After a long-awaited arrival, financial services company Latitude Financial Services Group Ltd (ASX: LFS) has made its ASX debut today.

It looks like the third time is a charm for the Melbourne-based digital payments provider. Following two prior unsuccessful attempts at going public in 2018 and 2019.

By the end of the session, the newly ASX-listed Latitude share price was $2.70, 3.85% higher. Although the shares were trading 15% higher earlier.

ASX’s newly minted member… Latitude

Latitude might be new to the ASX, but this company has a rooted history in finance. Originally, Latitude formed the personal and vehicle finance operations of the Australian Guarantee Corporation. This went on to be owned by Westpac in 1988. The business proceeded to be acquired by GE Capital in 2002, before being sold to a consortium of private investors in 2015.

Over recent years, the company has undergone a refresh to be more relevant with the booming buy now, pay later (BNPL) trend. In response, Latitude launched its aptly named ‘LatitudePay’ — an interest-free product involving 10 weekly interest-free repayments. However, Latitude’s foundations are in its personal loans, vehicle loans, credit cards, and insurance products.

In fact, Latitude is Australia’s third-largest unsecured personal lender, providing its products to its 2.8 million customers and over 3,400 retail partners. Retail partners that include the likes of, now fellow ASX peers, JB Hi-Fi Limited (ASX: JBH), Harvey Norman Holdings Ltd (ASX: HVN), and Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) owned Catch of the Day.

Waging war on a growing market

Following the interest-free wave, retail spending shifted away from traditional interest-accruing credit. This led to late 2018 appointed CEO Ahmed Fahour launching a new strategy. Spearheaded by a focus on growing its lending and instalments business.

However, Fahour is unashamed to say that instalments are a form of credit. In an interview with The Australian Financial Review, Mr. Fahour commented:

We are helping consumers with budgeting, there’s no question about it. We’re helping merchants with their marketing, no question about that as well. But it is credit at the end of the day, and an appropriate level of credit assessment or verification is required.

These words are quite contrary to other BNPL companies. Interestingly, Latitude rejected 650,000 potential customers of the million that applied last year. Meanwhile, Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) today announced it increased customers by 6.2 million in the last year. Along with its plans of a US listing.

More reading

• 3 excellent small cap ASX shares to watch closely
• Aussie dollar shoots higher! Here are some ASX winners
• BrainChip and Zip were among the most traded ASX shares last week
• Is the Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price in the buy zone after its update?
• 650,000 Aussies sign up for Afterpay (ASX:APT) Mastercard

Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO 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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If you have a high tolerance for risk, then you might want to consider adding a few small cap shares to your portfolio.

After all, if you can catch and Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) while it is still in its infancy, the potential returns you’ll generate are mind-blowing.

But which small cap ASX shares have a lot of potential? Three that have been tipped for big things are listed below:

Bigtincan Holdings Ltd (ASX: BTH)

The first small cap share to look at is Bigtincan. It is a leading provider of enterprise mobility software to business across the world. Bigtincan’s popular software allows sales and service organisations to increase sales win rates, reduce expenditures, and improve customer satisfaction. This is achieved through improved mobile worker productivity. Demand for its platform has been strong from some of the biggest companies in the world, which led to Bigtincan reporting annualised recurring revenue (ARR) of $48.4 million at the end of December. This was a 50% increase over the prior corresponding period.

Nitro Software Ltd (ASX: NTO)

Another small cap ASX share to look at is Nitro. It is a software company  aiming to drive digital transformation in organisations around the world. Nitro’s key solution is the eponymous Nitro Productivity Suite. This provides integrated PDF productivity and electronic signature tools to customers through a software-as-a-service and desktop-based software solution. Nitro counts a number of the largest companies in the world as customers. While its recurring revenues have been growing rapidly, it still has a huge market opportunity to grow into.

Whispir Ltd (ASX: WSP)

A final small cap share to watch is Whispir. It is a software-as-a-service communications workflow platform provider which has a total addressable market (TAM) of US4.7 billion in the just United States. Whispir provides an industry-leading software platform that allows governments and businesses to deliver actionable two-way interactions at scale using automated multi-channel communication workflows. Demand has been increasing strongly, leading to stellar recurring revenue growth in recent years. However, it is still only scratching at the surface of its TAM.

