Uranium ASX shares spent two years being talked about, but have only recently started delivering.

The spot price of uranium sits near US$89.50 a pound after touching US$100 in January.

More importantly, the long-term contract price is US$97 a pound, its highest level in more than eighteen years.

Why uranium ASX shares are moving again

Two forces are doing the work.

The first is supply.

Kazatomprom, the world’s largest producer, has delayed its sulphuric acid plant, with commissioning now expected to be somewhere between late 2027 and early 2028.

Utilities have responded by contracting supply as far out as 2034.

The second is demand.

The World Nuclear Association’s fuel report projects that reactor requirements will rise from about 68,920 tonnes of uranium in 2025 to more than 150,000 tonnes by 2040.

The Association was direct about what that implies:

As existing mines face a depletion of resources in the middle of the next decade, the need for new primary uranium supply becomes even more pressing.

With that in mind, here are three ASSX shares that are well-positioned to benefit from this trend.

1. Paladin Energy Ltd (ASX: PDN)

Paladin Energy is the only clean producer of the three.

FY26 revenue rose 71% to US$304.3 million and gross profit reached US$52.2 million, against a gross loss a year earlier.

The company’s Langer Heinrich mine produced 4.82 million pounds, at the top of guidance.

The cost was US$43.3 a pound against a realised price of US$70.0.

The company still recorded a net loss of US$9.1 million, against a US$76.5 million loss in FY25.

FY27 guidance points to 5.1 million to 5.6 million pounds at a cost of US$44 to US$48 a pound.

Chief executive Paul Hemburrow said of the results:

We successfully completed the ramp-up of Langer Heinrich Mine in Namibia, delivering annual production of 4.82 million pounds of U3O8 and sales of 4.35 million pounds.

What are the brokers saying? Bell Potter rates Paladin Energy shares a buy with a $14.80 target, while JP Morgan has a sell and a $9.10 target.

2. Boss Energy Ltd (ASX: BOE)

Boss Energy turned its first profit in FY26 and then told the market FY27 would be harder.

Revenue doubled to $151.1 million, and net profit after tax came in at $2.5 million.

Honeymoon produced 1.41 million pounds at an all-in sustaining cost of $61 a pound.

Then came the new feasibility study.

The mineral resource was cut 26% to 20.8 million pounds, and FY27 guidance calls for production of 1.25 to 1.3 million pounds at an all-in sustaining cost of $83 to $92 a pound.

Production down, costs up, and the shares fell 14% on the day.

Chief executive Matt Dusci said:

FY 2027 is a transitional year. It builds the foundations for Honeymoon’s production ramp up and long-term value.

3. Lotus Resources Ltd (ASX: LOT)

Lotus Resources is the highest-risk name here by a wide margin.

The company’s Kayelekera mine in Malawi produced its first yellowcake in August 2025.

It then lost time to a fire in April and an acid supply disruption in June.

In July, the company raised a $138.1 million financing package. That included $60.1 million of equity at 22 cents, a 67% discount to the last traded price.

The shares fell 62% on resumption, and Macquarie cut its price target from $3 to $0.25.

Managing director Greg Bittar is more positive about the company’s prospects:

The Kayelekera operation is now positioned to deliver the final stages of the ramp up through to steady state production and this funding package completes the balance sheet reset.

At 25 cents, the market capitalisation is just $135 million.

Foolish takeaway

The uranium price is doing what the bulls said it would.

That does not mean every miner benefits equally.

Two of these three uranium ASX shares have just downgraded or diluted, which is a timely reminder that a commodity thesis and a company thesis are different things.

The post Uranium is back. Three ASX shares that give you exposure appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Motley Fool contributor Mark Verhoeven has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended JPMorgan Chase and Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: ZIP) shares have endured a bruising year, but brokers remain confident the sell-off may have gone too far.

After trading between $1.38 and $4.93 over the past 12 months, the ASX buy now, pay later stock faces several potential catalysts, including continued growth in its lucrative US market.

A broader technology sell-off, concerns about competition and slowing growth, geopolitical uncertainty and higher-for-longer interest rates have all weighed on investor sentiment.

But with Zip’s underlying financial performance strengthening, brokers remain remarkably bullish.

Brokers see big upside for Zip shares

TradingView data shows all 12 analysts covering Zip shares currently have either a buy or strong buy rating. The average broker price target of $4.56 implies potential upside of around 95% from the current share price of $2.35 at the time of writing.

The most bullish forecast is even more eye-catching, with one broker tipping Zip shares to reach $6.03. This points to a potential 157% return over the next 12 months.

