• Bitcoin is up 25% in 10 days. Here’s what it’ll do now

    Bitcoin symbol with a rising green arrow.Bitcoin symbol with a rising green arrow.

    Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) has headed upwards in a hurry this month, and it’s not done yet.

    That’s according to DeVere Group chief executive Nigel Green, who cited how on Monday the cryptocurrency hit its highest level since 2 January.

    “Bitcoin is up nearly 25% in the last 10 days, smashing through the US$35,000 to US$45,000 band where it has been lodged since January,” he said.

    “It’s now edging nearer to the important US$50,000 level.”

    As of Tuesday morning Australian time, Bitcoin traded at US$47,257.80 ($62,829.86).

    FOMO is driving the latest bull run

    According to Green, if Bitcoin can now smash through the psychological US$50,000 barrier, anything can happen as FOMO (fear of missing out) is triggered. 

    “Should it… surge through this key price marker, we expect the current bull run would become supercharged as crypto FOMO would kick in – as it typically does when Bitcoin prices shoot up.”

    This is because such a resurgence would again remind investors who are not in the game that crypto is the “future of money”.

    “As such, prices are set to skyrocket over the long-term – and both institutional and retail investors will not want to miss out on the ‘early advantage’ edge,” Green said.

    “Watching others make decent returns during a good rally may make you feel obligated to join in and get in on the gains.”

    Even though Green has always been a crypto bull, he said that FOMO alone is not a good enough reason for investors to dive in.

    “Even though the desire to get on the bandwagon can be strong, it is typically not a sound way to make investment decisions and is usually ill-advised.”

    Professional investors are getting into Bitcoin

    Green observed that the mainstream finance industry is finally recognising that digital currencies are inevitably the future.

    “This is now becoming clear even to institutional investors — including credit unions, banks, large funds such as mutual or hedge funds, venture capital funds, insurance companies, and pension funds — as well as governments and multinational corporations.”

    The “inherent value” of Bitcoin and similar currencies for instant borderless transfer of money simply can’t be ignored, he added.

    The war in Ukraine has brought home such use-cases for a “decentralised, permissionless, censorship-resistant and unconfiscatable” way to move funds.

    “The fundamentals of Bitcoin, the cryptocurrency’s intrinsic characteristics are, indeed, sound,” Green said.

    “The world is racing towards a digital revolution and as investors increasingly pay attention to this, the long-term trajectory for Bitcoin, surely, has to be upward.”

    The post Bitcoin is up 25% in 10 days. Here’s what it’ll do now appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Wondering where you should invest $1,000 right now?

    When investing expert Scott Phillips has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the flagship Motley Fool Share Advisor newsletter he has run for over ten years has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.*

    Scott just revealed what he believes could be the five best ASX stocks for investors to buy right now. These stocks are trading at near dirt-cheap prices and Scott thinks they could be great buys right now.

    *Returns as of January 12th 2022

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    Motley Fool contributor Tony Yoo owns Bitcoin. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns 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 Bruce Jackson.

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  • Why is the Fortescue share price paused?

    A person holds a stop sign in front of their head

    A person holds a stop sign in front of their headThe ASX 200 may be pushing higher, but the Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) share price isn’t going anywhere in early trade.

    At the time of writing, the mining giant’s shares are paused.

    Why is the Fortescue share price paused?

    The Fortescue share price has been paused this morning ahead of the release of an announcement.

    A market release explains: “Trading in the securities of the entity will be temporarily paused pending a further announcement.”

    What is the announcement?

    It remains unclear whether the announcement will simply be a trading halt request ahead of the release of a further announcement tomorrow or will be related to its Fortescue Future Industries business.

    In respect to the latter, according to the Financial Times, the business has signed a memorandum of understanding with German energy group E.ON aiming to build enough renewable energy capacity to power a country roughly the size of the UK.

    In addition, the company has pledged to produce and export enough green hydrogen to Germany to replace about a third of the country’s gas imports from Russia.

    However, this will require a huge investment. Fortescue’s chair, Andrew Forrest, advised that the plan would require a US$50 billion investment.

    More to come.

    The post Why is the Fortescue share price paused? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in Fortescue right now?

    Before you consider Fortescue, you’ll want to hear this.

    Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and Fortescue wasn’t one of them.

    The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.

    *Returns as of January 13th 2022

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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 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 Bruce Jackson.

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  • Have IAG shares been a good investment? Here’s what $10,000 invested 4 years ago looks like now

    a man wearing a suit and holding a colourful umbrella over his head purses his lips as though he has just found out some interesting news.a man wearing a suit and holding a colourful umbrella over his head purses his lips as though he has just found out some interesting news.

    The Insurance Australia Group Ltd (ASX: IAG) share price has gone backwards over the past four years.

    During January 2022, the insurance giant’s shares reached a multi-year low of $4.17 before moving in circles thereafter. While the company’s shares have ever so slightly recovered, they are still a long way off their pre-COVID levels.

    Below, we calculate how much you would have made if you invested $10,000 in IAG shares four years ago.

    What was the IAG share price in March 2018?

    If you had invested $10,000 in IAG shares on this date in 2018, you would have bought them for $7.45 each. This would have given you around 1,342 shares, without making additional investments along the way.

    Fast-forward to today and the current IAG share price is $4.44. This means that those 1,342 shares would be worth $5,958.48. When looking at percentage terms, this implies a loss of around 40%.

    If you wanted to recoup the initial investment, IAG would have to climb 67% from here to reach $7.45 again.

    What about the dividends?

    IAG has made a sum of nine dividend payments including a special dividend from 2018 to 2022.

    Adding those nine dividends payments gives us an amount of $1.215 per share. Calculating the number of shares owned against the total dividend payment gives us a figure of $1,630.53.

    When putting both the initial investment gains and dividend distribution, an investor would have roughly $7,589.01.

    In comparison, investing the same amount in the ASX 200 would have netted you a total figure of $12,960.20.

    As you can see, investing in IAG would have still amounted to a loss of almost 25% when factoring in the dividends. While on the other hand, the benchmark index would have put you ahead by close to 30% over the four years.

    Placing your money in an exchange-traded fund (ETF) is considered to be a much safer alternative. Investing in companies can reap great rewards but also lead to severe losses if not closely monitored.

    It is crucial to assess and rebalance your portfolio each month to avoid negative returns.

    The post Have IAG shares been a good investment? Here’s what $10,000 invested 4 years ago looks like now appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in IAG right now?

    Before you consider IAG, you’ll want to hear this.

    Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and IAG wasn’t one of them.

    The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.

    *Returns as of January 13th 2022

    More reading

    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 owns and has recommended Insurance Australia Group Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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  • What you need to know about the new Telstra CEO

    CEO of a company talking to her team.CEO of a company talking to her team.

    Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) chief executive officer Andy Penn is retiring, with current chief financial officer Vicki Brady taking over on 1 September.

    Penn joined the telco in 2012 as chief financial officer, and was promoted to the top job in May 2015. 

    He led the company through a tumultuous time of restructuring and staffing cuts, a strategy it labelled “T22”, plus the COVID-19 pandemic.

    While Penn himself did not comment, chair Mullen paid tribute to the outgoing chief.

    “Delivery of the T22 strategy has seen Telstra return to underlying growth, achieve significant customer experience improvements, reduce costs by over $2.5 billion and reach high performing employee engagement levels with over 17,000 people now working in agile teams across Telstra,” he said.

    “There is no doubt the strategy has delivered beyond expectations and has laid the foundations for Telstra’s recently announced T25 strategy and a renewed focus on growth and innovation.”

    What’s new Telstra chief Vicki Brady about?

    Brady came to Telstra in 2016 and held the positions of consumer group managing director, sales and service group managing director and consumer and small business group executive. She then became CFO in July 2019.

    With the CEO role, she lands a fixed annual salary of $2.39 million plus incentive payments that could end up 200% to 300% of that amount.

    Mullen credited Penn with developing a strong enough leadership team around him that an internal candidate like Brady could step in as chief.

    “She has made a significant contribution to Telstra including her work in developing our new go to market plans as part of the T22 strategy,” he said.

    “She has played a key leadership role in the development of Telstra’s T25 strategy and is well placed to lead the company through its next phase.”

    Before Telstra, Brady worked for rival Optus, its parent company Singapore Telecommunications Limited (SGX: Z74) and KPMG.

