keep racing higher in 2026?
• Why DroneShield, Life360, Nova Minerals, and Santana shares are falling today
• Bye bye CBA: BHP is back as the ASX 200’s biggest stock
• Big UK deal, big capital raise. Why this ASX stock is in a trading halt
• Why the $260 billion Glencore merger is a ‘high-stakes gamble’ for Rio Tinto shares

Motley Fool contributor Cameron England 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.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to start the week with a strong gain. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 1% to 8,948.7 points.

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

DroneShield Ltd (ASX: DRO)

The DroneShield share price is down 5.5% to $4.22. This follows the release of the counter-drone technology company’s shares following the release of its fourth quarter and full year update. DroneShield reported revenue of $51.3 million for the fourth quarter, which was a 94% increase on the prior corresponding period. This brought its total revenue for FY 2025 to $216.5 million, which is an increase of 277% on last year’s revenue of $57.5 million. It was also ahead of Bell Potter’s estimate of $210 million. Today’s weakness could have been driven by another announcement which revealed that 9.2 million options have vested for employees after it hit its $200 million cash receipts goal. Last time options were vested there was a big selloff.

Life360 Inc (ASX: 360)

The Life360 share price is down 8% to $31.13. This appears to have been driven by profit-taking from investors after a very strong gain on Friday. Investors were buying its shares after it released a very strong fourth quarter update. Life360 reported monthly active users (MAU) of 95.8 million, which is up 20% year on year. This comprises US MAU of 50.6 million and international MAU of 45.3 million. Another positive was that its Paying Circles (paid users) grew 576,000 to 2.8 million. This was the largest annual net addition on record. Management also upgraded its FY 2025 revenue guidance. It is now expected to be between US$486 million and US$489 million, which represents a year on year increase of 31% to 32%.

Nova Minerals Ltd (ASX: NVA)

The Nova Minerals share price is down 8% to $1.18. Investors have been selling the gold and antimony explorer’s shares following the release of its quarterly update. Commenting on the quarter, Nova’s CEO, Christopher Gerteisen, said: “The December quarter was marked by the award of US$43.4 million in non-dilutive funding from the U.S. Department of War, which fully funds the development of stage 1 antimony production at Estelle, which will feed into the U.S. supply chain. This support enables us to accelerate our strategy to become a fully integrated U.S. producer of military-grade antimony.”

Santana Minerals Ltd (ASX: SMI)

The Santana Minerals share price is down 8% to $1.07. This follows the release of the gold developer’s quarterly update. Santana Minerals revealed a cash outflow of approximately $10 million for the three months. This reduced its cash balance from approximately $100 million to approximately $90 million.

The post Why DroneShield, Life360, Nova Minerals, and Santana shares are falling today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Down 10% today: Should you buy Life360 shares?
• DroneShield shares fall after reporting revenue of $216m
• DroneShield posts record Q4 revenue and positive cashflow
• DroneShield hits $200m milestone as 9.2m options vest and 2025 expense revealed
• Down 40% in 3 months: Are Life360 shares still a buy? 

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Life360. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended DroneShield and Life360. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Life360. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Something momentous has happened on the ASX boards this Tuesday. Mining stock and ASX veteran BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) has displaced Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) as the largest stock on the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), and thus, on the Australian share market.

Unlike in the United States, we don’t have a never-ending game of musical chairs when it comes to Australia’s largest public company. Banking giant CBA had occupied the top spot on the ASX for more than 18 months, fuelled by a massive share price rally that saw the bank go from under $100 a share in 2023 to last year’s record high of $192. Concluding with a lacklustre few years for BHP shares, CBA had been sitting atop the ASX for quite a while. Until today, that is.

CBA shares out, BHP stock in

This Tuesday has seen BHP shares rally considerably, up more than 3% at present. The miner crossed over $50 a share for the first time in more than a year today, topping out at $50.08 a share. Although CBA stock is also up a healthy 0.7% today (at the time of writing), BHP’s move has pushed the miner to a market capitalisation of just over $253.5 billion. As CBA is currently worth about $251.9 billion, BHP is officially the big dog of the ASX once more. The age of the bank is over, the age of the miner is beginning. At least for now.

We’ve been anticipating this outcome for a while here at the Motley Fool, given how BHP has rallied over a period that has seen CBA fall from that $192 high to the $150 price we are currently seeing.

But of course, it’s not the first time that BHP has sat atop the ASX. Prior to 2024, BHP was indeed the largest share on the ASX. Thanks to a ‘unification’ program that was announced in 2021, BHP ended its dual listing on the London Stock Exchange and made the ASX its primary home. That brought billions of dollars worth of BHP shares to the ASX, allowing the miner to leapfrog CBA as the ASX’s largest company.

That lasted a few years until CBA took back its crown in 2024. Now, that crown has been handed back.

What do the Big Australian’s gains mean for the ASX 200?

In practice, not a lot. Yes, BHP shares will now draw more dollars from index fund inflows and superannuation funds than CBA. But Australian investors, well, those with exposure to index funds, will still have plenty of exposure to both companies. However, the bragging rights of the largest public company in Australia now belong to BHP. For now, at least.

The post Bye bye CBA: BHP is back as the ASX 200’s biggest stock 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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended BHP Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.