Two ASX shares released some major takeover updates this morning.

One is rocketing on the news.

The other is sinking.

Which ASX shares are we talking about?

Read on!

ASX share dips on takeover update

The first ASX share with a takeover update today is marine-related services provider MMA Offshore Ltd (ASX: MRM).

Investors first learned of the potential takeover of the company on 25 March. That’s when the company reported it had entered into a binding scheme implementation deed with Cyan MMA Holdings to acquire all of its MMA Offshore’s shares.

Cyan is owned by Seraya Partners, an infrastructure fund focused on energy transition and digital infrastructure. The original offer was for $2.60 cash per share, valuing the company at just over $1.0 billion.

The board unanimously recommended a shareholder vote in favour of the offer.

MMA Offshore chairman Ian Macliver said, “We have been in discussions with Cyan since October 2023, and the board has now reached the required level of confidence to enter into the scheme implementation deed.”

The MMA Offshore share price closed up 10.6% on the day of that announcement.

Today, the ASX share is down 1.8% at $2.64 apiece after exiting a two-day trading halt.

This comes despite the company reporting that Cyan has increased its offer by 10 cents to $2.70 a share.

In the absence of a competing proposal, Cyan said this was its best and final offer. Perhaps some punters were hoping for more and are now exiting the stock.

Soaring higher on takeover update

This brings us to the ASX share, which is flying higher after the company updated the market on its own takeover proposal.

Shares in Bigtincan Holdings Ltd (ASX: BTH), which provides AI-powered sales enablement automation platforms, are up a whopping 17.4% at 11.5 cents apiece.

The tech company first announced its potential acquisition on 11 June.

At the time, Bigtincan reported:

Bigtincan has received a confidential, non-binding, incomplete and indicative offer from Vector Capital Management, L.P. at an indicative offer price of $0.25 per share.

The Independent Board Committee will, with the assistance of its financial and legal advisers, continue to carefully consider any proposals that maximise shareholder value and continue to ensure it remains in compliance with its confidentiality and continuous disclosure obligations.

The very next day, the company reported that Vector had formally withdrawn the offer, but “requested ongoing engagement with the company with a view to a new offer that could be submitted based on those engagements”.

This followed a dilutive capital raise announced by Bigtincan on the day.

Today, the ASX share reported it had received a new offer from Vector at an indicative offer price of 19 cents per share.

While that’s 65% above the current price, the board said it views the offer price as “insufficient to engage with Vector any further”.

The board has now formally rejected the revised offer.

The post 2 ASX shares with big takeover updates today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 positions in and has recommended Bigtincan. 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 Scott Phillips.

Every month, analysts at Morgans pick out their best ASX stock ideas.

These are the ASX stocks that the broker thinks offer the highest risk-adjusted returns over a 12-month timeframe. Morgans notes that they are supported by a higher-than-average level of confidence.

Among its best ideas for June are the two ASX 200 stocks listed below. Here’s what the broker is saying about them:

TechnologyOne Ltd (ASX: TNE)

Morgans thinks that this enterprise software provider’s shares are a great option for investors this month and has added them to its best ideas list.

The broker likes the ASX 200 stock due to its large cash balance, strong returns, and impressive track record of earnings growth. It said:

TNE is an Enterprise Resource Planning (aka Accounting) company. It’s one of the highest quality companies on the ASX with an impressive ROE, nearly $200m of net cash and a 30-year history of growing its earnings by ~15% and its dividend ~10% per annum. As a result of its impeccable track record TNE trades on high PE. With earnings growth looking likely to accelerate towards 20% pa, we think TNE’s trading multiple is likely to expand from here.

Morgans has an add rating and $20.50 price target on its shares. This implies potential upside of 12% for investors.

ALS Ltd (ASX: ALQ)

Another new addition to its best ideas list in June is testing services company ALS.

The broker highlights the ASX 200 stock’s (sustainable) leadership position as a reason to buy. It also believes that ALS is about to deliver margin improvements, which will be a boost to its earnings. And with copper and gold prices at high levels, it believes demand for its services will be strong. The broker commented:

ALQ is the dominant global leader in geochemistry testing (>50% market share), which is highly cash generative and has little chance of being competed away. Looking forward, ALQ looks poised to benefit from margin recovery in Life Sciences, as well as a cyclical volume recovery in Commodities (exploration). Timing around the latter is less certain, though our analysis suggests this may not be too far away (3-12 months). All the while, gold and copper prices – the key lead indicators for exploration – are gathering pace.

