There are plenty of ASX shares to choose from on the local market.

To narrow things down, let’s see what analysts are saying about three big names, courtesy of The Bull.

Are they buys, holds, or sells this week? Let’s find out:

James Hardie Industries PLC (ASX: JHX)

The team at DP Wealth Advisory has named James Hardie as an ASX share to sell this week.

It has concerns about the company’s exposure to a struggling housing construction market in the US and increasing cost of living expenses. It explains:

This Australian building materials company generates most of its revenue in the United States. The acquisition of US decking business AZEK for $US8.75 billion has left the market concerned about earnings risk in response to a flat housing construction market in the US and increasing cost of living expenses. The structure of the contentious acquisition left angry Australian investors without a vote on the deal. Too much uncertainty exists about the company’s outlook.

NextDC Ltd (ASX: NXT)

Dolphin Partners Financial Services has named data centre operator NextDC as a hold this week.

Despite its strong earnings growth outlook, the financial services company appears to believe investors should wait for a more attractive entry point. It said:

This global data centre operator recently raised capital via a 1 for 5.4 pro rata, non renounceable rights issue to institutions and retail investors at $12.70 a share. Proceeds of more than $1 billion will be used to construct data centres to meet rapidly growing demand from cloud computing customers. A compounded annual growth rate in operating earnings of more than 40 per cent is expected between fiscal years 2025 and 2028, as contracted capacity translates to revenue and earnings going forward.

WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC)

The team at Dolphin Partners Financial Services is more positive on WiseTech Global shares and has named them as a buy this week.

It highlights that the company’s shares are trading at a deep discount to broker valuations following significant share price weakness due to artificial intelligence disruption concerns. It said:

WiseTech develops and provides software solutions to the global logistics industry. The company recently reaffirmed EBITDA and margin guidance for fiscal year 2026. WTC wasn’t immune to the recent sharp sell off in technology stocks due to potential artificial intelligence disruption. Most broker forecasts are at a significant premium to the recent share price.

The post Buy, hold, sell: James Hardie, NextDC, and WiseTech shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why I think DroneShield and these ASX growth shares could beat the market over 10 years
• 3 excellent ASX ETFs to buy and hold for 10 years
• 3 ASX tech shares I’d buy with $20,000
• These under-the-radar ASX AI shares are starting to turn heads
• 4 ASX 200 shares tipped to climb 75% to 126% higher

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Nextdc and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

ASX industrials stock GenusPlus Group Ltd (ASX: GNP) is climbing on Monday after the company unveiled a major acquisition alongside an earnings upgrade.

During morning trade, the ASX industrials stock jumped 6% to $9.74.

That continues what has already been a phenomenal run for shareholders. GenusPlus shares have now surged roughly 219% over the past 12 months, massively outperforming the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which has gained just 4% over the same period.

So what exactly got investors excited today?

A major acquisition move

The biggest catalyst was GenusPlus’ announcement of the acquisition of MPC Kinetic (MPK), a major infrastructure contractor operating across the gas, water, and energy sectors.

The deal significantly expands GenusPlus beyond its traditional electricity infrastructure operations. It also pushes the company deeper into critical national infrastructure projects.

Importantly, the acquisition also diversifies the ASX industrials stock across multiple utility sectors at a time when infrastructure spending across Australia continues to accelerate. That broader exposure appears to have impressed investors.

What did GenusPlus management say?

Management of the ASX industrials stock believes the acquisition will strengthen earnings, expand the customer base, and create additional long-term growth opportunities.

GenusPlus Managing Director David Riches was clearly enthusiastic about the transaction, commenting:

MPK is a high-quality business with a strong management team. Blue-chip client base and significant potential. The combination diversifies Genus into the attractive gas and water sector and accelerates our strategy to becoming the leading provider of critical infrastructure across Australia.

The market appears to agree.

Infrastructure businesses exposed to electricity, water, gas, and communications are becoming increasingly popular with investors. Massive spending on energy transition projects and utility upgrades is creating a powerful long-term growth tailwind for the sector.

Earnings upgrade

The acquisition was not the only major announcement. The ASX industrials stock also upgraded its earnings guidance on Monday, giving investors another reason to pile into the stock.

The company now expects stronger profitability than previously forecast. This is thanks to continued project momentum, robust demand conditions, and improving operational performance across the business.

