The NEXTDC Ltd (ASX: NXT) share price is out of form on Tuesday.

In afternoon trade, the data centre operator’s shares are down 1% to $13.30.

This means the NEXTDC share price is down 5% in the space of a week.

Is the NEXTDC share price in the buy zone?

One top broker that believes the NEXTDC share price is good value is Goldman Sachs.

According to a recent note, the broker has a conviction buy rating and $14.40 price target on its shares.

Based on the latest NEXTDC share price, this implies potential upside of 8.3% over the next 12 months.

What did the broker say?

Goldman Sachs was pleased with the company’s performance in FY 2021. And while NEXTDC’s sales fell a touch short of the broker’s forecasts, its earnings were ahead of expectations.

It commented: “NXT reported underlying FY21 Sales/EBITDA/NPAT that was -1.5%/+1.4%/+$1mn vs. GSe, with revenue at the lower end of guidance and EBITDA above the top end, with the revenue weakness attributable to lower zero margin power consumption of $4mn. 2H21 contracted MW of +4.5MW was in line with GSe +4.4MW. Cash conversion was strong, with capex of A$301mn well below GSe & guidance, attributable to covid delays.”

The broker was also pleased with its guidance for FY 2022. NEXTDC is expecting revenue growth of 16% to 20% and EBITDA growth of 19% to 23%. Goldman notes that this was largely in line with its forecasts after adjusting for power pricing.

Looking further ahead, its analysts appear confident this strong form can continue, which supports the buy rating it has on the NEXTDC share price.

Goldman is forecasting an EBITDA compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20% through to FY 2024. At that point, the broker expects the company’s EBITDA to have grown to $232 million. This compares very favourably to FY 2021’s EBITDA of $133.9 million.

In light of this, the broker feels NEXTDC represents “the most compelling growth story in our coverage.”

The post The NEXTDC (ASX:NXT) share price is down 5% in a week. Is it a buy? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of NEXTDC 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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The Brambles Ltd (ASX: BXB) share price has slipped firmly into the red after the company held the first day of its investor briefing today.

Shares in the logistics company are now changing hands at $10.88 each, an 11% drop from the market open.

Let’s investigate further.

What’s up with the Brambles share price today?

In the first of two investor briefing days, Brambles executives were to give a run-through of the company’s strategic and financial overview. They were also addressing factors such as digitisation and sustainability.

However, investors appear to have been chasing more from Brambles, as evidenced by the market’s reaction to its share price afterwards.

For instance, there is little mention from the company’s CEO or CFO about specific numbers in terms of guidance and projections throughout the presentation.

Instead, both executives alluded to “high single-digit” growth in revenue and underlying profit in FY22 and FY23. Alas, Brambles sees revenue growth of 5-6% in FY22, whereas free cash flow (FCF) is expected “to be an outflow of US$200 million”.

Brambles points out the strong FCF result in its FY21 earnings actually came from “timing benefits” of US$215 million in FY21. The benefits were associated with a payment. These timing benefits will be reversed in FY22 at the FCF level, according to the presentation.

What’s more, underlying profit growth is forecast at around 1-2% in FY22 — hardly exciting numbers.

There were several other investment highlights during day 1 of Brambles’ investor briefing.

Yet it appears investors are more focused on financial aspects which, some may argue, were rather lacking.

When factoring current growth forecasts into global supply chains and logistics markets – which have suffered significant bottlenecks in 2021 due to COVID-19 – it is understandable investors may be seeking a more visible growth vision from Brambles.

Brambles share price snapshot

The Brambles share price has had a choppy year to date, posting a return of only 3%. This extends its gain over the last 12 months to 3% also.

Both of these results have lagged the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO)’s climb of around 25% over the past year.

The post Brambles (ASX:BXB) share price slides 11% after investor day presentation appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The author Zach Bristow has no positions 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 Laybuy Holdings Ltd (ASX: LBY) share price is flying higher today, reversing the losses of the past 5 days. This is on the back of the buy now, pay later (BNPL) provider releasing an update on its operations in the United Kingdom.

At midday, Laybuy shares are fetching 51.5 cents a share, up 7.3%.

What’s the latest at Laybuy?

Laybuy investors have been injected with a dose of excitement today following its latest announcement. So much so that the company’s daily traded volume on Tuesday has exceeded its average monthly volume.

According to the release, the company launched its affiliate marketing network ahead of schedule in the United Kingdom at the end of August. Since then, the response has surpassed the BNPL player’s expectations.

