• Here’s why the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price has been volatile in August

    Scared looking people on a rollercoaster ride, just like the Afterpay share price in recent months.

    It has been an eventful month for the Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) share price.

    At one stage, the buy now pay later (BNPL) provider’s shares were up as much as 20% month to date to $7.99.

    However, ahead of the final day of the month, the Zip share price is up just 2.7% in August and in danger of slipping into the red.

    What’s been going on in August for the Zip share price?

    The Zip share price was rocketing higher earlier in the month after it was announced that rival Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) would be acquired by US payments giant Square.

    Investors were buying Zip shares on the belief that it could be a takeover target as well.

    Particularly given how there has been speculation recently that larger BNPL rival, Klarna, has been building up a strategic stake in the company. This has never been confirmed nor denied by Klarna.

    What has been weighing on its shares?

    Unfortunately, the Zip share price failed to hold onto these gains and has pulled back almost 15% over the last three weeks.

    This appears to have been driven partly by the release of its full year results for FY 2021.

    Zip reported a net loss after tax of $653 million for the year due largely to a number of one-off non-cash items. It also revealed a significant increase (6x) in its marketing spend in FY 2021 to drive growth. This appears to have spooked investors.

    Is this a buying opportunity?

    The team at Morgans appear to believe the weakness in the Zip share price could be a buying opportunity.

    Following the release of its full year results last week, Morgans retained its add rating and lifted its price target to $8.87. Based on the current Zip share price of $6.82, this implies potential upside of 30% over the next 12 months.

    Morgans commented: “We lower our Z1P FY22F EPS by ~12% on higher costs but lift our FY23F EPS >10% (off a low base) on the benefits of higher growth.”

    “We continue to see longer term upside if Z1P can execute on its ambitions of becoming a global payments player and maintain our ADD recommendation,” it concluded.

    The post Here’s why the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price has been volatile in August appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

    Before you consider Zip, 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 Zip 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. owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO. 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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  • August has been a good month for the AMP (ASX:AMP) share price

    boy in celebration pose with pointed fingers raised high

    The AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP) share price has been quietly climbing higher in August. Shares in the Aussie wealth manager are up 2.8% in the past month, having hit as high as $1.16 on 13 August.

    Those numbers may not seem like much to investors, but 2021 has been a tough year for AMP. The AMP share price has slumped 28.9% lower in 2021 and remains down 78.8% in the last 5 years.

    Here’s why August has been a good month for AMP and its shareholders.

    What’s been boosting the AMP share price in August?

    Perhaps the most obvious place to start is AMP’s full-year earnings result. For those who missed it, AMP reported a 57% increase in net profit after tax to $181 million. Group assets under management climbed 8% to $121.0 billion in what was good news for investors.

    Controllable costs (ex AMP Capital) fell 6% to $387 million as AMP reported surplus capital of $452 million – above target requirements.

    The news helped boost the AMP share price even as the wealth manager declined to pay an interim dividend. New CEO Alexis George has her sights set on the AMP Capital Private Markets demerger in the first half of FY22.

    Shares in the Aussie wealth manager have been up and down in August but have managed to make incremental gains in recent weeks. That has also been helped by a broadly positive ASX earnings season including solid results from other investment management firms.

    Investors appear positive enough about AMP’s relative performance with the company holding onto recent gains as we near the end of the month.

    Foolish takeaway

    Prior to the company’s earnings, the AMP share price was languishing just shy of an all-time low. While recent gains have not been monumental, they have helped boost AMP’s market capitalisation to over $3.5 billion.

    The post August has been a good month for the AMP (ASX:AMP) share price appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

    Before you consider AMP, 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 AMP 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 Ken Hall 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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  • 2 online ASX shares expecting big things

    online shopping payment amazon

    There are some online ASX shares that are predicting big things and hope to achieve growth over the coming years.

    Businesses that operate with online business models may be able to achieve relatively high operating profit margins and grow fairly quickly.

    The way COVID-19 has impacted certain industries is very different to other sectors. But these two online ASX shares are expecting to generate a lot more profit in the coming years.

    Adore Beauty Group Ltd (ASX: ABY)

    Adore Beauty is a leading e-commerce business that sells almost 11,000 products from around 260 brands.