Genus upgraded its FY26 earnings guidance, with management now expecting normalised EBITDA of between $96 million and $100 million. That would represent impressive growth of roughly 42% to 48% compared to FY25 levels.

Meanwhile, normalised EBIT(A) is forecast to land between $76 million and $80 million, excluding acquisition amortisation.

Importantly, the ASX industrials stock expects that part of that earnings boost will come from the recently completed Railtrain Holdings acquisition. This should contribute around $2 million to $3 million in EBITDA growth this financial year.

What’s next for GenusPlus?

Of course, risks remain for the ASX industrials stock. Large infrastructure projects can face execution risks, cost overruns, labour shortages, and margin pressure.

And after a staggering 219% share price rally over the past year, some investors may question how much good news is already priced into the stock.

Still, today’s announcements reinforced why momentum around GenusPlus remains extremely strong.

The combination of a major strategic acquisition, upgraded earnings guidance, and growing exposure to long-term infrastructure spending themes appears to be keeping investors firmly interested in the ASX industrials stock.

The post Why is this $2 billion ASX industrials stock racing higher today? 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 positions in and has recommended GenusPlus Group. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended GenusPlus Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Shares in Challenger Gold Ltd (ASX: CEL) are trading higher after the company announced a major capital raising and a positive prefeasibility study for its Hualilan gold project.

Capital a vote of confidence

Despite Challenger announcing it had raised $85 million at 12 cents per share, the company’s shares traded higher on Monday morning, hitting a high-water mark of 15.25 cents before settling to be 3.7% higher at 14 cents.

Challenger also announced that experienced gold company Executive Peter Marrone would join the board as Chairman Elect, and he would also take up $8 million worth of the new placement shares.

Current Challenger Chairman Eduarto Elsztain, who is also taking up shares in the placement, said Mr Marrone’s involvement in the company was noteworthy.

He said:

The placement has been supported by Challenger’s four largest existing institutional investors and two new institutional investors which have a successful history investing alongside Peter Marrone. The funds raised will enable the company to accelerate exploration at Hualilan with Challenger committing to its first material extension drilling campaign in several years.

Mining project looking solid

The prefeasibility study, meanwhile, said Hualilan, in Argentina, would have a payback period of 2.25 years and generate post-tax, free cash flow of US$1,982 million.

This was calculated using a gold price of US$3500 per ounce, compared with the current gold price of US$4518.07.

The capital cost to build the mine came in at US$232 million, with a further US$35 million calculated for contingencies.

The mine is expected to produce 105,000 ounces of gold in its first two years of production, followed by 12 years producing 135,000 ounces per year.

The operation would involve an open-pit mine with a 1.5 million tonne per year flotation plant and an eight million tonne capacity heap leach circuit.

The mine is expected to have an all-in sustaining cost of US$1422 to operate.

Challenger said several opportunities to improve the mine’s performance had also been identified as part of the prefeasibility study process.

These included third-party funding of all electrical infrastructure, which could save US$48 million, metallurgical upside from changes to the heap leaching process, changes to the pit design, and “multiple capital and operatorship scenarios”.

Challenger said the mineral resource also remained open at depth and in both directions along strike.

The company said it now plans to “undertake a re-optimisation phase of the prefeasibility study to determine the final design case to take to definitive feasibility study”.

It will also carry out a 31,500m drill campaign designed to convert inferred resources to the indicated category, which has the potential to extend the life of mine.

Challenger Gold is valued at $329 million.

The post Why are shares in this small-cap ASX gold company charging higher? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why I think DroneShield and these ASX growth shares could beat the market over 10 years
• Could this fallen ASX 200 stock be a once-in-a-decade opportunity?
• Why Life360 shares are jumping higher in Monday’s falling market
• Pro Medicus shares jump as massive US contract win turns heads
• Why are Tuas shares crashing 69% on Monday?

Motley Fool contributor Cameron England 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.

Beating the market over 10 years is not easy.

A company needs more than a good story. It needs a large opportunity, strong execution, and enough room to keep growing after the first wave of investor excitement has passed.

I think the five ASX growth shares in this article have that potential.

They are not low-risk picks. In fact, several could be quite volatile. But for investors willing to think in decades rather than quarters, I think each one has a chance to deliver strong long-term returns.

NextDC Ltd (ASX: NXT)

NextDC gives investors exposure to one of the biggest physical requirements of the digital economy: data centre capacity.

Cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, streaming, enterprise software, and online platforms all need secure and reliable infrastructure. That demand should keep increasing as businesses and consumers use more data every year.

NextDC is capital-intensive, so investors need to be patient while it builds new capacity. But if demand keeps growing, I think today’s investment could support much larger earnings over time.

Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1)

Megaport is another way to invest in the cloud, but from a very different angle.

Its platform allows businesses to connect quickly to cloud providers, data centres, and networks without relying on slow traditional infrastructure.

I think this flexibility could become more valuable as companies use multiple clouds, move workloads around, and require faster digital connections.

Megaport has already done some of the hard work by building a global network. The next step is turning that reach into higher usage, stronger margins, and more consistent profitability.

Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: TLX)

Telix is an ASX healthcare growth share with a very different risk-reward profile.

The company is focused on radiopharmaceuticals, an area that combines imaging, diagnosis, and targeted cancer treatment.

I like the long-term opportunity because cancer care is moving toward more precise tools. If doctors can see disease more clearly and target treatment more accurately, patient outcomes could improve.

Telix still needs to keep executing clinically, commercially, and on the regulatory front. But if its pipeline delivers, I think the business could be significantly larger in 10 years.

DroneShield Ltd (ASX: DRO)

DroneShield is exposed to a defence and security problem that is becoming harder to ignore.

Drones are changing modern conflict, border protection, critical infrastructure security, and public safety planning. Cheap unmanned systems can create expensive problems.

DroneShield develops technology to detect, track, and respond to drone threats.

This is a higher-risk share, and contract timing can create volatility. But if counter-drone systems become a standard part of defence and security budgets, I think DroneShield could have a long runway.

Catapult Sports Ltd (ASX: CAT)

Catapult Sports brings a focused global sports technology angle.

Its products help elite teams track athlete performance, workload, tactics, and injury risk. Professional sport is becoming more data-driven, and clubs are always looking for small advantages.

What I like is the daily-use nature of the technology. If a club relies on Catapult inside training, coaching, and analysis workflows, the relationship can become valuable over time.

Foolish Takeaway

I think these five ASX growth shares offer exposure to some powerful long-term themes: data centres, cloud connectivity, precision medicine, counter-drone defence, and sports performance analytics.

There will be setbacks along the way. Some may take longer than investors expect to deliver on their potential.

But if even a few execute well over the next decade, I think this group could have a real chance of beating the market.

The post Why I think DroneShield and these ASX growth shares could beat the market over 10 years appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Grace Alvino has positions in DroneShield. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Catapult Sports, DroneShield, Megaport, and Telix Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Catapult Sports. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Telix Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Some share price falls are warnings.

Others can be opportunities hiding in plain sight.

That is why I think Cochlear Ltd (ASX: COH) shares deserve a closer look after their heavy decline. The ASX 200 healthcare stock has been sold down sharply, and confidence in the business is clearly weaker than it was before.

But for long-term investors, I think this could be one of the more interesting buying opportunities on the ASX today.

A world leader in a specialised market

Cochlear is not just another healthcare company.

It is a global leader in implantable hearing solutions, with products that can make a life-changing difference for people with moderate to profound hearing loss.

That gives the business a very different profile from many ASX shares.

Cochlear is not relying on discretionary spending, commodity prices, or housing turnover. It is exposed to a large healthcare need that should keep growing as populations age, diagnoses improve, and access to treatment expands.

Hearing loss is a major global issue, and many people who could benefit from treatment still do not receive it. That creates a long runway for companies with trusted technology, clinical relationships, and global distribution.

I think Cochlear has all three.

Why the fall interests me

The market has become much less willing to pay a premium for Cochlear shares.

There are reasons for that. Investors have questioned growth, margins, competition, and whether the company can keep delivering the level of performance that once justified a much higher valuation.

Those concerns should not be ignored.

But the valuation now looks far more interesting. According to CommSec consensus forecasts, Cochlear shares are trading on an estimated FY27 P/E ratio of 18 times.

For a global healthcare leader with a long runway in hearing solutions, I think that looks attractive.

Cochlear still needs to execute well, keep innovating, and protect its position in a competitive healthcare market. But I think the sell-off may have pushed the share price into more appealing territory for patient investors.

A business worth backing for the next decade

The phrase “once-in-a-decade opportunity” should not be used lightly.

Cochlear shares could fall further. Healthcare funding can be complicated, competition can intensify, and expectations may take time to rebuild.

