The Link Administration Holdings Ltd (ASX: LNK) share price has been battered this week, tumbling 20.8% since last Friday’s close.

Some 10% of that fall occurred yesterday after Australia’s competition watchdog raised a red flag over the proposed acquisition of Link, and the company announced it’s being taken to the English High Court.  

Fortunately, the market appears reassured by the company’s confidence in its financial year 2022 guidance, outlined today.

At the time of writing, the Link share price is $3.34, 0.3% lower than its previous close.

For context, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is currently down 2.54%. Meanwhile, the company’s home sector – the S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ) – is recording a 4.09% dip, with Link coming in as its top performer.

What’s going on with Link’s stock on Friday?

The battered and bruised Link share price is doing better than most on Friday amid the broader market’s stumble.

The ASX 200 is struggling today after Wall Street plunged overnight. The S&P 500 Index (SP: .INX) suffered a 3.25% fall in Thursday’s session while the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQ: .IXIC) tumbled more than 4%.

But the Link share price is outperforming following yesterday’s 10.43% drop. Its about-face comes after the company released an announcement to the ASX this morning.

“Following elevated trading activity in shares of Link … on the ASX on 16 June 2022, Link Group affirms its [financial year 2022] guidance,” it told the market.

“Revenue is expected to increase by a low single-digit percentage and operating [earnings before interest and tax] is expected to be at least 5% higher relative to [financial year 2021].”

It comes after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) flagged “significant preliminary competition concerns” regarding the proposed acquisition of Link by Dye & Durham yesterday.

The company noted the watchdog’s view was still preliminary and reconfirmed its recommendation of the takeover plan.

Additionally, Link disclosed legal proceedings are being brought against it in the English High Court on Thursday.  

The claim relates to its subsidiary’s role as authorised corporate director of the LF Equity Income Fund. The company has vowed to “vigorously defend” the claims.

Link share price snapshot

It likely goes without saying that 2022 has been rough on the Link share price.

The stock has slumped nearly 40% since the start of the year. It’s also trading around 32% lower than it was this time last year.

The post Down 20% this week, why is the Link share price outperforming today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why Humm, Inghams, Link, and Smartgroup shares are falling
• ASX 200 midday update: BHP’s NSW coal update, Link takeover on the rocks
• Double whammy: Link share price sinks 9% amid ACCC probe, litigation news

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 Link Administration Holdings Ltd. 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 Latitude Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: LFS) share price jumped from the gates and is now rangebound in early trade on Friday.

At the time of writing, it’s fetching $1.40 — the same as yesterday’s closing price — having already slipped more than 29% into the red this year to date.

In broad market moves, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) started down on Friday and is currently tracing 2% lower at 6,435. Returns for the last five trading days on each are below.

Latitude share price jumps amid cancelled deal

The company revealed today that its agreement to purchase Humm Group Ltd (ASX: HUM)’s buy now pay later (BNPL) business has been terminated. The transaction was valued at $250 million.

Latitude notes the decision to terminate was mutual.

In light of the current major disruption in financial markets, Latitude and Humm have mutually agreed to terminate the proposed sale of humm consumer finance (HCF) to Latitude.

Whilst investors have been driving up Latitude early today, the same can’t be said for the Humm share price. It’s tracking almost 14% lower at the time of writing.

The drop brings Humm’s losses to more than 45% for the year to date and 52% over the past 12 months.

Meanwhile, Humm said it continued to believe that HCF was a “high-quality business”.

“The board…intends to review HCF’s strategic direction to focus on its core products and markets in order to restore profitability,” it said.

Latitude’s attitude was a more upbeat, noting a small impact. It advised it was profitable and well-capitalised, with growth tailwinds.

“BNPL represents less than 1% of Latitude’s revenue and receivables,” the company said.

The Latitude share price is down more than 39% in the last 12 months.

The post Latitude share price lifts on cancelled Humm deal appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Humm share price sinks 11% following termination of $250m BNPL sale to Latitude
• Why Humm, Inghams, Link, and Smartgroup shares are falling
• ‘A dud deal’: Why is the Humm share price falling on Thursday?
• Hmmm… Why is the Humm share price lagging its sector on Friday?

