The Tinybeans Group Ltd (ASX: TNY) share price was on the move today following a new product update.

At the open, shares in the baby-parent-centric social media platform jumped 5.1%. Although, the move lost momentum throughout the day. The Tinybeans share price settled the day with a 0.3% gain to $1.47 per share.

Fur babies welcome

Previously, Tinybeans has been focused on providing a private social network for parents to share their baby’s moments with loved ones. However, today marks the entrance of ‘Pets’, which will be a complementary addition.

The company has built a business model around a “freemium” offering. That means free users of the platform receive advertisements tailored to the infant/child’s age. With such targeted placements, advertisers pay Tinybeans for the viewership.

In the announcement, the company noted an overwhelming demand from both Tinybeans’ families and brand partners. The demand lifted by a surge in pet adoptions, with 11 million United States households adopting since the pandemic.

Tinybeans expects the new product to result in deeper engagement from existing families — as well as new ‘pet-only’ families.

Following a successful beta test earlier in the year, the company expects to launch the new pet features in early May.

More revenue jolts Tinybeans share price

The initial jump in Tinybeans’ share price this morning was likely in relation to the additional revenue from the new product.

According to the release, Tinybeans has secured a new US$500,000 agreement over an initial 6-month period. The deal is with Hill’s Pet Nutrition Inc, which is a subsidiary of Colgate-Palmolive.

Revenue from Hill’s sponsorship is expected to be recognised mostly during Q4 FY21 to Q1 FY22.

Adding to the news, CEO Eddie Geller commented:

We’re excited to broaden our platform to include the pets of our existing families and to welcome new pet-only families. This new feature not only services our existing users with a richer experience that caters to their entire family, but also broadens the user acquisition funnel to millions of pet parents who treat their pets like children.

The company’s market capitalisation is now $67.7 million after today’s move in the Tinybeans share price

More reading

• Nickel Mines (ASX:NIC) share price plunges 12% on quarterly report
• What’s going on with the Wesfarmers (ASX:WES) share price today?
• BetaShares launches new ASX banking ETF
• iSelect (ASX:ISU) share price edges higher on special dividend
• Why has the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price plunged 6% today?

Mitchell Lawler has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Tinybeans Group Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Tinybeans 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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The Nickel Mines Ltd (ASX: NIC) share price was burrowing deep underground today. By the market’s close, shares in the nickel producer were trading at $1.13 – down 12.06%. By comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) ended the day 0.17% lower.

Today’s steep price movement came after the company released its activities report for the third quarter (Q3) of FY21.

Let’s take a closer look at today’s report.

Nickel Mines share price sinks

In a statement to the ASX, Nickel Mines reported disappointing results for the last quarter, with massive declines across the board.

Nickel sales fell 10.0% from the prior corresponding period (pcp) to 10,257 tonnes. Production of the 28^th element at the company’s Ranger Nickel Rotary Kiln Electric Furnace (RKEF) fell 12.7% to 10,067 tonnes.

Sales from RKEF were down 13.0% on the pcp to US$138.2 million and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) from the site were a staggering 29.2% lower at US$50.7 million. Underlying free cash flow from operations was 30.5% down on the previous quarter to US$50 million.

As well, production costs increased by double-digit figures. Nickel from the company’s 80%-owned Hengjaya mine cost 14.6% more than in the pcp at US$8,725 per tonne. From its 80%-owned Ranger site, Nickel Mines’ nickel production costs were 16.1% higher at US$8,641 per tonne. The company said 5,065 tonnes of the metal was produced from the Hengjaya mine and 5,003 tonnes from the Ranger mine.

In further news dampening the Nickel Mines share price, the company advised cash, receivables, and inventory on hand at the end of the quarter was down 46.4% to US$277.4 million.

Nickel Mines attributed the large burn rate to a US$180 million payment for a 50% stake in the Angel Nickel RKEF, a US$45 million debt repayment and a US$38.8 million dividend payment. This distribution is equivalent to US1.53 cents per share given 2.52 billion shares outstanding. The debt repayment means the Ranger debt facility is fully paid.

