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Today is yet another rough day for the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO), but not all the shares among its ranks are in the red.

Right now, the benchmark index is trading 0.11% lower than at Tuesday’s close and 2.5% lower than at the end of last week.

Let’s take a look at the stocks defying the downturn to record notable gains on Wednesday.

3 ASX All Ordinaries shares outperforming today

Lifestyle Communities Limited (ASX: LIC)

The Lifestyle Communities share price is one of the All Ordinaries Index’s best performers on Wednesday. Its share price is currently boasting a 11.13% gain, trading at $13.48.

It’s gaining amid news of insider buying. One of the company’s directors, Nicola Roxon, snapped up 1,000 more Lifestyle Communities shares in an on-market trade valued at $12,050 yesterday.

Of course, insider buying tends to boost sentiment in listed companies as it seemingly shows those ‘in the know’ believe a stock is trading at a good price.

Accent Group Ltd (ASX: AX1)

The Accent Group share price is also launching upwards on Wednesday, gaining 6.4% to trade at $1.37.

While there’s been no price sensitive news out of the All Ordinaries stock, one of the richest Australians, Brett Blundy has upped his stake in the company.

Blundy resigned as a company director in 2020 before being reappointed in April 2022.

His investment firm BBRC World just splashed out on $6.3 million worth of Accent shares, bringing the firm’s voting power in the company to 19%.

Judo Capital Holdings Ltd (ASX: JDO)

Finally, the Judo share price is besting many of its All Ordinaries peers to post a 2.85% gain on Wednesday afternoon. Right now, stock in the bank is swapping hands for $1.63 apiece.

It comes after the bank released its investor day presentation to the market. In the presentation Judo announced it expects to meet or beat its previously given guidance for this financial year.

The company also noted that it has positive leverage to rising interest rates and favourable current funding markets.

The post 3 ASX All Ordinaries shares having a stellar run on Wednesday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why CSL, Dicker Data, Lifestyle Communities, and Money3 shares are rising today
• Why the Judo share price is defying the ASX selloff to charge 6% higher today
• ASX 200 midday update: Magellan names its new CEO, Link shares crash
• Accent share price lifts following key ROI decisions
• Shoes, shopping, reno: 3 ASX shares experts are buying now

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper 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 Judo Capital Holdings Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Accent Group. 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 Strategic Elements Ltd (ASX: SOR) share price is skyrocketing today.

The company’s share price has soared 44% to 21 cents at the time of writing. In earlier trade, the Strategic Elements share price hit 23.5 cents, a jump of 62%. For perspective, the  S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is 0.21% in the red today.

Let’s take a look at why the Strategic Elements share price is having such a good day.

Breakthrough development

Strategic Elements shares are charging higher after the company reported a positive development from a collaboration with the University of New South Wales (UNSW).

The company’s 100%-owned subsidiary Australian Advanced Materials (AAM) and UNSW have made a step-change in generating electricity from moisture.

It comes as the company eyes the lucrative electronic skin patches market.

Breakthroughs in battery technology have shown the potential to increase electrical charge capacity from milliamp-hours (mAh) to ampere-hours (Ah).

Strategic Elements said this established the technology as a “world leader globally”.

In a statement authorised by managing director Charles Murphy, Strategic Elements said:

It wasn’t long ago that many said it was impossible to produce any usable energy from moisture.

Our team experienced a lot of scepticism. For us to now realistically target the ampere-hour range generation of electrical energy solely from humidity in the air is a huge achievement.

There is an obvious near-term target market in electronic skin patches, but we are also excited about clearly being in the early stage of testing the fundamental upper limits of this technology.

Strategic Elements operates as a pooled development fund that invests in Australian innovation.

Share price snapshot

The Strategic Elements share price has shed 32% in the past year and is down 24% year to date.

In the past week, it has surged 17%, while it is up nearly 8% in the past month.

For perspective, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index has shed nearly 1% in the past year.

