The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is back on form on Tuesday and pushing higher. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 0.2% to 6,988.8 points.

Four ASX shares that are climbing more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are charging higher:

IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO)

The IGO share price has risen 3% to $6.86 after announcing the sale of its 30% stake in the Tropicana Gold Project to Regis Resources Limited (ASX: RRL). According to the release, the two parties have agreed a fee of $903 million for the asset. IGO advised that the divestment to Regis maximises the value of Tropicana for shareholders and allows the company to concentrate on its strategic focus on commodities critical to enabling clean energy.

Orocobre Limited (ASX: ORE)

The Orocobre share price has climbed 3.5% to $5.66 after providing an update on lithium prices. According to the release, the company had a very successful sales campaign and experienced strong market demand for Olaroz lithium carbonate during the March quarter. This led to sales of 3,032 tonnes at US$5,853/tonne. This means its pricing is up more than 50% on the December 2020 quarter and nearly 90% in the last six months.

Splitit Ltd (ASX: SPT)

The Splitit share price has jumped 10% to 86 cents. Investors have been buying this buy now pay later (BNPL) provider’s shares after it announced a deal with UnionPay. According to the release, UnionPay International will be integrating Splitit to make it available to its network. This will give UnionPay card holders and those accepting UnionPay the opportunity to utilise Splitit’s instalment payments product. However, it is worth noting that Splitit doesn’t see much short-term economic benefit for the company from the deal.

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P)

The Zip share price has surged 12% higher to $9.35. This follows the release of the BNPL provider’s third quarter update this morning. That update revealed that Zip’s strong form has continued since the end of the first half. For the three months ended 31 March, Zip posted an 80% increase in group quarterly revenue to $114.4 million. This was driven by a 195% increase in transaction numbers to 12.4 million and a 114% jump in quarterly transaction volume to $1.6 billion.

More reading

• The Orocobre (ASX:ORE) share price is climbing. Here’s why.
• Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price races 11% higher on record Q3 performance
• Why the Splitit (ASX:SPT) share price is up 7% this morning
• Regis Resources (ASX:RRL) announces $900m Tropicana Gold Project acquisition
• These top 2 ASX 200 shares have thumped the index’s 2021 returns

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 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.

The post Why IGO, Orocobre, Splitit, & Zip shares are charging higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3tdy0eT

The Technology Metals Australia Ltd (ASX: TMT) share price is surging today after the company’s test work revealed titanium in its mining operations.

The Technology Metals share price is currently up 5.5% trading at 39 cents at the time of writing.

Technology Metals is focused on identifying exploration projects in Australia and overseas to discover mineral deposits. Its exploration focus is on vanadium in the mid-west region of Western Australia. It centres its current mining operations in Yarrabubba.

Technology Metals titanium findings

Technology Metals’ test work on non-magnetic tails from two large samples of fresh massive magnetite composites confirmed a quality ilmenite, a byproduct containing titanium.

The excavations have resulted in 47% titanium, which is within the range of commercial feedstock for sulfate pigment manufacturers. Technology Metals intends to market the findings as an attractive blend feedstock.

It’s an attractive blend feedstock for sulphate pigment producers due to its low levels of generally common deleterious elements.

Independent consultants that Technology Metals engaged to conduct quality benchmarking of its titanium findings estimate the results will achieve US$140 – $180/tonne in the medium term.

What management said

Technology Metals managing director Ian Prentice welcomed the findings, saying:

Confirmation of the ability to produce an attractive titanium by-product at Yarrabubba, as confirmed by industry leading consultants TZMI, in a period of high demand further underscores the unique opportunity we have with the range of products anticipated to be generated from Yarrabubba.

The titanium by-product produced from the tails stream indicates that this should be a very low cost and potentially very profitable product.

Technology Metals share price snapshot

The Technology Metals share price is up 5.4% over the past month and 14.7% in 2021 so far. In the last 12 months, it’s increased from just seven cents per share to 39 cents, a 457% rise. 

It’s also beaten the basic materials sector by more than 410%. 

More reading

• The Orocobre (ASX:ORE) share price is climbing. Here’s why.
• CSL (ASX:CSL) share price falls amid ongoing AstraZeneca uncertainty
• Liontown (ASX:LTR) share price rises after gold update
• Better buy: Amazon vs. GameStop
• Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price races 11% higher on record Q3 performance

Motley Fool contributor Lucas Radbourne-Pugh 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.