    She holds a bachelor of commerce from the Australian National University and a master of science in management from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business.

    Brady is a member of Chartered Accountants ANZ and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

    Telstra shares have lost 6.87% for the year so far, but are up 14.6% over the past 12 months.

    The company currently pays out a dividend yield of 2.84%, with 9 of 14 analysts surveyed on CMC Markets rating the stock as a buy.

    The stock closed Tuesday at $3.93.

    The post What you need to know about the new Telstra CEO appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Wondering where you should invest $1,000 right now?

    When investing expert Scott Phillips has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the flagship Motley Fool Share Advisor newsletter he has run for over ten years has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.*

    Scott just revealed what he believes could be the five best ASX stocks for investors to buy right now. These stocks are trading at near dirt-cheap prices and Scott thinks they could be great buys right now.

    *Returns as of January 12th 2022

    More reading

    Motley Fool contributor Tony Yoo 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 owns and has recommended Telstra Corporation Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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  • Is it time to buy these 2 beaten-up ASX shares in April 2022?

    A older man and younger man rest, exhausted but happy after a good boxing session.A older man and younger man rest, exhausted but happy after a good boxing session.

    Some ASX growth shares have been sold off significantly since the start of 2022.

    With the ongoing growth that some of these businesses are generating, could there be some hidden innovations within these names?

    Here are two contenders to consider.

    Doctor Care Anywhere Group PLC (ASX: DOC)

    Since the start of 2022, the Doctor Care Anywhere share price has fallen 56%. It is down around 75% since the middle of April 2021.

    Doctor Care Anywhere describes itself as a United Kingdom-based telehealth company that is committed to delivering the best possible patient experience and clinical care through digitally-enabled, evidence-based pathways on its platform. It uses relationships with health insurers, healthcare providers and corporate customers to connect with patients to deliver telehealth services.

    The company recently announced its result for the 12 months to 31 December 2021. It said that it beat FY21 revenue guidance. Total revenue grew by 114.7% to £25 million. There was a 105% increase in consultations to a total of 440,000.

    In FY22, the ASX share expects revenue to be between £35 million to £38 million. This represents growth of between 40% to 50%.

    By the end of the first half of FY23, the company aims to achieve an annualised run-rate profitability of earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA). It aims for an annualised run rate of revenue of between £45 million to £55 million.

    Supporting the above expectations are three key development areas.

    The first is continued organic revenue and consultation growth.

    The second development is renegotiating key customer contracts, enhancing revenue and margins.

    The final development is the launch of the company’s new operating model, enhancing productivity and margins.

    Pushpay Holdings Ltd (ASX: PPH)

    The Pushpay share price has fallen almost 20% since the start of the year.

    This ASX share provides church management and donation tools for churches in the United States.

    It processes billions of dollars of donations every year. In the first six months of Pushpay’s 2022 interim result, it announced that it had achieved a total processing volume of US$3.5 billion (which was 9% higher year on year).

    The company says that it expects to see continued revenue growth as it executes its growth strategy and gains further market share in the US faith sector.

    Despite the impacts of COVID-19 and subsequent reopening, Pushpay has not seen any material change in digital giving, reverting to non-digital means. This indicates to management that its customers in the US faith sector may have undergone “a fundamental technological shift as a result of the current environment.”

    The ASX share is expecting further growth in the future. The company says it will enact strategies that will “allow the company to realise its considerable potential over the long term, while maintaining prudent financial discipline.” That involves expanding its existing suite of solutions, providing bundled product offerings to existing customers, growing its products utilised by customers, attracting new customers and expanding into new segments.

    Pushpay recently gave an update that its total processing volume for the 11 months to February 2022 was up 10% year on year. It’s using its “strong” operating cash flow to pay down its debt.

    The post Is it time to buy these 2 beaten-up ASX shares in April 2022? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Wondering where you should invest $1,000 right now?

    When investing expert Scott Phillips has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the flagship Motley Fool Share Advisor newsletter he has run for over ten years has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.*

    Scott just revealed what he believes could be the five best ASX stocks for investors to buy right now. These stocks are trading at near dirt-cheap prices and Scott thinks they could be great buys right now.