Strategic Elements has a market capitalisation of about $80 million based on today’s share price.

The post Strategic Elements share price rockets 60% on ‘breakthrough’ news appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why CSL, Dicker Data, Lifestyle Communities, and Money3 shares are rising today
• Time is running out to secure dividends from these 3 ASX 200 shares
• Why are brokers so bullish on the Northern Star share price?
• Why is the Sezzle share price tumbling 8% on Wednesday?
• What’s with the Woolworths share price on Wednesday?

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.

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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a small decline. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down 0.2% to 7,038 points.

Four ASX shares that are not letting that hold them back are listed below. Here’s why they are rising today:

CSL Limited (ASX: CSL)

The CSL share price is up 2.5% to $277.48. Investors have been buying this biotherapeutics giant’s shares for a couple of reasons. One is optimism that the company will be able to overturn the US government’s ban on Mexican citizens crossing the border to donate plasma. The other is the release of a couple of bullish broker notes.

Dicker Data Ltd (ASX: DDR)

The Dicker Data share price is up 1.5% to $12.49. This follows the release of the technology hardware and software distributor’s first-quarter trading update. For the three months ended 31 March, Dicker Data reported a 50.5% increase in revenue to $673.6 million and a 22.7% lift in profit before tax to $23.8 million. This was driven by a combination of organic growth and the acquisition of Exeed.

Lifestyle Communities Limited (ASX: LIC)

The Lifestyle Communities share price is up 11% to $13.47. Investors have been buying this land lease communities company’s shares following some insider buying and a bullish broker note out of Goldman Sachs. In respect to the latter, Goldman has reiterated its conviction buy rating and $24.65 price target. That price target implied 100% upside prior to today’s gain.

Money3 Corporation Limited (ASX: MNY)

The Money3 share price is up 7.5% to $2.40. This morning the auto lender announced that it will be returning funds to shareholders via an on-market share buyback. Money3 intends to buy back up to $15 million worth of shares over the next 12 months. Management advised that this reflects the strong confidence of the Board and Management in the company’s financial performance and future growth prospects.

The post Why CSL, Dicker Data, Lifestyle Communities, and Money3 shares are rising today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• What is driving the CSL share price higher today?
• Dicker Data share price charges higher following stellar Q1 growth
• ASX 200 midday update: Magellan names its new CEO, Link shares crash
• 2 ASX shares at ‘appealing’ buy prices right now
• How did the CSL share price escape the carnage today?

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 CSL Ltd. and Dicker Data Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Dicker Data Limited. 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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Investors have been paying attention to dividend-paying shares inside the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) recently as growth shares fall out of favour.

Many dividend shares pay superior returns compared to a savings account. Even if interest rates rise further — as the Reserve Bank of Australia suggests — these passive income generators may still provide a better yield.

However, when it comes to dividend shares, there’s an important date known as the ex-dividend date. If you want to receive a company’s next payout, this is the date you need to own the shares before.

With that in mind, here are three ASX 200 dividend shares with ex-dates just around the corner.

Doors are closing on these ASX 200 dividend shares

Pendal Group Ltd (ASX: PDL)

The first company with an upcoming dividend on our list also boasts the largest dividend yield. ASX-listed fund manager Pendal Group is slated to go ex-dividend on Thursday next week. That’s after announcing its interim dividend with the company’s solid results yesterday.

If you’re a shareholder — or become one before Thursday — the next inbound dividend payment is 21 cents per share. Hence, Pendal’s 12-month trailing dividend yield sits at roughly 8.7%.

Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC)

Another share in the ASX 200 going ex-dividend on Thursday next week is one of Australia’s major banks. The best performing of the big four banks since the beginning of the year is getting set to pay up after impressing shareholders with its recent half-year results.

To the delight of shareholders, the third-largest of the big four will be providing 61 cents per share fully franked to its investors on 24 June. However, those who want a slice of the action will need to be on the register before Thursday.

Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG)

The third and final ASX 200 dividend share on our list is Macquarie Group. While 2022 hasn’t quite been the year that investors might have hoped for in terms of the Macquarie share price, they can still expect a reasonable dividend to come their way.

Unlike the previous two, Macquarie’s dividend comes with an ex-dividend date of 16 May. That means if you want to enjoy the fruits of the investment bank’s labour, you will need to buy shares this week. Those eligible for the payment will receive $3.50 per share, with $1.40 of that amount franked.

The post Time is running out to secure dividends from these 3 ASX 200 shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 2 top ASX dividend shares experts rate as buys
• Westpac share price is a buy: Broker tips ‘strongest EPS growth in the sector’
• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell today
• Why EOS, Pendal, PolyNovo and Xero shares are charging higher
• Pendal share price surges as profit soars 60%

Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler has positions in Macquarie Group Limited. 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 Macquarie Group Limited and Westpac Banking Corporation. 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 Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) share price is pushing higher today and is now 0.8% in the green at $8.80 apiece.

The gold miner — whose assets include Australia’s largest underground gold mine, Cadia Valley in NSW – has struggled so far in 2022.

Meanwhile, the gold price has taken a trip downwards these past few weeks after surging to near five-year highs in March.

Gold now trades at US$1,837 per troy ounce after the recent pullback.

What are brokers saying?

Analysts at JP Morgan are heavily bullish on the Northern Star share price. In a recent note, the broker mentioned that Northern Star is amongst its favourite picks of the Aussie gold miners.

Despite a challenging quarter, analysts reckon the investment case for Northern Star remains intact and, taking a long-term view, not much has changed fundamentally for the company.

“Operational performance was weaker than we expected across the board, with planned and unplanned outages at the KCGM seeing throughput 12% lower quarter-on-quarter,” it noted in a recent note.

“Pogo production and cost guidance has been downgraded relating to higher development and a focus on delivering more mining fronts. Group production guidance has been retained,” it added.

Consequently, Northern Star is potentially one for the future, JP Morgan says, and it remains a top choice for its clients.

[Northern Star] remains a favoured pick of our gold coverage with solid valuation support (0.88 times P/NPV), an excellent growth pipeline (7% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) to FY26), and paying a decent 3.6% dividend yield in FY23.

We upgrade to overweight with an $11 per share December 2022 price target.

Meanwhile, analysts over at RBC Capital Markets are equally as bullish on the stock, valuing it at $13.25 per share in the process.

Alex Barkley of RBC noted that Northern Star has been making good inroads in its gold exploration and discovery programs.

“The result continues NST’s long track record of organic gold discovery, with the two shortest life sites the main beneficiaries in this year’s annual update,” he wrote.

In late May, the teams of Macquarie and Canaccord Genuity each upgraded their price targets on the gold miner to $14 and $15.15 respectively, joining a long list of bullish analysts on the stock.

According to Bloomberg data, 15 out of the 16 analysts covering Northern Star rate it as a buy right now, with the consensus price target resting at $12.59 among the group.

Northern Star share price snapshot

In the last 12 months, the Northern Star share price has slipped 20% into the red and is down almost 7% this year to date.

The post Why are brokers so bullish on the Northern Star share price? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• What’s happening with the Northern Star share price on Tuesday?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday

Motley Fool contributor Zach Bristow 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.

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Perhaps the only good thing one could say about the share market today is that the falls aren’t as bad as Monday or Tuesday. Yes, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is once again in the red so far this Wednesday. At the time of writing, the ASX 200 is down by 0.16% at around 7,040 points. But that only makes the movements of the Sezzle Inc (ASX: SZL) share price look even worse by comparison.

Sezzle shares have been smashed today. The by now, pay later (BNPL) share is currently down by a painful 7.65% at 78 cents a share. What’s worse for investors, Sezzle hit a new 52-week low of 77 cents a share at around midday today. Its current 52-week high of $9.83 is starting to feel absurdly far away.