The post The Technology Metals (ASX:TMT) share price has climbed 5% today. Here’s why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3a7SqOF

The Orocobre Limited (ASX: ORE) share price is rising this morning after a pricing update from the Aussie lithium miner. At the time of writing, the Orocobre share price is currently at $5.65, up 3.29%.

Why is the Orocobre share price climbing?

This morning, Orocobre reported a lithium price upgrade and provided its quarterly report date. The Aussie miner sold 3,032 tonnes of Olaroz lithium carbonate during the March 2021 quarter at US$5,853 per tonne free on board (FOB).

That sale price represents a more than 50 per cent increase on December 2020 quarter prices with prices received by Olaroz now up nearly 90 per cent in the last six months. 

The Orocobre share price has charged higher on the back of this morning’s update. Shares in the lithium miner jumped more than 4 per cent in early trade.

Orocobre also provided an update on the expected June 2021 quarter pricing this morning. The mining group expects US$7,400 per tonne FOB, subject to shipping schedules. That would represent the highest pricing received since June 2019 for the Aussie miner. 

As a result, Orocobre is expecting second half FY2021 pricing to be approximately 20 per cent higher than prior guidance. Investors have been bullish on the news this morning as the Orocobre share price was climbing higher at the open.

According to the release, forward sales enquiries for all grades of Olaroz lithium carbonate remain strong and all budgeted FY2022 product is fully sold. Additional production will become available when Olaroz Stage 2 commences production in the second half of 2022.

Orocobre is set to report its full March 2021 quarter results on 21 April 2021. That will be followed by a management briefing at 11:15 am.

Foolish takeaway

The Orocobre share price remains one to watch throughout the day’s trade after climbing early. The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) also jumped in early trade following a soft start to the week on Monday.

More reading

• 2 ASX 200 shares to buy for dividends
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
• Why the Magellan (ASX:MFG) share price outperformed today
• ASX 200 drops, Santos entices CEO, Centuria acquires again
• Telstra (ASX:TLS) share price hits new 8-month high

Motley Fool contributor Ken Hall 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.

The post The Orocobre (ASX:ORE) share price is climbing. Here’s why. appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3a8ojqn

CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) shares are edging lower today as ongoing uncertainty over the side effects of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine continues. At the time of writing, the CSL share price is trading 0.11% lower at $265.22.

CSL is involved in the research, development, manufacture, marketing and distribution of biopharmaceutical and allied products. The company advised late last month it is set to produce more than 1 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine per week. 

It was commissioned by the government to produce 50 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, before the vaccine was found to create a one-in-200,000 chance of blood clots – termed thrombosis with thrombocytopenia – around the brain and abdomen.

This led to the government’s health body ruling out use of the vaccine for anyone under 50-years-old, including frontline health workers, but that uncertainty has led to the widespread cancellation of vaccine appointments across the country.

One Australian patient suffered thrombosis and a low platelet count after being vaccinated on 22 March.

The government has ordered an additional 20 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine, bringing the total to 40 million, which are due to arrive late this year.

This is leading to concerns that many of the vaccine doses CSL is producing will go to waste. Furthermore, the government has now thrown out any timeframe around rolling out the vaccine.

CSL said in a statement on 8 April that it was still committed to producing the AstraZeneca vaccine.

 “[CSL is] committed to meeting its contracted arrangements with the Australian Government and AstraZeneca for locally produced AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines.”

“We will continue our focused and important efforts to manufacture this vaccine which remains critical for the protection of our most vulnerable populations.”

CSL share price snapshot

Despite initial dips in the CSL share price as vaccine targets were changed and AstraZeneca uncertainty pervaded news headlines, the company’s shares have continued to rise over the past month.

At the time of writing, the CSL share price is up by 0.74% this week and 3.66% over the past month.

However, it’s worth noting that the company’s shares have been slipping since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the past 12 months, the CSL share price has lost around 19% and it’s down around 12% against the healthcare sector during that same period.

More reading

• Trashed COVID-19 vaccine targets hit ASX travel shares
• How you can become rich buying and holding ASX shares
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX sees 7,000 points once more
• Is the CSL (ASX:CSL) share price too cheap to ignore?
• CSL (ASX:CSL) share price dips on latest AstraZeneca news

Lucas Radbourne-Pugh has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

The post CSL (ASX:CSL) share price falls amid ongoing AstraZeneca uncertainty appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3wRWoEL

The Liontown Resources Limited (ASX: LTR) share price is rising this morning as the mineral explorer provided an update on a potential gold discovery in Western Australia.