More reading

• Latitude (ASX:LFS) makes a splash on its ASX debut
• BrainChip and Zip were among the most traded ASX shares last week
• Is the Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price in the buy zone after its update?
• 650,000 Aussies sign up for Afterpay (ASX:APT) Mastercard
• Why Accent, Bank of Queensland, Freelancer, & Zip shares are pushing higher

James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and recommends BIGTINCAN FPO and Whispir Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended BIGTINCAN FPO, Nitro Software Limited, and Whispir 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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It’s no secret that the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has been having a rollicking good time of late. Even though the ASX 200 and ASX shares are down today, the index is still above the 7,000 points threshold that it broke for the first time since the pandemic last week. Over the past month, the ASX 200 is now up about 4%. Not a bad performance. But another emblem of our collective national success has also been performing rather well. That would be our national currency – the Australian dollar.

It was less than 2 weeks ago that the Aussie dollar was flirting with 76 US cents. Today, it’s broken above 78 US cents, its highest level since mid-March. A move of 2 US cents might not sound too dramatic. But that’s a move of more than 2.5%, enough to change the playing field somewhat, as it were.

So what does a higher Aussie dollar mean for ASX shares?

Yes, the Aussie dollar can hit ASX shares

A higher Aussie dollar means that it is now cheaper to swap Australian dollars for US dollars (and some other currencies too). That, in turn, means that importing goods and services into the country is now cheaper than it was 2 weeks ago. Whereas exporting goods and services out of the country is conversely more expensive.

So how does that affect ASX shares? Well, any company that makes its proverbial living by importing goods will stand to benefit the most. Think Ampol Ltd (ASX: ALD), the petrol refiner and retailer. Petroleum is now relatively cheaper for Ampol to bring in. Or Harvey Norman Holdings Limited (ASX: HVN) and JB Hi-Fi Limited (ASX: JBH) These companies sell electronics and appliances such as iPhones, TVs, fridges and computers. All of these goods are generally made overseas, and they just got cheaper to bring into Australia. That’s a benefit these companies can use to reduce their pricing at no cost to the business, or else bank the margin.

But for every winner, there is a loser in this case. Companies that export out of Australia are at a disadvantage from this currency move in the Aussie dollar. Miners like BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) and Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) now will find it more expensive to sell their iron ore in US dollars. And any company that reports in US dollars will also face a disadvantage. Prominent examples include CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) and Altium Limited (ASX: ALU). So if you’ve been wondering why these companies have been facing some share price headwinds of late, this could be your answer.

More reading

• CSL (ASX:CSL) share price wobbles on plasma and vaccine update
• BHP (ASX:BHP) share price lower despite natural gas update
• ASX stock of the day: AnteoTech (ASX:ADO) shares top ASX
• Why Altium, Challenger, Lynas, & Sydney Airport shares are sinking
• Treasurer outlines federal budget focus as IMF upgrades Australian outlook

Sebastian Bowen 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’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Altium. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Altium. 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 Karoon Energy Ltd (ASX: KAR) share price is rose in late-afternoon trade today. This follows the announcement of a contract with Maersk Drilling.

Founded in 1972, Maersk Drilling is a leading offshore drilling operator. The company supports oil and gas production by providing drilling services to oil companies worldwide.

The Australian oil and gas company’s shares closed the day at $1.20, up 1.69%.

Details of the contract

According to its release, Karoon advised it has contracted the Maersk Developer rig for the 2022 Baúna workover campaign. The award follows a competitive tender process that involved 10 different rig owners.

Under the agreement, Maersk Drilling will conduct a workover program, targeting an increased production of between 5 to 10 KBOPD (thousand barrels of oil per day). Additionally, works will include the replacement of downhole pumps in two wells and the installation of a gas lift in one well. The works will also re-open an oil zone in one well.

Karoon stated that the drilling rig is currently located in the Caribbean, and is expected to arrive in Brazil within the first half of 2022.

Once works are completed at Baúna, Karoon has the option to retain the rig for development at the Patola field. This oil site is adjacent to Baúna and lies inside the BMS-40 Production Licence. Karoon noted that the development of the Patola field could yield more than 10 kbopd and provide additional reserves to its Baúna asset. A final investment decision (FID) is expected to be made in Q2 of 2021.

In addition, the company has the flexibility to extend the Maersk Drilling contract on its Neon light oil discovery. The well, located approximately 60 kilometres northeast of Baúna, will be the first subject to subsurface and engineering studies. Should the Neon oil field prove lucrative, Karoon will employ the rig to drill a control well.

The value of the Maersk Drilling contract has a ‘firm’ price tag of $34 million, which includes rig modifications and a mobilisation fee.

Comments from the CEO

Karoon CEO and and managing director, Dr. Julian Fowles commented:

We are delighted to have signed this contract with Maersk Drilling, a global leader in offshore drilling, with one of the youngest and most advanced rig fleets in the industry. The contract marks another significant milestone in the evolution of Karoon into a substantial production and development company with material near term growth potential.