    *Returns as of January 12th 2022

    More reading

    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. owns and has recommended Doctor Care Anywhere Group PLC and PUSHPAY FPO NZX. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended PUSHPAY FPO NZX. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Doctor Care Anywhere Group PLC. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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  • Do Woolworths shares pay dividends?

    businessman handing $100 note to another in supermarket aisle representing woolworths share pricebusinessman handing $100 note to another in supermarket aisle representing woolworths share price

    It’s Australia’s largest supermarket chain, bringing in nearly $32 billion of sales last half, but do Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) shares pay dividends?

    Indeed, it does. In fact, Woolworths is due to pay out its financial year 2022 interim dividend next month.

    As of Monday’s close, the Woolworths share price is $36.86.

    That gives the company a trailing dividend yield (considering its not-yet-paid an interim dividend and its full year dividend) of 2.55%.

    Let’s take a closer look at Woolworths’ payouts and its upcoming interim dividend.

    All the details on Woolworths’ upcoming dividend

    Woolworths is set to hand investors its 39-cent fully franked interim dividend on 14 April.

    Unfortunately, market watchers have missed their chance to buy into the upcoming Woolies dividend.

    The company traded ex-dividend earlier this month. That means the interim dividend will be going to whoever held Woolworths shares as of 3 March.

    While investors are likely looking forward to the payout now, they might have been disappointed when first hearing of it last month.

    That’s because the 39-cent dividend is 26.4% lower than the company’s financial year 2021 interim dividend of 53 cents per share.

    Though, eagle eyed market watchers might have seen the writing on the wall prior to the company announcing the smaller payout.

    Dividends made to shareholders are normally made up of part of a company’s profits for a given period. Woolworths flagged it was facing financial challenges during the first half of financial year 2022 back in December.

    For the first half, the supermarket giant forked out an additional $239 million of costs born from the COVID-19 pandemic.

    That, in turn, drove its net profit after tax to $795 million – 6.5% less than it reported for the first half of financial year 2021. In turn, that saw the company drop its dividend.

    Its upcoming payout is also the smallest dividend the supermarket has given shareholders since 2017.

    Though, many probably still consider Woolworths to be a strong dividend share. It has consistently paid out dividends since 1993.

    The post Do Woolworths shares pay dividends? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in Woolworths right now?

    Before you consider Woolworths, you’ll want to hear this.

    Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and Woolworths wasn’t one of them.

    The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.

    *Returns as of January 13th 2022

    More reading

    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 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 Bruce Jackson.

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  • Could the A2 Milk share price be in for a better month in April?

    a man in a business shirt, tie and suit holds a mobile phone to his ear while he drinks a large glass of milk.

    a man in a business shirt, tie and suit holds a mobile phone to his ear while he drinks a large glass of milk.

    The A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M) share price has dropped 2% in March to date. But could April 2022 be a better month for the company?

    The market sent A2 Milk shares up to $5.89 on the day of the company’s FY22 half-year result. That report revealed that earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) was down 45.3% to $97.6 million, while net profit after tax (NPAT) dropped 53.3% to $56.1 million.

    However, the company is starting to talk about a recovery.

    FY22 half-year positive comments

    Management said that the HY22 report was in line with the company’s expectations and it’s expecting to deliver revenue growth in FY22.

    While HY22 revenue was “marginally” lower, down 2.5% to $660.5 million, it was up 24.8% on the second half of FY21.

    The company said that China-label infant formula sales were constrained by A2 Milk in the first quarter of FY22 to rebalance distributor inventory levels. Those sales were down 11.4% year on year. However, there was consumer offtake growth in-store and online was up double-digits with a higher market share.

    A2 Milk also said that while English and other label infant formula sales were down 9.8% year on year with lower market share, there was an improvement in the sales trajectory during the half. This was particularly in the ANZ [Australia-New Zealand] reseller channel.

    The company also said that its brand health metrics improved after a significant marketing campaign in the second quarter, with Chinese-label metrics also improving. The brand ‘investment’ increased in the first half of FY22 by 37.3%.

    Management pointed to A2 Milk’s growth strategy refresh to respond to the rapidly-changing Chinese infant formula market dynamics. It said this refresh has been completed and implementation is underway, with “good early progress across key initiatives”.

