When it comes to thinking about which ASX shares you could invest in hoping to double your money, ASX payments shares are the first group that comes to my mind.

The coronavirus pandemic that has changed the world in 2020 has had a lot of consequences for how we live, work and spend our time. Some are direct – such as the lockdowns. Others are indirect – like a decline in using physical cash. We were already heading towards a ‘cashless society’ before the pandemic struck, but this trend has almost certainly accelerated following hygiene concerns and the growing dominance of e-commerce over brick-and-mortar stores.

That’s why I think the companies that cater to this growing trend will be amongst the biggest winners of the 2020s. In my opinion, these shares are some of the most likely to double your money over the next few years.

Here are 3 ASX payments shares that I would be happy to have as an ASX growth investment going forward.

Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT)

Afterpay is never far from the headlines these days, it seems. Just today, the company made a new all-time high of $62.33 on the back of some exciting growth numbers out of the United Kingdom market. Clearpay (Afterpay’s UK brand) now has over a million active users, despite only being present in the market for 1 year.

Afterpay is the company that pioneered buy now, pay later (BNPL). It has had its fair share of detractors and doubters, but the company has a knack for consistently proving them wrong. This is a company that I could see doubling up over the next few years if everything continues to go well.

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P)

Zip Co is another BNPL provider that has been going gangbusters in its own right over the last few months. This company’s shares dipped to as low as $1.05 during the March share market crash, but have since recovered strongly and are going for close to $6 today.

Zip recently announced the acquisition of the US-based Quadpay, which gives the company a global presence for the first time. Zip has already grown its active users by 63% over the past year, so I think there is plenty of overseas potential for this company to exploit. I can see this company becoming another potential double-up stock in the years ahead.

Splitit Ltd (ASX: SPT)

The final ASX payments share I’ll look at today is Splitit. This company has been making some waves after its share price doubled over the past week. The catalyst for this move was Splitit announcing a partnership with the global payments giant Mastercard.

Unlike Zip and Afterpay, Splitit is not a credit provider, but it still allows customers to pay off purchases in monthly instalments. I think there is a nice niche in the payments market for Splitit to exploit and I think this could lead to this company giving investors another double up in the years ahead.

More reading

• Australian businesses are running out of cash
• 3 ASX shares I’d buy if the market crashes again
• Why the Afterpay share price hit another all-time high today
• Bull market! Avoid these 3 ASX mistakes if you don’t want to lose money
• How to get rich by investing in ASX shares

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 ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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If you’re wanting to add some blue chip ASX shares to your portfolio, then you’re certainly in luck.

The Australian share market hosts a number of blue chips which I believe could generate strong returns for investors in the 2020s and beyond.

Three blue chip ASX shares that I would buy are listed below. Here’s why I like them:

Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH)

I think this hearing solutions specialist could be a great blue chip share to buy. I’m bullish on Cochlear’s long-term outlook due to its exposure to the ageing populations trend. This is because hearing tends to fade as people get older. I expect this to lead to strong demand for its high quality products over the next couple of decades and drive consistently solid sales growth. Another positive is the industry’s high barriers to entry, which I expect to limit competition.

CSL Limited (ASX: CSL)

Another blue chip share to look at is this biotherapeutics giant. I see a lot of value in CSL’s shares for long-term focused investors. This is due to the positive outlooks of its two businesses – CSL Behring and Seqirus. CSL Behring is the global leader in plasma therapies and Seqirus is the second biggest player in the influenza vaccines industry. I believe both businesses can grow strongly over the next decade thanks to favourable industry dynamics, their leading products, and high levels of investment in research and development.

SEEK Limited (ASX: SEK)

A final blue chip ASX share to consider buying right now is SEEK. I think the job listings giant is a great long-term option due to its strong market position and its investment in future growth opportunities. These investments and its fast-growing China business are expected to play a key role in SEEK achieving its ambitious aspirational revenue target of $5 billion later this decade. This compares to revenue of $1,537.3 million in FY 2019.

