If you’re looking for buy and hold investment options, then I think the healthcare sector is a great place to start.

This is because in this sector there are a number of companies with the potential to grow materially over the next decade.

With that in mind, here are three top ASX healthcare shares I would buy right now:

CSL Limited (ASX: CSL)

I think the leading biotherapeutics company is a healthcare share to buy. This is because of its high quality businesses and their portfolio of life-saving therapies and vaccines. The good news is that management never rests on its laurels. Each year it invests hundreds of millions of dollars into its research and development. This means CSL has a large number of therapies in its pipeline that have the potential to save lives and generate significant sales over the next decade. Overall, I believe this should underpin strong earnings growth in the coming years and send the CSL share price higher.

Nanosonics Ltd (ASX: NAN)

Another ASX healthcare share to consider buying is this infection prevention company. I’m a big fan of Nanosonics due to its industry-leading trophon EPR disinfection system for ultrasound probes. I think this product alone could drive strong earnings growth over the next decade thanks to its sizeable market opportunity and growing recurring revenues. However, with the company aiming to release a number of new products targeting other unmet needs in the coming years, Nanosonics’ growth could go up a level in the near future. In light of this, I think now would be a good time to buy and hold Nanosonics shares.

Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME)

A final healthcare share to consider buying is Pro Medicus. It is a healthcare technology company which provides radiology IT software and services to hospitals, imaging centres, and healthcare groups. Its popular Visage 7 Enterprise Imaging Platform delivers fast, multi-dimensional images which are streamed via an intelligent thin-client viewer. A number of major healthcare institutions are using Visage 7, including the Northwestern Memorial HealthCare. Last month Pro Medicus signed major new contract worth $22 million with the Chicago-based healthcare company. It also revealed that it has a number of sales opportunities in its pipeline that it is working on. I believe this bodes well for its future growth and could be the key to driving the Pro Medicus share price notably higher over the coming years.

More reading

• How to turn $20,000 into over $200,000 in 10 years with ASX shares
• Is the ANZ, APA or CSL share price a strong buy?
• Looking to start a share portfolio? Here are 3 quality ASX shares to begin with
• Where to invest $5,000 into ASX 200 shares immediately
• Is the CSL share price fairly valued?

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 CSL Ltd. and Nanosonics Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Pro Medicus Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Pro Medicus Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Nanosonics 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.

The post Bring your portfolio to life with these stellar ASX healthcare shares appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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I think the Australian share market is home to a good number of tech companies that have the potential to grow materially in the future.

Two which I think are among the best on offer right now are listed below. Here’s why I would buy and hold them:

Appen Ltd (ASX: APX)

The first ASX tech share I would buy and hold is Appen. Its crowd-sourced team of experts prepare the high quality data that goes into artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning models. This is an incredibly important part of the process, as without high quality data a model will suffer. Unsurprisingly, this means its services are in great demand from businesses across the world. This includes the likes of Facebook and Microsoft.

Another positive is that governments are intending to spend big on artificial intelligence in the future. Appen notes that the US government currently has a US$5 billion AI budget and the UK government has a £2.3 billion AI budget. This should be good news for its Figure Eight business, which has a long history in the sector. Overall, I believe the company is well-placed to grow its earnings at a strong rate over the next decade. And although the Appen share price recently hit a record high, I would still invest if you’re making a long term investment.

Pushpay Holdings Group Ltd (ASX: PPH)

Another ASX tech share that I would buy and hold is Pushpay. It provides a donor management system, including donor tools, finance tools, and a custom community app to the faith sector. It has been growing at a very strong rate over the last few years and looks set to continue this positive form in FY 2021. Pushpay recently upgraded its guidance for FY 2021 to earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) of US$50 million to US$54 million. This compares to its previous guidance of US$48 million to US$53 million and will be at least double FY 2020’s EBITDA.

The good news is that it still has a very long runway for growth over the coming years. Management is aiming to grow its revenue to US$1 billion revenue later this decade. This is almost 8x FY 2020’s revenue of US$127.5 million. Given its sizeable opportunity in a niche market and its leadership position within it, I expect the company to achieve its goals. This should mean there’s still plenty of upside ahead for the Pushpay share price over the next few years.