    The company’s final positive point was that its outlook for the FY22 second half has improved. The FY22 second half is expected to be “significantly” better than the second half of FY21 and also better than the first half of FY21. Growth in both Chinese-label and English-label infant formula is expected.

    However, the higher revenue isn’t expected to translate into higher earnings as the company invests significantly in marketing or other areas that will help its growth strategy.

    What do brokers think of the A2 Milk share price?

    Citi is one of the few brokers to be positive on the ASX share. Citi rates A2 Milk as a buy, with a price target of $7.02. That implies a potential rise of around 30% over the next month, if the broker ends up being right. The broker sees both risks and opportunities in the Chinese market for A2 Milk.

    Meanwhile, Credit Suisse is neutral on the dairy business with a price target of $5.75.

    In terms of the valuation, using Citi’s numbers, the A2 Milk share price is valued at 38x FY22’s estimated earnings and 29x FY23’s estimated earnings.

    The post Could the A2 Milk share price be in for a better month in April? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in A2 Milk right now?

    Before you consider A2 Milk, you’ll want to hear this.

    Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and A2 Milk wasn’t one of them.

    The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.

    *Returns as of January 13th 2022

    More reading

    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 recommended A2 Milk. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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  • The CBA dividend is being paid today. Here’s what you need to know

    A man sees some good news on his phone and gives a little cheer.A man sees some good news on his phone and gives a little cheer.

    Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) shareholders will have something to cheer about today as the company pays out its latest dividend.

    The banking giant is set to reward eligible investors with a fully-franked interim dividend of $1.75 per share.

    At Tuesday’s market close, the CBA share price finished 0.22% higher to $106.37.

    For context, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) also climbed yesterday with a 0.7% gain to 7,464 points.

    Let’s take a look at all the details regarding the company’s dividend.

    CBA pays out H1 FY22 dividend

    CBA reported strong growth across key metrics in its results for the first half of the 2022 financial year.

    In summary, cash net profit after tax (NPAT) rose 23% year on year to $4,746 million. This was supported by strong business outcomes, reduced remediation costs, and lower loan loss provisions due to an improved economic outlook.

    Management noted that despite the robust performance, this was partially offset by lower margins. This came from customers switching to fixed rate home loans, the impact of rising swap rates, and continued pressure from home loan competition.

    Nonetheless, the board opted to increase its interim dividend by 17% on H1 FY21’s $1.50 per share.

    When calculating against the current share price, CBA is trailing on a forecast fully-franked dividend yield of 3.29%.

    Furthermore, the payout ratio is calculated to be 62% on the bank’s cash NPAT basis. This is slightly under management’s target range of 70% to 80% of earnings. Nonetheless, when looking at a normalised cash NPAT basis, the payout ratio is lifted to 70%.

    CBA share price snapshot

    Adding to its impressive gains, the CBA share price has surged around 24% in the last 12 months. This has predominantly been driven by its gains achieved last month, up 13%.

    CBA has a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 22.54 and commands a market capitalisation of roughly $181.51 billion.

    The post The CBA dividend is being paid today. Here’s what you need to know appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in CBA right now?

    Before you consider CBA, you’ll want to hear this.

    Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and CBA wasn’t one of them.

    The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.

    *Returns as of January 13th 2022

    More reading

    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 Bruce Jackson.

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  • Telstra share price on watch amid shock CEO exit

    person on old-fashion telephone, surprised person

    person on old-fashion telephone, surprised person

    The Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) share price will be one to watch closely on Wednesday.

    This follows the release of a bombshell announcement out of the telco giant this morning.

    Why is the Telstra share price?

    All eyes will be on the Telstra share price this morning after the company announced the retirement of its chief executive officer (CEO), Andrew Penn.

    According to the release, Mr Penn has announced his intention to retire on 31 August after serving more than seven years in the role.

    Telstra has been quick to find a replacement and has revealed that the company’s current chief financial officer (CFO), Vicki Brady, will officially take over as CEO on 1 September. She will work with Penn over the coming months to ensure that the transition is a smooth one.

    This is the same route that Andy Penn took to the top job. He joined as CFO in 2012 before being promoted to the CEO role in 2015.

    Telstra’s chairman, John Mullen, believes that Andy Penn will be leaving a positive and enduring legacy for the transformation he has led during his time as CEO.