Specifically, orders processed and gross merchandise volume are more than 5 times greater than the company’s internal month one forecast.

The affiliate network launched in the UK has given shoppers access to hundreds of new retailers. Some of these retailers include Amazon, ASOS, eBay, and Levi’s.

Hailed as the company’s latest product innovation, Laybuy’s affiliate marketing network is geared towards creating a seamless shopping experience. The offering enables an easy 3-step process for shoppers — shop, checkout, and ‘Pay in 6’.

Additionally, shareholders were treated to an impressive growth statistic, boding well for the Laybuy share price. According to the release, the value of goods purchased using Laybuy has increased by more than 500% year on year. From here, the company suspects this growth will accelerate with its launch of the affiliate marketing network.

Management commentary

Commenting on the successful launch, Laybuy UK and Europe General Manager, John Gillan said:

Since launching in the UK in 2019, we have been leading a revolution in how consumers shop and pay, helping shoppers spread the cost of their purchases and free themselves from paying interest.

However, we also know that having Laybuy as a payment option can help merchants increase their sales because it allows consumers to spread their payments and fit more into their budget. We are excited that those on our new platform can now enjoy the benefits of Laybuy.

Laybuy share price snapshot

The Laybuy share price has endured a difficult past year on the ASX. Over the 1-year timeframe, shares in the BNPL company have slumped 65.9%.

It appears investors haven’t been too fond of the widening losses on the bottom line. However, Laybuy’s trailing revenue for the past 12 months has roughly doubled to NZ$32.674 million.

The post Laybuy (ASX:LBY) share price leaps 7% on UK marketing update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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. 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 S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has had a rough day in trading so far. At the time of writing, the ASX 200 is down by 0.12% to 7,416 points. However, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price is performing even worse.

CBA shares are currently down 0.68% to $100.61 a share. While that figure is clearly trailing the ASX 200 today, it’s also trailing that of CBA’s big four banking peers.

While all the four major ASX banking shares are currently in the red, CBA is coming in dead last.

The best performer so far today is the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ) share price, which is down by 0.22% at $27.56 a share.

Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) shares are currently trading for $25.56 each, down 0.29%, while National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB) shares are down by 0.46% to $28.05 a share.

That leaves CBA as the worst-performing ASX major bank today so far.

So why is CBA being singled out by investors this Tuesday?

Housing, valuation concerns for the CBA share price?

Well, it’s not entirely clear.

There are a few possible explanations though. For one, there have been some recent concerns that the CBA share price might have gotten a little ahead of itself in regards to valuation. Just last week, we covered how an expert investor thinks CBA “no longer deserves its premium” and “the glory days for the CBA share price might soon be over”.

Another recent concern has been the exploding housing market. While many homeowners have no problem watching their castle rise in value, affordability concerns have been rising.

According to a report from news.com.au today, new economic modelling suggests that 2 in 5 households in New South Wales are currently under “mortgage stress”. This means they are spending more on their cost of living than what they are earning.

The report also states “homeowners in much of Sydney cannot afford their mortgages and would be in financial trouble if there was a rapid rise in interest rates”.

CBA is one of, if not the, largest mortgage writers in the country. As such, it makes sense that investors might get nervous over these kinds of figures.

At the current CBA share price, this ASX bank has a market capitalisation of $179.7 billion, a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 21.5 and a dividend yield of 3.46%.

The post The CBA (ASX:CBA) share price is underperforming its big four peers today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen owns shares of National Australia Bank 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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The Metal Hawk Ltd (ASX: MHK) share price has soared into the green on Tuesday after the company announced a “massive” nickel discovery at its Berehaven Nickel project.

Metal Hawk shares are now exchanging hands at 66 cents apiece, a 256% jump from the open.

The company’s shares have since been placed under a trading pause, pending a further announcement.

Let’s investigate further.

A quick rundown on Metal Hawk

Metal Hawk is in the business of minerals exploration. Its main expertise is centred on the exploration and discovery of early-stage gold and nickel sulphides.

It has projects in Australia, most notably the Eastern Goldfields and the Berehaven Nickel project, both in Western Australia.

At the time of writing, Metal Hawk has a market capitalisation of $8.7 million.

What’s fuelling the Metal Hawk share price?

In a positive for the Metal Hawk share price, the company announced that its maiden reverse circulation (RC) drilling program at Berehaven had intersected “significant massive mineralisation” at the site.