According to the company, lower production in Q3 can be attributed to record production and sales in the previous quarter, as well as the Lunar New Year in February. The increased production costs were blamed on the increasing price of nickel on the commodities market, as well as higher coal prices.

Nickel commodity price

According to the website Trading Economics, the price of nickel fell from its 6-year high of US$19,600 per tonne in February to its current US$16,350 per tonne due to concerns of oversupply. Demand, however, is forecast to increase as electric vehicle sales increase. Nickel is necessary for the production of the batteries used in electric cars.

Nickel Mines share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, the Nickel Mines share price has increased by around 135%. Before today’s double-digit drop, the company’s value was 17.4% greater compared to the beginning of 2021. Now, Nickel Mines shares are trading just 2.26% higher year to date.

Given today’s market price, Nickel Mines has a market capitalisation of around $2.9 billion.

More reading

• Why a2 Milk, Atlas Arteria, Audio Pixels, & Nickel Mines shares are sinking
• ASX 200 drops, Santos entices CEO, Centuria acquires again

Motley Fool contributor Marc Sidarous 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 Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) share price is falling at the final hurdle this month, dropping for the second day in a row.

At the time of writing, the Wesfarmers share price is $54.60, down 1.41% today.

It also fell yesterday, though far less dramatically, ending the day 0.81% lower than the previous session’s close.

With no news out of the company, many investors are wondering whether there’s a reason for the Wesfarmers share price tumbling.

Let’s take a look at what Wesfarmers has been up to lately.

A brief refresher on Wesfarmers

Wesfarmers began its life in 1914 as a Western Australian farmers’ cooperative. It has since grown to include many brands that nearly all Australians would recognise.

These include Bunnings, Kmart, Target, Catch.com.au, Officeworks, Kleenheat, and Flybuys.

What’s Wesfarmers been up to this month?

The Wesfarmers share price started the month off strong. Between 31 March and 19 April, it closed every day trading higher than the last.

It climbed from $52.67 to $55.83 and, after a brief correction, it reached $56.14.

Interestingly, such a dramatic climb occurred without the company publishing a word of price sensitive news to the ASX this month. Although, it did quietly release its plans for the future of Kmart. 

Outside of the ASX there has been news that Bunnings Warehouse may repurpose onsite carparks to be used as mass vaccination hubs.

We’ve also heard news from Target this month. It announced when it will be closing between 10 and 25 of its large stores and 50 of its smaller Target Country stores. Nearly 12 months ago we reported on the fate of many of Wesfarmers’ Target stores, but only now do we know the exact details.  

Further, while some top brokers still think Wesfarmers shares are a good deal, some investors may be bearish of its 33.44 price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio.

Wesfarmers share price snapshot

While we have no concrete answers as to why we’re seeing the Wesfarmers share price fall, the drop it’s experienced over the last 2 days has still left it in the green this month.

It’s also currently up 5.9% year to date, and up by 45% over the last 12 months.

Wesfarmers has a market capitalisation of around $62.7 billion, with approximately 1.1 billion shares outstanding.

More reading

• Top brokers name 3 ASX dividend shares to buy today
• 2 strong ASX 200 shares offering good income
• 2 high quality ASX shares for your retirement portfolio
• Wesfarmers’ (ASX:WES) Bunnings open to hosting COVID vaccine hubs
• What’s happening with the Wesfarmers (ASX:WES) share price today?

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.

The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of COLESGROUP DEF SET and Wesfarmers Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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It was only back in February that we last looked at exchange-traded fund (ETF) provider BetaShares newest addition to the ASX. That was the BetaShares Cloud Computing ETF (ASX: CLDD), which launched in late February.

But today, we have news that BetaShares, evidently not one to rest on its laurels, is back at it. Today marks the first day of trading for the new BetaShares Australian Major Bank Hybrids Index ETF (ASX: BHYB). This new fund began trading this morning after opening at $10.02 per unit. At the time of writing, it hasn’t changed much, still priced at $10.02.

