In afternoon trade the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) remains on course to end the week on a high. At the time of writing the benchmark index is up 0.8% to 5,372.5 points.

Four shares that have failed to follow the market higher today are listed below. Here’s why they are dropping lower:

The Boral Limited (ASX: BLD) share price is down 3% to $2.50. Investors have been selling the building products company’s shares following the release of a trading update. Boral revealed that revenues are down in most businesses in the first four months of the second half relative to the prior corresponding period. This is largely due to volume and cost pressures associated with bushfires in Australia in January followed by COVID-19 impacts more broadly. EBITDA margins for the period January to April 2020 are tracking ~3-5% lower than in the first half.

The Corporate Travel Management Ltd (ASX: CTD) share price is down 3% to $10.31. This decline may have been driven by comments out of the International Air Transport Association. It estimates that passenger traffic won’t rebound to pre-crisis levels until at least 2023.

The United Malt Group Ltd (ASX: UMG) share price has fallen 7% to $3.99. United Malt’s shares have come under pressure after completing a $140 million institutional placement. The malt business raised the funds at $3.80 per share, representing an 11.4% discount to its last traded price. The proceeds will be used to strengthen its balance sheet and provide financial and operational flexibility.

The Xero Limited (ASX: XRO) share price is down 4.5% to $76.32. This decline may have been driven by a broker note out of Macquarie this morning. According to the note, the broker has downgraded the accounting software provider’s shares to a neutral rating and cut the price target on them to $75.00. It made the move due to the uncertainty being caused by the pandemic.

More reading

• ASX 200 up 0.8%: Big four banks push higher but Xero tumbles lower
• ASX construction shares feel impacts of COVID-19 shutdowns
• Where growth, income, and value investors can invest $5,000 today
• Is the Xero share price a buy?
• ASX 200 drops 1.7%, Xero reports a profit

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Corporate Travel Management Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Xero. 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 Why Boral, Corporate Travel Management, United Malt, & Xero are dropping lower appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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The Australian share market saw particularly strong gains during April, with the S&P/ASX 300 Index (ASX: XKO) up by 9.0%.

Investment fund manager Perennial commented in its latest monthly report that the ASX market rally in April was across a broad industry base, with the resources sector performing particularly strongly.

Energy, Gold and Mining Services sectors rally strongly

Energy was the best performing sector during April, up by an impressive 25%, driven by strong optimism in relation to the outlook of the oil price. Leading the charge in this sector included: Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) shares up by 44% during the month, Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) up by 23% and Origin Energy Ltd (ASX: ORG) up by 27%. These strong rises were on the back of a strong sell-off in the energy sector during March due to a sharp fall in demand.

Perennial noted that gold shares also performed very strongly, driven by further increases in the gold price, with Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) shares up by 34% during April, and St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) both up by 22%. Mining services companies Perenti Global Ltd (ASX: PRN) and Seven Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: SVW) also both saw strong gains.

Early signs of a post-coronavirus recovery could provide further share price boost

The Australian Government’s quick response (and that of many other countries) to the crisis, including monetary easing and fiscal stimulus, will no doubt lessen the blow of the crisis on both the local and global economy.

Also, Perennial pointed out that it is growing increasingly more apparent that the steps taken to limit the spread of the coronavirus in Australia have been more successful than in most other developed nations. This provides Australia with the opportunity to fire up its economy sooner than most. It also positions Australia well to lead other nations in terms of this return to normal economic activity.

Further buying opportunities for long term investors

The federal government’s 3-step plan to reopen Australia last week, which aims to see the majority of Australian businesses re-opened by the end of July, will lead the path forward in this respect and I feel this could lead further share price growth in the ASX in the months ahead.

On a further positive note, with the recent share price falls since February, a significant amount of the downside in the market has now already been factored into current market prices. Also, despite the strong rally in April, there are still opportunities for long-term investors to buy quality companies at more attractive prices.

More reading

• 6 ASX shares driving the Australian gold boom
• ASX 200 up 0.8%: Big four banks push higher but Xero tumbles lower
• Why Kogan, Macquarie, Newcrest, & Santos shares are zooming higher
• Big bounce in these ASX stocks may be over before it began
• Got $2,000? Here are 2 ASX 200 energy shares to buy today

Motley Fool contributor Phil Harpur 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.

The post Leading fund manager sees good ASX buying opportunities appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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As the gold boom continues, Australia is set to overtake China as the world’s top gold-producing nation, according to a report by Resources Monitor. Additionally, a separate report by Fitch Solutions, as reported by Australian Mining, predicted an increase in national gold output to 13.3 million ounces by 2029. 

Australian gold miners are cost-effective producers. Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) touted the potential reduction of the all-in sustaining cost (AISC) when acquiring Red Lake.  

Projects driving growth

The Fitch Solutions report ranked Australia second after Canada in terms of growth projects and developments. 

For several reasons, Cadia mine is the jewel in the crown for Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX: NCM). For instance, it was the largest gold producer of 2019 with a full-year production of 871,246 ounces. The company is planning to push its plant to 33 million tonnes total throughput per year. And then to 35 million tonnes.

The company has an AISC of US$827 and a recently announced gold streaming acquisition will help keep AISC low. I believe Newcrest will be one of the great historic gold companies within the decade. Newcrest is trading at a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 26.61.

Saracen Mineral Holdings Limited (ASX: SAR) is upgrading its Carouse Dam from 2.4Mtpa of mill throughout to 3.2Mtpa. In addition, Saracen has shown it is a well-managed company. It is consistently one of the largest-traded gold shares on the ASX by volume. Saracen has an AISC of $1,133 and it is trading at a P/E ratio of 36.77 at the time of writing.

Regis Resources Limited (ASX: RRL) is bringing on the McPhillamys project. The company claims this is Australia’s largest remaining orebody via open pit technology. Regis has an AISC of $1,174 and it is currently trading at a P/E of 14.69.

Further gold boom prospects

Current planned expansions are not the only Australian gold boom prospects. The gold industry also has a number of high prospect exploration projects and feasibility studies underway.

This includes the Havieron Pilbara exploration by Newcrest, the Yamarna Terrane of the eastern Yilgarn by Gold Road Resources (ASX: GOR), the Red 5 Limited (ASX: RED) King of the Hills gold deposit, and the high-grade 2.2 million ounce deposit by Bellevue Gold Ltd (ASX: BGL).

Foolish takeaway

The gold miners of Australia have worked hard to earn a reputation as efficient producers. The gold price in Australian dollars remains at all-time high levels and it appears likely to stay that way for the medium term. I do not think the COVID-19 pandemic, economic uncertainty and global trade issues are likely to subside soon.

More reading

• Leading fund manager sees good ASX buying opportunities
• ASX 200 up 0.8%: Big four banks push higher but Xero tumbles lower
• Why Kogan, Macquarie, Newcrest, & Santos shares are zooming higher
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• Why Breville, Graincorp, Mesoblast, & Newcrest shares are charging higher

Motley Fool contributor Daryl Mather 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.

The post 6 ASX shares driving the Australian gold boom appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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