Morgans has an add rating and $15.50 price target on the company’s shares. This suggests that they could rise 7% from current levels. It also expects a dividend yield of almost 3% over the next 12 months.

The post Morgans names the best ASX 200 stocks to buy in June appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• 3 ASX 200 shares with ex-dividend dates next week

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Technology One. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Technology One. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Technology One. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Guzman y Gomez Limited (ASX: GYG) shares have started life as a listed company with an almighty bang.

After commencing trade at midday with an IPO listing price of $22.00, the quick service restaurant (QSR) operator’s shares opened 36% higher at $30.00.

Investors don’t appear fazed by some analysts declaring the Mexican food chain as expensive compared to peers Collins Foods Ltd (ASX: CKF) and Domino’s Pizza Enterprises Ltd (ASX: DMP).

Nor are they bothered by concerns over how Guzman y Gomez treats its lease liabilities or the mixed track record for private equity IPOs.

Guzman y Gomez shares have strong start

Judging by the way that Guzman y Gomez shares have burst out of the gates, it seems that investors are buying into management’s growth plans.

Guzman y Gomez’s revealed that its growth strategy is centred around new restaurant openings in Australia, existing restaurant sales growth, margin improvement, digital initiatives, and international growth.

In respect to the former, the company advised that new restaurant openings in Australia are expected to be the primary contributor to its network sales growth over the long term. It believes there is an opportunity to grow its network to more than 1,000 restaurants in Australia over the next 20+ years. This compares to the 185 restaurants that it operates across the country today.

Supporting this expansion is its belief that it has substantially built the team, restaurant pipeline, and infrastructure to be able to open 30 new restaurants per year over the near-term. It also sees scope to increase this to 40 new restaurant openings per year within 5 years.

Management also sees the United States as a growth opportunity given the large size of its QSR market.

However, it is taking a measured approach to its expansion in the United States and anticipates opening up to three additional corporate restaurants in the Greater Chicago region in FY 2025. It currently operates four restaurants in the country.

But management has warned that while it believes there is a large growth opportunity in the United States due to the size of the market, it will continually assess and adjust the pace and extent of new restaurant expansion having regard to the financial and operational performance of existing restaurants. After all, there is significant competition in the QSR industry and existing players in the same space, such as Chipotle (NYSE: CMG), already have significant brand equity and large footprints.

Earnings forecasts and sky-high valuation

It is fair to say that Guzman y Gomez has very skinny margins at present.

For example, in FY 2023, it reported revenue of $259 million and a profit after tax of $3 million, representing a profit margin of 1.16%.

In FY 2024, revenue is expected to increase to $339.7 million with a profit after tax of $3.4 million. After which, revenue of $428.2 million is forecast for FY 2025, with a profit after tax of $6 million. The latter will mean a profit margin of just 1.4%.

But that isn’t putting off investors, which are valuing the company at $3 billion. This gives it a staggering forecast FY 2025 PE ratio of 500x.

It certainly will be interesting to see how the company and its shares fare in the coming years once the IPO magic wears off.

The post Guzman y Gomez shares rocket 36% on IPO day appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• It’s only a day until ASX investors can buy Guzman y Gomez shares
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• Is Guzman y Gomez stock too expensive?
• Who is investing in the Guzman y Gomez IPO?
• Should you buy shares in Guzman y Gomez when it lists on the ASX?

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Collins Foods and Domino’s Pizza Enterprises. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Chipotle Mexican Grill and Domino’s Pizza Enterprises. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Chipotle Mexican Grill, Collins Foods, and Domino’s Pizza Enterprises. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Understanding what to expect from your superannuation balance at key retirement ages like 60, 65, and 70 offers a starting point for your retirement planning process.

These milestones can give you a snapshot of how well you’re preparing for retirement and what steps you might need to take to ensure a comfortable future.

My colleague Sebastian covered this topic at the beginning of the year based on FY21 statistics from the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). Read on to see my updates based on the ATO’s FY22 data.

I will discuss the median figures in addition to averages, as the latter might be inflated due to outliers, including super-riches.

Average superannuation balance leading up to 60

By the time you hit the age of 60, you’re looking more closely at retirement. According to the FY22 ATO report, the median superannuation balance leading up to this age, from 55 to 59, was $155,127. This compares with the average for the same age group of $265,739.

