On Friday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) finished the week in a very disappointing fashion. The benchmark index sank 2.35% to 6,673.3 points.

Will the market be able to bounce back from this on Monday? Here are five things to watch:

ASX 200 expected to rebound

The Australian share market looks set to bounce back on Monday. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the week 29 points or 0.45% higher this morning. On Wall Street on Friday night, the Dow Jones fell 1.5%, the S&P 500 dropped 0.5%, and the Nasdaq index was up 0.55%.

Oil prices sink lower

Energy producers such as Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) could start the week deep in the red after oil prices sank lower on Friday night. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price fell 3.2% to US$61.50 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price fell 2.6% to US$64.42 a barrel. This was driven by a strengthening US dollar. However, it couldn’t stop oil prices recording solid weekly and monthly gains.

Mesoblast capital raising

The Mesoblast limited (ASX: MSB) share price will be one to watch this morning if it returns from its trading halt. The biotech company is seeking to raise funds to keep its operations running. On Friday the company revealed that it “has commenced a proposed equity-based private placement to a targeted industry investor to fund operations.” Mesoblast is understood to be aiming to raise around US$100 million.

Gold price tumbles

Gold miners Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX: NCM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) will be on watch after the gold price tumbled lower on Friday. According to CNBC, the spot gold price sank 2.6% to US$1,728.80 an ounce. Rising US bond yields and a strengthening US dollar sent the precious metal to an eight-month low.

Shares going ex-dividend

A number of shares are going ex-dividend this morning and could trade lower. One of those is iron ore giant Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) for its fully franked interim dividend of $1.47 per share. This dividend alone equates to a yield of approximately 6%, which could mean its shares fall by a similar margin this morning.

More reading

• 2 ASX 200 shares to buy for income
• Why outperforming ASX resources shares will be in the hotseat on Monday
• These were the best performing ASX 200 shares last week
• These were the worst performing ASX 200 shares last week
• Forget the ASX 200! Another market crashed this week

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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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There is a great way for Aussies to get exposure to the Asian technology giants of Tencent and Alibaba. It’s an exchange traded fund (ETF) called Betashares Asia Technology Tigers ETF (ASX: ASIA).

What is Tencent and Alibaba?

Tencent are Alibaba are two of the biggest technology businesses in the world. They both have very diverse operations and assets.

Alibaba is actually more than 20 years old. The company is best known for its large retail businesses including Taobao, Tmall and Alibaba. It also has divisions focused on food delivery, logistics, videos, organisation collaboration software and cloud computing.

Tencent is also over 20 years old. It has investments and operations in things like online games, WeChat, QQ, video, news, music, online literature, mobile payments and cloud computing. But it’s not solely a Chinese-based business, it’s invested in businesses like Riot Games, Epic Games, Supercell and Miniclip.

Both of these businesses have been growing revenue and profit at a fast pace for many years and the share prices have largely been following that too.

But Tencent and Alibaba are not directly listed on the ASX. However, there is one way to Aussie investors to get a good amount of exposure to them in a single investment.

Betashares Asia Technology Tigers ETF

This is where the ETF comes in.

It gives Aussies exposure to 50 of the largest technology businesses outside of Japan.

Looking at the holdings of this ETF, Alibaba and Tencent make up 15.4% of the portfolio combined. This is a very sizeable position for just two businesses.

But there are also several other businesses which have a weighting of more than 5% of the ETF. They are: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (10.9%), Samsung Electronics (10.7%), Meituan (9.2%), JD.com (5.2%) and Pinduoduo (5.1%).

Whilst all of the businesses in Betashares Asia Technology Tigers ETF count as technology, BetaShares has split the portfolio into different sectors and shows the allocation: internet and direct marketing retail (28.2%), semiconductors (18.8%), interactive media and services (17.8%), technology hardware, storage and peripherals (13.9%), interactive home entertainment (8.2%), IT consulting and other services (5.3%), electronic manufacturing services (2.3%), movies and entertainment (1.1%), semiconductor equipment (0.9%) and other (3.5%).

It has a lot of diversification for just 50 different businesses.