    The company recently reported that its FY21 revenue was $179.3 million, an increase of 48% year on year. Active customers grew 39% to 818,000, with returning customer growth of 64%. Annual revenue per active customer increased 7% to $219.

    Adore Beauty also revealed growing profit margins. The gross profit margin increased by 1.2 percentage points to 33.1%. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) went up 53% to $7.6 million.

    The online ASX share also said that FY22 has started strongly, with year to date revenue up another 26% over last year. Ongoing COVID-19 lockdowns are boosting new customer growth and returning customer spending.

    Management of the company said:

    Adore Beauty is executing a clear and robust growth strategy to cement its online market leadership position, and is well positioned to capture market share in a large and growing market benefiting from structural tailwinds.

    The company expects to maintain an EBITDA margin of between 2% to 4% in the shorter-term whilst it re-invests to achieve growth. Over the longer-term it’s expecting to see scale benefits with increasing operating leverage, leading to the EBITDA margin growing.

    Going into its report, Adore Beauty was rated as a buy by UBS, with a price target of $5.60.

    Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB)

    The ASX travel share is still feeling the effects of COVID-19 with travel and its total transaction volume (TTV) heavily reduced. Indeed, the nine months in Webjet’s FY21 saw TTV of $453 million, down from $3 billion in FY20.

    However, the online ASX share points to several areas that it’s positive about for the future. Cost reduction initiatives are underway in all of its businesses, which are expected to deliver 20% lower costs across the company once the business returns to scale.

    Management pointed to the Webjet online travel agency business where profitability continues to improve, demonstrating the scalability of the business model. Its market share continues to increase and the FY21 second half margin was above 30%.

    WebBeds, Webjet’s business to business subsidiary, is committed to emerging as the number one global business to business provider. Webjet says it’s taking advantage of new revenue opportunities here as well as transformation initiatives that are on track to reduce costs by at least 20% when back at scale. It’s now targeting ‘8/3/5’. That means Webjet wants revenue to be 8% of TTV, costs to be 3% and the EBITDA margin to be 5% of TTV. That translates to an EBITDA margin on revenue of 62.5%.

    The broker UBS rates Webjet as a buy, with a price target of $5.90.

    The post 2 online ASX shares expecting big things appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in Adore Beauty right now?

    Before you consider Adore Beauty, 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 Adore Beauty 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 Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Adore Beauty Group Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Webjet 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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  • 2 obscure ASX travel shares to soar after COVID-19

    family taking gear out of back of car for camping

    Are you craving travel? Overseas? Interstate? Out of the city? Anywhere?

    With more than half of Australia’s population in coronavirus lockdown, you’re likely not the only one missing a holiday to an exotic location.

    So you’d reckon ASX travel shares would be a good bet, right? Surely when border closures lift, the pent-up demand will be a bonanza?

    No, because Mr Market isn’t an idiot.

    Mr Market is pretty smart most of the time

    Forager Funds chief investment officer Steve Johnson likes to remind everyone of a character from Ben Graham’s classic book The Intelligent Investor.

    Mr Market is an anthropomorphic metaphor for the share market.

    “Some days Mr Market is depressed and wants to sell you his stocks at absurdly low prices,” Johnson wrote in Money Magazine.

    “On other days he is wildly optimistic and wants to buy your shares for a fortune.”

    But despite those occasional mood swings, he’s actually pretty smart most times.

    “He might be capable of irrational behaviour. We have seen plenty of that over the past 18 months. But he’s not stupid,” said Johnson.

    “In fact, most of the time, Mr Market is an incredibly prescient character.”

    Mr Market already knows travel will recover

    Why is Mr Market so smart? It’s because stock prices are formed as a result of “hundreds of thousands” of investors doing their own analysis with all the information available.

    It’s the old efficient market hypothesis.

    “There’s plenty of research, best summarised in James Surowiecki in his book The Wisdom of Crowds, showing that the crowd gets it right far more often than any individual expert,” Johnson said.

    “As a general rule, you won’t make any money predicting things that Mr Market already knows. And a travel recovery is the perfect example.”

    He took travel shares Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) and Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) as examples of this.