This is a key time to reassess your financial strategies, as you might be starting to consider winding down from work.

Progressing to 65

Moving from age 60 to 65 is an essential phase. Some decide to retire during this time, which impacts their super balance as they start to make withdrawals from their designated super fund. During this period, from ages 60 to 64, the median balance in FY22 was $177,981, while the average balance was $341,585.

Many people are still likely to be active in the workforce during this stage, which may explain why the median super balance increased by about 15% for the five years. Similarly, the average super balance increased by 29% for this age group compared to the younger age group above.

This is a crucial time to consider your investment choices, the growth of your savings, and diversification.

Reaching 70

Many Australians are well into retirement at the age of 70. In FY22, the median superannuation balance for people aged 65 to 69 was $198,715, and the average was $404,553. From there, the growth rates of these balances typically decelerate before starting to decline for the age group of 75 and more.

This shows the impact of people starting to use their super for retirement income while trying to maintain enough balance to last through their retirement years.

Maximising your super

To make the most of your super, consider additional contributions to maximise tax benefits and optimise your investment options.

While these average figures offer some insights, taking a personalised approach towards managing and growing your super will be key to a comfortable retirement.

The post Average superannuation balance at 60, 65, and 70: What to expect appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 2 ASX shares with big takeover updates today
• Morgans names the best ASX 200 stocks to buy in June
• Guzman y Gomez shares rocket 36% on IPO day
• Why these 3 ASX 200 stocks just scored sizeable broker upgrades
• DroneShield shares hit record high on major new AI order

Motley Fool contributor Kate Lee 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 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 Scott Phillips.

Three S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) stocks just had their outlooks boosted by top brokers.

One is a property developer.

One is leading the technology charge in the logistics space.

And the third is focused on mortgage lending insurance.

And if the brokers have this right, all three ASX 200 stocks could deliver some healthy returns in the year ahead.

(Broker data courtesy of The Australian.)

Three ASX 200 stocks with boosted outlooks

The first ASX 200 stock getting a sizeable broker upgrade is WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC).

Shares in the logistics software provider are up 0.3% at the time of writing to $92.75. That sees the WiseTech share price up 21% in 2024. The stock also trades on a slender, fully franked trailing dividend yield of 0.2%.

CLSA forecasts a lot more outperformance to come. The broker raised WiseTech shares to a buy rating with a $112.00 price target. That’s almost 21% above current levels.

The WiseTech share price could catch some tailwinds next week when the stock joins the exclusive S&P/ASX 50 Index. That move is part of the S&P Dow Jones Indices June quarterly rebalance.

Which brings us to the second ASX 200 stock earning a broker upgrade, property investor, developer and manager Dexus (ASX: DXS).

The Dexus share price is down 0.9%% at time of writing at $6.48 a share. That sees the share price down 15% in 2024. Dexus shares trade on a partly franked trailing dividend yield of 7.7%.

Jarden Securities believes shares are trading at a bargain. The broker raised Dexus to a neutral rating with a $7.60 price target. That’s more than 17% above current levels.

Rounding off the list of ASX 200 stocks earning broker upgrades is Lenders Mortgage Insurance provider Helia Group Ltd (ASX: HLI).

The Helia share price is rocketing 12.6% in morning trade today. Shares are currently swapping hands for $3.76 apiece. That leaves the Helia share price down 15% in 2024. The stock trades on a partly franked trailing dividend yield of 7.9%.

If you were watching the charts yesterday, you may have noticed that the Helia share price ended the day down a precipitous 20.9%, at $3.34 a share. The stock crashed after the company announced Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) plans to review the lender’s mortgage insurance (LMI) contract it has with Helia.

Macquarie believes today’s rebound has further to run. The broker raised the ASX 200 stock to an outperform rating with a $3.90 price target.

The post Why these 3 ASX 200 stocks just scored sizeable broker upgrades appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• These four ASX All Ords shares just earned hefty broker upgrades. Here’s why
• Why these 2 ASX 200 shares just scored broker upgrades

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 positions in and has recommended Macquarie Group and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Macquarie Group and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

DroneShield Ltd (ASX: DRO) shares are pushing higher again on Thursday after a brief pause this morning.

At the time of writing, the counter-drone technology company’s shares are up a further 3% to a new record high of $1.61.