It’s true that the majority of the ETF is actually invested in businesses in China – with a weighting of 55%. However, there’s another 21.4% listed in Taiwan, 18.1% in South Korea, 4.9% in India, 0.2% in Hong Kong and 0.4% in ‘other’.

The cost of this ETF is an annual fee of 0.67% per annum.

The returns of this ETF have been very strong. Over the last year, it has delivered a net return of 71.5%. Since inception in September 2018, the ETF has made returns of an average return per annum of 37.2%.

BetaShares shows the returns of the index that Betashares Asia Technology Tigers ETF tracks. Over the last five years the index has returned an average of 28.3% per annum.

More reading

• 2 ASX tech shares to buy in March 2021
• 2 tech ETFs for ASX investors to buy after the market selloff
• Why this ASX tech ETF is in the buy zone
• 2 excellent ETFs for ASX investors to buy now
• 2 of the best ETFs for ASX investors to buy today

Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of BETANASDAQ ETF UNITS. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended BETANASDAQ ETF UNITS. 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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There are plenty of ASX shares that may be compelling opportunities in March 2021.

The share market has taken a bit of a tumble recently, so that gives investors the opportunity to buy shares at a lower price.

The two ASX shares below have already demonstrated the ability to make strong long-term returns.

Betashares Global Cybersecurity ETF (ASX: HACK)

According to BetaShares, this exchange-traded fund (ETF) gives investors exposure to many of the world’s leading cybersecurity companies with a single investment.

The portfolio of this ETF includes both worldwide cybersecurity leaders as well as emerging businesses from various global locations.

Why is cybersecurity a compelling investment? BetaShares says:

With cybercrime on the rise, the demand for cybersecurity services is expected to grow strongly for the foreseeable future.

In terms of exposure, the biggest 10 positions in the portfolio are: Crowdstrike Holdings, Zscaler, Cisco Systems, Accenture, Splunk, Fortinet, Fireeye, Palo Alto Networks, Sailpoint Technologies and Proofpoint.

Most of the portfolio is listed in the US, almost 90% of it. There are only four other countries with a weighting of more than 1%: the UK, Israel, Japan and France.

It has an annual management fee of 0.67% and the net returns have been an average of 20.9% per annum since inception in August 2016. Over the last three years the average returns per annum have been 25.1%.

Xero Limited (ASX: XRO)

Xero is a software ASX share that provides ‘beautiful’ accounting tools for business owners, accountants, bookkeepers and financial advisors.

It has become one of the largest tech businesses on the ASX with a market capitalisation of $17.6 billion, according to the ASX.

A few months ago Xero reported its FY21 half-year result which, according to management, demonstrated the resilience of its global subscriber base, and its proactive response supporting customers and partners, in a challenging COVID-19 environment. While COVID-19 had some impact on Xero’s ability to acquire new customers during the period, subscribers grew by 19% to reach 2.45 million with all markets showing positive progress. Australia has become the first market with one million subscribers.

In that half-year result, Xero grew its operating revenue by 21% to NZ$410 million and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 86% to NZ$120.8 million. The NZ$71.2 million revenue increase led to a NZ$55.9 million rise of EBITDA, a NZ$49.4 million increase of free cashflow and a NZ$33.2 million increase in net profit.

Xero’s gross margin percentage rose from 85.2% to 85.7%, which means that a higher percentage of revenue can help the EBITDA grow.

In terms of the outlook, Xero said:

Xero is a long-term orientated business with ambitions for high-growth. We continue to operate with disciplined cost management and targeted allocation of capital. This allows us to remain agile so we can continue to innovate, invest in new products and customer growth, and respond to opportunities and changes in our operating environment.

More reading

• Why is the Xero (ASX:XRO) share price down 19% in 2021?
• 3 explosive ASX growth shares to buy next week
• 2 high quality ETFs for ASX investors to buy in February
• One year on and 50% up, the All Technology Index is booming
• 2 exciting ASX tech shares to buy

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of BETA CYBER ETF UNITS and Xero. 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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There are some very good S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) shares that could be worth owning for income.