So why are Sezzle shares enduring such a nasty selloff today?

Why is the Sezzle share price tanking 8% today?

Well, it’s not entirely clear. The company hasn’t put out any news, announcements or developments today. Or indeed recently.

However, BNPL shares aren’t exactly in favour right now. While not falling by as much as Sezzle, Zip Co Ltd (ASX: ZIP) shares are also down by around 3.4% today to $1 a share. That’s just a whisker from the company’s own 52-week low of 98 cents.

So the woes of Sezzle and the other ASX BNPL shares could be connected to what happened with a prominent US-based BNPL share overnight. As we covered this morning, Affirm Holdings plunged by 11.66% overnight (out time) to US$18.19 a share. That was after the company descended as low as US$16.56 a share during intra-day trading – a new 52-week low of its own. Affirm’s woes seemed connected to another financial company, Upstart reporting a disappointing earnings result.

So it seems like the troubles that a few US-based financial and BNPL shares could be spilling over into the ASX today. This could be why we are seeing the Sezzle share price tank so dramatically. Sezzle is also a US-based company, which probably isn’t helping its cause today, and could explain why it is suffering so much more than other ASX BNPL shares like Zip.

At the current Sezzle share price, this BNPL share has a market capitalisation of $170.58 million.

The post Why is the Sezzle share price tumbling 8% on Wednesday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why is the Fortescue share price rebounding today?
• Do Coles shares offer a dividend reinvestment plan?
• ASX 200 midday update: Magellan names its new CEO, Link shares crash
• Is the Telstra share price a safe haven buy right now?
• How is the AFIC share price performing with the ASX 200 volatility?

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 Affirm Holdings, Inc., Upstart Holdings, Inc., and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Upstart Holdings, Inc. 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 Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) share price has been swinging both high and low throughout the day.

This comes after the company made a move to bolster its offering to consumers across its most popular stores.

During morning trade, the retail conglomerate’s shares accelerated to an intraday high of $38.20. However, around midday, its shares fell into negative territory before making a gradual recovery.

At the time of writing, Woolworths shares are travelling 0.13% higher to $37.80.

What did Woolworths announce?

In its latest release, Woolworths advised that shoppers can now pay for items and collect Everyday Rewards points via a single QR code scan on their smartphones.

The digital wallet works in both Woolworths and Big W stores and offers a seamless way to pay and earn rewards points.

Accessible in the Everyday Rewards app, customers will only need to have their QR code scanned at the start of the transaction. This compares to the current process which involves scanning the Everyday Rewards card and then selecting a payment method at the end of the purchase.

Everyday Rewards members can add their credit, debit, or gift card details along with their payment preferences in the app. The digital wallet automatically calculates the value when the customer scans the QR code on the payment terminals at checkout.

Woolworths Everyday managing director Hannah Ross commented:

At Woolworths Group, we’re always looking for new ways to make shopping for your everyday needs that little bit easier.

We know speed, ease and contactless payment at the checkout is important to our customers as they lead increasingly busy lives. Everyday Pay from Everyday Rewards has been designed with this need top of mind.

By integrating the ease of QR code payments, with our Everyday Rewards app, we can save customers time at the checkout and help ensure they never miss a rewards point again.

Woolworths noted that Everyday Pay from Everyday Rewards is available in all Woolworths Supermarkets, Woolworths Metro, and BIG W nationwide.

More on Everyday Rewards

With more than 13 million members across Australia, the Everyday Rewards app is aimed at helping consumers save on shopping needs. This includes boosting personalised point offers, shopping specials in their ‘my weekly picks’, and redeeming fuel discounts.

In addition, Everyday Pay will help promote contactless shopping at the checkout by offering e-receipts in the app. This allows customers to transact without paper and with the convenience of electronically stored receipts.