This latest gain means that the high-flying share is now up 77% since this time last month.

Why are DroneShield shares rising again?

Investors have been snapping up the company’s shares again this morning in response to the release of an announcement.

According to the release, DroneShield has received an order valued at $4.7 million from a new non-government Swiss international customer.

The order will see the company provide the customer with multiple vehicle-based counter-drone (C-UxS) systems.

The release notes that the vehicle-based solution will offer a rapidly deployable C-UxS platform that can be operated in both static and on-the-move (OTM) missions for convoy and mobile VIP protection.

It provides a new level of operational flexibility by incorporating DroneShield’s radio frequency detection and mitigation, radar, and electro-optical sensors, into a single vehicle-based platform. The system will be powered by the DroneSentry-C2 command-and-control system, including its proprietary AI-based sensor fusion engine.

The AI-based sensor fusion engine can track an object to determine its classification and predict its trajectory. It can also assess the threat level. It does this by intelligently determining its threat based on a wide range of data types. Another positive is that it has been designed for complex, high noise environments, with inconsistent data inputs.

The end customer for this technology has not been named by DroneShield. However, it has been described as a high-profile Government agency.

Payments for the order are expected to be received throughout 2024, with the final payment expected to land in the first quarter of 2025.

DroneShield’s CEO, Oleg Vornik, was pleased with the news and believes it demonstrates the quality of the company’s technology. He commented:

This order highlights DroneShield expertise not only as a maker of cutting-edge AI-based C-UAS sensor and effector technologies, but also a system integrator, for demanding applications that involve multiple sensor and effector modalities, operating in tough conditions. We are excited to have this new customer onboard and doing more work with them over coming years.

Following today’s gain, DroneShield shares have now risen by almost 600% since this time last year. This means that a $10,000 investment would have grown to be worth close to $70,000 today.

The post DroneShield shares hit record high on major new AI order appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• CBA, DroneShield, and these ASX stocks just hit 52-week highs
• Why the ‘opportunity is immense’ for DroneShield shares: fundie
• Does DroneShield stock pay dividends?
• If I’d put $5,000 into DroneShield shares just 1 year ago, here’s what I’d have now

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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 DroneShield. 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 Scott Phillips.

Growth stocks are attractive to investors wanting maximum returns in today’s financial world.

Many ASX shares offer excellent opportunities, and smart investors are looking for shares with strong capital growth potential.

As we approach FY25, here are three growth-focused ASX shares that I think are worth considering for the upcoming financial year.

PWR Holdings Ltd (ASX: PWH)

First up is cooling solutions provider PWR Holdings. The company designs and manufactures high-performance cooling solutions for automotive, motorsport, and industrial applications.

PWR serves top-tier global clients, including Formula 1 teams and major automotive manufacturers.

The retail stock reported an excellent set of numbers in its 1H FY24 results, with its revenue rising 22.2% to $64.2 billion and EBITDA up 27.2% to $18.4 billion. Strong growth in the aerospace and defence segment, up 124% from a year ago, continued to support its business, while motorsport revenue delivered a robust 19% growth.

This positive development led the PWR Holdings share price to hit its all-time high of $12.98 in February. However, since then, the share price has dropped about 14% to $11.00 at the time of writing.

At the current share price, PWR shares are trading at 35x FY25 earnings estimates by S&P Capital IQ, mid-point of its trading history of between 20x to 52x. While this is not exactly cheap, I tend to agree with my colleague Tony that the high-quality shares are rarely cheap.

VEEM Ltd (ASX: VEE)

My next pick is ASX small-cap share VEEM, which makes advanced marine technology and engineering parts. The company is well-known for its high-quality gyro stabilisers (gyros), propellers, and other precision parts used in the marine, defence, and aerospace industries.

VEEM is a small ASX company, but it has a presence in the global market and two exciting growth opportunities ahead of it.

VEEM gyros are an innovative product that replaces traditional propeller-based stabilisation. The company has the dominant position in this interesting niche.

In 1H FY24, its gyro sales were $5 million, with orders in hand of $9.2 million. While this may still look small compared to its total revenue of $37.5 million, the company sees a total addressable market of US$1.1 billion from this product. So, it’s a long runway for growth.

The company is collaborating with another industry leader, Sharrow Engineering, to adapt Sharrow’s design to a wider range of vessels. In this exclusive agreement, VEEM would manufacture and sell Sharrow-designed propellers worldwide for inboard-powered vessels. In April 2024, VEEM saw a positive outcome from initial testing and hopes to launch this product line throughout FY25.