    “Travel is going to recover, but the market prices of these companies already assume that this is the case,” said Johnson.

    “The total market value of online travel agent Webjet, for example, is higher than it was prior to any mention of COVID-19. Flight Centre, too, is trading back near peak valuation levels.”

    But here are 2 shares with structural advantages

    However, Johnson reckons his funds have found 2 lesser-known travel shares that aren’t just relying on recovery in tourism to boost their fortunes.

    “Successful investments… don’t just require an insight. They require an insight that is unique.”

    They are adventure tourism provider Experience Co Ltd (ASX: EXP) and recreation vehicle rental company Apollo Tourism & Leisure Ltd (ASX: ATL).

    Johnson’s team bought into Experience Co several years ago when it was experiencing financial difficulties.

    “Previous management made a number of large investments in far north Queensland which predictably soured. The share price tumbled and we started buying some shares.”

    But with new leadership at the helm, net debt has been slashed from $30 million to $2 million. This allowed the business to endure bushfires and COVID-19 without raising new cash.

    “Experience Co is surviving off domestic tourism alone. And the share price, too, has recovered to the levels of early 2020,” said Johnson.

    “But when international tourists return en masse, hopefully in 2023, it’s our belief that this lean, restructured business will be significantly more profitable than ever before.”

    The thesis for Apollo is similar, he added.

    “Mr Market is anticipating a recovery, but he’s underestimating the amount of structural change both companies have made to their businesses.”

    With the market so inflated now compared to a year ago, it’s harder to find gems that Mr Market hasn’t woken up to.

    “There are pockets of opportunities. Most of our Australian Fund portfolio consists of businesses that we think have made permanent structural improvements that have been masked by the impact of COVID. But most prices today reflect a fairly sensible view of the future,” Johnson said. 

    “He will get depressed again, but for now Mr Market should be getting the respect that he deserves.”

    The post 2 obscure ASX travel shares to soar after COVID-19 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in Apollo Tourism & Leisure Ltd right now?

    Before you consider Apollo Tourism & Leisure Ltd, 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 Apollo Tourism & Leisure Ltd 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 Tony Yoo owns shares of Webjet Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended EXPERNCECO FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended EXPERNCECO FPO and Webjet Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Flight Centre Travel 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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  • Top broker says ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price is a buy

    couple happily discussing their issues with a banker

    The Australia and New Zealand Banking GrpLtd (ASX: ANZ) share price has been a strong performer in 2021.

    Since the start of the year, the banking giant’s shares have risen 21.5%.

    This is almost double the return of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) over the same period.

    Can the ANZ share price keep on rising?

    According to one leading broker, the ANZ share price is still great value despite its strong rise in 2021.

    A recent note out of Morgans reveals that its analysts have an add rating and $34.50 price target on the banking giant’s shares.

    Based on the latest ANZ share price of $28.00, this will mean potential upside of 23% over the next 12 months before dividends.

    And with Morgans forecasting dividends of $1.45 per share in FY 2021 and $1.65 per share in FY 2022, the potential return stretches to over 28% including them.

    What did the broker say?

    ANZ is Morgans’ top pick in the banking sector and believes it offers great value for money. It also believes the bank is well-placed to benefit from a number of industry tailwinds.

    Earlier this month, Morgans commented: “We believe ANZ is the most compelling of the major banks on a valuation basis. We expect ANZ to benefit the most of the major banks from the tailwinds currently in place for treasury and markets income. We expect ANZ to continue to focus on absolute cost reduction over the medium term. ANZ has de-risked its loan book over recent years –particularly its institutional loan book –such that the quality of its loan book has increased.”

    So while the ANZ share price has smashed the market in 2021, this broker doesn’t believe the gains are over just yet. This could make it a top option for investors that don’t have exposure to the sector.

    The post Top broker says ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price is a buy appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

    Before you consider ANZ, 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 ANZ 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

    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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  • 3 excellent ASX growth shares for September

    Surge in ASX share price represented by happy woman pointing to her big smile

    If you’re looking for some growth shares to add to your portfolio next month, then you might want to look at the ones below.