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 recommended Humm Group 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 Block Inc (ASX: SQ2) share price has come under pressure yet again on Friday.

In morning trade, the payments giant’s shares are down over 8% to a new ASX low of $80.64.

This latest decline means the Block share price is now down by over 54% since listing on the Australian share market in January.

Why is the Block share price tumbling today?

Investors have been selling down the Block share price today following a market selloff on Wall Street which has spread to the local market.

The selling was particularly severe on the Nasdaq index, which fell 4.1% during overnight trade.

And while Block’s US-listed shares are actually listed on the NYSE, they often move in tow with the tech-heavy Nasdaq index.

It isn’t just Block that is falling hard today. Also deep in the red are the likes of Altium Limited (ASX: ALU), WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC), and Xero Limited (ASX: XRO).

This has led to the S&P/ASX All Technology index following the Nasdaq’s lead and dropping 3.5% in morning trade.

Why the selling?

Investors were selling equities on Wall Street on Thursday night amid fears that the US Federal Reserve’s rate hike plans to tame inflation will cause a recession. This is despite the market rallying on the news just a day earlier.

Susan Schmidt of Aviva Investors summarised things well. She told CNBC:

Investor sentiment seems to only be able to focus on one thing at a time. Yesterday, the Fed delivered as people expected. It was combating the consumer price index data that was much higher than people expected and raised concerns about inflation being so aggressive. Investors are now remembering that the counter to this is a slowing of the economy.

The post Block share price sinks again and is now down over 50% since its ASX listing appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why Block, Nanosonics, St Barbara, and Woodside shares are dropping
• Why is the Block share price tumbling another 5%
• ASX 200 midday update: ResMed’s US$1bn acquisition, tech shares continue to sink
• Why BHP, Block, Harvey Norman, and PointsBet shares are sinking
• Why are ASX 200 tech shares getting hit hardest today?

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Altium, Block, Inc., WiseTech Global, and Xero. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Block, Inc., WiseTech Global, and Xero. 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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Could sentiment towards ASX gold shares be starting to turn after a top broker highlighted the sector and upgraded the Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) share price?

After all, gold hasn’t done much despite the global turmoil, rampant inflation, and market volatility.

While the precious metal may have held the line above US$1,800 an ounce as equities plunged, some may still feel disappointed that the safe haven hasn’t done more.

Evolution share price upgraded as sector underperforms

Some ASX gold shares, including Evolution Mining, have continued to underperform the  S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO).

Over the past year, the Evolution Mining share price has tumbled 23%, while the Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) share price has shed 17%. The Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM) share price has also struggled, down 9%,

In contrast, the ASX 200 has declined around 12% over the same period.

Low bar for ASX gold shares to jump

But UBS believes investors cannot afford to ignore ASX gold shares in this environment. The broker said:

Despite the continued operational delivery risks of production and costs, we are seeing more value in the ASX gold sector and more need to hedge the rest of our portfolio.

While they may get a little cheaper as we look forward to the Jun-Q 22 production reports and FY23 guidance, the bar has been set low and share prices have retreated.

Why the sector lost its shine

Sentiment towards the Evolution Mining share price and other ASX gold shares has been hurt by several factors. Production issues, tight labour markets, supply chain challenges, and cost pressures have dragged on the sector.

Given the poor start to production in FY22, UBS estimates that ASX gold shares will need a 30% improvement in the June quarter versus the previous quarter to meet their full-year guidance.

Is it time to buy ASX gold shares?

But there are also several factors that will support the sector. The waning Australian dollar is one, with the gold price at around a healthy $2,600 an ounce. This leaves our miners with a good margin buffer.

If the Aussie weakens further as US interest rate hikes outpace ours, profitability may improve further.

Additionally, the sector could deliver significant production growth of around 10% to 25% into FY23, added UBS.

Many ASX gold miners are also looking good value with the sector trading on sub-five-times enterprise value-to-earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EV/EBITDA).

UBS picks the Evolution share price and these others

But this doesn’t mean all ASX gold shares are a buy. UBS explains:

We remain cautious into results season for risks to FY23 production and cost guidance, and retain a preference for new(er) mines benefiting from new infrastructure, highest grades and limited or brownfield capex [capital expenditure].