So if you’re a little confused over this ETF’s name, I wouldn’t blame you. Lots of jargon there. So the first thing to note is that this ETF doesn’t actually hold bank shares, like the Vaneck Vectors Australian Banks ETF (ASX: MVB) does. Or technically any ASX shares, for that matter. No, this new ETF will only hold what’s called ‘hybrid securities’ issued by ASX banks.

A hybrids ETF?

A hybrid is a type of security that combines elements of both a share and a bond (hence the name). The instrument is a bond (or a loan) but can be converted into equity (shares). As such, hybrids can offer interest income to investors, as well as possible dividend income and franking credits. All of the ASX banks routinely issue hybrid securities as part of their regular business. These hybrids trade on markets just like ASX shares do. And that is what this BetaShares ETF will invest in. Specifically those from Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC), National Australia Bank Ltd. (ASX: NAB) and Australia and New Zealand Banking GrpLtd (ASX: ANZ).

So BetaShares tells us the following additional information on hybrids:

The fund provider also states that the running annual yield of the index that this new ETF will track was 3.5% as of 31 March. That compares to the average of 4.1% per annum (5.8% grossed-up with franking credits) that the index returned annually between February 2012 and March 2021.

This new BetaShares Australian Major Bank Hybrids Index ETF will pay income distributions monthly. It also charges a management fee of 0.35% per annum.

More reading

• What’s going on with the Wesfarmers (ASX:WES) share price today?
• iSelect (ASX:ISU) share price edges higher on special dividend
• Why has the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price plunged 6% today?
• 2 top ASX dividend shares to buy
• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy now

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen owns shares of National Australia Bank Limited. 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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iSelect Ltd (ASX: ISU) shares are trekking higher after the company announced a special dividend and dividend program. This comes after the price comparison website operator’s shares delivered a mixed performance for its first-half results.

At the time of writing, the iSelect share price is swapping hands for 31 cents, up 3.3%.

Special dividend and dividend program

Investors appear to be pushing iSelect shares higher today, taking up the company’s latest dividend offer.

According to the release, iSelect state that working capital outflow associated with trail revenue is continuing to decrease. The positive trend is expected to remain for the foreseeable future.

In light of this, the board evaluated a number of capital management options over the past year, including acquisition targets. However, after careful consideration, iSelect has determined to reward shareholders with a special dividend. In addition, a regular dividend program will follow in FY22.

iSelect has agreed to pay a special unfranked dividend of 1 cent per share on 22 June 2021. The ex-dividend date (in which you must own the shares) is 1 June 2021.

In addition, the company noted that it will continue a regular dividend program at an initial price of 1 cent per share every half-year. The dividends will be unfranked. This will occur until a sufficient franking balance can be accumulated. The first payment in the program will take place in March 2022.

So how did iSelect perform in the first half of FY21?

It was a mixed result for iSelect over the six-month period ending 31 December 2020.

Revenue fell to $51.8 million, a 12% drop on the prior corresponding period. This was primarily due to the COVID-19 impact on consumer demand, and operating model changes in Q4 FY20.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) came in at $13.2 million, an increase of 724% over H1 FY20. Management focusing on cost has underpinned the strong performance. This saw a 15% reduction in overhead expenses.

Net profit after tax (NPAT) jumped to $5.5 million, compared to a $2 million loss over the same time last year.

About the iSelect share price

In the past 12 months, the iSelect share price has been a decent performer, rising close to 50%. Year-to-date, however, the company’s shares have only managed to gain around 8%.

iSelect has a market capitalisation of roughly $67 million, with 217.8 million shares on issue.

More reading

• Why the iSelect (ASX:ISU) share price is rocketing 5% Thursday

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras 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 Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) share price is plummeting today and, with no news out today from the buy now, pay later (BNPL) company, investors are scratching their heads.

At the time of writing, the Zip share price is trading at $8.05, down 5.9%.

In comparison, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is also down, but by only 0.3%.