Karoon share price snapshot

The Karoon share price has jumped over 130% in the last 12 months. It is also up 12% year-to-date. Like most energy shares, Karoon has seen an upwards growth trajectory since its COVID-19 lows in March 2020. The economic rebound in oil prices has predominately driven the company’s share price performance.

Karoon has a market capitalisation of roughly $661 million, with more than 553 million shares on issue.

More reading

• Top broker issues buy alert on Santos (ASX:STO) and these ASX energy shares

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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It seems that a new cyber attack hits the news each day, and now, the Reserve Bank of Australia has found they threaten our financial security.

The Financial Stability Review was released by the Reserve Bank this month. Within it, the institution warns cyber attacks pose a “significant threat” to our financial system.

Let’s look closer into what the Reserve Bank of Australia had to say about the threat of cyber attacks.

Cyber attacks are on the rise globally

The Reserve Bank noted in its report the rising risk and occurrences of cyber attacks on Australia’s financial institutions.

In fact, Australian banks face millions of cyber attacks each day.

One doesn’t have to look far to find examples. For instance, a cyber attack on ASIC and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand hit the news in January, when attackers breached third-party software, Accellion FTA. 

Other news-worthy attacks this year include the Russian-backed attack on United States-based Solar Winds Corp (NYSE: SWI), which experts estimate affected 18,000 of the company’s customers. Another is the Chinese backed hacker who launched a worldwide attack on Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) in March. 

In 2018, the International Monetary Fund estimated direct losses from cyber attacks could be as high as 9% of total bank incomes globally – around US$100 billion annually.

Though, it wasn’t just hacks and attacks that were highlighted as technological dangers to Australia’s financial stability.

The Reserve Bank found, as digital platforms and service channels get more nuanced, their risk of failing becomes greater.

An example that may well be a bit too close to home is the ASX’s technical issues that interrupted the trading day on 16 November 2020.

What can be done to prevent attacks?

The Council of Financial Regulators (CFR) have already began working to find weaknesses in Australian financial entities’ software.

The CFR coordinates Australia’s main regulatory agencies, including the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, the Australian Treasury and the Reserve Bank.

Currently, its conducting an 18-month pilot exercise of its Cyber Operational Resilience Intelligence-led Exercises (CORIE) framework.

CORIE is designed to test and demonstrate the cyber resilience of institutions in the Australian financial services industry.

It will be used to assess cyber resilience by testing selected financial sector entities to ‘ethical hacking’ exercises.

The Reserve Bank hopes CORIE will inform regulators of any systemic or institution specific cyber security risks.

More reading

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• Tesla and Palantir were some of the most popular US shares last week
• Here’s why Microsoft just spent $19.7 billion to acquire nuance communications
• Tesla and GameStop were some of the most popular US shares last week
• Zoono (ASX:ZNO) share price soars 40% on Microsoft deal

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

Teresa Kersten, an employee of LinkedIn, a Microsoft 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 Microsoft. 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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If you’re wanting to bolster your portfolio with some dividend shares, then the two listed below could be worth considering.

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

BWP Trust (ASX: BWP)

BWP Trust could be an ASX dividend share to look at right now. The commercial property company is the largest owner of Bunnings Warehouse sites across Australia. At the last count, it owned a total of 68 properties which were leased to the home improvement giant.

With demand for home improvement products growing strongly and government stimulus supporting the industry, Bunnings is arguably the dream tenant for any retail landlord. 

As a result, it will come as no surprise to learn that BWP has been performing positively. For example, during the first half of FY 2021, BWPs profit (including property revaluation gains) rose 6% over the prior corresponding period to $144 million.

This allowed management to reaffirm its plans to pay a full year distribution of ~18.3 cents per share. Based on the current BWP share price, this equates to a generous 4.5% dividend yield.

Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF)

Another ASX dividend share to look at is Rural Funds. It is the owner of a diverse portfolio of high quality agricultural assets across five sectors. These are almonds, cattle, vineyards, cropping and macadamias.

Rural Funds’ assets are leased on extremely long term leases to highly experienced operators such as Select Harvests Limited (ASX: SHV) (almonds) and Treasury Wine Estates Ltd (ASX: TWE) (vineyards).

In February the company released its half year update and revealed a result in line with expectations. This means it is on course to deliver on its FY 2021 distribution guidance of 11.28 cents per share. Management also revealed plans to increase its distribution by its target rate of 4% to 11.73 cents per share in FY 2022.

Based on the current Rural Funds share price, this will mean yields of 4.6% and 4.8%, respectively.