Size can also shield exposure to COVID risks like “key man” absenteeism and disruptions.

UBS upgraded the Evolution Mining share price to “buy” with a 12-month price target of $4.05 a share. It also likes the Northern Star share price along with that of SSR Mining Inc CDI (ASX: SSR), Gold Road Resources Ltd (ASX: GOR), and De Grey Mining Limited (ASX: DEG).

The post ‘The bar has been set low’: Why this top broker just upgraded the Evolution Mining share price appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Investing in ASX 200 gold shares? Here’s the latest on the gold price forecast
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday
• What’s with the Northern Star share price on Wednesday?
• Evolution Mining share price dips 8% in a week as Macquarie flags ‘earnings risk’ from energy crisis
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday

Motley Fool contributor Brendon Lau has positions in Newcrest Mining Limited. 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 Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd (ASX: VUL) share price is taking a tumble, down 4.5% in early trade.

Vulcan Energy shares closed yesterday at $5.73 and are currently trading for $5.47.

This comes as the broader market is under pressure following another big sell-off in US markets overnight, with the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) down 2.2% at this same time.

Below we look at the key takeaways from the ASX lithium share’s progress update for its Zero Carbon Lithium Project, located in Germany.

What progress was reported?

The Vulcan Energy share price is sliding despite the company announcing that the German City Council of Landau has voted to support its geothermal energy production.

Tapping geothermal energy is a critical part of the company’s net carbon zero lithium production plans.

The council area covers part of Vulcan Energy’s geothermal production license at Insheim, along with the Landau Süd production license where the company has a brine offtake agreement with the operator. The Insheim region forms a core part of Vulcan’s Phase 1 development plans.

In its vote of support, the Landau Council said, “The lithium content in geothermally extracted thermal water in the Upper Rhine Graben offers a great opportunity to make an important contribution to combating the climate crisis.”

The Vulcan Energy share price also failed to lift off this morning despite the company reporting the acquisition of new exploration licenses. The 141 square kilometres of new licenses increase Vulcan’s exploration footprint in the Upper Rhine Valley Brine Field to 1,163 square kilometres.

Commenting on the developments, Vulcan Energy’s managing director, Francis Wedin said:

The Council has recognised that, in addition to being a source of renewable baseload heat, deep geothermal energy can also be used to extract lithium for electric vehicle battery production with a zero-carbon, zero fossil fuel footprint of production.

This marks an important step forward along the journey of the development of our dual geothermal energy and Zero Carbon Lithium business, which is widely recognised as vital not just to energy and critical raw materials supply security in Europe, but also to meeting Germany’s climate goals.

Vulcan Energy share price snapshot

The Vulcan Energy share price has struggled over the past 12 months, down 35%. That compares to a one-year loss of 13% posted by the All Ordinaries.

You’re unlikely to hear long-term shareholders complaining though.

Investors who bought Vulcan Energy shares in June 2018 will be sitting on gains of 2,506%.

The post Vulcan Energy share price tumbles despite positive lithium project update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Here’s why the Vulcan Energy share price is sinking 12% today?
• Which ASX lithium shares are producing and which are not?
• Why is the Vulcan Energy share price tumbling 6% today?
• 3 ASX mining shares billionaire John Hancock is buying for rising inflation and the energy transition
• Here’s why the Vulcan share price is charging 6% higher

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 Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) share price has sailed northwards these past few weeks. Despite the upside, its shares have also displayed wide volatility during this time and are currently down 4.68% at $1.63 in early trade today.

In broad market moves, the S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) has followed a similar path, having soared more than 30% this year to date, despite a recent pullback.

What’s up with the Beach Energy share price?

The Beach Energy share price was dancing around the $1.50–$1.70 level in April before a breakout in late May.

Surging markets for energy-based commodities have transposed over to ASX energy shares, with Beach nudging past its 52-week high around one week ago.

Brent crude oil continues its charge upward, now trading 8% higher in a month to US$119 per barrel. It’s surged around 63% in one year.

Meanwhile, natural gas continues to run higher, despite a sharp pullback over the last week or so.

The price action in these markets so far this year almost certainly mimics the activity in the Beach Energy share price, as seen below.

