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It might seem like deja vu, but electric vehicle and battery manufacturer Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) is planning a stock split. Yes, another one.

It was only back in August 2020 that Elon Musk’s company undertook its last stock split. But the company’s share price growth has clearly elicited the company to undertake a second split in as many years.

Since its last split was announced, Tesla is up more than 130%. Tesla made the announcement last night, which promptly saw the Tesla stock price leap an extraordinary 8% or so. The company began US trading at US$1,010.64 a share, but closed this morning (our time) at US$1,091.84, up 8.03%.

So what did the company actually say? Not too much as it turns out. Here’s some of what Tesla’s SEC filing stated:

On March 28, 2022, Tesla, Inc… announced its plan to request stockholder approval at the upcoming 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders… for an increase in the number of authorized shares of common stock… in order to enable a stock split of the Company’s common stock in the form of a stock dividend. Tesla’s Board of Directors… has approved the management proposal, but the stock dividend will be contingent on final Board approval.

We don’t yet know what or when the exact split will be. But we know that it has certainly made a good impression on investors, or at least it did overnight.

Tesla stock price soars on latest stock split

Stock splits have been all the rage in the US tech sector in recent years. Tesla kicked off this trend back in 2020 when it first announced its last split. This saw a five-for-one division of Tesla shares. This was followed by Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) announcing its own four-for-one split soon after. More recently, we have seen both Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG)(NASDAQ: GOOGL) and Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN) announce 20-for-1 splits of their own. These haven’t been initiated yet.

So why do investors like stock splits? Well, that is somewhat unclear. A stock split has very little real benefit for a company or its investors. It simply results in a re-division of a company’s shares into smaller parcels. Think of it as cutting a pie into smaller sized slices. The pie itself doesn’t change size, but its slices do. For example, Tesla’s last stock split was done at a five-to-one ratio. That means that an investor who held 10 shares before the split held 50 shares after the split, with each share worth approximately 20% of what an old one was worth.

But even though it’s just ‘recutting the pie’, stock splits still have arguable benefits. A lower share price increases a company’s liquidity. It also could increase the appeal for smaller, retail investors. That’s because it’s a lot more affordable to buy a share worth US$200 than US$1,000.

So we’ll have to wait and see what this new split will look like when Tesla releases more details. But it looks as though there are about to be a lot more Tesla shares on the markets. At last night’s close, Tesla shares are up 78.6% over the past 12 months and an eye-watering 1,862% over the past five years.

Tesla’s market capitalisation now stands at US$1.13 trillion.

The post Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) share price rockets 8% on stock split news appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen owns Alphabet (A shares), Amazon, Apple, and Tesla. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Amazon, Apple, and Tesla. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Alphabet (C shares) and has recommended the following options: long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple and short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Alphabet (C shares), Amazon, and Apple. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Ioneer Ltd (ASX: INR) share price is in the green today on the back of the company’s latest lithium battery agreement.

Its shares are currently swapping hands at 56 cents, a 3.7% gain. For perspective, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is up 0.86% today.

Let’s take a look at what this lithium miner revealed today.

Nevada lithium agreement

The Ioneer share price is gaining after the lithium explorer revealed it had completed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with NexTech Batteries in the United States.

Ioneer owns the Rhyolite Ridge lithium-boron project in Nevada, USA. This is said by the company to be the only known lithium-boron deposit in North America. Ioneer hopes to produce more than 22,000 tonnes of lithium materials per year from this project. The deposit is about 225 miles (362km) northwest of Last Vegas.

NexTech batteries is a lithium-sulphur battery technology company based in Carson City, Nevada.

The companies have “expressed mutual interest” in using lithium carbonate and/or lithium hydroxide from the Ioneer project to supply NexTech’s production facility.

Commenting on the MOU which may be pushing up the Ioneer share price today, managing director Bernard Rowe said:

As Ioneer focuses on producing the materials needed for sustainable and clean technologies, it’s important for companies like NexTech to develop and produce those technologies domestically, and sustainably.