More reading

• 3 of the best ASX growth shares to buy for the 2020s
• Why I would buy Appen and this ASX growth share right now
• Afterpay share price hits $67! Are BNPL shares in a bubble?
• What’s next for WAAAX shares?
• These 2 ASX tech shares show stellar growth prospects

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 PUSHPAY FPO NZX. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Appen Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended PUSHPAY FPO NZX. 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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Last week saw a large 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:

Brickworks Limited (ASX: BKW)

According to a note out of UBS, its analysts have resumed coverage on this building products company’s shares with a buy rating and $17.10 price target. UBS is positive on Brickworks largely because of its joint venture with Goodman Group (ASX: GMG). It believes the market is overlooking the potential upside from this joint venture. Especially after its recently announced deal with Amazon, which gives it exposure to the growing ecommerce market. While I think Brickworks could be a decent option, I would sooner buy Goodman’s shares ahead of it.

Jumbo Interactive Ltd (ASX: JIN)

Analysts at Morgans have upgraded this online lottery ticket seller’s shares to an add rating with an improved price target of $11.58. Although it acknowledges that the new Tabcorp Holdings Limited (ASX: TAH) reseller agreement will eat into its margins with its growing service fees, it appears happy that it has signed such a long term deal. This has removed a key risk hanging over the company and allows it to focus on growing the Powered By Jumbo (SaaS) business. I agree with Morgans and feel Jumbo could be a great buy and hold option for investors.

NEXTDC Ltd (ASX: NXT)

A note out of Goldman Sachs reveals that its analysts have retained their buy rating and lifted their price target on this data centre operator’s shares to $11.10. This follows its announcement of new contract wins in New South Wales. Goldman believes that these new contracts (and their commitment options) will support its earnings estimates. It has forecast an FY 2019-FY 2023 EBITDA compound annual growth rate of +25%. I think that Goldman Sachs is spot on and feel NEXTDC would be a fantastic buy and hold option.

More reading

• These were the best performing ASX 200 shares last week
• 2 dirt-cheap ASX shares to buy next week
• Should you buy ASX gold shares like Saracen Minerals in July?
• Is the Vanguard Property ETF a good long-term investment?
• This leading broker thinks the NEXTDC share price can go higher

James Mickleboro owns shares of NEXTDC Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Jumbo Interactive Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Brickworks and Jumbo Interactive 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.

The post Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy next week appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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The five ASX shares I’m going to mention in this article are rated as ‘buys’ by several brokers.

It’s quite hard to find businesses that are both good businesses and trading at a good price. Even then, one person might say Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) and another says that Transurban Group (ASX: TCL) is a better choice.

Investment site MarketIndex regularly collates the ratings of brokers together to assess what the broker community collectively think are opportunities. Of course, this still isn’t a guarantee of success – they could all be herding together.

With that in mind, here are five ASX shares that brokers like:

Aristocrat Leisure Limited (ASX: ALL)

Aristocrat is a gambling machine and gaming business. There are at least 12 analysts who think that Aristocrat is a buy.

The ASX share is being affected by COVID-19 impacts as operators are/were closed for social distancing reasons. However, a lot of venues were due to open between May and July, so things have been improving. In the half-year to 31 March 2020, the class III premium stalled base grew 9.4% and class II grew 1.8%. However, the digital business can continue to perform even if venues are closed.

At the current Aristocrat share price it’s trading at 23x FY21’s estimated earnings.

BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP)

BHP is one of the world’s biggest resource businesses. There are at least 13 analysts that think BHP is a buy.

The ASX share has remained robust through this difficult period. Iron ore is been the main reason why the company’s earnings haven’t been affected as much as it could have been. China continues to buy large amounts of the commodity. Brazil’s problems with COVID-19 has affected production and shipments from South America, helping the iron price remain resilient.

Petrol demand is also rebounding as traffic returns to a more normal level around the world. 

At the current BHP share price it’s trading at 17x FY21’s estimated earnings.