    He commented: “Andy has led Telstra during a period of significant change and will be known for his courage in setting a bold ambition through the T22 strategy to deliver a transformed experience for customers, shareholders and employees. There is no doubt the strategy has delivered beyond expectations and has laid the foundations for Telstra’s recently announced T25 strategy and a renewed focus on growth and innovation.”

    The new CEO

    Mr Mullen notes that Mr Penn developed a strong team to ensure the ongoing successful leadership of the company and believes Telstra is in safe hands with Vicki Brady.

    He explained: “The greatest testament to this is the ability to announce an internal successor to the role of CEO and I am thrilled to be able to announce Vicki in the role today.”

    “Having started her career with KPMG, Vicki subsequently worked in a range of finance, commercial and strategy roles before moving into broader business leadership positions. She has made a significant contribution to Telstra including her work in developing our new go to market plans as part of the T22 strategy. She has played a key leadership role in the development of Telstra’s T25 strategy and is well placed to lead the company through its next phase. She could not be more qualified to take over the reins to deliver on our T25 commitments.”

    The post Telstra share price on watch amid shock CEO exit appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in Telstra right now?

    Before you consider Telstra, you’ll want to hear this.

    Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and Telstra wasn’t one of them.

    The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.

    *Returns as of January 13th 2022

    More reading

    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 owns and has recommended Telstra Corporation Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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  • Own Rio Tinto shares? Here’s why UBS says ‘it is too early to be confident’

    A man points at a paper as he holds an alarm clock.

    A man points at a paper as he holds an alarm clock.

    Owners of Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) shares may want to know what a leading broker just said about the ASX mining share.

    Rio Tinto is one of the world’s biggest commodity businesses. The iron ore segment usually makes the most profit, but it’s also in multiple other commodities such as bauxite, aluminium, alumina and copper.

    It also just completed the acquisition of the Rincon lithium project for $825 million in Argentina, after receiving approval from Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB). The mining company says that lithium demand is expected to grow by between 25% to 35% per annum over the next decade, with a significant supply and demand deficit expected from the second half of this decade.

    Updated broker thoughts on the Rio Tinto share price

    According to reporting by the Australian Financial Review, UBS recently upgraded its rating on Rio Tinto.

    UBS used to rate the large ASX mining share as a sell, but it upgraded the rating to ‘neutral’. The broker’s price target on Rio Tinto went up to $104, up from $90.

    The broker pointed to the disruption to the iron ore market amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine and economic data in China that was stronger than expected.

    However, UBS is still cautious about saying the business has gone through a complete turnaround.

    The AFR quoted UBS with its comments on Rio Tinto:

    Management has changed materially since 2020 and potentially some progress is being made with the key issues.

    However, it is too early to be confident that Rio has turned the corner and we note there will be further challenging strategic decisions over the next six to 12 months which have the potential to impact shareholder value.

    Morgan Stanley’s rating on the Rio Tinto share price

    But UBS isn’t the only broker that recently updated its thoughts.

    Morgan Stanley noted that Reuters recently reported that Guinea has reached a deal with miners to resume activities on the Simandou iron ore development, after resolving infrastructure disputes.

    Simandou has more than 4 billion tonnes of ore according to Guinea’s government.

    The news organisation reported that Mines Minister Moussa Magassouba said on state television that a framework agreement had been signed between the government and companies involved in the project, which includes Rio Tinto.

    Morgan Stanley thinks it could be several years until the first ore is achieved at Simandou.

    Morgan Stanley rates Rio Tinto as a buy, with a price target of $130.50.

    Valuation

    UBS thinks the Rio Tinto share price is valued at under 7x FY22’s estimated earnings and under 9x FY23’s estimated earnings.

    Morgan Stanley thinks the ASX mining share will generate even stronger profit. Morgan Stanley believes that the Rio Tinto share price is valued at under 6x FY22’s estimated earnings and under 9x FY23’s estimated earnings.

    The broker also thinks Rio Tinto has a projected FY22 grossed-up dividend yield of 18.7% and an estimated FY23 grossed-up dividend yield of 12.1%.

    The post Own Rio Tinto shares? Here’s why UBS says ‘it is too early to be confident’ appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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    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 Bruce Jackson.

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