The US and Nevada have prioritised the need for a domestic battery supply chain, and with little current supply, development of Rhyolite Ridge will be crucial to meeting this important goal.

The Northern Nevada Development Authority helped facilitate the introduction between the two companies.

Ioneer share price snapshot

The Ioneer share price has surged 40% over the past year, but it is down nearly 31% year to date.

For perspective, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has gained nearly 10% in the past 12 months.

The lithium explorer’s shares have climbed 2.8% in a month, while they have jumped 1.8% in a week.

Ioneer has a market capitalisation of about $1.16 billion based on its current share price.

The post Ioneer (ASX:INR) share price lifts on lithium battery deal appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Here’s how Macquarie (ASX:MQG) is changing its portfolio of ASX shares in response to the Ukraine crisis
• This just caused the Electro Optic (ASX:EOS) share price to soar 14%
• Is Qantas an ASX dividend share?
• Why Motley Fool analyst Chris Copley is so bullish on this ASX tech share
• Ringing the changes: Telstra share price jumps amid latest restructuring news

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 Bruce Jackson.

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There’s no doubt the conflict in Eastern Europe has triggered higher commodity prices, credit re-ratings, and jittery stock markets.

So much so that there’s even been talk of a return to the 1970’s style ‘stagflation’ where there’s an economic recession and inflation at the same time, as Bloomberg speculated.

“A scenario analysis of 1973-1975 that saw prices soar and economies stall suggests commodities would hold out with sovereign bonds, the Swiss franc would surge 22%, the yen would slump with the Australian and New Zealand dollar,” Bloomberg writers opined.

“Global equities would tumble 14%. The resilience of stocks after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will be put to [the] test as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said he is willing to act more aggressively to get ahead of inflation.”

Analysts from investment bank Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) are keen to take advantage of the trend and have opted to “position as if it’s a commodity boom”, as they stated in a recent note.

Macquarie’s portfolio changes

According to the note, Macquarie is positioning itself to capitalise on the rally across commodity markets. It’s beefed up exposure to the sector through positions in South32 Ltd (ASX: S32), Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM), lithium player Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS), and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST).

Meanwhile, it trimmed down in QBE Ltd (ASX: QBE), Amcor Plc (ASX: AMC), Cochlear Ltd (ASX: COH), Aristocrat Leisure Ltd (ASX: ALL), and Ramsay Healthcare Ltd (ASX: RHC).

Other changes include reductions in Resmed Inc (ASX: RMD) and Janus Henderson Plc (ASX: JHG).

As is clear, Macquarie is positioned to benefit from the ever-soaring commodities sector that’s been spurred on by a number of macroeconomic catalysts.

Analysts at Jefferies reckon the bank will benefit from the volatility in commodity and energy markets as well.

The broker recently updated its FY22 projections for Macquarie and also thinks recent weather events could inflect positively on these forecasts.

It values the Macquarie stock at $245 per share with a buy rating. That’s alongside seven other brokers who’re urging their clients to get a hold of Macquarie shares, according to Bloomberg data.

The consensus price target is $220.14 per share from this list.

In the last 12 months, the Macquarie share price has spiked 33% but has dipped into the red this year to date.

The post Here’s how Macquarie (ASX:MQG) is changing its portfolio of ASX shares in response to the Ukraine crisis appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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. owns and has recommended Cochlear Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended ResMed. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Amcor Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Cochlear Ltd., Macquarie Group Limited, Ramsay Health Care Limited, and ResMed Inc. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Shares in Electro Optic Systems Holdings Ltd (ASX: EOS) are rocketing 14% in morning trade following a positive company announcement.

At the time of writing, the defence contractor’s shares are swapping hands for $3.14 apiece, up 14.18%.

This means that in the past month, the company’s share price has soared more than 50% in value.

SpaceLink receives financial backing

In today’s statement, Electro Optic Systems advised that SpaceLink has received conditional finance support from Export Finance Australia (EFA).

Based in the United States, SpaceLink is a wholly-owned Electro Optic Systems subsidiary that specialises in space and communications.