The company said analysis of the drill chips had confirmed a high-grade tenor typical of Kambalda-style komatiite-hosted nickel deposits.

Metal Hawk also pointed out there had been no drilling carried out at the site prior to its own program, and that this is also a plus for the company.

As a result of the RC drilling program, follow-up diamond drilling will now take place alongside “downhole electromagnetic” studies on the drill holes.

Assay results from additional holes are expected in the next 3–4 weeks, as per the announcement.

Investors have welcomed the news on Tuesday, especially given the current price of nickel, which has climbed more than 30% from March this year.

What did management say?

Speaking on the results driving the Metal Hawk share price, managing director Will Belbin said:

This is a fantastic result from Metal Hawk’s first RC drilling program that has confirmed our belief in the potential for massive nickel sulphide discoveries to be made on this exciting and underexplored project. We look forward to ramping up our nickel sulphide exploration at Berehaven and plans for diamond drilling are well underway.

Metal Hawk share price snapshot

The Metal Hawk share price was trading flat across this year to date prior to this morning’s announcement.

Nonetheless, Metal Hawk shares have now climbed 164% since the company listed on the ASX in November last year.

This is well ahead of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO)’s return of around 13% over the same period.

The post Metal Hawk (ASX:MHK) share price explodes 256% on huge nickel discovery appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The author Zach Bristow has no positions 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 Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price is rallying on Tuesday after Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) said that oil demand will exceed pre-pandemic levels in 2022.

At the time of writing, the Santos share price is up 5.02% to a 1-month high of $6.48.

Santos share price rallies on bullish oil forecast

In its monthly oil report, OPEC trimmed its oil demand for the last quarter of 2021 but sees demand exceeding pre-pandemic levels in 2022.

OPEC was bullish on the outlook for oil, forecasting:

In 2022, oil demand is expected to robustly grow by around 4.2 mb/d, some 0.9 mb/d higher compared to last month’s assessment. Revisions were driven by both the OECD and non-OECD, as the recovery in various fuels is expected to be stronger than anticipated and further supported by a steady economic outlook in all regions. Oil demand in 2022 is now projected to reach 100.8 mb/d, exceeding prepandemic levels.

This positive commentary and forecast were underpinned by the Organisation’s positive assessment of the global economy.

Although the global economy continues to be affected by developments related to COVID-19, 1H21 saw a healthy economic recovery. Following the strong quarterly economic growth in 3Q21, growth is forecast to slightly decelerate towards the end of the year. It should be noted that the recovery this year has been widely supported by unprecedented government-led stimulus, and global efforts done to contain COVID-19, particularly in Western economies and China.

However, OPEC put the brakes on near-term demand as a result of the Delta variant.

Oil demand in 3Q21 has proved to be resilient, supported by rising mobility and travelling activities, particularly in the OECD. At the same time, the increased risk of COVID-19 cases primarily fueled by the Delta variant is clouding oil demand prospects going into the final quarter of the year, resulting in downward adjustments to 4Q21 estimates.

As a result, crude oil prices rallied 2.63% higher overnight to ~US$70.35/barrel.

Santos share price snapshot

The Santos share price is up just 2% year-to-date despite oil prices rallying 45% in 2021.

The post Santos (ASX:STO) share price rallies 5% on bullish OPEC oil outlook appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Kerry Sun 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 ResApp Health Ltd (ASX: RAP) share price is on the move again today following yesterday’s meteoric rise. The digital health company provided another positive release to the ASX today.

At the time of writing, ResApp shares are fetching for 9.3 cents apiece, up 4.49%. It’s worth noting that during early morning trade, its shares reached an intraday high of 10.2 cents.

ResApp secures rebate on COVID-19 study

Investors are pushing ResApp shares higher after the company secured a cashback for its COVID-19 research program.

According to the release, ResApp advised it has received approval from AusIndustry for its application for an Advanced and Overseas Finding. In particular, this is in relation to the expenditure associated with its COVID-19 clinical studies.

The finding covers the financial years between 2021 to 2023, meaning that ResApp will be eligible for a cash rebate. This refers to the company’s COVID-19 overseas research and development expenditure, thus receiving a 43.5% cashback from the Australian government.

As such, ResApp estimates that it will collect a rebate of around $820,000 for the financial year that ended 30 June 2021.

In the United States, the company is currently recruiting participants for its upcoming pilot study. The aim is to collect data to train an algorithm in identifying COVID-19 through cough sounds recorded on a smartphone.