Woolworths share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Woolworths shares have gained around 4%, with year to date relatively flat.

Based on today’s price, Woolworths presides a market capitalisation of roughly $45.8 billion.

The post What’s with the Woolworths share price on Wednesday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Is the Woolworths share price good value right now?
• Which ASX supermarket shares could win (and lose) as higher inflation hits shelves?
• Here’s how the Woolworths share price stacked up in April
• Analysts name 2 blue chip ASX 200 dividend shares to buy
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras 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.

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The Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) share price is dodging much of the broader market’s downturn this week despite no news having been released by the company.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is recording a fall of 2.24% for the week so far as of Wednesday afternoon. The index is down 0.11% today.

Meanwhile, the Wesfarmers share price is trading at $49.16, 0.49% higher than its previous close and just 0.8% lower than where it ended last week.

So, what has protected the ASX 200 giant from the worst of the market’s recent woes? Let’s take a look.

Why is Wesfarmers outperforming this week?

The Wesfarmers share price is outperforming this week alongside the company’s home sector.

The retail conglomerate, which also has interests in fertilisers, chemicals, energy, and even lithium, is at home on the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ).

The sector has fallen just 1.5% for the week so far. Meaning, the company’s sector is also besting the broader market.

This week’s downturn appears to be an extension of the slide born from concerns about rising interest rates.

The Reserve Bank of Australia hiked rates for the first time in 11 years last week after Australia’s inflation rate surpassed 5%.

Fortunately, Wesfarmers is among the stocks experts predict could perform well even in a high interest rate environment.

They believe companies with strong balance sheets and low debt profiles are the way to go when rates rise.

And Sequoia Wealth Management advisor Peter Day recently told The Motley Fool Australia’s Tony Yoo that Wesfarmers’ balance sheet is looking strong.

One of the company’s headline retail brands Bunnings is particularly likely to continue attracting customers despite the uncertain interest rate environment.

Wesfarmers share price snapshot

While it’s outperforming this week, the Wesfarmers share price has been struggling this year so far.

It has tumbled 18% since the start of 2022 while the ASX 200 has slipped just 7%.

It is also 10% lower than it was this time last year. In that time, the broader market has slipped just 0.7%.

The post Why is the Wesfarmers share price beating the ASX 200 this week? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell today
• 2 ASX shares to buy as Aussies tighten their belts
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
• Broker names 2 of the ‘best’ ASX dividend shares to buy next week
• Guess which ASX 200 shares are defying today’s sell-off to climb higher

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper 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 positions in and has recommended Wesfarmers Limited. 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 BrainChip Holdings Ltd (ASX: BRN) share price rebounded from an early morning loss of 1.1% to be up more than 5.4% in early afternoon trading on Wednesday.

At the time of writing, shares in the artificial intelligence company are going for $1.075 after reaching as high as $1.09 earlier in the session.

A wild ride

It’s been a bit of a wild ride for BrainChip shareholders over the past week.

On Friday, the share price soared 11.2% higher from Thursday’s close and gained 19.4% from its opening price.

With the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) falling sharply on Friday (closing the day down 2.3%), that price action was enough for the ASX to request information from the company.

BrainChip responded it was unaware of any factors not released to market that could be influencing its share price on the day.

BrainChip shares closed up 3.4% on the day.

On Monday, investors were treated to a 15.1% lift in shares, only to see the company’s shares tank 15.2% yesterday.

Today, without any price-sensitive news hitting the market, the company is again charging higher.

BrainChip share price snapshot

The BrainChip share price hit an all-time high of $2.13 on 19 January. Though it’s down significantly from there, BrainChip shares remain up 57% so far in 2022.

That compares to an 8.2% loss posted by the All Ords.

The post BrainChip share price rebounds to gain 5% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why AUB, Block, BrainChip, and Pushpay shares are sinking
• Why did the BrainChip share price just crash 17%?
• 3 ASX All Ordinaries shares that managed to post decent gains on Monday
• Why BrainChip, PolyNovo, TPG, and Westpac shares are pushing higher
• Why is the BrainChip share price racing 8% higher today?