More reading

• 2 ASX dividend shares that keep growing their dividend every year
• 2 high quality ASX dividend shares for income investors
• 2 top ASX dividend shares to buy this month
• Beat low rates with these quality ASX dividend shares
• 2 high yield ASX dividend shares for income investors to buy

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended RURALFUNDS STAPLED. 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 Candy Club Holdings Ltd (ASX: CLB) share price remains flat today despite the company reporting significant revenue and customer increases in its Quarterly Activities Report.

The Candy Club share price is currently trading for 22 cents per share.

Candy Club is a confectionary retailer that specialises in retailing candy boxes in both B2B and B2C markets. It’s heavily US-centric and garners most of its revenue from either B2B or supplying huge US retail chains.

Candy Club revenue increases

Candy Club announced its results today for the three months ending 31 March 2021: its first-quarter FY2021 results. 

The company has made total gross revenue of US$4.13 million in 1Q FY2021, representing an increase of 192% year-on-year (YoY). This was driven by its B2B division, which posted US$3.4 million gross revenue during the quarter.

This is a 21% increase quarter-on-quarter (QoQ), or 423% growth YoY. The company says this is particularly impressive considering the “persistent headwinds” created by the coronavirus pandemic.

The company’s B2C business also experienced good growth in the period, as it was up 49% versus the prior quarter. 

Customer increases heavily US-focused

The company’s total number of retail doors grew further to more than 17,000. At the same time, the number of B2B customers exceeded 10,000 as of 1Q FY2021.

Its larger brick-and-mortar customers continued to grow QoQ. Additionally, the majority of its existing national and regional department and gift store chains reordering.

The company also added several impressive new account wins including the giant US national retailer JC Penny. Fellow rival Macy’s has also expanded Candy Club’s presence by selling the company’s candies in more stores and expecting further growth. Re-order rates for the company’s top 25 customers held over 90% for the quarter.

Candy Club expecting future growth

While Candy Club’s U.S. results appear strong, Australian investors are obviously less excited by the news. Furthermore, the Candy Club share price has remained flat. Nevertheless, the company expects strong growth moving forward.

Candy Club’s B2B division remained strong in 1Q FY2021, achieving quarterly record revenue of approximately US$3.4 million. The company’s strong performance comes amid the challenging operating environment in the US, which continued to be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

While the thousands of small businesses derived from the company’s e-commerce strategy are driving the recent growth, Candy Club expects the traditional US brick-and-mortar retailers to significantly grow the company’s overall business by 2H FY2021.

Candy Club share price movements

The Candy Club share price is down more than 6% over the past week and month, but the company has gained more than 300% over the past 12 months.

More reading

• Why is the Candy Club (ASX:CLB) share price falling today?
• In honour of the Easter Bunny, we take a look at 3 chocolatey ASX shares

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.

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The CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) share price has been in the spotlight in recent memory. This follows concerns over its plasma collections as well as its progress in producing the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.

At the time of writing, the global biotech’s shares are trading for $264.64, down 1.3% for the day.

Plasma worries

COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on the global economy and virtually shut down foot traffic movement in the United States.

Unfortunately for CSL, this has affected its plasma collections as fewer people are donating blood to its collection centres. The company last provided an update in March advising that December 2020 plasma volumes were sitting around 80% of the December 2019 levels.

This has led CSL to approach the public for ideas on how it can maximise the yield and processing efficiency in human immunoglobulins.

CSL Behring’s immunoglobulins are much needed for running its business operations. Derived from plasma, human immunoglobulins are a lifesaving therapy that prevent and fight rare and serious infections.

The company is offering $40,000 on the winning idea as well as two one-on-one mentoring sessions with CSL Behring.

COVID-19 vaccine update

Furthermore, CSL is striving to increase production of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. So far, Australia has administered over 1.65 million vaccinations to the public, averaging around 60 thousand doses per day.

The Australian government has indicated that it’s strongly considering bringing vaccine manufacturing capability to Australia within the next decade. This would protect Australians from present and future pandemics through local supply, avoiding political problems such as the European shipment block.

CSL has put its hand up for this proposal and is in current discussions with the Australian government. Although, it may take some time to set up such a facility and begin producing important vaccines.

Broker update

The latest broker update came from investment bank Macquarie yesterday, issuing a price target of $282.50 for CSL. While it may have cut its outlook by 1.9% from its original note, this represents an upside of almost 7%.

CSL share price review

Over the last 12 months, the CSL share price has faltered and is now trading at the same price as recorded in November 2019. The company’s shares momentarily reached a high of $320.42 in late November 2020 before trending downwards and moving sideways since.