But I do think the current weakness is unusual for a business of this calibre.

High-quality healthcare companies with global leadership positions do not often trade at depressed prices. When they do, I think investors should at least ask whether the market is being too focused on recent disappointment.

For me, the key question is whether Cochlear’s long-term opportunity has been permanently damaged.

I do not think it has.

The world will still need better hearing solutions. More people will still need diagnosis and treatment. Healthcare systems will still value proven technology that can improve patient outcomes.

If Cochlear can keep investing in product development, supporting clinicians, and expanding access, I think the business can recover and grow over the next decade.

Foolish Takeaway

Cochlear shares are out of favour, and that is exactly why they look interesting.

The market is no longer treating the ASX 200 stock like an untouchable healthcare compounder. That creates discomfort, but it may also create opportunity.

I would not expect a quick or smooth rebound. Confidence can take time to return after a major sell-off.

But for investors willing to think in years rather than months, I think Cochlear could be a rare chance to buy a world-class ASX 200 healthcare stock while expectations are unusually low.

The post Could this fallen ASX 200 stock be a once-in-a-decade opportunity? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• $10,000 invested in Cochlear shares in July is now worth…

Motley Fool contributor Grace Alvino 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 Cochlear. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Cochlear. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Life360 Inc (ASX: 360) shares are marching higher today.

Shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) family location sharing software developer closed on Friday trading for $18.44. In morning trade on Monday, shares are changing hands for $18.83 each, up 2.1%.

That’s a strong showing on any day, but even more so considering that the ASX 200 is down a sharp 1.1% at this same time.

Despite today’s outperformance, Life360 shares remain down just over 38% over the past 12 months. That decline has come amid broader market fears over AI’s potential to displace a lot of software as a service (SaaS) business.

Now, here’s what’s got investors favouring their buy buttons.

Life360 shares lift on $225 million buyback news

Investors are bidding up the beleaguered ASX 200 stock after the company announced the launch of a multi-year share repurchase program.

The program will see up to $225 million worth of Life360 shares repurchased.

The board said the buyback is supported by the company’s strong balance sheet and twelve consecutive quarters of positive operating cash flow. The program is intended to return value to shareholders by minimising dilution from stock-based instruments, like employee and executive share options.

Commenting on the share buyback, Life360 CEO Lauren Antonoff said:

We remain focused on investing in the Life360 platform as we grow our global member base and deepen the value we deliver to families.

This targeted share repurchase program reflects the Board’s confidence in the durability of our model, our disciplined capital allocation, and our ability to generate consistent long-term cash flow.

What’s the latest from the ASX 200 tech stock?

The last price-sensitive release for Life360 shares was the company’s quarterly results (Q1 2026), announced on 12 May.

Highlights for the three months included a 38% year-on-year increase in total revenue to US$143.1 million.

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) were up 7% to US$17.1 million. And the company reported first-quarter operating cash flow of $17.2 million, up 42% from Q1 2025.

“Life360 has become a meaningful part of everyday family life for more than 97 million people who use Life360 to keep their families safe and connected,” Antonoff said.

And she noted that rather than threatening its business, AI is helping the company’s transformation.

According to Antonoff:

The value we deliver to our members powered record-breaking Paying Circle additions in Q1. At the same time, our Life360 Ads platform scaled to become a material part of our business.

And with AI, we’re moving faster than ever to transform Life360 into the super app that makes everyday family better.

The post Why Life360 shares are jumping higher in Monday’s falling market appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Bernd Struben 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 Life360. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Life360. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Pro Medicus Ltd (ASX: PME) shares are back in favour on Monday after the healthcare imaging software company landed another major US contract.

At the time of writing, the Pro Medicus share price is up 7.19% to $130.89.

Despite today’s gain, it has been a painful stretch for shareholders. Pro Medicus shares are still down around 40% in 2026 and 52% over the past year.

Let’s take a closer look at the release.

A $90 million US contract lands

In its ASX release, Pro Medicus said its US subsidiary, Visage Imaging, has signed a 7-year, $90 million contract with Beth Israel Lahey Health.

Beth Israel Lahey Health is a healthcare system based in Boston. It brings together academic medical centres, teaching hospitals, community and specialty hospitals, more than 4,700 physicians, and 39,000 employees.

The network has 14 hospitals serving patients in Eastern Massachusetts and Southern New Hampshire.