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.

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After a brilliant start to 2022, the AGL Energy Limited (ASX: AGL) share price is suffering this month as tech mogul Mike Cannon-Brookes steps up his campaign against the company’s demerger.

But there are still questions regarding the Atlassian Corporation (NASDAQ: TEAM) CEO’s plan for AGL beyond blocking the split.

A broker and AGL’s boss have reportedly flagged that Cannon-Brookes might pitch a third, “cheaper” takeover bid for the company in the future. They think the billionaire could throw a lower offer at AGL if the demerger fails or bid for Accel Energy if it succeeds.

At the time of writing, the AGL share price is $8.20, flat with its previous closing price. Though, that’s 5.5% lower than it was at the end of April.

For context, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is 0.24% on Wednesday. It has fallen 5.3% so far this month.

Let’s take a look at why the billionaire might be gearing up to slap another offer on AGL.

Could AGL be the subject of a post-demerger vote takeover bid?

The AGL share price is falling on Wednesday. Its drop comes amid reports Cannon-Brookes’ attack on the company’s demerger could double as a means to lower its value ahead of a new takeover bid.

The demerger would see AGL Energy split into energy retailer AGL Australia and energy generator Accel Energy.

JP Morgan, as quoted by The Australian, notes the company’s new major shareholder could be looking to block the demerger – which might cause AGL’s value to drop ­– before posting a third takeover bid.

On the other hand, if the demerger is approved, Cannon-Brookes might be interested in bidding for Accel Energy.

The entity will hold AGL’s coal-fired power stations alongside its gas and wind assets and future pipeline.

“We fail to understand [Cannon-Brookes’ investment vehicle] Grok’s strategy that preventing the demerger will facilitate early closure of coal plants,” JP Morgan analyst Mark Busuttil was quoted by The Australian.

Alternatively, Grok could itself acquire Accel Energy post demerger to push forward with asset closures.

It is likely the entity sees value in retail and is looking to avoid a competitive process by preventing the demerger, and possibly making a cheaper acquisition.

JP Morgan analyst Mark Busuttil, quoted by The Australian

A third takeover attempt is also on the minds of Cannon-Brookes’ fellow shareholders, according to AGL CEO Graeme Hunt.

[Shareholders] just don’t quite understand what the endgame there is, unless he is trying to do something to reduce the value of the company in order to pursue what might have been his first strategy when he had a partner – to take control of the company on the cheap and to put the value of the energy transition in his pocket, not in that of our broader shareholder base.

Graeme Hunt, quoted in a separate piece from The Australian

Cannon-Brookes’ previous bids for AGL

The tech mogul has been chasing AGL for much of 2022.

Grok Ventures put forward a bid in partnership with Brookfield Asset Management offering $7.50 per AGL share in February. That was upped to $8.25 per share in March.

The AGL board rejected both offers as it believed the bids undervalued the company.

The pair aimed to see AGL – Australia’s largest carbon emitter – reach net zero by 2035.

AGL share price snapshot

Despite recent falls, the AGL share price is outperforming in 2022.

It has gained 29.8% since the start of this year. Comparatively, the ASX 200 has slipped 7% in 2022.

Though, the company’s stock is still 7% lower than it was this time last year. The ASX 200 has fallen just 0.8% in that time.

The post Is Cannon-Brookes getting ready to pitch a third takeover bid for AGL shares? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Own AGL shares? Expert warns Cannon-Brookes’ stake might not be all it seems
• Cannon-Brookes warns AGL dividends at risk from demerger
• AGL share price makes partial recovery as expert declares demerger favourable
• AGL share price follows market lower despite demerger milestone
• Why are ASX 200 energy shares leaping higher today?

JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper 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 Atlassian. 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.

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