Bapcor Ltd (ASX: BAP)

Bapcor is the leading auto parts business in Australia and New Zealand. There are at least eight analysts that think Bapcor is a buy.

The ASX share suffered a drop in demand due to COVID-19. But it’s now seeing an even larger increase in demand.

During May and June Autobarn saw same store sales grow by 45% compared to a year ago. Over the past couple of months Burson Trade has seen same store sales growth of 10%. 

At the current Bapcor share price it’s trading at 20x FY21’s estimated earnings.

Coles Group Limited (ASX: COL)

Coles is the second largest supermarket business in Australia. It’s rated as a buy by at least 10 analysts.

The ASX share has proven to be resilient during COVID-19 as customers loaded up on various grocery items to see them through the lockdown period.

Coles has a strategy to be the most sustainable supermarket. It’s also working on improving its private label range to attract customers. The solid 5.4% grossed-up dividend yield is a useful bonus to owning Coles.

At the current Coles share price, it’s trading at 24x FY21’s estimated earnings.

Crown Resorts Ltd (ASX: CWN)

Crown is the operator of two of the largest entertainment complexes in Australia, Crown Perth and Crown Melbourne. It’s also currently constructing Crown Sydney. Crown is rated as a buy by at least eight analysts.

The improving outlook for COVID-19 in Australia made a return to somewhat normal seem possible. However, COVID-19 is spreading in Victoria, so the outlook doesn’t look as good as it did a week ago.

Crown has unique assets but that alone doesn’t mean it will make strong returns.

Assuming life goes back to normal in FY22, at the current Crown share price it’s trading at 18x FY22’s estimated earnings.

Foolish takeaway

Each of these ASX shares may be decent investments over the long-term. I’m not convinced about Crown considering it relies on large numbers of people and international VIPs for its earnings. I think Bapcor could be a very good buy today, whilst Aristocrat could be also be a good growth share at the current level.

More reading

• 3 top ASX dividend shares I would buy next week
• 2 ASX dividend shares with yields over 6%
• Diversify your portfolio with BHP, ResMed, and Wesfarmers shares
• What’s going on with the Coles share price?
• Why you can expect further gains for ASX shares this quarter

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 Australia owns shares of COLESGROUP DEF SET and Transurban Group. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Crown Resorts 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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Next week the Reserve Bank of Australia will meet once again to discuss the cash rate.

According to the latest cash rate futures, at present the market is pricing in a 60% probability of a rate cut to zero.

While I’m not overly convinced there will be a cut to the cash rate on Tuesday, I am certain that rates will be staying at these low levels for a long time to come.

While this is good news for borrowers, it means savers and income investors will need to contend with low rates for a little while longer.

But don’t worry if you’re in the latter group, because the three ASX dividend shares listed below can help you generate an income in this low interest rate environment. Here’s why I would buy them:

BWP Trust (ASX: BWP)

The first dividend share to buy is BWP Trust. It is a real estate investment trust and the landlord to 68 Bunnings Warehouse stores. I believe this is a great tenant to have and expect Bunnings to continue its strong performance in the coming years. Especially given how the government is supporting the renovation market with additional stimulus. I believe this puts BWP in a great position to increase its rental income and distribution at a modest rate for the foreseeable future. Based on the latest BWP share price, I estimate that it provides a 4.7% FY 2021 distribution yield.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA)

I think Commonwealth Bank could be a dividend share to buy. Although it isn’t the cheapest bank share, I believe it deserves to trade at a premium to the rest of the big four. This is due to the quality of its operations and strong market position. And while this is unlikely to prevent a dividend cut in FY 2021, I don’t believe the cut will be as severe as many expect. I continue to forecast a fully franked dividend in the region of $3.70 per share. This would be a generous 5.15% dividend yield based on the current Commonwealth Bank share price.

Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS)

A final dividend share to consider buying is Telstra. I think the telco giant is a quality option for income investors thanks to its improving outlook and generous yield. In respect to its improving outlook, I’m confident that Telstra is on a pathway to a return to growth thanks to its T22 strategy. But until that comes, I believe its free cash flows will be sufficient to maintain its 16 cents per share dividend. Based on the latest Telstra share price, this equates to a fully franked 4.75% dividend yield. 