At the time of writing, Liontown shares were swapping hands for 44 cents each, up 2.33%. By comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is 0.15% higher.

Let’s take a closer look at today’s announcement and how it might affect the Liontown share price.

What might affect the Liontown share price?

In a statement to the ASX, Liontown declared preliminary results at its Moora Project in WA have been “outstanding”.

The company has drilled 264 holes since December 2020 and in that time Liontown has been able to identify 3 separate zones in its site. They are:

• Angepena Zone – a 900m long gold zone with ore of 1.7grams of gold per tonne and even 21.2g/t.
• Northern Zone – a 2km long and 150m wide copper and gold zone with ore of 2.1% copper and 1.2g/t of gold.
• South Eastern Zone (SEZ) – an area consisting of 0.4g/t of gold and 0.2% copper.

The company says further testing in the SEZ is needed as the potential for more gold and copper reserves in the area is high.

Furthermore, at the Bindi Bindi prospect, Liontown believes it may have intersected an “anomalous” amount of nickel.

Work will continue at the site to assess the feasibility of further and deeper exploration. These announcements seem to be pushing up the Liontown share price. 

A look at gold and copper prices

The price of gold has been falling since it reached an all-time high of US$2,068.90 per troy ounce in August last year. At present, the price of the precious metal is US$1,732.93 per troy ounce.

Generally, the price of gold is seen as inversely related to the economy. This means as the prospect of an economic recovery post-pandemic grows, the price of gold is likely to continue to fall. This could be negative for the Liontown share price.

Copper, on the other hand, usually moves in the same direction as GDP growth. As of writing, the metal is trading for US$4.03 a pound. It’s only slightly below its 5-year peak of US$4.29 per pound.

The price of copper is also being affected by supply issues out of Chile, according to the Trading Economics website. This, on the other hand, could be more optimistic for the Liontown share price.

Liontown share price snapshot

Over the last 12-months, the Liontown share price has increased 458.44%. The company’s lithium division seems to be the main driver of this increase in value. A surge in demand for lithium is seeing many ASX lithium shares rise too.

Liontown has a market capitalisation of $771.6 million.

More reading

• Liontown Resources (ASX:LTR) share price lifts after lithium update
• Surge in mining exploration to benefit these small-cap ASX shares: broker

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.

The post Liontown (ASX:LTR) share price rises after gold update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/32fRq6F

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

As great as an investment Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) has been for long-term growth investors it’s no match lately against the meteoric stock rise of GameStop (NYSE: GME). The video game retailer saw its stock more than triple last year, and this year it catapulted as a “meme stock.” Even after retreating sharply since their frenzied peak the shares are up 741% this young year. 

If we draw the starting line at the end of February last year GameStop is a stunning 45-bagger. That’s a jaw-dropping spurt in a little more than 13 months. Amazon’s been a perpetual market beater but you would have to go back 12 years to find the point where the world’s leading online retailer is also a 45-bagger. 

GameStop is the hot stock, but the fundamentals are overwhelmingly in Amazon’s favor. Let’s size up each name to see which one is the better buy right now.

GameStop comes to play

Step aside from the hype, and GameStop investors are caught between a stock and a hard place. The company has posted 12 consecutive quarters of year-over-year declines in revenue, even in its latest financial report where low-margin PS5 sales weren’t enough to will the retailer to positive sales growth. 

The empire is shrinking its physical footprint, closing 12% of its stores over the past year. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, especially with the surge in e-commerce giving investors hope that the nostalgic brand can be repositioned in a digital future. GameStop will have to keep cutting costs if it wants to compete more effectively with Amazon and other online specialists, especially with its highest margin business — the resale of physical video games — fading in the online revolution. 

Net sales have been nearly cut in half over the past five years, down 46% from where they were five fiscal years ago. A few years ago GameStop was a money machine, but it has posted three consecutive years of steep losses. GameStop doesn’t seem to look the part of a stock hitting all-time highs this year, and with short interest dropping substantially is there life for GameStop beyond the meme squeeze? 

The key to GameStop justifying its 45-fold spike since the end of February last year is its ability to transform. It will die if it stands still. There’s fresh blood flooding the boardroom and its executive ranks. Will that be enough? It’s playing from behind at this point.