    Here’s what you need to know about these highly rated ASX growth shares:

    Life360 Inc (ASX: 360)

    The first ASX growth share to look at is Life360. It is the growing technology company behind the Life360 mobile app. This is a market leading app for families offering useful features such as communications, driver safety, and location sharing. Life360 has also recently expanded into the wearables market via the acquisition of Jiobit. This increases its total addressable market and opens up cross selling opportunities. And there certainly are a lot of users to cross-sell to. At the end of the first half, the company’s Global Monthly Active User (MAU) base reached 32.3 million, up 28% year on year. This underpinned a 36% increase in Annualised Monthly Revenue (AMR) to US$105.9 million.

    Credit Suisse currently has an outperform rating and $10.00 price target on Life360’s shares.

    Pushpay Holdings Group Ltd (ASX: PPH)

    Another ASX growth share to consider is Pushpay. It is a leading donor management and community engagement platform provider for the faith sector. Thanks to the digitisation of the church, the shift to a cashless society, and its industry leading technology, Pushpay has been growing strongly over the last few years. For example, in FY 2021 the company delivered a 40% increase in operating revenue to US$179.1 million and a 133% increase in EBITDAF to US$58.9 million. And while its growth will moderate in FY 2022, its long term outlook remains very positive. Particularly given recent acquisitions which are bolstering its offering and opening up new markets.

    At present, Ord Minnett has a hold rating on Pushpay’s shares. But its $1.90 price target offers over 11% upside.

    Temple & Webster Group Ltd (ASX: TPW)

    A final ASX growth share to look at is this online furniture and homewares retailer. It has been growing at a very strong rate in recent years thanks to the shift to online shopping. For example, in FY 2021, the company posted an 85% increase in revenue to $326.3 million and a 141% jump in EBITDA to $20.5 million. It has also just released a trading update which reveals that FY 2022 has started strongly. Between 1 July and 27 August, Temple & Webster’s sales were up 49% over the prior corresponding period. Positively, with online furniture shopping still in its infancy compared to other retail categories, the company appears well-positioned for further strong growth over the next decade as online penetration rates increase.

    Morgan Stanley is very positive on the company. It has an overweight rating and $16.00 price target on the company’s shares.

    The post 3 excellent ASX growth shares for September 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 Life360, Inc., PUSHPAY FPO NZX, and Temple & Webster Group Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended PUSHPAY FPO NZX. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Temple & Webster Group 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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  • Have money to invest? 2 ASX shares that could be buys

    ASX shares latest buy ideas upgrade best buy Stopwatch with Time to Buy on the counter

    A number of ASX shares could be ideas to consider with investing money.

    Businesses that are good value may be long-term opportunities, particularly if analysts call them out as ideas.

    Share prices are always changing, so different businesses can turn into opportunities, depending on the value.

    These two ASX shares might be worthwhile considering:

    VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (ASX: MOAT)

    This exchange-traded fund (ETF) is offered by VanEck, one of the larger ETF providers.

    As VanEck says, the idea behind the ETF is that it gives investors exposure to a diversified portfolio of attractively priced US companies with sustainable competitive advantages according to Morningstar’s equity research team.

    The only businesses that are even candidates to make it into the ETF’s holdings are ones that have wide economic moats that can be sustained for a long period of time.

    From those potential candidates, Morningstar assesses what a fair value for each of them is. If the business is at a good value compared to that fair value assessment then it may make into the portfolio.

    At 27 August 2021, there were 48 businesses in the portfolio. Some of the names in there included Salesforce.com, Facebook, Alphabet, Kellogg, McDonalds, Microsoft, Pfizer, Yum! Brands, Adobe, Amazon.com, Blackrock and Berkshire Hathaway.

    Past performance is not an indicator of future performance. However, VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF has outperformed the S&P 500 over the longer-term. Over the last five years the ETF has returned an average return per annum of 19.35%, compared to 17.46% for the S&P 500. That’s after the annual fee of 0.49%.

    Reject Shop Ltd (ASX: TRS)

    Reject Shop is an ASX share that operates a national chain of discount stores.

    It’s currently rated as a buy by Morgan Stanley, with a price target of $10. That suggests the Reject Shop share price could increase by over 60% in the next year, if the broker is right.

    The broker noted the FY21 result in its assessment of the company’s valuation.