The VEEM share price has more than quadrupled over the past year, after hitting an all-time low of 40 cents in July 2023. VEEM shares are trading at 30x FY25 earnings estimates, based on S&P Capital IQ.

DUG Technology Ltd (ASX: DUG)

The last share to discuss is DUG Technology. The company provides high-performance computing solutions, software, and data analytics services. It specialises in innovative cloud-based services, and high-performance computing (HPC). DUG is a global business with offices in Australia, Asia, Americas and Europe.

This ASX small cap share also provides an artificial intelligence (AI) angle.

In June, the Perennial Natural Resources Trust manager Sam Berridge said DUG could offer direct exposure to the AI boom, as my colleague James summarised. He highlighted DUG’s patented immersion cooling technology, which the company claims provides 90% savings in electricity use and manpower.

In 3Q FY24, the company delivered a 39% growth in revenue to US$17.6 million and a 24% growth in EBITDA to US$4.6 million. In response to strong demand, the company is planning to establish a new business unit in the Middle East.

The DUG share price more than doubled over the past year and is at a price-to-earnings ratio of 38x using FY25 estimates by S&P Capital IQ.

The post 3 of the best growth-focused ASX shares to buy in June appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• This fund returned 30% per annum for 3 years. Here are the ASX shares it’s buying now.

Motley Fool contributor Kate Lee has positions in Veem. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Dug Technology, PWR Holdings, and Veem. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended PWR Holdings. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Dug Technology and Veem. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Qantas Airways Ltd (ASX: QAN) shares are in the green today.

Shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) airline stock closed yesterday trading for $6.15. In morning trade on Thursday, shares are swapping hands for $6.16 apiece, up 0.2%.

For some context, the ASX 200 is down 0.03% at this same time.

That’s this morning’s price action for you.

Now here’s how artificial intelligence (AI) can help streamline the company’s costs and services and potentially throw up some ongoing tailwinds for Qantas shares.

Qantas shares bringing artificial intelligence into the skies

If it seems like everywhere you turn AI is cropping up, you’re not alone.

And the skies are no exception.

Though still in its nascent stages, AI is already helping companies improve efficiency, provide better client services and cut costs. And the technology could offer a sustainable boost to Qantas shares.

One area where AI could help the ASX 200 airline drive down costs is maintenance.

Amazon chief technology officer Werner Vogels said the revolutionary new tech could help aeroplane mechanics identify parts that may be close to failing so they can be repaired or replaced.

According to Vogels (quoted by The Australian):

The detection part is crucial for airlines with limited options for maintenance because it means they can bring the aircraft to the place where it can undergo maintenance ahead of time.

There’s huge cost savings to be had in that.

AI has already been helping the performance of Qantas shares by reducing fuel requirements.

In 2018, the ASX 200 airline began using the technology to adjust aircraft’s flight paths in accordance with weather, the particular plane’s capabilities and its fuel supply. AI is estimated to have cut some 2% of Qantas annual jet fuel costs. And with fuel costs in the range of $5 billion a year, that’s no chump change.

Qantas also used AI to help monitor global airspace for potential closures, other aircraft, or potential dangers like volcanic ash.

Why shareholders are eyeing Joyce’s new bonus

In other news, not all Qantas shareholders are pleased that former CEO Alan Joyce is poised to receive another $16 million (or more) payout from the ASX 200 airline.

While that payment is under review, shareholder sentiment is unlikely to influence the outcome.

“‘How much is too much?’ is the wrong question to ask,” Sandon Capital managing director Gabriel Radzyminski said (quoted by The Australian).

Radzyminski added:

Ultimately, it is a question for the board, who in turn are answerable to their shareholders. Boards need to think very carefully about what contractual obligations they enter into when negotiating with CEOs and executives.

Qantas shares are up 15% in 2024.

The post How AI can help Qantas shares fly higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Could Qantas shares be poised to catch some Chinese tailwinds?
• 3 reasons to be positive on ASX 200 shares in FY25 (and 3 to be wary)
• Where Aussies are spending their money, and the ASX shares that could benefit
• These ASX shares could rise 25% to ~50%
• Why are ASX investors so excited by the Qantas share price?

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 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 Scott Phillips.