Amazon makes it rain

In the same five years that GameStop’s business has been roughly cut in half we’ve seen Amazon revenue more than triple. Momentum is naturally on Amazon’s side here, accelerating with the 44% year-over-year top-line spike in its record-breaking holiday quarter. 

There is a lot Amazon excels in, but it’s also everywhere GameStop wants to be. It’s been selling video games and related gear online for more than two dozen years. Amazon’s Twitch is the gold standard for diehard gamers looking to share their in-game streams, a market that GameStop would love to own. Digital distribution is largely in the hands of console makers and software publishers, but if GameStop sees an opportunity in joining the crowded realm of cloud-based gaming services it will have Amazon’s recently unveiled Luna to reckon with now.

Facing the end boss

Everywhere GameStop turns for growth it seems as if Amazon is already there. This isn’t the real problem for the hot-but-damaged retail stock. GameStop’s enterprise value of $11.6 billion is less than 1% of Amazon’s $1.7 trillion.

The problem for GameStop is that a lot is expected with the stock at new highs but its fundamentals are at new lows. GameStop has tried to make a dent in digital, even years ago when it actually had the cash flow to deploy next-gen growth initiatives. It didn’t work then. There’s a lot of brand awareness now as a meme stock, but the clock is ticking on its ability to turn its influencer cred into a bankable business. Amazon is the best buy at this point. 

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

More reading

• Better buy: Amazon vs. Kroger
• 2 investing approaches to help get you started on the ASX
• Is it riskier NOT owning Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA)?
• Amazon planning its annual prime day event for June this year
• GameStop names activist investor Ryan Cohen as chairman of the board

Rick Munarriz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and recommends Amazon and recommends the following options: long January 2022 $1920 calls on Amazon and short January 2022 $1940 calls on Amazon. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Amazon. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

The post Better buy: Amazon vs. GameStop appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3g6h71W

The Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) share price is racing higher on Tuesday morning.

In early trade, the buy now pay later (BNPL) provider’s shares are up a sizeable 11% to $9.25.

Why is the Zip share price racing higher?

Investors have been fighting to get hold of Zip shares this morning following the release of its third quarter update.

According to the release, Zip’s strong form continued during the quarter, with the company delivering record quarterly revenue and transactions.

For the three months ended 31 March, Zip posted an 80% increase in group quarterly revenue to $114.4 million. This was driven by a 195% increase in transaction numbers to 12.4 million and a 114% jump in quarterly transaction volume to $1.6 billion.

Also continuing to grow was the company’s customer numbers. At the end of the period, Zip had 6.4 million active customers globally. This was up 88% from the prior corresponding period and 12.3% from 5.7 million at the end of December.

How did its businesses perform?

The company’s US-based QuadPay business was the standout performer. It achieved record results across all core metrics during the quarter.

QuadPay’s transaction volume grew 234% to $762 million, its revenue rose 188% to $54.4 million, and customer numbers grew 674,000 or 153% to 3.8 million.

This was complemented by the Zip ANZ business, which continued its strong momentum. It recorded a 61% increase in transaction volume to $837.3 million and a 37% lift in customer numbers to 2.6 million. Positively, quarterly revenue rose 10% quarter on quarter to $57.9 million despite seasonal trends.

Another positive was that the net bad debts for its ANZ business reduced to 1.78% from 1.93%. Management notes that this is a very strong result which further validates the strength of Zip’s proprietary credit decision technology and ability to manage risk.

Management commentary

Zip’s Managing Director and CEO, Larry Diamond, said: “We are extremely pleased with the strong growth and momentum in the business, delivering another exceptional set of numbers. Our US business was again a standout, confirming our position as truly one of the fastest growing global BNPL leaders.”

“The resilience of the UK team is now delivering results and we look forward to a very exciting future for that region. It was fantastic to see more lighthouse brands join the platform and the global merchant pipeline is extremely healthy. Our focus on unit economics continues to provide a point of difference and points to a strong bottom line at scale. We continue to innovate and deliver new features to our customers in line with our mission to become the first payment choice everywhere, every day,” he added.

International expansion

Zip also revealed that it is following in the footsteps of rival Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) by expanding into other markets.

During the quarter, Zip made a number of key moves including a soft launch into Canada. This was driven by US merchant demand.

It also agreed terms for a strategic investment into South East Asia via leading Philippines BNPL player, TendoPay, and made a follow-on investment into leading Eastern European BNPL player, Twisto.