    Reject Shop slightly beat its sales guidance, with sales falling 5.1% to $778.7 million. COVID-19 and lockdowns caused various impacts on its store network around the country during FY21.

    Stores in large shopping centres and CBD locations saw a significant reduction in footfall with comparable store transactions down 19% on FY19. But the remaining store portfolio saw sales growth of 0.1% compared to FY19.

    Approximately half of its stores are metro and country stores in neighbourhood and strip locations, which count as those in the ‘remaining store portfolio’. That cohort of stores generated comparable store sales growth of 3.4% on FY19 and are, on average, the most profitable. These stores are the key focus of the company’s future growth strategy.

    The ASX share continues to partner with Doordash for its online offering. It’s looking to grow online sales, but at this stage these sales are “not material”.

    But, whilst sales fell, the business saw its profitability metrics rise. Underlying earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) rose 110% to $9.4 million and underlying net profit surged 134% to $6.4 million.

    Management explained the company reduced its underlying costs by $22.5 million, which included $8.8 million of administrative costs and $13.7 million of store expenses. It managed to reduce labour costs to 13.9% of sales, down from 14.5% in FY20.

    It’s going to invest some of these savings into technology and systems across the business, as well as prepare for growth. It continues to look for new stores in profitable locations. In the first two months of FY22, it opened a new store in Bendigo and closed an underperforming store, taking the national footprint to 361, up from 354 at June 2020. It wants to open another 20 stores in FY22, whilst closing five underperforming stores.

    According to Morgan Stanley, the Reject Shop share price is currently valued at 14x FY23’s estimated earnings.

    The post Have money to invest? 2 ASX shares that could be buys appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

    Should you invest $1,000 in Reject Shop right now?

    Before you consider Reject Shop, 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 Reject Shop 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

    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 VanEck Vectors Morningstar Wide Moat ETF. 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 you should NOT use stop-loss orders

    Red button with the words 'stop loss' on it

    For a retail investor, or even professionals, investing in ASX shares can be nerve-wracking.

    Experts tell us to look long-term and not check your portfolio value everyday.

    But your stomach can’t help but churn when you see Alan Kohler on ABC News mention that one of your shares has dropped 20% that day.

    To help you sleep at night, some investment gurus recommend using stop-loss orders.

    What are stop-loss orders?

    The stop-loss mechanism is described in detail in The Motley Fool’s investor glossary.

    But a short way of describing it is it’s an order to sell that becomes immediately active when a stock hits a certain price.

    That threshold for action is called the ‘trigger price’.

    “For example, suppose you bought Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) at $80 a share and you want to limit your potential losses to 20%. You would then set a stop-loss order for $64,” states the glossary. 

    “If the Afterpay share price falls below $64, your shares will be sold. This limits your loss to 20% of your initial capital.”

    A stop-loss order, despite its name, can be used to both limit losses or lock in profits. 

    If you set the trigger to be higher than the purchase price, then the shares will sell after it reaches a certain amount of profit.

    But here’s why you shouldn’t use stop-loss orders

    This all sounds terrific, you say.

    But the trouble with stop-loss orders is that it is a transaction made purely on a numerical basis. The decision to sell has nothing to do with how the company is performing or what its prospects are like.

    Author of the Market Matters newsletter, James Gerrish, pointed out that an ASX share can easily suffer a temporary paper loss of 10%, 20% or worse on any given day.

    “At Market Matters, we exit a position when the reason that we hold the stock has gone, especially from a risk/reward perspective, and/or the stock no longer represents the value it once did,” he told subscribers.

    “That’s not about being a ‘value’ investor, but an investor targeting value in many forms.”

    While stop losses have their place in purely mechanical, short-term trading strategies, they don’t make sense for long-term investors.

    “Put simply, I believe stops at say 5% or 10% have no logic as it’s purely a predetermined monetary decision as opposed to taking into account the situation today,” Gerrish said.

    “Markets are like a constantly evolving amoeba and should be evaluated as such.”

    Gerrish admitted stop-losses can be used if it helps an investor sleep at night.

    But even it isn’t fool-proof.

    “With regard to pre-set stops, there are no guarantees of [sale] price,” he said.