Under the contract, Beth Israel Lahey Health will use Pro Medicus’ cloud-based Visage 7 Enterprise Imaging Platform.

The deal covers Visage 7 Viewer, Visage 7 Workflow, and Visage 7 Open Archive.

The software will be used to view diagnostic images, manage imaging workflow, and store archived images across the health network.

The company said the rollout will begin immediately, with go-live targeted for the first quarter of calendar year 2027.

Why investors are taking notice

The size of the contract is already significant, but the way it is priced appears to be another reason investors are liking the update.

Pro Medicus said the contract is based on a transactional licensing model, which gives the agreement potential upside if usage grows over time.

It also expands the company’s cloud-based footprint in the North American market.

Chief Executive Dr Sam Hupert said:

Beth Israel Lahey Health provides extraordinary, cutting-edge patient care.

They join an ever-growing list of Visage 7 clients to opt for our fully cloud-based platform, which, as a result of our CloudPACS strategy, is becoming the standard in the North American healthcare IT market.

He also noted:

Our pipeline remains strong and spans all market segments. This deal is for our ‘full stack’ comprising all three core Visage products, namely viewer, workflow and archive, a trend we see continuing.

A senior executive is leaving

The update also comes as The Australian reported that Clayton Hatch will leave the business on 14 August.

Hatch has spent almost 18 years with the company, including a long period as Chief Financial Officer. He has most recently worked as head of business operations and investor relations.

While his departure isn’t the main focus of today’s share price move, it is still notable given his long history with the company.

The post Pro Medicus shares jump as massive US contract win turns heads 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 recommended Pro Medicus. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Pro Medicus. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Tuas Ltd (ASX: TUA) shares are having a day to forget on Monday.

In morning trade, the ASX 200 telco share is down a massive 69% to a two-year low of $1.91.

This has knocked more than A$2 billion off the Singapore-based mobile and broadband operator’s market capitalisation.

What is Tuas?

As mentioned above, Tuas is a Singapore-based telco, chaired by former TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPG) CEO and founder David Teoh.

In March, the company released its half-year results and revealed a 25.5% increase in revenue to S$91.9 million. Things were even better for its earnings, with EBITDA rising 27% to S$42.1 million, and net profit after tax increasing over 500% to S$18.7 million.

The key driver of this growth was its SIMBA mobile business, which has recorded strong subscriber growth in broadband services and mobile services.

However, the shock news today is that Tuas’ SIMBA business has allegedly been using spectrum that it doesn’t own.

As a result, the Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore (IMDA) has suspended its review of Tuas’ proposed acquisition of M1 Limited.

M1 acquisition

Last year, Tuas raised A$435 million from institutional and retail investors to partly fund the acquisition of M1 Limited.

It believed that the deal would create a stronger, more competitive telco in Singapore by combining SIMBA’s fast-growing digital consumer business with M1’s established network and enterprise capabilities, enabling greater scale, efficiency, and innovation.

The two parties agreed on a deal valued at S$1,430 million on a debt-free and cash-free basis.

However, there appear to be concerns that this deal could now be on the rocks following this news.

In a release this morning, Tuas stated:

The circumstance identified by the IMDA as giving rise to its decision to suspend the review is that it had learned that Simba may have been using radio frequency bands that it was not authorised to use, which would be a breach of the Telecommunications Act and the conditions of Simba’s Facilities-Based Operations Licence. Simba is fully co-operating with the IMDA. The Board of Tuas will also be reviewing the circumstances concerning the alleged unauthorised use of spectrum.

Speaking about the share purchase plan, the company added:

Tuas notes that the Share Purchase Agreement for the Transaction has a long-stop date of 21 May 2026. At this time, discussions with the counterparties to the Share Purchase Agreement are ongoing. Tuas will keep the market advised as developments occur.

It also remains to be seen if there will be penalties imposed on Tuas if it is found to have breached the Telecommunications Act in Singapore.

The post Why are Tuas shares crashing 69% on Monday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 Scott Phillips.

Brambles Ltd (ASX: BXB) shares plunged to a new 12-month low on Monday after the company sharply downgraded its profit outlook as it struggles to service its customers.

Investors head for the exit

Shares in the pallet supplier fell as low as $18.38 before recovering marginally to be changing hands for $18.44, down 16.6% in early trade.

This fall was despite Brambles announcing a new US$400 million on-market share buyback to be carried out over the remainder of this financial year and next year.

