• What to expect from the CBA (ASX:CBA) Q1 result

    CBA share price represented by branch welcome sign

    In just under a month, all eyes will be on the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price when it hands in its first quarter update.

    Ahead of the release, I thought I would look to see what the market is expecting from Australia’s largest bank.

    What is expected from CBA in the first quarter?

    According to a note out of Bell Potter, its team are expecting a decent first quarter result next month.

    The broker has pencilled in a first quarter cash net profit after tax of $2.36 billion and a statutory net profit after tax of $2.51 billion. The latter will be a 1% decline on the quarterly average during the second half of FY 2021.

    Bell Potter explained: “Net interest income is expected to be up by around 3%. This is based on higher overall banking volumes (back to the traditional business of mainly mortgage and retail consumer loans) that more than offset a fall in NIM of around 3bp (to 2.01%). The main drivers are thus home loans [+4% for Retail Banking Services (RBS), +3% for Business Bank/Institutional Banking and Markets (BB/IBM)] and other loans (+4% for RBS although BB/IBM was negative).”

    “On the other hand, the NIM fall is expected to be around 3bp RBS and 7bp for BB/IBM – contributing to a fall in NIM overall but wholly acceptable,” it added.

    All in all, Bell Potter expects this to ultimately put CBA on a path to deliver a full year cash profit of $9,485 million next year (up 9.6%), allowing it to declare a 406 cents per share fully franked dividend in FY 2022 (up 16%).

    Is the CBA share price good value?

    Bell Potter remains bullish on the CBA share price and has retained its buy rating and $118.00 price target.

    Based on the current CBA share price of $103.87, this suggests potential upside of 13.5% before dividends and ~17.5% including them.

    The post What to expect from the CBA (ASX:CBA) Q1 result 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 nearly 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 August 16th 2021

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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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  • Here are the top 10 ASX shares today

    top 10 asx shares today

    Today, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) finished slightly lower after paring earlier gains. The benchmark index moved 0.08% lower to 7,374.9 points.

    Weakness among the miners put a dent in the strong performance exhibited by tech, healthcare, and retail shares on Tuesday. The worst culprits included BlueScope Steel Limited (ASX: BSL) and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO), dragging 3.5% and 3.1% lower respectively.

    However, the question is: which shares delivered the biggest returns to investors on the ASX today? Here are the ten stocks that rose to the occasion:

    Top 10 ASX shares countdown today

    Looking at the top 200 listed companies, Novonix Ltd (ASX: NVX) was the biggest gainer today. Shares in the battery materials company surged 9.09% higher. While there were no announcements from Novonix, the broader lithium sector trended higher today. Find out more about Novonix here.

    The next biggest gaining ASX share today was Imugene Ltd (ASX: IMU). The biopharmaceutical company climbed 8.43% despite no announcements from the company. Uncover the latest Imugene here.

    Today’s top 10 biggest gains were made in these ASX shares:

    ASX-listed company Share price Price change
    Novonix Ltd (ASX: NVX) $5.76 9.09%
    Imugene Ltd (ASX: IMU) $0.45 8.43%
    Home Consortium (ASX: HMC) $8.12 5.73%
    Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) $7.10 5.19%
    The a2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M) $6.96 5.14%
    Pointsbet Holdings Ltd (ASX: PBH) $10.43 3.78%
    Yancoal Australia Ltd (ASX: YAL) $3.73 3.61%
    Zimplats Holdings Ltd (ASX: ZIM) $23.43 2.99%
    Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1) $17.71 2.97%
    JB Hi-Fi Ltd (ASX: JBH) $47.72 2.87%
    Data as at 3:45pm AEDT

    Our top 10 ASX shares today countdown is a recurring end-of-day summary to ensure you know which companies were making big moves on the day. Check-in at Fool.com.au after the market has closed during weekdays to see which stocks make the countdown.

    The post Here are the top 10 ASX shares today 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 more than eight 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 August 16th 2021

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    Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended MEGAPORT FPO, Pointsbet Holdings Ltd, and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended A2 Milk, MEGAPORT FPO, and Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. 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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  • Broker forecasts South32 (ASX:S32) dividend yield of 11% until 2026

    A smiling woman with a handful of $100 notes, indicating strong dividend payment by Thorn Group

    If you’re building an income portfolio then it could be worth considering the South32 Ltd (ASX: S32) dividend.

    That’s the view of one of Australia’s leading brokers, which is forecasting huge dividend yields in the coming years.