    “A stock may be trading at $10 and you have a stop at $9 — but, after some bad news, the next trade is at $8, you will be filled around $8 not your stop at $9.”

    The post Why you should NOT use stop-loss orders 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 Tony Yoo owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO. 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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  • 2 ASX dividend shares analysts rate as buys

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

    Are you looking for some dividend shares to buy? If you are, you may want to check out the highly rates shares listed below.

    Here’s what you need to know about these dividend shares:

    Charter Hall Social Infrastructure REIT (ASX: CQE)

    The first ASX dividend share to look at is the Charter Hall Social Infrastructure REIT. It is a real estate investment trust with a focus on social infrastructure. These are properties with specialist use, limited competition, and low substitution risk. This includes properties such as bus depots, police and justice services facilities, and childcare centres.

    Positively, the company has experienced strong demand for its properties, leading to a sky high occupancy rate. This underpinned a 13.5% increase in operating earnings to $58 million in FY 2021.

    Another positive was its outlook. At the end of the financial year, it had a weighted average lease expiry of 15.2 years and 73.2% of its properties on fixed rent reviews. Combined with its 100% occupancy rate, this bodes well for its future growth.

    One broker that is a big fan of the company is Goldman Sachs. It currently has a conviction buy rating and $3.81 price target its shares.

    In addition, based on the current Charter Hall Social Infrastructure REIT share price, the broker expects its shares to provide yields of ~4.5% in FY 2022 and ~4.7% in FY 2023.

    Scentre Group (ASX: SCG)

    Another ASX dividend share to look at is Scentre. It is a leading shopping centre operator and the owner of the Westfield centres in the Australian market.

    Goldman Sachs is also a big fan of Scentre and believes its shares are in the buy zone right now. The broker currently has a buy rating and $3.32 price target on the company’s shares.

    Although its analysts acknowledge the near term uncertainty, they highlight that positive signs are emerging.

    Following its recent results release, Goldman said: “All in, we believe SCG is well positioned to weather further uncertainty relating to COVID impacts and the portfolio metrics are set to re-accelerate as government restrictions ease, which we believe is evident from today’s result and recent operational strength. Despite this, SCG is trading at a price discount to NTA of ~-25%.”

    It also notes that Scentre is far more positively leveraged to inflation than any other Australian real estate investment trusts under its coverage. This bodes well for the future given current inflation expectations.

    Goldman estimates that its shares will provide dividend yields of ~5.7% in FY 2022 and ~6.5% in FY 2023.

    The post 2 ASX dividend shares analysts rate as buys appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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    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.

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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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  • 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday

    Business man watching stocks while thinking

    On Monday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) started the week on a positive note. The benchmark index finished the day 0.2% higher at 7,504.5 points.

    Will the market be able to build on this on Tuesday? Here are five things to watch:

    ASX 200 expected to rise

    The Australian share market is expected to push higher again on Tuesday. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 17 points or 0.2% higher this morning. This follows a largely positive start to the week on Wall Street, which saw the Dow Jones fall 0.15%, but the S&P 500 climb 0.45% and the Nasdaq storm 0.9% higher.

    PointsBet results

    The Pointsbet Holdings Ltd (ASX: PBH) share price will be on watch when it releases its full year results this morning. While the sports betting company has already released most of its headline numbers with its fourth quarter update, today’s release will reveal how large a loss it made in FY 2021, among other things. PointsBet is also likely to provide a trading update for the first two months of the new financial year.

    Oil prices rise again

    Energy producers such as Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) could have a decent day after oil prices rose again. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 0.45% to US$69.04 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price has risen 0.8% to US$73.26 a barrel. Disruption to production by Hurricane Ida has supported prices this week.

    Gold price falls

    It could be a difficult day for gold miners Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) after the gold price edged lower. According to CNBC, the spot gold price is down 0.35% to US$1,813.2 an ounce. A strengthening US dollar put pressure on the gold price.

    IGO results

    The IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO) share price will be one to watch today when it releases its full year results. According to a note out of Goldman Sachs, its analysts expect the battery materials miner to report revenue of $913 million and underlying EBITDA of $475 million. The latter will be a modest 3.2% increase year on year.

    The post 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 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

    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. owns shares of and has recommended Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended 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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