There have been some concerns aired in recent weeks about the resilience of the lithium market, Macquarie says, while identifying that there are still Australian producers that look attractive at current prices.

What has concerned lithium market watchers?

The broking house said there were two news events which rattled the markets – a survey released by a Chinese consultancy, and media reports of tighter controls on new battery capacity approvals.

Macquarie said they did not see the latter as a great surprise.

In August, we flagged a softer market conditions in 1HCY27 as surplus concerns re emerge, potentially exacerbated by an accumulation of energy storage system (ESS) inventories across the value chain over the next six months. Our recent channel checks suggest tier-one ESS battery manufacturers are operating near full utilisation, while many tier-two and tier-three players remain below 50% utilisation. In our view, regulatory intervention is aimed at curbing further expansion of lower-quality, inefficient capacity rather than restricting end-market ESS deployments.

Macquarie said they suspected some of the market concern “reflects a misunderstanding of the policy intent, with capacity controls potentially lost in translation as ESS demand-side restrictions”.

Which ASX lithium companies are preferred?

Macquarie said among Australian producers, Liontown Ltd (ASX: LTR) and Elevra Lithium Ltd (ASX: ELV) had the greatest sensitivity to lithium price upside, “given their operating leverage”.

They also said IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO) stands out for its attractive free cash flow generation across a range of lithium price scenarios.

Macquarie said re IGO:

Our base case forecasts FCF yields of 15% and 10% in FY27 and FY28, respectively. Even at a spodumene price of US$1,500/t, we estimate the company could still generate FCF yields of 7-9% across the same period. We note investor focus remains on cash distributions from TLEA, which have yet to materialise. In our view, a clearly defined cash sweep or distribution mechanism at TLEA could represent a re-rating catalyst for IGO.

Macquarie has a price target of $9.50 on IGO shares compared to $7.35 at the time of writing.

For Liontown, it has a price target of $1.50 compared to $1.07, and for Elevra, $12.50 compared to $6.97.

For PLS Group Ltd (ASX: PLS), it has a share price target of $6 compared to $4.42.

On the pricing for spodumene broadly, Macquarie said, “value continues to accrue upstream, reflecting persistent tightness in the spodumene concentrate market”.

They added:

While inventory levels may gradually rebuild as Zimbabwean supply returns, current market conditions remain supportive of concentrate pricing.

The post Which ASX lithium miners does Macquarie prefer? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

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• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday

Motley Fool contributor Cameron England has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

With FY 2026 dividends up 41.6% from the prior financial year, BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) shares have jumped back onto passive income investors’ radars.

Atop the welcome passive income boost, BHP has also delivered some outsized capital gains.

Trading at $60.04 apiece on Monday, shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) mining giant have surged a remarkable 48% in 12 months.

That’s seen the Aussie miner’s market cap leap to just under $306 billion. And earlier this year, it saw BHP retake the mantle from Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) as the biggest company on the ASX.

So, how about that $100 a week – or $5,200 a year – in passive income?

We’ll crunch those numbers below in a tick.

But before we do, keep in mind that the dividend yields you generally see quoted are trailing yields. These are, by their nature, backward-looking.

Future BHP dividend payouts could be higher or lower depending on a range of macroeconomic and company-specific factors. For BHP, that includes things such as variable weather conditions and future copper and iron ore prices.

With that said…

Drilling into BHP shares for $100 a week in passive income

BHP paid a fully-franked interim dividend of $1.039 a share on 26 March.

Management then declared a final fully-franked dividend of $1.38 a share when the ASX 200 mining stock reported its full-year FY 2026 results on 18 August. That’s up 50.2% from the previous final dividend payout.

It’s a bit too late to grab that latest passive income payout, as BHP shares traded ex-dividend on 3 September. If you held the stock at market close on 2 September, you can expect to receive that boosted dividend next week, on 23 September.

For the full year, then, BHP paid out a total of $2.419 a share in fully-franked dividends.

At the recent share price, this sees the stock trading on a fully-franked trailing yield of 4%.

And to earn $100 a week, or $5,200 a year, in passive income, you’d need to buy $2,150 BHP shares today.

At the recent share price, that represents an investment of $129,086.