UBS recently reiterated its buy rating and $4.70 price target, implying roughly 100% upside from the current share price. The broker said Zip’s current-year outlook was better than expected, providing greater confidence in the defensive qualities of its BNPL model during weaker economic conditions.

Why could Zip shares rebound?

Zip’s recent financial performance provides some substance behind the bullish broker forecasts for Zip shares. Its latest FY26 results showed cash EBTDA jumping 57.9%, while revenue rose 24.7% and NPAT increased 45.7%.

Management expects that momentum to continue, forecasting cash EBTDA growth of around 26% in FY27 as the business benefits from further growth and scale.

Perhaps the most important part of the story is where that growth is coming from. Zip has spent the past few years reshaping the business around product development, profitability and international expansion, with the US now firmly at the centre of its strategy.

The US accounted for roughly two-thirds of Zip’s revenue in FY26. Revenue from the market climbed 37.3% in Australian dollar terms and 44.3% in US dollar terms, comfortably ahead of the 4.6% growth recorded across ANZ.

Customer numbers tell a similar story. Active US customers increased 9.3% to 4.65 million, while ANZ customers declined 8% to 1.88 million. Zip expects US total transaction value to grow by more than 30% in FY27.

That makes the US expansion arguably the biggest potential driver of Zip’s earnings and valuation from here.

Could a Nasdaq listing provide another catalyst?

Zip is also pursuing a dual listing on the Nasdaq. A US listing could increase the company’s visibility among American investors and potentially support its ambitions in the world’s largest BNPL market.

For investors in Zip shares, that creates an intriguing setup: a share price that has fallen sharply, accelerating earnings growth, strong broker support and a potentially significant US opportunity.

Of course, the risks haven’t disappeared. Zip remains exposed to consumer spending, competition, regulation and interest rates, while its aggressive US expansion will need to keep delivering.

The post Experts tip battered Zip shares to deliver over 90% returns appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

Superannuation has now delivered four consecutive years of strong returns.

To what extent, you ask? Well, the median growth fund returned 9.5% in FY26.

Add the three years before it, and the total comes to roughly 44%.

That is a very good run by any standard.

So can these returns last for much longer?

What four years of superannuation gains added up to

The numbers are consistent across the board.

Chant West puts the median growth fund, holding 61% to 80% in growth assets, at 9.5% for FY26.

SuperRatings measures a slightly different option and arrives at 9.4%.

The three financial years before that came in at 9.2%, 9.1%, and 10.4%.

Four consecutive years above 9% is unusual.

Australians now hold $4.8 trillion in superannuation, according to APRA’s June statistics, up 9.5% over the year.

Contributions reached $236.3 billion across the same period, up 12.8%.

The system is both larger and better funded than it has ever been.

Where the returns came from

Keen investors might want to keep an eye out for this metric.

International shares returned 25.5% in hedged terms during FY26, and they carry roughly a 31% weighting in a typical growth fund.

Australian shares returned just 6.2%.

Australian-listed property was the only negative asset class at -1.8%, while Australian bonds managed 1.5%.

So the run was not broad at all. Instead, it was built on offshore equities, and within those, on a fairly narrow group of companies.

Chant West’s Mano Mohankumar was explicit about this trend:

Generally speaking, the better performing funds were those that had higher allocations to international shares, particularly where a larger proportion of that exposure was currency hedged.

What to expect from your superannuation instead

The real benchmark is the funds’ own objective.

Most growth options target inflation plus 3.5% a year, which currently works out at roughly 6%.

Chant West notes that funds have met that objective in 73% of rolling ten-year periods since 1992, and its assessment of FY26 was blunt, warning that this level of return “should not be treated as the new normal”.

The Australian portion of your balance is the part investors can most easily see for themselves.

By holding funds like the Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF (ASX: VAS), which tracks the S&P/ASX 300 Index (ASX: XKO), charges 0.07% a year, holds $26.2 billion, and has a distribution yield near 3.1%, investors can potentially replicate these returns themselves.

Foolish takeaway

Four straight years above 9% is an impressive run.

FY27 has started steadily, with growth funds up about 1.3% through the first seven weeks.

I would plan around 6% a year rather than 9%, and treat anything above that as a bonus.

The post Superannuation just had a fourth straight year of gains. Can it continue? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Is China about to become a problem for Rio Tinto shares?
• Uranium is back. Three ASX shares that give you exposure
• Experts tip battered Zip shares to deliver over 90% returns
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Motley Fool contributor Mark Verhoeven has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.