Beach is a price taker on these commodities, so it stands to reason its share price will fluctuate with volatility in the oil and gas markets.

Driving the rally in energy markets are a number of macroeconomic pressures, including supply chain bottlenecks, demand and supply mismatches, and the conflict in Europe.

Adding fuel to the fire is that Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, raised its oil prices for Asian customers – its biggest market.

This comes on the back of a stronger demand outlook from China, now the most recent spade of COVID-19 lockdowns look to be easing.

The Beach Energy share price has climbed 22% over the past 12 months and around 30% this year to date.

The post Despite recent volatility, the Beach Energy share price has still gained over the past 3 weeks. Here’s why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
• ASX 200 energy shares are up 40% so far this year. Can they run further?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday

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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I’m typing this at 9.20am on Friday, before the ASX opens.

It’ll probably be down. Perhaps by a couple of percentage points, if the futures are correct (they’re less accurate than you might think, by the way).

The falls will be, in large part, a domino effect after the US S&P 500 fell 3.25% overnight.

But I don’t want to talk about that, today.

In part because I’ve done so this week a couple of times already, including in a video I hope you’ll have a look at, if you haven’t, already.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5aBpiGMx3Q?feature=oembed&w=500&h=281]

And while I could do it again, sometimes you have to lift your head above the ‘here and now’.

In part, that’s precisely the message I’ve been trying to send this week – that the ‘here and now’ can blind us to the long-term potential of investing in shares if we let it.

(It can also blind us to irrational exuberance if we let it, too.)

So let’s look up, just a little…

Can you imagine what a little bit of long-term thinking might be worth today if it was done – and the ideas implemented – in 2012, 2002, 1992, 1982 or 1972?

Which is not to say there has been no wonderful long-term thinking in the past.

The countless hours of medical research that have saved millions (tens of millions?) of lives.

The technological breakthroughs that have given us the medium you’re reading this through right now.

The vision that set apart public spaces in our cities for parks and other recreational activities.

The invention of the index fund for investors.

And yes, even government policies, including Medicare, deregulation, superannuation, the GST, our modern gun laws… and so much more.

So much more, in fact, that I’ve certainly missed some wonderful past decisions and actions that we benefit from today.

Those people could have been consumed with the day-to-day, and not bothered to imagine what a better world or better country might look like.

They could have just obsessed over that day’s issues, or – in our case – that day’s market movements.

And they – and we – would be much poorer for it.

I’ve told you before, for example, about Vanguard’s numbers showing that a $10,000 investment in the ASX in 1991 would have been worth $160,000 30 years later.

There were a lot of ‘today’s worries’ in the three decades between those two amounts.

And yet, there was a 16-fold return in the offing. We just had to look up a little.

And so I want to do a little of that today.

I want to imagine a better future.

There are a lot – and I mean a LOT – of things that I might change were I to become the Grand Benevolent Dictator of Australia at some point.

I’d probably ban penalty shoot-outs in soccer, and zero-carb beer, for starters.

But I’ll restrict myself to just one financial change today.

And it’s something I’ve been on the record about for a long time but which came up again in a question from a listener to the Motley Fool Money podcast I host.

He asked me to have a look at Norway’s sovereign wealth fund – something I’ve been a fan of for a long, long time.

In doing so, I read the fund’s own explainer, in full, for the first time.

And, well, it got my blood up again.

We are one of the most resource-rich countries on Earth. Perhaps (and I haven’t done the research!) the most resource-rich per head of population.

In any event, we have a LOT of the stuff.

Oil. Gas. Iron. Gold. Copper. And more.

Assets that were in the ground when our fathers’ fathers’ fathers were still millennia away from being born.

And assets that both Australian and foreign companies pull out of the ground and sell, mostly overseas.

The proceeds from which… go into general revenue and get spent on whatever the government of the day fancies.

These are millions of years old. Our national inheritance.

Which we harvest, sell and spend, leaving bugger-all for the kids, and their kids and their great, great, great, great grandkids.

Oh sure, a small amount of it might go into infrastructure, and that might last a few decades.

But most of it? Spent on getting a politician elected or re-elected, enabled by a population (that’s us!) who’ll happily swallow the ‘poor you’ routine that the pollies give us to make us feel sorry for ourselves and then happily vote for them to fix the problems they’ve convinced us we have.