More reading

• Australian businesses are running out of cash
• 3 ASX shares I’d buy if the market crashes again
• Consider these 3 quality ASX healthcare shares to buy now
• Invest like Warren Buffett by buying and holding these ASX 200 shares
• Why top brokers are urging you to buy SEEK and these other ASX stocks today

James Mickleboro owns shares of SEEK Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Cochlear Ltd. and CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Cochlear Ltd. and SEEK Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The bulls and bears are in a Mexican standoff! The S&P/ASX 200 Index (Index:^AXJO) can’t seem to move much from current levels as investors wait for a circuit breaker.

Optimism about the re-starting of our economy is offset by fears of a second wave of COVID-19 infections.

But there are some ASX stocks that have already started slumping after leading brokers downgraded their recommendations on these shares.

Taking a toll

The first is the Transurban Group (ASX: TCL) share price after UBS cut its rating on the toll road operator to “neutral” from “buy”.

That sent the stock 2.3% into reverse as it fell to $14.45 during lunch time trade.

The downgrade comes even as management issued a positive update recently. Traffic volumes are recovering faster than what many expected and management said it will pay a half year dividend of 16 cents a share. UBS was only expecting an 11 cent a share distribution.

Dividend doubts

However, dividends over the longer-term may not meet previous expectations.

“Although there is no specific dividend guidance for FY21, there is a repeated intention to only pay out underlying free cashflow excluding capital releases,” said UBS.

“Our forecasts incorporate this as a new dividend policy which dampens longer-term distributions considering the magnitude of forecast WestConnex (WCX) capital releases.”

It also doesn’t help that the Transurban share price is outperforming the broader market, making valuations less attractive.

UBS’ 12-month price target on the stock is $14.85 a share.

Rising costs challenge

Meanwhile, the Qube Holdings Ltd (ASX: QUB) share price got a double hit as not one, but two brokers downgraded their recommendation on the stock.

The move comes even after the logistics group signed Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) as a key tenant at its Moorebank intermodal facility.

The customer win is one factor supporting the stock’s outperformance, although that isn’t the only reason why Morgans and Citigroup lowered their rating on Qube.

“QUB has advised of a $60m increase in capex related to upgrading Moorebank Avenue prior to its realignment,” said Morgans.

“In addition to this and the WOW DC capex, QUB says the minimum capex it expects to incur to fund Moorebank will be higher than previous forecast, with an update to be provided at the FY20 result.

“Each $100m unexpected cost increase reduces our valuation by 5 cps.”

Morgans changed its recommendation on Qube to “reduce” from “hold” with a price target of $2.45 a share.

Too much good news in the price

Citi also noted that Qube is funding more of the development and warehouse capex for tenants than originally expected.

“Qube’s share price has risen 34% since its equity raising in early May 2020,” said Citi.

“With the near-term operating outlook still highly uncertain, we lower our recommendation from Buy/High Risk to Neutral with a $3.15 target price.”

More reading

• 3 ASX shares I’d buy if the market crashes again
• Is the share market facing another February 2020 moment?
• This top fund manager believes dividend yields are going to 0%. Where should you invest?
• Can the Newcrest share price crest to new highs?
• Here’s why I think the Link share price has a huge growth opportunity ahead

Motley Fool contributor Brendon Lau owns shares of Woolworths Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Transurban Group and Woolworths Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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Australian businesses are running out of cash according to a survey done by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

Reporting by the Australian Financial Review of the survey showed that around 30% of small businesses have cash on hand that will last for less than three months of business operations. It gets worse for larger businesses – 24% of medium businesses and 12% of large businesses have less than three months of cash to support business operations.

The survey was done on 2,000 businesses between 10 June 2020 and 17 June 2020.

The ABS said: “Several businesses commented that existing cash on hand would not be sufficient to maintain operations if not for government support measures.” Government measures like jobkeeper and the cashflow support are due to expire at the end of September 2020.

Revenue has also been heavily affected. Around a quarter of businesses suffered a revenue fall of up to 25%, 37% of businesses saw revenue drop between 25% to 50%, 17% of businesses lost 50% to 75% of revenue and 14% suffered a revenue hit of more than 75%.