Some businesses are paying dividends with yields that are much higher than what other assets are paying right now.

The two ASX 200 shares in this article operate in fairly defensive and growing industries:

Centuria Industrial Reit (ASX: CIP)

This real estate investment trust (REIT) gives Aussie investors exposure to the largest domestic pure play industrial property investment vehicle.

It’s rated as a buy by UBS with expectations of more acquisitions and continuing high-quality tenants at its properties. The broker has a share price target for Centuria Industrial REIT of $3.38.

It currently owns around 60 industrial assets that are worth around $2.5 billion. The aim of the REIT is to grow both the income and capital value. It has around 90% of the portfolio weighted to Australia’s strong-performing eastern seaboard industrial markets. It currently has an occupancy rate of 97.7%.

Centuria Industrial Reit has a weighted average lease expiry (WALE) of 9.8 years, which has increased by 5.5 years since December 2016.

Whilst the portfolio has been growing, the gearing of the ASX 200 dividend share has been reducing. It has fallen 13.3 percentage points from 42.9% at December 2016 to 29.6% at December 2020.

The REIT’s net tangible assets (NTA) per unit has been steadily growing over time. In the FY21 half-year result it revealed that its NTA had grown year on year from $2.83 to $2.99.

Centuria Industrial Reit has upgraded its guidance twice for FY21. It’s now expecting FY21 funds from operations (FFO) to be no less than 17.6 cents per unit.

In FY21 the REIT is expecting to pay an annual distribution of 17 cents per unit, which equates to a distribution yield of 5.75% for income-seekers.

Bapcor Ltd (ASX: BAP)

Bapcor likes to describes itself as the leading auto parts business in Australasia. It operates a number of different brands including Burson, Precision Automotive Equipment, AAD, Bearing Wholesalers, Commercial Truck Parts, Autobarn, Autopro, Midas and ABS.

It’s one of the few ASX 200 shares that grew the dividend in FY21, even if it was just an increase of 2.9%.

The FY21 dividend is shaping up to be a much larger increase after a half-year dividend increase of 12.5%.

There was particularly strong growth in its retail businesses during the six-month period with Autobarn same store sales up 37.1%.

Bapcor still has a large growth targets. Over the next five years it wants to increase its number of trade stores from 195 to 240, whilst also growing the percentage of own brand sales from 29% to 35%.

For its commercial vehicle segment, it wants to reach 40 light vehicle locations (currently 16) and 50 heavy vehicle locations (currently 31).

Looking at Autobarn, it wants to reach 200 Autobarn stores, it currently has 133. It’s targeting 500 service locations, which would be an increase from the current 105.

One growth area that the ASX 200 share is really targeting is South East Asia. It now has six locations in Thailand, but it wants to reach at least 80.

In the FY21 half-year result it saw revenue growth of 25.8% to $883.6 million, earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) growth of 45% and net profit growth of 49.7%.

Based on the last 12 months of dividends, it has a grossed-up dividend yield of 3.9%.

More reading

• Why outperforming ASX resources shares will be in the hotseat on Monday
• These were the best performing ASX 200 shares last week
• These were the worst performing ASX 200 shares last week
• Forget the ASX 200! Another market crashed this week
• ASX 200 sinks 2.4%, Afterpay plunges, AMP jumps

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Bapcor. 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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Last week was another busy one for investors with an endless stream of results releases.

Three results which were arguably among the best released over the period are summarised below. Here’s what you need to know about them:

Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH) 

This hearing solutions company released a surprisingly strong half year result last week. For the six months ended 31 December, Cochlear posted an underlying net profit of $125.3 million. Impressively, despite facing tough trading conditions caused by COVID-19, Cochlear’s profit was down only 4% in constant currency from its record first half profit in the prior corresponding (and COVID-free) period.

Looking ahead, a strong second half is expected by management. It has provided full year underlying net profit guidance of $225 million to $245 million. This represents a 46% to 59% increase on FY 2020’s profits.

This went down well with analysts at Macquarie. In response to its result, the broker retained its outperform rating and lifted its price target to $245.00.