And sure, some of those problems are real.

But isn’t it just a little bit selfish to help ourselves to the rocks, liquids and gasses left to us by generations of our forebears and flog ‘em off to pay today’s bills with nary a thought for those who come after us?

Is that really to be our legacy?

Or, we have Norway’s example to follow.

In Norway, all fossil fuel royalties go into their sovereign wealth fund.

The government of the day – by, in their words ‘broad political consensus’… just imagine that! – gets to spend the returns of the fund, but the capital is preserved.

And – how great is this – the contribution of the sovereign wealth fund pays for a full 20% of the Norwegian government budget these days.

Can you imagine how flush our government coffers would be today if that structure was put in place here in the 70s, 80s or 90s?

We wouldn’t know what to do with all of that money.

And so, with that example from Norway, what are our politicians doing?

Nothing.

To their credit, the Coalition under John Howard, and with Peter Costello as Treasurer, put some of the Telstra privatisation proceeds into the Future Fund – a very narrow but welcome imitation — so that sort of thing is not without precedent here.

We have not one blueprint but two – Norway’s fund and our own.

And, so, with both of those examples, what are our politicians doing?

Still nothing.

There are some people who couldn’t care less about the legacy we leave to future generations. They’ve probably already stopped reading.

But if you’ve got this far, I reckon you care about the country we leave to our kids, and their kids and grandkids.

(And that’s more than just finances, by the way, but let’s stick to the topic today.)

We look back and wonder ‘what if’ the government had done something similar to Norway in the 70s or 80s.

Just as our descendants will wonder, in 2052 or 2062, what might have happened if we’d followed Norway’s example, today.

Isn’t it time we stopped frittering away the proceeds of our national inheritance?

Isn’t it time we turned some all-but eternal resources into an all-but eternal national income stream?

I think so.

It’s time for an Australian sovereign wealth fund – The Australia Fund.

It just requires the political will.

Over to you, Canberra.

(And the market? It’ll be more than okay, I reckon. No promises and no guarantees, but we can have our own, personal, Australia Fund – by investing regularly and staying the course, just like Norway’s Sovereign Wealth Fund, even when things get choppy in the short term. That’s the lesson of history, for governments and individuals alike!)

Have a great weekend!

Fool on!

The post Our greatest national financial legacy? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Despite recent volatility, the Beach Energy share price has still gained over the past 3 weeks. Here’s why
• Bubs share price avoids market selloff thanks to guidance upgrade
• Humm share price sinks 11% following termination of $250m BNPL sale to Latitude
• What is the current dividend yield on Brickworks shares?
• Top brokers tips 30% upside for the Macquarie share price

Motley Fool contributor Scott Phillips 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 Bubs Australia Ltd (ASX: BUB) share price has avoided the market selloff so far on Friday.

In early trade, the infant formula company’s shares are up 2.5% to 62 cents.

Why is the Bubs share price rising?

The Bubs share price is rising today in response to the release of an announcement relating to its guidance for FY 2022.

According to the release, Bubs has unsurprisingly revealed that its deal with the US government means it is going to outperform the FY 2022 guidance it provided to the market with its half year results.

At that point, the company was expecting “modest” half on half growth from the $38.5 million gross revenue it recorded during the first half.

Bubs now expects gross revenue to be over $100 million for FY 2022, subject to scheduled operations occurring without disruption. This will be more than double the gross revenue of $46.8 million it reported in FY 2021.

What about earnings?

While the upgrade to its revenue was unsurprising, the company’s distinct lack of operating leverage could be a surprise to the market. In fact, its margins appear to be narrowing rather than expanding despite the higher volumes.

Management is guiding to underlying EBITDA of at least $2.4 million for FY 2022. This is despite the company recording underlying EBITDA of $1.2 million during the first half on much lower revenue.

This could be an indication that the margin on these US-bound products is very small.

Management commentary

Bubs Founder and CEO, Kristy Carr, commented:

Due to a strong momentum in China and the unanticipated volume of sales in the USA, complemented by Bubs’ demonstrated agility and speed to respond to the call for action with first mover advantage, Fourth Quarter turnover is likely to be higher than originally anticipated.