What does low cash mean for ASX shares?

Cash is extremely important. You could say cash is king. Businesses need cash to pay for their wages and other expenses.

Many businesses have done capital raisings to ensure their balance sheets remain in good shape through this difficult time. Shares like National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB), Bapcor Ltd (ASX: BAP), InvoCare Limited (ASX: IVC), Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB), Challenger Ltd (ASX: CGF), Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT), Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH), Lendlease Group (ASX: LLC), Ramsay Health Care Limited (ASX: RHC) and Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Ltd (ASX: BEN) are just some of the news to undertake a capital raising to ensure they have enough liquidity.

For me, I think businesses running low on cash is obviously worrying for ASX shares that have a focus on business customers like NAB and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ASX: ANZ).

There are other ASX shares with a focus on business customers like Xero Limited (ASX: XRO) and Prospa Group Ltd (ASX: PGL), but it’s hard to say how they will be affected.

Banks are already expecting that not all businesses will make it through this difficult period. That’s why the big ASX banks of ANZ, NAB, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) and Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) have all collectively provisioned billions of dollars for COVID-19 impacts.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison himself has warned that not every job and business can be saved. Time will tell how many businesses end up going under.

Thankfully most ASX shares seem to be doing okay through this period. Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd (ASX: VAH) has been the highest profile casualty so far, but it’s getting close to a rescue deal. The airline is in the final stages of a saviour selection process.

What ASX shares could be worth buying?

There is a still a lot of uncertainty. There are growing infection numbers in several countries.

Valuations of some shares like Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT), Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) and Xero are running hot again. Growth shares will probably do well over the long-term, but over the short-term they may be a little too expensive today if growth is hurt over the rest of 2020.

I like the idea of investing in shares that can keep growing regardless of what happens next. I’m thinking of shares like Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp Ltd (ASX: FPH), Bubs Australia Ltd (ASX: BUB), A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M) and Pushpay Holdings Ltd (ASX: PPH). These businesses are generating positive operating cash flow. 

Defensive shares that may be fairly immune to more COVID-19 disruptions could also be solid ideas like APA Group (ASX: APA), TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPM), Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL) and CSL Limited (ASX: CSL).

More reading

• 3 ASX payments shares that could double your money
• Give your portfolio a boost with these ASX blue chip shares
• Bapcor and 1 other quality ASX share to add to your portfolio
• 3 ASX shares I’d buy if the market crashes again
• Is the share market facing another February 2020 moment?

Tristan Harrison owns shares of Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Cochlear Ltd., CSL Ltd., Xero, and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Bapcor, BUBS AUST FPO, Challenger Limited, PUSHPAY FPO NZX, Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited, and Webjet Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of A2 Milk, AFTERPAY T FPO, and APA Group. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Cochlear Ltd., Flight Centre Travel Group Limited, InvoCare Limited, and Ramsay Health Care Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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Looking for 2 quality ASX shares to add to your investment portfolio?

I think Bapcor Ltd (ASX: BAP) and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL) are worth taking a good look at.

Both have established market positions and strong long-term growth prospects.

Bapcor

Bapcor is the largest and leading second-hand car parts distributor in Australia and New Zealand. It has a range of brands under its umbrella including Burson, Autobarn and Autopro.

The company has grown its presence in both countries in recent years. It has achieved this through acquisitions and the expansion of its existing business chains. It has now grown to the point where it has a strong scale advantage against its major competitors.

Bapcor is also expanding into Thailand. This could provide it with a launching pad for further expansion across Asia.

Following a recent capital raising of $180 million, the company’s balance sheet is now much more robust. These funds will see it through prolonged downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Bapcor was impacted harshly during the early phase of the pandemic. However, business activity now looks set to pick-up as lockdown restrictions are easing in both Australia and New Zealand.

The growth of the electric vehicles market could potentially be a long-term risk to Bapcor. Electric vehicles have far fewer parts and require significantly less maintenance than internal combustion engine cars. However, I don’t see this trend having any significant impact on Bapcor’s operating margins in the short-to-medium term.