Management commented: “Outside of Zip’s core markets of Australia, New Zealand, US and the UK, the Company is investing in New Markets to expand its global footprint across both the developed and developing world. The aversion to traditional credit cards, long term revolving debt and the rapid adoption of BNPL is truly a global phenomenon.”

More reading

• These top 2 ASX 200 shares have thumped the index’s 2021 returns
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX sees 7,000 points once more
• These were the best performing ASX 200 shares last week
• Why it looks like a V-shaped recovery for the Xero (ASX:XRO) share price
• The Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price is up almost 20% this month

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 ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

The post Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price races 11% higher on record Q3 performance appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3a99qEa

The Splitit Payments Ltd (ASX: SPT) share price is on the move this morning. Shares in the Aussie payment solutions provider charged more than 4% higher after announcing a new global partnership deal. At the time of writing, the Splitit share price has retreated slightly, trading at 83 cents, up 6.41%.

Why is the Splitit share price climbing higher?

Splitit has this morning announced a new global partnership with UnionPay International. That is part of China UnionPay, the provider of bank card services and a major card scheme in mainland China.

UnionPay International will integrate Splitit into its network as part of the new deal. That will give UnionPay cardholders and those accepting UnionPay the chance to use Splitit’s instalment payments product.

The Splitit share price jumped more than 7% at the open on the back of this morning’s news. The new deal will open up Splitit’s solutions to over 55 million merchants on the UnionPay global acceptance network. That includes over 32 million merchants outside of mainland China. The offering will be active from June 2021 onwards.

Splitit CEO Brad Paterson said:

Partnering with UnionPay opens up our solution to UnionPay credit cardholders, building on our existing card partner networks. It combines our unique instalment solution and global reach with UnionPay’s powerful cardholder base.

He also added that:

The partnership is another significant milestone in Splitit’s Asia Pacific expansion strategy to boost consumer adoption and merchant acceptance.

The Splitit share price is on the move despite the actual value of the agreement with UnionPay International being currently unknown.

That’s due to the “contingent nature” of the results that may be generated by the agreement. According to the release, Splitit doesn’t see much short-term economic benefit for the company. However, it will support the company’s strategic growth plans.

Foolish takeaway

The Splitit share price jumped as much as 7.7% in early trade after its latest global partnership deal. The UnionPay International deal will expand Splitit’s Asia Pacific reach and continue to fuel growth for the Aussie payments group.

More reading

• The Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price is up almost 20% this month
• What’s with the Splitit (ASX:SPT) share price today?
• Is the Affirm share price dragging ASX BNPL shares lower?
• Why the Flexiroam (ASX:FRX) share price opened 7% higher today
• Why Austal, Boral, Spark NZ, & Splitit are tumbling lower

Motley Fool contributor Ken Hall 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.

The post Why the Splitit (ASX:SPT) share price is up 7% this morning appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3dbJD08

The National Tyre & Wheel Ltd (ASX: NTD) share price has surged more than 21% this morning after another trading update from the Aussie motor vehicle group.

At the time of writing, National Tyre shares are trading at $1.04.

Why is the National Tyre share price climbing?

The National Tyre share price has rocketed higher at the open following a 2.4% gain in yesterday’s trade. Today’s big news was National Tyre providing updated guidance for the financial year ended 30 June 2021 (FY2021).

National Tyre reported that trading in Q3 had “continued recent trends”. As a result, it expects to record operating earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of between $31 million and $33 million in FY2021. That figure excludes items relating to the August 2020 Tyres4U acquisition and AASB16 adjustments.

This comes after a strong trading update in January that saw the company’s share price rocket higher. In that announcement, the company said first-half trading had “exceeded expectations”.

Per this morning’s release, the company is now estimating basic earnings per share (EPS) of 17 cents. That represents a significant payout against yesterday’s $0.85 closing National Tyre share price.

National Tyre also provided an update on its financial position. The company said its balance sheet remained strong with $24.8 million of cash on hand at 31 March 2021. The group’s net debt sits at $19.3 million as at quarter-end.

Today’s guidance assumes no material impact on operations from a market downturn or withdrawal of the JobKeeper program.

Foolish takeaway

Shares in the Aussie motor vehicle services group are surging higher in early trade. Today’s update is just one of many good performance updates from National Tyre over the past 12 months.

The National Tyre share price has rocketed 226.9% higher in the last year. That comes amid a hot used car market in part due to strong economic stimulus measures and reduced consumer spending options due to the coronavirus pandemic.