The same participants will also be used in a second study to collect further cough sounds and data on disease progression. ResApp hopes to develop algorithms to remotely monitor patients with COVID-19.

ResApp CEO and managing director, Dr Tony Keating commented:

Our COVID-19 research program is looking at developing algorithms for screening for COVID-19 as well as helping healthcare systems better manage patients with COVID-19, including those with long COVID. This finding, recognising the need to collect COVID-19 cough samples internationally, provides us with a high degree of certainty in planning our programs.

We are very grateful to the Federal Government for their commitment to supporting research and development by Australian companies.

ResApp share price summary

Until recently, ResApp shares were trading at multi-year lows, before shooting up in September. The past month alone has netted investors a return of more than 115%, however year-to-date, is up marginally at 14%.

ResApp commands a market capitalisation of about $83.3 million and has 859 million shares on its books.

The post ResApp (ASX:RAP) share price adds 4% on COVID-19 study rebate appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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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At lunch on Tuesday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is trading marginally lower. The benchmark index is down slightly to 7,419.5 points.

Here’s what is happening on the ASX 200 today:

Westpac asset sale blocked

The Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price is trading broadly flat today after revealing that its plan to divest its Pacific businesses has been dealt a blow. According to the release, the Papua New Guinea’s Independent Consumer and Competition Commission has blocked the sale of its stake in Westpac Bank PNG to Kina Securities Limited (ASX: KSL). Westpac had signed a deal with Kina for both its PNG and Fiji businesses worth $420 million.

Brambles shares sink

The Brambles Limited (ASX: BXB) share price is sinking notably lower today following an update at its investor day. The market appears disappointed with management’s guidance for underlying profit growth of ~1% to ~2% in FY 2022. This is due to management flagging FY 2022 as an investment year for the supply chain solutions company. Citi remains positive and has put a buy rating and $13.58 price target on its shares.

Zip Retail Investor Day

The Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) share price is trading lower following the release of its Retail Investor Day presentation. That presentation revealed the buy now pay later provider’s plans for savings accounts, rewards, and cryptocurrencies. In respect to the latter, the company plans to let users buy, sell, hold, and even pay in cryptocurrencies. Investors may be disappointed that no trading update was provided with the release.

Best and worst ASX 200 performers

The best performer on the ASX 200 on Tuesday has been the Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) share price with a 7% gain. This follows a solid rise in oil prices overnight. The worst performer has been the Brambles share price with a 10% decline following its investor day update.

The post ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Westpac asset sale blocked, Zip crypto update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of Westpac Banking Corporation. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended ZIPCOLTD FPO. 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 CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) share price has had a rather interesting few years. It was only back in 2019 that CSL shares were at their peak ‘growth reputation’. This was a blue chip ASX 200 company that seemed to give investors double-digit price rises year after year. Over the 3 years to February 2021, CSL shares delivered capital growth of approximately 185%.

Perhaps this is why CSL CEO Paul Perreault is now one of the highest-paid ASX CEOs, at least according to a recent article in the Australian Financial Review (AFR).

But the past year and a half has been a different story for CSL. And one shareholders would be pretty unfamiliar with. CSL has seemingly stopped growing.

Yes, the CSL share price has more or less gone nowhere since early 2020. On 17 January 2020, CSL shares were going for almost exactly the price they are going for at the time of writing – $300.40 a share.

The company also remains well below its all-time high of roughly $340 a share that we saw back in February 2020. It’s even got quite a bit of headroom with its current 52-week high of $320.42 a share on the current pricing.

So perhaps CSL shares are still too expensive. That might explain why the CSL share price has been stuck in the mud for months now.

Is the CSL share price too expensive?

Well, as my Fool colleague James covered earlier this month, one broker who doesn’t think CSL shares are too expensive is Morgans. Morgans put out an ‘add’ rating on CSL a week or two ago with a 12-month share price target of $324.40 a share. That implies a potential upside of close to 8% over the next year or so.

Morgans remains bullish on CSL due to its recent FY21 earnings report, with the broker impressed by “its full year sales and profits [that] were stronger than expected despite facing tough trading conditions”.

However, it does note that the more cyclical forces CSL faces, such as plasma collections and costs, may weigh on the company over the next few years.

At the current CSL share price, this healthcare giant has a market capitalisation of $136.77 billion, a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 42.47 and a dividend yield of 0.98%.

The post Is the CSL (ASX:CSL) share price too expensive right now? 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 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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