Bapcor currently offers a fully franked forward annual dividend yield of 2.95%.

Soul Patts

Another quality ASX share to consider adding to your share portfolio is Soul Patts. It has investments in a wide range of industries. These span from pharmacies to telecommunications, mining and building products. This provides Soul Patts with a high level of diversification and helps make it a strong defensive share. It also helps provide Soul Patts with a buffer to any market volatility.

Soul Patts has a strong long-term track record of outperforming the ASX index. In addition, it has been listed on the ASX for over a century and has paid a dividend every year in that time.

The company also keeps significant levels of cash on its balance sheet. This places it in a strong position to snap up any future investment opportunities that may arise.

Soul Patts currently offers an attractive fully franked forward annual dividend yield of 2.99%.

More reading

• Australian businesses are running out of cash
• Is the share market facing another February 2020 moment?
• Coronavirus second wave potential could drive investment portfolio changes
• 3 ASX shares that I’d invest $1,000 into EVERY month
• 2 ASX shares I plan to hold til I’m 100

Motley Fool contributor Phil Harpur owns shares of Bapcor. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Bapcor and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Paragon Care Ltd (ASX: PGC) share price is a standout performer on the market today as investors react to a business update.

At the time of writing, Paragon Care shares have rocketed 83.33% to 22 cents apiece.

Paragon Care is a provider of medical equipment, devices and consumables for the Australian and New Zealand healthcare market.

The company also offers equipment repair, maintenance and total equipment management through its service and technology division.

Over the years, the primary way Paragon Care has grown its business has been through acquisitions. As such, the company has a many number of brands under its banner, including Insight Surgical, REM Systems, MediTron, and Immulab.

Why is the Paragon Care share price spiking?

This afternoon, Paragon provided an update regarding the impact of COVID-19 on its business.

In prior trading updates, Paragon noted demand for its products and services were being affected by restrictions and the cancellation of non-essential elective surgery.

As such, Paragon’s revenue in April 2020 tracked at 30% less than the prior year, allowing the company to be eligible for JobKeeper payments.

When Paragon disclosed these developments to the market in late April, it expected the significantly lower revenues to continue throughout the remainder of the June 2020 quarter.

However, the company announced today it has seen a “solid” improvement in its May and June revenues. Paragon attributed this to a higher than expected level of elective surgery cases due to recent favourable policy changes by the Federal Government.

As a result, the company is expecting its FY20 revenues to exceed $220 million. For context, Paragon delivered full-year revenues of $236 million in FY19.

Other developments

According to today’s release, Paragon has made “significant progress” towards its previously announced strategy of delivering a more efficient cost structure. 

To date, the company has achieved more than $4 million of permanent annualised cost savings. It expects this amount to double over the next financial year.

Additionally, Paragon advised that its rationalisation of 14 individual businesses into four main pillar businesses is “well advanced”. This rationalisation has seen the company integrate its businesses into the four pillars of devices, diagnostics, services, and capital & consumables.

Paragon said it will provide more details of this restructure, along with the associated costs, when it reports its full-year FY20 results in late August 2020.

More reading

• 3 ASX payments shares that could double your money
• Give your portfolio a boost with these ASX blue chip shares
• The latest ASX 200 stocks to be slapped with a broker downgrade
• Australian businesses are running out of cash
• Bapcor and 1 other quality ASX share to add to your portfolio

Motley Fool contributor Cathryn Goh has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The ASX is home to a growing number of exciting tech companies. Each year the list seems to get bigger. ASX tech shares were dominated by traditional sectors of telecommunications and IT services just a decade ago. However, since then, sector coverage has expanded significantly. It now also includes companies linked with a growing number of industries. Think data centres, cloud computing, the Internet of Things (IoT), logistics, and the buy now pay later (BNPL) industry.

Here we look at 3 of my top tech share picks right now: NEXTDC Ltd (ASX: NXT), Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) and Altium Limited (ASX: ALU).