More reading

• Looking to start a share portfolio? Here are 3 quality ASX shares to begin with
• 2 dirt-cheap ASX shares to buy next week
• Here are the 10 shares that move global markets
• Brokers name 3 ASX 200 shares to buy right now
• ASX 200 up 0.55%: Cochlear jumps on FDA approval, Adbri crushed on contract loss

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. 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.

The post 3 ASX dividend shares to buy before the next RBA meeting appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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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:

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp Ltd (ASX: FPH)

According to a note out of Citi, its analysts have retained their sell rating and lifted the price target on this medical device company’s shares to NZ$22.75 (A$21.40). Although the broker was very impressed with its earnings growth in FY 2020 and believes its guidance for the new financial year is conservative, it isn’t enough for a change of rating. Citi continues to believe that its shares are too expensive at the current level. The Fisher & Paykel Healthcare share price ended the week at $32.91.

Netwealth Group Ltd (ASX: NWL)

Analysts at Credit Suisse have downgraded this investment platform provider’s shares to an underperform rating with an improved price target of $8.30. The broker made the move largely on valuation grounds after its shares recovered strongly from their March lows. In addition to this, Credit Suisse believes its softening revenue margin could mean it falls short of consensus earnings estimates over the short term. The Netwealth share price closed at $9.04 on Friday.

St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM)

A note out of the Macquarie equities desk reveals that its analysts have downgraded this gold miner’s shares to an underperform rating with a $2.60 price target. St Barbara is just one of a number of gold miners the broker downgraded last week. It made the move on the belief that the strengthening Australian dollar will weigh on the gold miners’ earnings growth in the near term. The St Barbara share price ended the week at $3.29.

More reading

• The latest ASX stocks to be downgraded by top brokers today
• Why Adbri, BlueScope, Netwealth, & Rio Tinto shares are tumbling lower
• Should you buy ASX gold shares like Saracen Minerals in July?
• These 3 ASX healthcare shares are at all-time highs!
• Why Avita, Brickworks, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare, & WiseTech Global are tumbling lower

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Netwealth. 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.

The post Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell next week appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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If you have $10,000 sitting in a savings account and no immediate plans for it, I would suggest you consider investing it into the share market where the potential returns are vastly superior.

But where should you invest these funds? I think the three ASX shares listed below would be great options:

BetaShares NASDAQ 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ)

I think investing $10,000 into the BetaShares NASDAQ 100 ETF would be a great idea. This is my favourite exchange traded fund on the ASX and for good reason. It gives investors access to the 100 largest non-financial shares on the NASDAQ index. This means you’ll be buying a piece of the likes of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft, Netflix, and Google parent, Alphabet. Given the very positive long term outlooks of these companies, I believe the Nasdaq 100 index is likely to outperform most markets over the next decade. This could make it a great buy and hold option.

REA Group Limited (ASX: REA)

I think REA Group would also be a great place to invest $10,000 with a long term view. It is a leading property listings company with websites in Australia, Europe, Asia, and the United States. I’ve been very impressed at the way the company has performed over the last couple of years despite the tough trading conditions it has faced. So when trading conditions finally improve, I’m confident that its earnings growth will accelerate. This could drive the REA Group share price notably higher over the 2020s.

ResMed Inc. (ASX: RMD)

A final option to consider investing $10,000 into is ResMed. I think this sleep treatment-focused medical device company is one of the best buy and hold options on the local share market. This is because I believe it is well-placed for growth over the 2020s thanks to its industry-leading masks and software and its sizeable market opportunity. The company has previously suggested that there could be upwards of 1 billion people impacted by sleep apnoea worldwide. As the vast majority of these are undiagnosed, it gives ResMed a very long runway for growth. So after smashing the market in the 2010s, I would not bet against the ResMed share price repeating its heroics in the current decade.