And while there are concerns that Bubs could be a one-hit wonder in the US, Carr doesn’t see it that way. She appears confident that the company will not be ousted out of the key market when supply shortages end and the big players start restocking.

It has been an extraordinary journey for Bubs to have had over 12 months of in-market experience to provide the first response to USA’s infant formula shortage, which is likely to change the industry landscape in the USA.

This has significantly accelerated our entry to one of the largest infant formula markets in the world, and we look forward to introducing more American families to Bubs’ full range of products.

The post Bubs share price avoids market selloff thanks to guidance upgrade appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

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In morning trade, the Humm Group Ltd (ASX: HUM) share price has continued its slide.

At the time of writing, the financial services company’s shares are down 11% to a new multi-year low of 51 cents.

This means the Humm share price is now down 31% this week.

What’s going on with the Humm share price?

Investors have been selling down the Humm share price today after the company revealed that the $250 million sale of its buy now pay later business to Latitude Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: LFS) has been terminated.

The Latitude share price is up slightly on the news in early trade.

According to the release, the two parties mutually agreed to terminate the proposed Humm Consumer Finance (HCF) transaction due to current major disruption in financial markets.

This is a big blow for Humm, which has been trying to offload the struggling business to focus on its profitable and positive performing Humm Commercial business.

In fact, yesterday Humm released a trading update and stated that HCF’s performance remains under significant pressure. So much so, that at the end of May, the business had recorded a financial year to date cash net profit after tax decline of 61%.

While it was likely that Humm was highlighting this poor performance to gain support for its sale amid criticism from a major shareholder, it’s possible that this raised a few eyebrows at Latitude.

In fact, reports yesterday suggested that Latitude could have been looking to back out from the deal for HCF due to its deteriorating performance. So, today’s termination isn’t a complete surprise.

This morning the Humm Board tried to save a bit of face by talking up the business again now that it is stuck with it. The release states:

The Board of Humm continues to believe that HCF is a high-quality business and intends to review HCF’s strategic direction to focus on its core products and markets in order to restore profitability. The Board and Management remain excited about flexicommercial’s prospects. Humm remains in a strongly capitalised position with surplus unrestricted cash and no drawn corporate debt.

The post Humm share price sinks 11% following termination of $250m BNPL sale to Latitude appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Humm Group 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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Brickworks Limited (ASX: BKW) shares are an ASX staple. The company’s been listed in Australia for around 60 years and is housed in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO). Brickworks shares are also a favourite among dividend investors.

But is it currently trading with an eye-catching dividend yield? Let’s take a look.

Do Brickworks shares offer a 3.5% dividend yield?

As of Thursday’s close, the Brickworks share price is $17.61. That’s almost 29% lower than it was at the start of 2022 and 26% lower than it was this time last year.

But despite the company’s falling share price, its dividends have remained strong over the last 12 months.

Brickworks paid investors a 40-cent final dividend for financial year 2021 in November.

It also handed shareholders a 22-cent interim dividend in April after the first half of this financial year saw its profits surge 269%.

Additionally, the company’s dividends are fully franked. That means some investors might see additional benefits from the payouts at tax time.

So, as the company has paid out 62 cents of dividends over the last 12 months, it’s currently trading with a trailing dividend yield of 3.52%.

For those wondering, Brickworks no longer hosts a dividend reinvestment plan (DRP).

It introduced a DRP in 2020 to preserve liquidity during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic but dropped it in March 2021.

So, what else might pique investors’ interest in the company? Here’s a brief rundown of how it operates.

Brickworks’ revenue comes from its four segments: Building products Australia, building products North America, property, and investments.

The first two are easy to explain. They manufacture building materials for the Australian and North American markets.

Simultaneously, Brickworks’ property division looks to maximise the value of land previously used to craft building products. Sometimes, the land is rezoned and sold for residential property. Other times, it’s transferred to the company’s 50%-owned Joint Venture Industrial Property Trust.

Finally, the company’s investments segment houses Brickworks’ 39.4% interest in fellow ASX 200 dividend share Washington H Soul Pattinson and Co Ltd (ASX: SOL).

The post What is the current dividend yield on Brickworks shares? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 Brickworks and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Brickworks and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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