NEXTDC

NEXTDC has evolved over the past decade to be Australia’s largest local data centre provider. Global international data centre providers like Equinix, Global Switch and Digital Realty dominated the market by 5-10 years ago. However, NEXTDC has grown significantly during that time. It now rivals these providers in terms of market scale and data centre efficiency.

The company has a nationwide network of Tier III and Tier IV data centre facilities throughout Australia. It continues to expand rapidly with a number of data centres under construction.

NEXTDC recently completed a $672 million equity raising. This will further assist in its expansion strategy.

Appen

Appen has evolved to become a global leader in providing data with respect to machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI).  

This ASX tech company services a range of industry players. This includes major technology companies such as Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), automakers, and governments. For example, Appen assists Apple and Alphabet’s (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL) Google in training their virtual assistants like Siri in how to interact with their users.

In a market update in late May, Appen revealed that there has been minimal impact on its major customers to date during the coronavirus pandemic.

I believe that Appen is very well placed to see continued strong growth, driven by the rising demand for artificial intelligence products.

Altium

Another ASX tech share that I would consider adding to your share portfolio is Altium. This tech company designs software that enables engineers to produce printed circuit boards (PCBs) for a broad range of devices. This includes everything from computers to cars and an increasing number of devices that make up the ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT).

Altium revealed in a May update, that it possibly won’t reach its aspirational goal of US$200 million in total revenue during FY 2020. This is a result of the current challenging economic consequences. Despite this, I believe the long-term future for Altium is very bright, driven by the rapidly expanding IoT market.

More reading

• The Appen share price just hit a record high: Is it too late to invest?
• Top brokers name 3 ASX 200 shares to buy today
• How to get rich by investing in ASX shares
• How ASX 200 shares like Xero could help you retire early
• Best growth shares to buy with $4,000

Phil Harpur owns shares of Altium, Appen Ltd, and NEXTDC Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Altium. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Appen Ltd. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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If you’re concerned that some popular dividend shares will see their yields fall to zero, then you might want to take a look at the ones listed below.

I believe all three have robust business models that will ensure that they are able to continue paying dividends for a long time to come. Here’s why I like them:

Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL)

I think Coles is one of the most defensive shares on the Australian share market and well-placed to grow its sales, earnings, and dividend whatever the economy throws at it. And while the same could be said for rival Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW), I believe Coles is the better value option. At present, I estimate that its shares are trading at ~21x FY 2021 earnings, whereas Woolworths’ shares are trading at almost 26x estimated FY 2021 earnings. Its shares also offer a more generous dividend yield, which I estimate will yield a fully franked 3.9% next year.

Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS)

Another top dividend share to consider buying is Telstra. As with Coles, I believe it is a highly defensive share and well-positioned to at least maintain its 16 cents per share dividend over the next couple of years. Especially given its free cash flow forecast, cost cutting plans, and easing NBN headwind. If it does maintain its dividend, its shares will provide investors with a fully franked 5% dividend yield.

Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES)

A final dividend share to consider buying is Wesfarmers. Once again, I think it has attractive and defensive qualities. Especially in the current environment, where the government is supporting home improvements. I expect this to give its Bunnings business a big lift. Which is particularly important, given how the hardware giant is now its biggest contributor to earnings following the spin-off of Coles. At present, I estimate that Wesfarmers’ shares offer investors a forward fully franked ~3.6% dividend yield.

More reading

• This top fund manager believes dividend yields are going to 0%. Where should you invest?
• Is the Woolworths share price a secret buy?
• Ready to invest $5,000? I’d buy these ASX dividend shares today
• Why I think the Telstra share price could hit $4 in 2020
• Coronavirus second wave potential could drive investment portfolio changes

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Telstra Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of COLESGROUP DEF SET and Wesfarmers Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Red 5 Limited (ASX: RED) share price is cratering today. Red 5 shares are down a staggering 35.22% at the time of writing to 22 cents a share after closing yesterday at 34 cents a share.