Brambles said in its statement to the ASX on Monday that increasing automation on the part of its customers was “leading to a requirement for consistently higher quality pallets compatible with these automated handling systems”.

Brambles said it was progressively increasing its repair quality to meet this demand, which had contributed to creating a bottleneck.

The company said:

During April 2026, this focus on quality consistency has coincided with short-term repair capacity constraints in parts of Brambles’ US subcontractor service centre network which Brambles expects to be resolved by the end of 1H27. These short-term repair capacity constraints have been driven by subcontractor turnover, labour availability challenges and the additional time required to repair pallets consistently to a higher standard. At the same time as repair capacity tightened, Brambles experienced higher than anticipated customer demand.

Brambles said these constraints were limiting its ability to fully service higher-than-expected demand, and there was also a “material” cost increase in the short term.

The company added:

Multiple measures are in place to improve service levels and restore pallet availability, including increasing pallet relocations, adding repair capacity and purchasing new pallets, including ~2 million in 4Q26, with additional pallet purchases expected in 1H27.

Profit aspirations scaled back

As a result, Brambles downgraded its sales revenue growth forecast to 2% to 3%, down from 3% to 4%, and downgraded its underlying profit growth forecast to 3% to 5%, down from 8% to 11%.

Much of that downgrade relates to a US$60 million impact from US repair capacity constraints, as well as some supply chain inefficiencies in Europe.

Brambles Chief Executive Officer Graham Chipchase said:

Today’s update reflects our increased focus on quality and customer outcomes, which has coincided with a combination of developments across the external operating environment and parts of our US subcontracted service centre network. Our immediate priority is to meet our customers’ needs and to restore stability and service in the affected parts of our US network. Our response and ongoing investments in quality reinforce that meeting our customers’ needs is non-negotiable. We will not compromise on the investment required to meet the quality, network resilience and service outcomes our customers expect. At the same time, we are making sure that we are positioned to meet our strategic objectives and do what is right for the long-term sustainability of the business. This includes ongoing investment in digital, automation and other customer initiatives, as we continue to deliver productivity and efficiency improvements across the business.

Brambles is valued at $29.38 billion.

The post Why are Brambles shares crashing more than 15% to a new 12-month low today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

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• Buy, hold, sell: Brambles, CBA, and Macquarie shares

Motley Fool contributor Cameron England 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.

The Pro Medicus Ltd (ASX: PME) share price has been one of the hardest-hit over the past year, down 56%, as the chart below shows.

But the medical imaging and services software business may have been oversold, according to experts. For starters, we should remember that the business has very defensive clients including hospitals, imaging centres and healthcare groups, so demand for services remains strong year to year.

The company has a pleasing outlook for both revenue and profit growth, which could bode very well to regain investor confidence. Let’s look at how undervalued the business could be.

Pro Medicus share price target

A share price target is where analysts think the share price could go within the next 12 months. But, it’s just an analyst’s estimate based on various factors (including the company’s fundamentals) – it’s not a guaranteed return.

According to CMC Invest, there have been eight ratings on the business within the last three months. Of those ratings, seven were buys, and one was a hold.

The average price target of those eight ratings is $196.73, suggesting a possible rise of 61% in the next year from where it is at the time of writing.

The most exciting price target is $241.89. This suggests the Pro Medicus share price could almost double within the next year.

At the other end of the spectrum, the lowest price target is $143.14. This still suggests a possible rise of 17%.

Valuation

Let’s also look at the price/earnings (P/E) ratio because it’s important to consider whether the company is attractive or not, bearing in mind its potential earnings growth.

It’s hard to know how much AI competitors will affect the software industry in the coming years, but analysts are still positive on the company’s potential.

According to the projection on CMC Invest, the business is forecast to generate earnings per share (EPS) of $1.372 in FY26 and $1.863 in FY27.

That means it’s valued at 89x FY26’s estimated earnings and 65x FY27’s estimated earnings. The projection also suggests that the business could grow EPS by 35.8% year-over-year in FY27.

If the company continues winning new customers (and renewing contracts on better terms), and retaining an underlying operating profit (EBIT) margin above 70%, then I think the company’s net profit could rise significantly from here. This could justify the most optimistic analysts’ projection.

The post How much could the Pro Medicus share price rise in the next year? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in Pro Medicus. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Pro Medicus. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Pro Medicus. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.