Goodman Group (ASX: GMG) 

Goodman Group is on form again in FY 2021 and delivered a strong half year result. The global integrated property company reported a 16% increase in operating profit to $614.9 million for the six months ended 31 December. This was driven by new developments, strong demand, and like-for-like net property income growth of 3%.

Also going down well with investors was management’s guidance for the full year. It now expects operating profit growth of 12% in FY 2021. This compares to its previous guidance of 9% year on year growth.

Macquarie was also impressed with this result. It responded by upgrading Goodman’s shares to an outperform rating with an improved price target of $20.39.

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) 

This buy now pay later provider has continued its meteoric growth in FY 2021. Last week it released its half year results and reported a 141% increase in total transaction volume (TTV) to $2.32 billion. This underpinned a 130% jump in half year revenue to $160 million.

Zip’s stellar growth was driven largely by a significant lift in active customers. At the end of December, the company had a total of 5.7 million active customers, which was an increase of 217% over the prior corresponding period. In addition to this, it revealed that it now has more than 38,500 merchants across the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK. Looking ahead, Zip advised that it has global momentum and the foundations to accelerate growth in the second half.

In response to the result, analysts at Morgans retained their add rating and lifted their price target to $12.00.

More reading

• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy next week
• ASX 200 sinks 2.4%, Afterpay plunges, AMP jumps
• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy right now
• Will Wall Street’s overnight tumble send ASX 200 shares down today?
• ASX 200 rises 0.8%, A2 Milk sinks, Zip drops

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 Cochlear Ltd. and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Cochlear 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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As I’m a big fan of small cap shares, I feel quite fortunate to have such a large number of them to choose from on the Australian share market.

Two small cap ASX shares that stand out from the crowd and could have bright futures are listed below. Here’s what you need to know about them:

Booktopia Group Ltd (ASX: BKG)

Booktopia is an online book retailer which has been growing very strongly.

During the first half of FY 2021, the company shipped a total of 4.2 million units for the six months. This was up 40% on the prior corresponding period. This strong growth is being driven by the shift to online shopping and its investment in additional automation and increased capacity at its distribution centre.

This ultimately led to Booktopia reporting a 51.1% increase in revenue to $112.6 million and a 502.3% jump in underlying EBITDA to $8 million.

Analysts at Morgans were pleased with the result. In response to it, the broker retained its add rating and lifted its price target slightly to $3.53. The broker believes the company is well-placed for growth thanks to market share gains and operating leverage.

Universal Store Holdings Limited (ASX: UNI)

Universal Store is a fashion retailer which aims to deliver a frequently changing and carefully curated selection of on-trend products to a target 16-35 year old fashion focused customer.

Last week it released its half year results and revealed that FY 2021 has started very positively. For the six months ended 31 December, Universal Store reported a 23.3% increase in sales to $118 million and a 63.6% increase in underlying net profit after tax to $21.1 million.

This was driven by like for like store sales growth of 19.1% and a 128.3% jump in online sales. This offset store closures in Melbourne between August and October.

Pleasingly, the second half has started just as strongly. During the first seven weeks of the half, it achieved sales growth of 23.5%. This is being driven by like for like sales growth of 28.2%, which offset store closures during recent lockdowns.

Morgans was very pleased with its result. So much so, it retained its add rating and lifted its price target to $8.37.

More reading

• Why Flight Centre, Life360, Nanosonics, & Universal Store are racing higher
• Why the Universal Store (ASX:UNI) share price is up 6% to a record high
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• 2 buy-rated small cap ASX shares to watch
• Here’s why the Booktopia (ASX:BKG) share price is in focus today

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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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There are some wonderful tech shares on the ASX that may be worth thinking about.

Technology is changing the world in many different ways. It is changing how we shop, it’s changing how people can communicate and it’s changing how we research shares.

Some ASX tech shares have been sold off recently and are now cheaper:

Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ)

This is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) which invests in 100 of the biggest non-financial businesses listed on the NASDAQ, which is a stock exchange in North America.

Many of the world’s biggest tech companies are listed on the NASDAQ, so there’s blue chip tech exposure to businesses like: Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Tesla, Alphabet, Facebook, Nvidia, PayPal and Intel.