Let’s take a look at the Zip share price’s recent performance to see if we can garner any clues as to what’s caused today’s dramatic drop.

The year that’s been for the BNPL darling

The Zip share price got off to a roaring start on the ASX this year, but its highest point is long behind it now.

In the middle of February, the company’s share price recorded its highest closing price ever – closing the day’s trade at $13.92.

Unfortunately, it was caught in the US-driven tech sell-off in March. Over the course of the month, the Zip share price fell by 29%.

Since then, the BNPL giant’s share price has been on a rollercoaster. For the first half of April, it performed in an upwards pattern.

Zip received a whopping 16.9% boost on the back of its third-quarter results.

All good things must come to an end though. Since then, they’ve been sliding.

Between the Zip share prices’ highest April close and yesterday’s close, it lost 12% of its value.

Last week, it traded mostly flat. This week it’s plunged a whopping 9.7%. 

Zip share price snapshot

There don’t seem to be any obvious answers as to why the Zip share price is falling on the ASX today.

Long-term shareholders can still rest well, however. Despite this week’s poor performance, the company’s share price is up 44% year to date. It’s also up 281% over the last 12 months.

Zip has a market capitalisation of around $4.7 billion, with approximately 552 million shares outstanding.

More reading

• Province Resources and Zip were among the most traded ASX shares last week
• ASX 200 down 0.5%: Bingo & Tabcorp takeovers, BlueScope upgrades guidance
• Your handy guide to 5 top ASX BNPL shares
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
• ASX 200 dips, NIB soars, Perenti rises

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.

The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of 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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Some ASX dividend shares are top ideas for income. They are capable of producing much bigger payments to investors than what someone can get from the bank in interest.

It’s a good idea to make sure that the price you pay for a dividend share is good value, just like buying any other investment.

These two have compelling income potential:

Premier Investments Limited (ASX: PMV)

Premier Investments has a forecast grossed-up dividend yield of 5.1% for FY21 according to Commsec.

This business is the owner of numerous retail brands including Peter Alexander, Smiggle, Just Jeans, Jay Jays and so on. It also has a sizeable stake of appliance business Breville Group Ltd (ASX: BRG).

Premier Investments has been a strong dividend payer for a number of years and it kept the dividends rolling despite all of the difficult COVID-19 impacts. It has been working hard on landlords to reduce their rents to reflect the new world we live in where there are more sales made online.

Online sales made up 20% of total sales for the first half of its FY21. It also contributed to a higher profit margin. Global retail sales only went up 7.2%, but online sales rose 61.3%. Premier’s retail gross margin went up 286 basis points and the earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) margin increased by 1,308 basis points. This helped EBIT jump 88.5% to $237.5 million. Profit growth will help maintain and grow the dividend.

Global retail sales continue to grow for the ASX dividend share, with like for like sales up 32.1% in the first seven weeks of the second half. The gross margin improved by 379 basis points.

Premier’s board decided to maintain the interim dividend at 34 cents per share. The board recognised there is still a lot of uncertainty with the global health crisis as well as the economic impacts.

Pacific Current Group Ltd (ASX: PAC)

Pacific currently has a trailing grossed-up dividend yield of 8.8%. This business is rated as a buy by the broker Ord Minnett. It has a price target of $6.70 on the ASX share.

What is Pacific? It partners and invests with global fund managers to help them grow with capital and expertise.

Some of its current investments includes GQG Partners, Astarte Capital Partners, ROC Partners, Victory Park Capital and Aether Investment Partners.

The ASX dividend share has a low forward price/earnings ratio according to Ord Minnett. The Pacific Current share price is valued at 11x FY21’s estimated earnings.

Pacific continues to see an improvement of its underlying management profit. A benefit of funds management businesses is that they’re scalable – they don’t require much capital to add more funds under management (FUM) each year.

Total FUM at 31 December 2020 was $112.8 billion, an increase of 23.9% since 30 June 2002 after adjusting for the sale of Seizert. The non-Australian dollar denominated FUM saw a 40% increase from June to December.