    What is being said about the South32 dividend?

    According to a note out of Goldman Sachs, its analysts have retained their conviction buy rating and lifted their price target on this mining giant’s shares to $4.40.

    Based on the current South32 share price of $3.88, this implies potential upside of ~13.5% for its shares over the next 12 months before dividends.

    Speaking of which, Goldman expects the South32 dividend to be among the most generous on the market in the coming years.

    For example, it is forecasting fully franked dividends per share of 32.3 US cents in FY 2022, 34.5 US cents in FY 2023, 34.8 US cents in FY 2024, 32.7 US cents in FY 2025, and 33.4 US cents in FY 2026.

    At current levels and exchange rates, this suggests that the South32 dividend yield will be in excess of 11% each year through to at least FY 2026.

    Why is Goldman bullish?

    The note reveals that Goldman Sachs was pleased with the company’s proposed acquisition of 45% of the Sierra Gorda copper mine in Chile from Sumitomo Corporation. However, it is worth highlighting that as this transaction has not yet complete, Goldman hasn’t included it in its valuation or estimates.

    So with management forecasting it to be earnings accretive, there’s a chance that the broker’s South32 dividend estimates could yet increase if and when the deal completes.

    Nevertheless, its analysts are very positive on South32 regardless of this. This is due to its current valuation and strong free cash flow outlook thanks to strong prices for commodities such as aluminium and alumina. It expects this to underpin the aforementioned generous dividend payments over the coming years.

    The post Broker forecasts South32 (ASX:S32) dividend yield of 11% until 2026 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in South32 right now?

    Before you consider South32, 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 South32 wasn’t one of them.

    The online investing service he’s run for nearly 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 August 16th 2021

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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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  • The Lynas (ASX:LYC) share price has leapt 15% in 2 weeks. Here’s why

    A female worker in a hard hat smiles in an oil field.

    The Lynas Rare Earths Ltd (ASX: LYC) share price is enjoying a tremendous run over the past fortnight.

    In late afternoon trade, shares in the rare earth elements miner have risen 1.65% reaching $7.40. This puts the company within an 8% striking distance of its 52-week high.

    The perplexing aspect of the recent move is the lack of price-sensitive announcements. While the Lynas share price has been trending upwards, new information is sparse. Though, there might be crumbs right under our noses — let’s have a look.

    What’s under the hood of the Lynas share price?

    To the relief of shareholders, the recent run follows what was a disastrous period between 15 September and 6 October. During that 3-week span, nearly 20% of the company’s market capitalisation was demolished. However, the tides have turned since then.

    With such a sudden turnaround in share price direction, it begs the question: what is the cause? Although nailing down exactly what could be influencing the rare earth miner’s movement, there are a few details that could make for contributing factors.

    Firstly, Lynas’ annual report for FY21 was released to the market on 12 October. As per usual, the annual report contains a far more granular breakdown of the year gone by. At 108 pages, there’s plenty of details for any investor to sort through. Though, the letter from the chair, Kathleen Conlon, might have hit home the scale of Lynas’ growth ambitions.

    Commenting on the company’s vision for growth, Conlon stated:

    The Lynas 2025 growth vision represents Lynas’ plan to grow with the market and meet this accelerating market demand for Rare Earths. As part of this plan, work on the new Rare Earths Processing Facility in Kalgoorlie progressed well throughout the year.

    Following the successful completion of a $425 million capital raise, the company looks well-capitalised to deliver on the construction of its Kalgoorlie rare earths processing facility. At the same time, shareholders who participated in the raise are now up 222% with new Lynas shares issued at a price of $2.30.

    Buy the rumour sell the news

    Every now and then, when a company is expected to report soon, investors will bid up the share price in anticipation. While this might not be the case for the Lynas share price, the company is expected to announce its quarterly results on Friday 22 October 2021.

    After having delivered a record profit for FY21, some investors might be speculating on the success of the first quarter for FY22. Importantly, the prices of some rare earths, such as neodymium, have recovered after a sharp fall. Considering Lynas’ business is commodity-driven, the sale price of its ore will be critical to its result.

    At present, the Lynas share price trades on a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 38.6 times.

    The post The Lynas (ASX:LYC) share price has leapt 15% in 2 weeks. Here’s why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in Lynas Rare Earths right now?

    Before you consider Lynas Rare Earths, 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 Lynas Rare Earths wasn’t one of them.

    The online investing service he’s run for nearly 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 August 16th 2021

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    Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler owns shares of Lynas Corporation 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 Bruce Jackson.