Whilst it does give exposure to the ‘FAANG’ shares, including Netflix, there are a number of other tech names in the portfolio like Adobe, Broadcom, Qualcomm, Texas Instruments, Applied Materials, Advanced Micro Devices, Intuit, Micron Technology, ASML and Zoom.

There are also plenty of companies that aren’t classified as information technology as their ‘sector’, but they do use world-leading technology within the business including Costco, Starbucks, Booking Holdings, Intuitive Surgical, JD.com, MercadoLibre, Activision Blizzard, Baidu, Mondelez and Moderna.

The returns of the ETF have been consistently strong since inception in May 2015, returning a net of 21.25% per annum. Over the last three years, the return has been 25.7% per annum.

Those returns from the ASX tech share include the annual management fee of 0.48% per annum.

Kogan.com Ltd (ASX: KGN)

Kogan.com is an e-commerce business where a large number of products and services are sold. TVs, phones, appliances, drones, clothes, furniture and so on can be bought on the website. It also sells services like mobile plans, NBN internet, insurance and superannuation.

In the company’s FY21 half-year result, it reported that gross sales rose 97.4% to $638.2 million, adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) went up 184.4% to $51.7 million and net profit after tax (NPAT) jumped 164.2% to $23.6 million.

The ASX tech share said that it’s going to keep investing in its logistics network, speed of delivery, range expansion and improved competition on the platform to drive even better experiences for its customers.

Kogan.com founder and CEO Ruslan Kogan said:

The rapidly expanding network effect at Kogan.com means that as we attract more customers, we’re able to make the products and services they need even more affordable and accessible. I love hearing feedback from customers that have shopped with us many times over our 15 year journey about how the experience keeps getting better and better – this is what makes our team jump out of bed in the morning. The investments we’re making into Kogan.com today are to ensure that we can continue to delight millions of customers in more and more ways.

The company continues to expand its total addressable market by adding new product lines and the Kogan Marketplace keeps increasing its number of sellers. The Mighty Ape acquisition also increases the potential growth for Kogan.com.

January 2021 saw gross sales growth of 45% year on year, gross profit went up 102% and adjusted EBITDA rose 90%.

The Kogan.com share price is valued at 19x FY23’s estimated earnings according to Commsec.

More reading

• 2 tech ETFs for ASX investors to buy after the market selloff
• 2 ASX growth shares to buy in March 2021
• Why this ASX tech ETF is in the buy zone
• Why Afterpay, Kogan, Orica, & Service Stream shares are crashing lower
• Growth outlook fails to save the Aristocrat share price today

Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of BETANASDAQ ETF UNITS and Kogan.com ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended BETANASDAQ ETF UNITS and Kogan.com 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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Last week saw a number of broker notes hitting the wires once again. Three buy ratings that caught my eye are summarised below.

Here’s why brokers think investors ought to buy them next week:

Adore Beauty Group Ltd (ASX: ABY)

According to a note out of UBS, its analysts have upgraded this online beauty retailer’s shares to a buy rating with a $6.20 price target. The broker made the move following the release of a strong half year result by Adore Beauty last week. UBS was pleased with its gross margin expansion, which was driven by strong customer growth and retention. Looking ahead, while it acknowledges that the company has benefited greatly from the shift online during the pandemic, it believes it remains well positioned for growth even when COVID passes. The Adore Beauty share price ended the week at $5.40.

Goodman Group (ASX: GMG)

A note out of Credit Suisse reveals that its analysts have upgraded this integrated property company’s shares to an outperform rating with a price target of $19.62. This broker made the move in response to the release of Goodman’s half year results last week. It was pleased with its stronger than expected performance. And while it suspected that the company might upgrade its guidance, the upgrade was larger than it forecast. The Goodman share price was fetching $16.56 at the end of the week.

Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN)

Analysts at Morgan Stanley have retained their overweight rating but trimmed their price target on this airline operator’s shares to $5.90. According to the note, Qantas posted a large half year loss as expected. And while it is expecting a sizeable full year loss as well, it believes Qantas will return to profit next year. In addition to this, it believes the company will come out of the other end of the pandemic in a stronger position.  The Qantas share price ended the week at $5.00.