Now, I realise that’s a big investment to make all in one go.

But that’s okay.

Investing is a long game.

You can always buy a smaller number of BHP shares on a regular basis, and you’ll reach your $100 weekly passive income goal in good time.

The post How many BHP shares do I need to buy to earn $100 a week in passive income? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Down almost 7% in 3 days, are BHP shares finally good value?
• Are ASX shares heading for a crash? Here’s how I’m preparing

Motley Fool contributor Bernd Struben has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended BHP Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) enjoyed a volatile, but pleasant start to the trading week this Monday. After a torrid week last week, investors seemed to return from the weekend with a renewed sense of optimism.

After a bouncy day, which saw the ASX 200 spend time in both positive and negative territory this session, the index ended up recording a rise of 0.1% to 8,749.9 points.

This tentative start to the week’s trading for ASX investors followed an even more bullish end to the American trading week last Friday night (our time).

The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) staged a strong recovery, rising 0.98%.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC) performed almost identically, gaining 0.96%.

But let’s return to this week and the local markets now for a look at what the different ASX sectors were up to this Monday.

Winners and losers

Despite the broader market’s lift, we still saw a handful of sectors lose steam.

The most prominent of those red sectors was tech stocks. The S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ) lost an early lead to slump 1.14%.

Mining shares weren’t in favour either, with the S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) cratering 0.55%.

Industrial stocks suffered a drop, too. The S&P/ASX 200 Industrials Index (ASX: XNJ) retreated 0.35% today.

But it was all smiles everywhere else.

Leading the green sectors this session were healthcare shares, illustrated by the S&P/ASX 200 Healthcare Index (ASX: XHJ)’s 1.52% surge higher.

Consumer staples stocks also thrived. The S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Staples Index (ASX: XSJ) enjoyed a 0.61% bounce.

Financial shares attracted buyers as well, with the S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) banking a 0.43% jump.

Energy stocks didn’t miss out. The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) added 0.38% to its total today.

We could say the same for gold shares, evidenced by the All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD)’s 0.34% advance.

Utilities stocks got some attention, too. The S&P/ASX 200 Utilities Index (ASX: XUJ) lifted 0.33% this Monday.

Communications shares got over the line, with the S&P/ASX 200 Communication Services Index (ASX: XTJ) adding 0.06% to its total.

Consumer discretionary stocks were in that ballpark, too. The S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) put on another 0.03%.

Finally, real estate investment trusts (REITs) ended the day where they started, illustrated by the S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT Index (ASX: XPJ)’s movement of 0.00%.

Top 10 ASX 200 shares countdown

Today’s index winner came down to gold stock Catalyst Metals Ltd (ASX: CYL). Catalyst stock jumped a healthy 6.11% today to close at $6.77.

This came after the company gave investors a revised (to the upside) reserve estimate for one of its projects.

Here’s the rest of today’s best:

ASX-listed company	Share price	Price change
Catalyst Metals Ltd (ASX: CYL)	$6.77	6.11%
Lovisa Holdings Ltd (ASX: LOV)	$22.87	5.73%
Cleanaway Waste Management Ltd (ASX: CWY)	$2.69	4.67%
Nine Entertainment Co Holdings Ltd (ASX: NEC)	$0.805	4.55%
Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: TLX)	$16.34	4.28%
Tuas Ltd (ASX: TUA)	$2.10	3.45%
Kingsgate Consolidated Ltd (ASX: KCN)	$5.48	3.20%
Helia Group Ltd (ASX: HLI)	$5.42	3.04%
Stockland Corporation Ltd (ASX: SGP)	$4.21	2.93%
Ampol Ltd (ASX: ALD)	$42.41	2.91%

Our top 10 shares countdown is a recurring end-of-day summary that shows which companies made big moves on the day. Check in at Fool.com.au after the weekday market closes to see which stocks make the countdown.

The post Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why are Telix Pharmaceuticals shares charging higher today?
• Telix Pharmaceuticals shares: FDA approves Pixclara brain cancer drug
• Cleanaway Waste Management provides EQT bid update
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• Are ASX shares heading for a crash? Here’s how I’m preparing

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Lovisa and Telix Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Lovisa, Nine Entertainment, and Telix Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.