More reading

• Diversify your portfolio with BHP, ResMed, and Wesfarmers shares
• Why I would buy CSL and these ASX blue chip shares in FY 2021
• These 3 ASX healthcare shares are at all-time highs!
• Where I would invest $10,000 into ASX shares in FY 2021
• The top 10 performing ASX shares over the past year

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 BETANASDAQ ETF UNITS. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended BETANASDAQ ETF UNITS, REA Group Limited, and ResMed Inc. 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.

The post Where to invest $10,000 into ASX shares in July appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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The gold price has been a quiet achiever over the year so far. While most investors’ attention has been focused on the recovery of the S&P/ASX 200  (INDEXASX: XJO) since the market bottom on 23 March, the gold price has also been climbing. At March’s low, the yellow metal was priced around US$1,478 an ounce. Today, that same ounce will set you back US$1,778 (which is more than a 20% bump). Just 2 days ago, gold hit $1,787 an ounce — it’s the highest price since 2011’s all-time high of $1,917.90.

Why has the gold price been climbing?

Gold is usually viewed as a ‘safe haven’ asset due to its physicality, scarcity, and former role as a monetary base. The coronavirus pandemic has created an almost perfect environment for gold to flourish in this role in recent months. Further, investors worry about the consequences of central banks using ‘quantitative easing’ (QE) to assist their economies through the crisis. QE is viewed by many people as ‘money printing’. This is leading to fears of an inflationary investing environment in the coming years. Last month, I wrote about how the ultra-rich are hoarding gold for this very reason.

How can you invest in gold?

There are 3 conventional ways of investing in gold:

1. Buying physical gold bullion
2. Invest in a gold miner
3. Buy gold through an exchange-traded fund (ETF).

Buying physical bullion can be unattractive to investors due to storage and transportation costs, so we’ll leave this out of the discussion.

That leaves ETFs or ASX gold miners for your perusal.

Advantages of gold ETFs

A gold ETF is an easy way to invest in gold because the fund manager buys and stores the gold on investors’ behalf, usually in a bank vault or other secure location. An ASX example is the ETFs Metal Securities Australia Ltd (ASX: GOLD).

Gold ETFs are an easy choice, as they will usually mirror the returns you will see in the gold price. This will, of course, be adjusted for currency fluctuations. But there are a couple of drawbacks. Gold (as an unproductive asset) gives off no yield, so you can’t generate cash flow unless you sell your units. Also, the gold still has to be stored and guarded, which means you will pay a fee to the ETF for the privilege.

Advantages of ASX gold miners

A gold miner is another popular way of gaining exposure to gold. As a gold miner is a company, you, as a shareholder, indirectly ‘own’ any gold the company mines. And as a company is (hopefully) profitable, you can also receive a yield on your investment through dividend payments. As an example, Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX: NCM) is the largest ASX gold miner and currently offers a trailing dividend yield of 1%.

But the good news for a gold miner is that it can deliver returns that exceed the gold price movements. If a company’s cost to mine an ounce of gold is US$1,000, and gold is selling for $1,500 an ounce, the company makes a profit of $500 per ounce. But if gold prices rise to US$2,000 an ounce, your investment just doubled its profitability, even though gold ‘only’ rose 33%.

Of course, this works in reverse too. Meaning that a gold miner is effectively a ‘leveraged bet’ on gold prices. There are also other concerns to worry about with a miner including how well the company is run and the debt it employs.

Foolish takeaway

A gold miner can be a lucrative way to gain exposure to gold. But it’s also riskier than just owning physical bullion or investing in an ETF. As such, if exposure to gold is important to your investing philosophy, I think most retail investors are best served by an ETF.

More reading

• The Webjet share price is dividing analysts even as it becomes a likely takeover target
• These were the best performing ASX 200 shares last week
• These were the worst performing ASX 200 shares last week
• 2 dirt-cheap ASX shares to buy next week
• ASX 200 closes 0.4% higher, Cochlear share price up 6%

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen owns shares of Newcrest Mining Limited. 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.

The post Gold at record highs! Are ASX gold miners or ETFs a better bet? appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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