Pacific Current also saw management fee revenue grow 10% and operating expenses decline by 24%. It was only because of the stronger Australian dollar and lower outperformance fees that caused Pacific’s underlying net profit to decline by 13.4%.  

More reading

• 3 ASX dividend shares to buy today
• Bullish ASX 200 shares breaking into 52-week highs 
• These were the best performing ASX 200 shares in March

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison owns shares of PACCURRENT FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Premier Investments 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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Many of Australia’s top brokers have been busy once again adjusting their estimates and recommendations. This has led to the release of a number of broker notes.

Three broker buy ratings that have caught my eye are summarised below. Here’s why brokers think these ASX shares are in the buy zone:

Aussie Broadband Ltd (ASX: ABB)

According to a note out of Shaw & Partners, its analysts have retained their buy rating and lifted their price target on this broadband provider’s shares to $3.33. The broker appears pleased with the company’s decision to allow retail brands to sell its internet services under their own name. And while it notes that the company hasn’t disclosed margins, it expects them to be in line with core expectations. Overall, it sees this offering as a potential growth catalyst. The Aussie Broadband share price is up 4% to $3.20 today.

Chalice Mining Ltd (ASX: CHN)

A note out of Macquarie reveals that its analysts have retained their outperform rating and lifted the price target on this mineral exploration company’s shares materially to $9.20. The broker made the move following the release of drilling results from Julimar. It notes that these have extended and widened the known zones of mineralisation. Looking ahead, Macquarie now assumes an 8 million tonnes per year operation is developed for A$500 million in capital. This has led to a material upgrade to its earnings estimates. The Chalice Mining share price is trading at $7.01 today.

Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC)

Analysts at Goldman Sachs have retained their buy rating and lifted their price target on this banking giant’s shares to $26.67. This follows the release of an update on notable items ahead of its half year results release. Goldman has upgraded its earnings estimates to reflect these items and also the mark to market of its lending volumes assumptions. This led to earnings upgrades of 4.2%, 3.1%, and 3.7% for FY 2021 through to FY 2023. The broker also estimates that its shares offer fully franked dividend yields of 4.5%, 5.2%, and 5.4% over the next three years. The Westpac share price is trading at $25.00 this afternoon.

More reading

• ASX bank shares best placed to ride the $1bn+ provisioning profit boost this reporting season
• Chalice Mining (ASX:CHM) share price surges to new record high
• ASX 200 dips, NIB soars, Perenti rises
• What could APRA’s climate guidance mean for ASX bank shares?
• Is the Commonwealth Bank (ASX:CBA) share price a buy at $90?

James Mickleboro owns shares of Westpac Banking. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Aussie Broadband Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Aussie Broadband 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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The AMP Limited (ASX: AMP) share price will be closely watched leading up to Friday’s annual general meeting (AGM). The embattled company is facing a second strike to its remuneration report.

At the time of writing, the AMP share price is 2% lower to $1.12.

Two strikes and it’s time to change

The news of a demerger and slowed decline rates in capital flows have not been enough to put a floor under the AMP share price. Instead, the financial services company has gained further attention from shareholders for some questionable remuneration plans.

At the AGM on Friday, the not-for-profit Australian Shareholders’ Association (ASA) will vote against the AMP remuneration report. This action follows ASA with other proxies and shareholders voting against the remuneration report last year.

If Friday results in a vote of greater than 25% against the report, AMP will cop a second strike. As a consequence, a vote will be held for a ‘spill meeting’, which essentially is a vote to put the current directors up for re-election.

However, ASA will vote against the spill motion. As mentioned in correspondence, ASA stated:

The recent changes to the Board and management have seen considerable disruption, while we may not agree with the remuneration decisions in full, we can see the necessity to provide some incentive to retain staff during this difficult period.

The proxy holder does not view a spill motion as a productive move to revitalise the AMP share price.

Short term incentives cause for concern

While ASA notes some improvements have been made to the previous plan, the new proposed remuneration plan is seen to emphasise the short-term too heavily. Only 25% of the planned pay is made up of long-term incentives. Given the track record of AMP, this doesn’t bode well with investors.