More reading

• Why the Splitit (ASX:SPT) share price is up 7% this morning
• Netflix just fixed its only disadvantage in streaming
• Why the Aussie Broadband (ASX:ABB) share price is surging higher today
• Regis Resources (ASX:RRL) announces $900m Tropicana Gold Project acquisition
• Why the Sheffield Resources (ASX:SFX) share price is on watch

Motley Fool contributor Ken Hall 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.

The post Why the National Tyre (ASX:NTD) share price rocketed 21% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3wTAvVY

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) may be all about its original series and films, but its library can still benefit from familiar studio blockbusters. That’s why it inked a deal with Sony (NYSE: SNE) to exclusively stream the studio’s output starting with its 2022 film release slate. The deal also includes first-looks at Sony’s direct-to-home releases and several key back catalog titles, and builds on its existing deal for Sony’s animated film releases.

The opportunities to strike these deals have become few and far between as new competitors pop up and studios retain their film output. Sony may have been Netflix’s only option to even the playing field.

Streaming silos

Studios used to strike first-run deals with premium cable channels like AT&T‘s (NYSE: T) HBO or Lionsgate‘s Starz. Then Netflix’s streaming service came along and expanded from buying old back catalogs of films to first-run releases like the premium channels.

The licensing revenue from these deals was great for the studios. It’s extremely high-margin, and some deals could help breathe new life into old releases.

But now, after significant consolidation in the media industry, nearly every major studio is associated with its own streaming service. Many media companies have their own in-house collections of films and television series that they can bring direct to the consumer with streaming with efficient costs, making it a more profitable endeavor.

Studios	Parent Company	Streaming Service
Walt Disney, Marvel, Pixar, Lucasfilm	Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS)	Disney+
20th Century, Searchlight	Walt Disney	Hulu
Warner Bros., DC, New Line	AT&T	HBO Max
Paramount	ViacomCBS	Paramount+
Universal, Dreamworks, Illumination	Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA)	Peacock
Lionsgate	Lionsgate	Starz
MGM	MGM	Epix

Table source: Author. 

Sony is the only notable film studio without direct ties to a streaming service. Sony sold its ad-supported Crackle streaming service in 2019.

Comcast currently licenses Universal films to HBO Max, Illumination films to Netflix, and Dreamworks films to Hulu. However, it’s considering retaining the rights for Universal and Illumination films for Peacock as negotiations for those rights come back up this year. It could also strike a non-exclusive deal that would allow it to stream its films on Peacock while licensing them to other streaming services.

If Netflix wanted access to a film studio output, Sony was its only option.

But why does Netflix want an output deal anyway?

Simply put, Sony has something Netflix can’t get anywhere else.

While Netflix can make its own films, it won’t have any theatrical blockbusters like Sony will. The familiarity of popular films on the streaming service can drive engagement. And with all the other studios keeping their film streaming rights for themselves, Sony is the only source for Netflix to get those kinds of films.

Moreover, Sony has some key intellectual property. Most notably, it owns the rights to the Spider-Man universe, which ties into the rest of Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe. With the immense popularity of Disney+, retaining some Marvel fans with Sony’s Spider-Man output is a nice bonus. 

Sony also owns the rights to franchises including Jumanji, Ghostbusters, and The Karate Kid. The latter spawned an extremely popular series now available on Netflix, so there could be easy opportunities to increase engagement.

Netflix isn’t paying too much for the deal either. Despite the fact that the deal fetched a “record-setting price tag,” according to reports, the total estimated outlay for the five-year deal is between $1 billion and $2 billion. Even at the high end — $400 million per year — that represents a tiny percentage of Netflix’s $19 billion projected content budget for 2021. It’s also notably paying Sony more than $500 million per year for the rights to stream Seinfeld starting this June. 

So, in the grand scheme of things, the Sony film deal presents good value for Netflix. It ought to keep subscribers engaged with the service, and engaged subscribers don’t cancel.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

More reading

• Love tech shares? This ASX ETF is a great buy today
• Netflix is crushing Disney in this fast-growing market
• Netflix is experimenting with releasing new episodes over a longer timeframe
• How much does password sharing cost Netflix?
• I want to double your money every 5 years: fundie

Adam Levy owns shares of Netflix and Walt Disney. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and recommends Netflix and Walt Disney. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Comcast. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Netflix and Walt Disney. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

The post Netflix just fixed its only disadvantage in streaming appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/326Dax1