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  • Own Telstra (ASX:TLS) shares? Here’s some not so good news

    Side-on view of a fed-up man with his head on his laptop.

    Those invested in Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) shares might be disappointed to learn one of the company’s key offerings is being bested by nearly all its competitors.

    Telstra has wound up at the bottom of global internet testing company Ookla’s quarterly Australian internet speed report.

    Over the third quarter of the 2021 calendar year, Telstra’s broadband internet was slower than that of Aussie Broadband Ltd (ASX: ABB), Optus, TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPG) and its subsidiary iiNet, and Vodafone.

    Telstra crowned slowest major internet provider

    Internet service provider Speed score
    Aussie Broadband 88.33
    Optus 59.81
    iiNet 58.20
    TPG 53.93
    Vodafone 52.70
    Telstra 49.00
    Source: Ookla, table created by author

    Telstra took out last place in the race between Australia’s major broadband providers, with a speed score of just 49.

    A speed score incorporates a provider’s download and upload speed, weighted to the provider’s fastest, slowest, and median speeds.

    Interestingly, ASX newbie Aussie Broadband took out the top spot in all measured metrics.

    Unfortunately for Telstra internet customers, the company’s broadband came in as 1 of the 4 providers with 10 milliseconds of latency.

    Latency is a way to measure how delayed an internet connection is.

    Only 2 providers had less latency than Telstra over the 3 months ended September 30. Both Aussie Broadband and iiNet recorded 9 milliseconds of latency.

    At least Telstra wasn’t at the back of the pack when it came to consistency, although it was far from the best performer.

    Ookla measured how often a telecommunications company could provide 25 megabits per second of downloads and 3 megabits per second of uploads.

    Aussie Broadband once again topped the list with 85.7% consistency, while iiNet brought up the rear with 74.5%.

    Telstra was firmly in the middle of the pack, having been able to provide the required performance 77% of the time.  

    Telstra share price snapshot

    At the time of writing, Telstra shares are$3.83, 1.03% lower than their previous close.

    However, the price is 27% higher than it was at the start of 2021 and 34% higher than it was this time last year.

    The post Own Telstra (ASX:TLS) shares? Here’s some not so good news 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 nearly 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 August 16th 2021

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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. owns shares of and has recommended Aussie Broadband Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Telstra Corporation Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Aussie Broadband Limited and TPG Telecom 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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  • These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts on Tuesday

    Concept image of a finger hovering in front of a buy and sell button in front og a stockmarket graphic.

    The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is having a decent day so far this Tuesday. At the time of writing, the ASX 200 is up a solid 0.15% to 7,392 points. But let’s dig a little deeper into today’s trading and check out which ASX 200 shares are currently topping the charts today in terms of trading volume, according to investing.com.

    3 most active ASX 200 shares by volume this Tuesday

    Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS)

    Our first share up today is the ASX 200 telco Telstra. Telstra has seen a hefty 11.51 million of its own shares trade on the markets so far this Tuesday. With no major news or announcements out of the telco so far today, we can probably assume this elevated trading volume is the result of what’s happened with the Telstra share price itself.

    Telstra is currently down a not-insignificant 1.03% so far today to $3.83 a share at the time of writing. Since Telstra is a relatively large ASX company with a relatively low share price, moves of this nature often result in large trading volumes.

    Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS)

    From TLS to PLS! Pilbara Minerals, an ASX 200 lithium producer, is next up. Pilbara has seen a sizeable 13.55 million of its own shares bought and sold so far today. That’s despite the Pilbara share price currently being flat as a tack, sitting at $2.12 presently.

    However, that doesn’t reflect the rather wild day this company has experienced thus far. Pilbara shares dipped to $2.08 (down 1%) shortly after market open this morning, before rising again to as high as $2.14 (up close to 1%). It’s this volatility that is probably behind Pilbara’s elevated trading volume today.

    South32 Ltd (ASX: S32)

    And last but not least in terms of trading volume, we have ASX 200 resources share South32. this diversified miner has seen a chunky 17.57 million of its shares change hands thus far this Tuesday.

    This also appears to be the result of a decisive share price move, with South32 shares currently down a nasty 1.76% to $3.90 a share. We also might still be getting some aftershocks from last week’s announcement of a new acquisition from this company as well.