On top of that, ASA opposes the use of retention payments and incentives that are not bound to performance. Despite not being held to any performance measure, AMP dished out up to 100% of fixed remuneration to key management personnel, excluding the CEO, amounting to $3.89 million.

Boe’s bad timing weighs on AMP share price

In response to AMP’s first strike, the company detailed it must balance the need to retain talent and reward performance. Though, ‘balance’ might be brought into question by Boe Pahari’s rumoured golden handshake to be.

As reported by the AFR, the Global Head of AMP Capital, Mr. Pahari, could stand to receive $50 million in entitlements as he walks out the door. The payment is as per the fund’s contractual entitlement to 20% of the excess investment returns achieved above its benchmark. If only shareholders experienced the same windfall in AMP’s share price performance.

Whether or not Pahari’s payments will occur, it certainly doesn’t attract a glowing endorsement for the company’s remuneration structuring.

More reading

• Could value finally be emerging for the embattled AMP (ASX:AMP) share price?
• History is on the side of the battered AMP (ASX:AMP) share price as it plans its demerger
• AMP (ASX:AMP) is the most traded ASX 200 share today
• Why Accent, AMP, De Grey, & Nuix shares are charging higher
• ASX 200 down 0.1%: Kogan crashes, AMP’s demerger plans, Telstra strengthens 5G network

Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler 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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Volt Resources Ltd (ASX: VRC) shares are soaring today following news of the company’s latest acquisition. At the time of writing, the Volt share price is trading at 2.4 cents, 20% higher than yesterday’s close.

This comes after the company advised it has signed binding share purchase agreements to acquire 70% of European graphite producer, Zavalievsky Graphite (ZG).

Let’s look further into the graphite and gold explorer’s new acquisition.

Breaking into graphite

According to Volt, the acquisition will see it move from graphite explorer to graphite producer and place it in a more secure position than that of its peers by removing greenfield financing and development risks.

ZG owns a graphite mine, with processing facilities located approximately 280 kilometres south of the Ukraine capital Kyiv and 230 kilometres north of the main port of Odessa.

Volt states that its acquisition will immediately make it one of only a few graphite producers on the ASX.

The acquisition will see Volt take a 70% stake in ZG at a cost of US$7.6 million over two instalments. The first instalment is due upon purchase and the second is due six months later.

According to Volt, the ZG business is close to key markets with significant development of lithium-ion battery facilities planned to service the European electric vehicle market.

Volt stated in its release today that ZG produces “green purified 99.5% TGC (total graphitic content) product”. Additionally, the business has the potential to increase its large flake production and has a long production life.

ZG has plans to install a processing plant and equipment to begin production of spheronised, purified graphite for the European lithium-ion market in the next 12 months.

Commentary from management

Volt managing director Trevor Matthews commented that the agreement is a significant step for the aspiring graphite producer. He said:

The acquisition of a controlling interest in the ZG Group positions Volt years ahead of its peer graphite companies and without the usual development risks associated with a greenfield project…

Following Volt’s recently announced membership of the European Battery Alliance providing Volt with access to business development opportunities and a business investment platform, the ZG Group acquisition has the potential to make Volt a key participant in the supply of graphite and battery anode materials into the growing European market with excellent access to other markets in the USA and Middle East.

Volt Resources share price snapshot

The latest news from Volt Resources is boosting its share price again, adding to the company’s great year on the ASX so far.

Currently, it’s up 150% year to date. It’s up by the same amount over the last 12 months.  

The company has a market capitalisation of around $47 million, with approximately 2.3 billion shares outstanding.

More reading

• Here’s why the SciDev (ASX:SDV) share price is on the rise today
• Province Resources and Zip were among the most traded ASX shares last week
• Investing has a problem…
• 2 high-quality ASX 200 shares to buy today
• Why the Adore Beauty (ASX:ABY) share price is charging higher today

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper 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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