As one of the ASX market’s largest companies in terms of market capitalisation, the CSL share price is valued at $120.2 billion. Furthermore, the company has more than 455 million shares on issue.

More reading

• Why the CSL (ASX:CSL) share price might be headed for more trouble
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX 200 hits new post-COVID high
• 2 five-star stocks to buy
• CSL (ASX:CSL) share price falls amid ongoing AstraZeneca uncertainty
• Trashed COVID-19 vaccine targets hit ASX travel shares

Aaron Teboneras 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 owns shares of and has recommended Macquarie Group Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price dipped today. That’s despite today’s announcement of the commissioning of a new natural gas field to supply Australia’s east coast.

At close of trade today, shares in the mining giant were selling for $47.44 – down 0.25%. By comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is 0.68% lower.

Let’s take a closer look at today’s news and how it might be affecting the BHP share price.

BHP’s joint venture

BHP revealed its 50/50 Gippsland Basin Joint Venture’s West Barracouta natural gas field with Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM)’s Australian affiliate, Esso Australia, is now up and running.

The field, located in the Bass Strait off the coast of Victoria, is expected to provide domestic gas supply for Australia’s east coast. BHP’s stake in the venture is worth approximately $400 million. The project hasn’t appeared to have a positive impact on the BHP share price.

Country Manager of BHP Petroleum Australia, Graham Salmond, said:

The Gippsland Basin Joint Venture has played a central role in reliably meeting the energy needs of Australian homes and businesses for 50 years.

As the largest domestic gas project in Australia in recent years, West Barracouta has unlocked a new, high quality gas resource that will help maintain Bass Strait production and support our diverse domestic customer base.

We aim to continue developing opportunities to maximise the value of Bass Strait for the joint venture and our shareholders.

Natural gas commodity price

Presently, natural gas is trading on the commodities market for US $2.75 per 10 billion British thermal units. While up 49.5% higher than this time last year, the price of natural gas is down 16.1% since the middle of February this year.

The website Trading Economics is forecasting the price of natural gas to fall to US $2.16 in 52 weeks’ time.

The BHP share price, however, is still tipped to increase because of the surge in demand for copper.

BHP share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, the BHP share price has increased by 54%. In fact, since the beginning of this year, the company’s value has increased by 10.1%.

BHP has a market capitalisation of $224.3 billion.

More reading

• Treasurer outlines federal budget focus as IMF upgrades Australian outlook
• ASX miners in focus as the copper price looks poised to crack above 10-year highs
• Airbnb predicts huge rebound, ASX travel shares in the hot seat
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX 200 hits new post-COVID high
• Why ASX mining shares are likely to jump this morning

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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With so many growth shares to choose from on the Australian share market, it can be hard to decide which ones to buy over others.

To help narrow things down, I have picked out two ASX growth shares that could be top options for investors today. Here’s what you need to know about them:

Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1)

The first ASX growth share to look at is Megaport. It is a leading provider of elastic interconnection services globally. The company utilises software defined networking (SDN) to allow customers to rapidly connect their network to other services across the Megaport Network.

This means that services can be directly controlled by customers via mobile devices, their computer, or its open API.

The shift to the cloud has led to increasing demand for Megaport’s services. As a result, it now connects more than 2,050 customers in over 700 enabled data centres globally. This led to Megaport reporting Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) of $6.3 million at the end of December. This was up $1.7 million or 37% year on year.

Goldman Sachs is confident in its growth outlook. The broker currently has a buy rating and $15.55 price target on its shares.

NEXTDC Ltd (ASX: NXT)

Another ASX growth share to consider is NEXTDC. Like Megaport, it appears perfectly positioned to benefit from the cloud computing boom.

This is because NEXTDC is one of the region’s leading data centre-as-a-service providers with a total of 11 world class centres in key locations across Australia. From these facilities, NEXTDC provides colocation services to local and international organisations. 

But it isn’t settling for that. The company has recently opened up offices in Singapore and Tokyo with a view of expanding into these markets. If this expansion proves to be a success, it would give NEXTDC a significant growth runway.

Goldman Sachs is also positive on NEXTDC. Earlier this month it retained its buy rating, added it to its conviction list, and lifted its price target to $15.00. The broker believes NEXTDC is well-positioned for growth over the medium term.

More reading

• 2 ASX tech shares rated as buys by brokers
• These are the 10 most shorted shares on the ASX
• 2 highly rated ASX growth shares to buy
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• Why ASX 200 tech shares are vital to manufacturers’ reshoring plans

James Mickleboro owns shares of NEXTDC Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and recommends MEGAPORT FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended MEGAPORT FPO. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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