    The post These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts on Tuesday 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 more than eight 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 August 16th 2021

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    Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen owns shares of Telstra Corporation 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 owns shares of 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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  • Why Bapcor, Cochlear, Novonix, and Zip shares are rising

    a man looks down at his phone with a look of happy surprise on his face as though he is thrilled with good news.

    The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is having a decent day on Tuesday. In afternoon trade, the benchmark index is up 0.15% to 7,392.5 points.

    Four ASX shares that are climbing more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are rising:

    Bapcor Ltd (ASX: BAP)

    The Bapcor share price is up almost 3% to $7.74. This follows the release of a trading update by the auto parts retailer at its annual general meeting. That update reveals that Bapcor’s revenue was flat during the first quarter despite the negative impact of lockdowns on its stores. In light of this, management has reaffirmed its FY 2022 guidance for earnings at least in line with what was achieved in FY 2021.

    Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH)

    The Cochlear share price is up 2.5% to $220.72. This has also been driven by the release of an AGM update this morning. According to the release, the hearing solutions company is on track to achieve its guidance in FY 2022. This will be for underlying earnings growth in the range of 12% to 20%.

    Novonix Ltd (ASX: NVX)

    The Novonix share price has jumped 9% to $5.75. This is despite there being no news out of the battery materials company. However, a number of lithium shares are surging higher today amid increasingly bullish sentiment in the industry. This follows another rise in lithium prices to record highs.

    Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P)

    The Zip share price is up 5% to $7.09. This morning the team at Morgans retained their add rating but trimmed their price target on this buy now pay later provider’s shares slightly to $8.56. This follows the release of its first quarter update on Monday. Morgans felt its revenue growth was commendable given how it is seasonally its weakest quarter.

    The post Why Bapcor, Cochlear, Novonix, and Zip shares are rising 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 more than eight 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 August 16th 2021

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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. owns shares of and has recommended Cochlear Ltd. and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Bapcor. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Cochlear Ltd. 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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  • Limeade (ASX:LME) share price leaps higher on quarterly update

    a woman holds a glass of water with lime in it while wearing a bathing robe and headband and standing next to a cascade of flowers from a nearby bush.

    The Limeade Inc (ASX: LME) share price has seen some action in the green today. Shares are up around 2% in late afternoon trading after earlier posting gains of more than 15%.

    This on a day where the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is struggling to hold onto its 0.2% gains.

    Below, we take a look at the employee wellbeing company’s quarterly update for the period ending 30 September. For Limeade’s accounting, that’s Q3 FY21.

    What was reported for the quarter?

    The Limeade share price soared higher after the company reported it maintained its financial guidance for the full 2021 financial year (FY21).

    That guidance was for revenue of $50-53 million, an earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) loss of $5-8 million, and a net loss after tax of $7-10 million.

    Third quarter operating cash outflows were reported to be $4.1 million. Limeade says this reflects the timing effect of “a large upfront enterprise subscription” which it expected in Q3 but received in early October, at the commencement of Q4.

    For the coming quarter, Limeade said it has “strong contract signings” and it expects growth in in its contracted annual recurring revenue (CARR) in H2 FY21 figures.

    Looking ahead, the Limeade share price may also have gotten a lift after the company said it intends to launch a mid-market wellbeing offering in the current quarter.

    Commenting on the results, Limeade’s CEO Henry Albrecht said:

    During the quarter we focused on serving our core enterprise wellbeing customers, integrating the TINYpulse acquisition and readying for the launch of an immersive wellbeing entry into the mid-market.

    Whether a company has 2,000 or 200,000 employees, they seek to listen better and do more for their people to maximize business performance. We were very pleased at the acceleration of our late-stage enterprise sales pipeline to finalist and verbal stages as well, providing Limeade with a solid platform for growth in 2022.

    The company ended the quarter with a cash position of $15.1 million and no drawn debt.

    Limeade share price snapshot

    The Limeade share price has struggled this year, down almost 65% in 2021. By comparison, the All Ords has gained 11% year-to-date.

    Over the past month, Limeade shares are down 24%.

    The post Limeade (ASX:LME) share price leaps higher on quarterly update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

    Before you consider Limeade, 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 Limeade wasn’t one of them.

    The online investing service he’s run for nearly 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 August 16th 2021

    More reading

    The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Limeade, Inc. 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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  • ASX lithium shares mixed on Tuesday as prices surge to all-time highs

    Group of thoughtful business people with eyeglasses reading documents in the office.

    There seems to be no shortage of bullish news for ASX lithium shares with spot prices continuing to mark fresh all-time highs.