More reading

• Is the Qantas (ASX:QAN) share price great value?
• ASX 200 rises 0.8%, A2 Milk sinks, Zip drops
• Air New Zealand (ASX:AIZ) share price flies after earnings devastated
• Qantas (ASX:QAN) share price on watch after $1.1 billion loss
• 2 exciting mid cap ASX shares to buy and hold

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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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Are you fed up with the low interest rates on offer with savings accounts and term deposits? Then you might want to consider putting your money to work in the share market instead.

The Australian share market is home to a good number of dividend shares that provide investors with generous yields.

One of those is Australia and New Zealand Banking GrpLtd (ASX: ANZ).

Why consider buying ANZ shares?

Earlier this month the bank released its first quarter update and revealed a huge improvement in trading conditions.

For the three months ended 31 December, ANZ reported unaudited cash earnings from continuing operations of $1,810 million. This was an impressive 54% jump on the average of the final two quarters of FY 2020. Management advised that this was driven partly by improvements in its net interest margin and flat operating costs.

In addition to this, the bank unveiled a COVID-19 collective provision release of $173 million. It also hinted that there could be more releases in the future depending on how economic conditions fare.

One broker that was particularly pleased was Morgans. In response to this result, it has put an add rating and $31.00 price target on its shares. It is also forecasting a $1.45 per share fully franked dividend in FY 2021.

Based on the current ANZ share price of $26.17, this represents a generous 5.5% dividend yield. It also implies potential upside of 18.5% over the next 12 months.

Looking to FY 2022, Morgans is forecasting a dividend of $1.61, which equates to an even more attractive 6.1% dividend yield.

Who else likes ANZ?

Morgans isn’t alone with its positive view on ANZ Bank.

Last week UBS and Credit Suisse retained their buy and outperform ratings and lifted their respective price targets on its shares to $28.50 and $29.50.

The latter is forecasting an even greater dividend of $1.48 per share in FY 2021.

More reading

• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX lower despite bumper dividends
• Is the ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price a buy?
• 2 of the best ASX 200 results from last week
• Why the Ainsworth (ASX:AGI) share price surged 15% today

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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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Once again, a large number of broker notes hit the wires last week. Some of these notes were positive and some were bearish.

Three sell ratings that caught my eye are summarised below. Here’s why top brokers think investors ought to sell these shares next week:

A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M)

According to a note out of Citi, its analysts have retained their sell rating and cut the price target on this infant formula company’s shares to $7.15. The broker made the move following the release of a2 Milk Company’s disappointing half year results. Citi has reduced its estimates materially over the coming years to reflect the demand issues it is facing in the daigou channel and margin pressures across the business. The a2 Milk Company share price ended the week at $8.99.

Appen Ltd (ASX: APX)

A note out of Macquarie reveals that its analysts have retained their underperform rating and cut the price target on this artificial intelligence data services company’s shares to $16.00. According to the note, the broker wasn’t surprised that Appen fell short of expectations in FY 2020. Looking ahead, Macquarie has concerns that increased competition could weigh on pricing and lead to Appen falling short of expectations again. The Appen share price was fetching $16.69 at the end of last week.

InvoCare Limited (ASX: IVC)

Analysts at Macquarie also have retained their underperform rating and $9.30 price target on this funerals company’s shares. This follows the release of a mixed full year result last week. According to the note, InvoCare fell short of expectations in FY 2020 due to one-offs. And while the broker is expecting a better performance this year, it does have concerns that rising costs could offset this. In light of this and its current valuation, it sees no reason to change its rating. The InvoCare share price ended the week at $11.23.

More reading

• Do brokers think the A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) share price is a buy or sell?
• These were the worst performing ASX 200 shares last week
• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy right now
• 3 ways A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) is planning a share price recovery
• ASX 200 rises 0.8%, A2 Milk sinks, Zip drops

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 Appen Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended A2 Milk. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended InvoCare 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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