Red 5 is an ASX gold miner that operates the Darlot and King of the Hills gold mines in the Eastern Goldfields region of Western Australia. Today’s share price move will be very disappointing for the company, considering it was just included in the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) 2 days ago. The drop puts Red 5 towards the bottom of the company’s 52-week range of 16–40 cents per share.

Why the Red 5 share price is tanking today

The catalyst for this dramatic share price move appears to be an ASX release that the company put out before market open this morning. In this release, Red 5 management listed a number of concerns investors are clearly reacting to today.

Firstly, the company is planning to “scale down” underground ore production at its King of the Hills mine over the second half of 2020 in order to commence open pit ming at its recently acquired Great Western project.

Secondly, Red 5 is reporting that it is expecting substantially reduced gold production from its Darlot mine in the quarter ending 30 June 2020 due to malfunctioning equipment and higher dilution of gold ore than was originally expected. According to the release:

A recent crusher breakdown has resulted in lost production of ~3,200oz which, together with lower than forecast average mining grades as a result of dilution, has resulted in production for the June 2020 Quarter of ~21,000 oz (compared with guidance of 26,000 – 30,000 oz). FY20 production is expected to be ~93,000 oz (compared with guidance of 98,000 – 102,000 oz).

The company reports that as of June 2020, the mine is back to full production capacity.

Red 5 managing director mark Williams had this to say about the release today:

While we are disappointed that Darlot production has again been impacted in the short term due to the issues outlined in this release, we are confident that the measures implemented will stabilise production and improve predictability to put us on track to achieve our FY21 forecast.

This FY21 forecast is an expected 90,000–98,000 ounces of gold at an all-in sustaining cost of $1,830–$2,030 an ounce. At the time of writing, the gold price is $2,552.50 in Australian dollars, or US$1,772.

More reading

• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX back in the green
• Splitit share price rockets 33% on new Mastercard deal
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX bears take control as market volatility returns
• 2 crazy cheap ASX 200 shares you could still buy
• Flight Centre share price and other ASX 200 travel shares look set to continue rising

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is having a bit of a Goldilocks day and can’t seem to decide whether it thinks ASX shares are too hot, too cold or just right. After open, we saw a surge, followed by a dip and now (at the time of writing) we are sitting pretty flat at 5,978 points.

Regardless of what the ASX 200 does today or tomorrow, there are signs some investors are worried about the current level of the ASX share market, particularly given the ongoing issues surrounding coronavirus and its economic impact around the world.

So if the ASX 200 does crash again, for whatever reason, how would you respond?

Well, personally, I’ll be buying more shares. Here are 3 ASX shares I have my eye on for if the markets tank again in 2020:

An ASX healthcare leader

CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) is one of the top shares on my watchlist for if the ASX 200 tumbles again. I was watching CSL shares like a hawk through the March crash, but the price didn’t really get down to a level I thought was a bargain. Alas, the market rebounded and here we are today. Whilst I don’t think CSL will be able to continue growing at its previous breakneck speeds, I still think this company will make a top, long-term investment. It’s a global leader in the blood medicines and vaccinations space and has an unrivalled Research and Development department.

An ASX dividend beast

WAM Research Limited (ASX: WAX) is a dividend-focused listed investment company (LIC) that I already own shares in. This LIC is still offering a robust starting yield of 7.2% today (with full franking) but during the March crash, the WAM Research share price dropped to 93 cents. At that level, the shares would have offered a starting yield of more than 10%. At those prices, I think WAM Research was a no-brainer for a top income investment. I certainly won’t be wasting a second opportunity to buy shares at those levels if it was presented again.

A payments growth share

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) is a buy now, pay later (BNPL) provider that has also seen a strong recovery since the March crash. Back then, Zip shares dipped as low as $1.05 — a long way from their current price of $5.97 (at the time of writing). This may be a volatile share to own, but I couldn’t resist picking up some Zip shares if we retested those levels on the ASX again in 2020.

More reading

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Sebastian Bowen owns shares of WAM Research Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of CSL Ltd. and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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