    Battery-grade lithium carbonate prices hit 190,000 yuan/metric tonne (mt) on 15 October. This surpasses the previous high of around 160,000 yuan/mt just two weeks ago.

    What’s driving lithium prices?

    S&P Global Platts reported that market sources attributed the sustained price increase to “tight supplies exacerbated by the ongoing power restrictions in China, as well as bullish downstream demand from the new electric vehicle sector”.

    One of China’s largest lithium producers, Ganfeng Lithium, is passing on the rising costs of production to customers. It has announced a 10% increase in lithium prices or 10,000 yuan/mt from 10 October to 9 November.

    A China-based battery maker said, “although a very small number of our productions are completely shut down, a part of our battery orders will be postponed to Q1 next year.”

    How are ASX lithium shares performing on Tuesday?

    Emerging producers and explorers are running well ahead of large-cap players.

    The Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) share price is currently up 0.47% to $2.13, while Orocobre Limited (ASX: ORE) is down 0.11% to $9.07.

    Despite a relatively flat performance on Tuesday, Pilbara Minerals and Orocobre have both bounced 10-15% in the last two weeks.

    The speculative end of town is rife with winners.

    Coined “Australia’s next lithium producer”, the Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO) share price is surging. It’s up 10% to 60.5 cents and around 47% in the last month.

    Emerging lithium producer Ioneer Ltd (ASX: INR) is rallying 7.36% to 69.25 cents.

    Small-cap lithium technologies company Lithium Australia NL (ASX: LIT) is up 8.7% to 12.5 cents. This comes after it announced today one of its subsidiaries is expanding its battery manufacturing capabilities.

    Other explorers making headway on Tuesday include Piedmont Lithium Inc (ASX: PLL), Lake Resources NL (ASX: LKE) and Firefinch Ltd (ASX: FFX). They are up 1.8%, 2.4% and 2.3% respectively.

    The post ASX lithium shares mixed on Tuesday as prices surge to all-time highs 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 more than eight 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 August 16th 2021

    More reading

    Motley Fool contributor Kerry Sun owns shares of Ioneer 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 Bruce Jackson.

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  • Why is the AFIC (ASX:AFI) share price underperforming the ASX 200 over the past month?

    man grimaces next to falling stock graph

    Over the past month, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has managed a decent performance. Since Monday 20 September, the ASX 200 has eked out a gain of 2%, rising from 7,248 points to the 7,393 points it’s currently sitting on at the time of writing today. But let’s have a look at the Australian Foundation Investment Co. Ltd (ASX: AFI) share price, and see how it stacks up.

    The Australian Foundation Investment Company, or AFIC as it’s more easily known, is a Listed Investment Company (LIC), and one of the oldest of its kind on the ASX. It first opened its doors way back in 1928. Since then, it has made a name for itself as a slow-but-steady kind of investment that you can comfortably leave in the bottom drawer. That’s because it focuses on maintaining a broad, diversified portfolio of blue chip ASX shares, as well as some more recently acquired international exposure.

    Its top holdings typically don’t differ too much from the ASX 200 itself. To illustrate, it’s current top 5 holdings are Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), CSL Limited (ASX: CSL), BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) and Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC). That’s almost the same as the current ASX 200 lineup.

    So how has the AFIC share price stacked up over the past month?

    AFIC vs. ASX 200: Who wins?

    Well, it’s quite a contrast. Since 20 September, AFI shares have gone backwards from $8.39 to the present (at the time of writing) price of $8.13. That’s a decline of 3.34%. It also represents a gap of more than 5% between the ASX 200’s and AFIC’s respective performances.

    So what’s going on here?

    Well, the answer might be deceptively simple. At the end of August, AFIC reported that its net tangible assets per share (which equates to the value of its investment portfolio) was $7.71.

    Fast forward a month, and AFIC has told us that its September NTA figure came in at $7.54. That’s a drop of roughly 2.2%. So the actual value of AFIC’s share portfolio fell by 2.2% over the month of September, perhaps reflecting the differences between the ASX 200 and said portfolio. That probably goes a long way in explaining AFIC’s share price drop over the past month.

    With today’s share price, we also see that AFIC shares still trade at a premium of around 7.8% to their underlying NTA backing. At the current AFIC share price, this LIC has a market capitalisation of $9.94 billion and a dividend yield of 2.96%.

    The post Why is the AFIC (ASX:AFI) share price underperforming the ASX 200 over the past month? 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. owns shares of and has recommended CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Wesfarmers 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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