The non-binding letter of support will see up to US$80 million of debt funding for the initial satellite communications constellation (Block-0a) launch.

Late last month, Electro Optic Systems announced an initial funding requirement from US$700 million to US$240 million for Block-0a. This is because the constellation is a lower-cost design solution.

As a result, the latest offer will bring the projected launch date in line with Federal Communications Commission licensing requirements.

The US$80 million support represents one third of SpaceLink’s total initial funding requirements for its US$240 million initial Block-0a constellation.

EFA funding is subject to a number of conditions, however. This includes:

• An independent technical review of SpaceLink’s feasibility
• A comprehensive funding plan for SpaceLink
• Meeting EFA’s eligibility criteria, credit and risk requirements
• Satisfactory ongoing financial and trading performance for Electro Optic Systems
• SpaceLink complying with EFA’s environmental and social risk policies

Electro Optic Systems share price snapshot

Despite today’s astronomical gains, it has been a difficult 12 months for Electro Optic Systems shares, down 40%.

The company’s shares reached a 52-week low of $1.605 early this month, before rebounding over 100% within two weeks.

Electro Optic Systems commands a market capitalisation of roughly $467.83 million.

The post This just caused the Electro Optic (ASX:EOS) share price to soar 14% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras owns Electro Optic Systems Holdings Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Electro Optic Systems Holdings Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Electro Optic Systems Holdings Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) is one of the most famous ASX shares on the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO). It’s not one of the largest. But the Flying Kangaroo certainly occupies a special place in the hearts and minds of many investors, thanks in large part to the company’s long history and famous brand name.

But in recent years, Qantas has been known for different reasons. In 2020, it became one of the ASX shares hit hardest by the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Indeed, between 21 February and 20 March that year, the Qantas share price fell more than 63%, which was a drop close to double that of the broader market.

But since then, Qantas also become known as a COVID recovery play. In the month following 20 March 2020, Qantas shares rose more than 50%. Even today, two years on from the company’s 2020 lows, the Qantas share price remains an impressive 120% or so above those nadirs.

So now this tumultuous time is past Qantas, and global travel is getting back on its feet, many investors might be wondering if things have gotten back to normal for Qantas. After all, this company used to be known as a decent ASX dividend share. Between 2016 and 2019, Qantas grew its annual dividend from 7 cents per share to 25 cents per share.

So are Qantas shares back to providing a yield for income investors yet?

Qantas shares: Dividend not on the radar yet

Well, unfortunately, the answer is a resounding no. Qantas has not paid a dividend since the latter half of 2019. This streak was recently continued in February. Qantas dropped its half-year earnings report last month, which made no mention of a dividend coming investors’ way.

And looking at the company’s earnings, it’s obvious why. For a company to pay out a dividend, it usually has to be healthily profitable. And Qantas is simply not right now. The company’s earnings revealed an underlying loss before tax of $1.28 billion for the six months to 31 December 2021.

A loss of that magnitude pretty much rules out a dividend in the immediate future for Qantas shareholders.

The company could well return to paying dividends down the road. But until Qantas’ books are back in the black, that looks unlikely. So it appears as though income investors will have to wait a little longer to see their Qantas dividends return.

At the time of writing, the Qantas share price is up 0.97% today at $5.19. This ASX travel share has a market capitalisation of $9.7 billion.

The post Is Qantas an ASX dividend share? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 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 Bruce Jackson.

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ASX tech shares have been taking a battering this year. Luckily, there’s nearly always a buy to find if investors know where to look.

And this ASX tech share still has plenty of potential, according to our in-house analyst Chris Copley.

Copley sat down with our chief investment officer Scott Phillips earlier this month to discuss his bullish view of software provider Xref Ltd (ASX: XF1).

Their chat was part of The Motley Fool’s Stock of the Week series. This week’s stock pick, as well as past picks, can be found on our YouTube channel. Audio-lovers can also find this week’s stock pick in podcast form here.

At the time of writing, the Xref share price is 64 cents.

Though, it’s important for readers to keep in mind that when Copley talked over the company’s investment thesis, its shares were trading at around 53 cents.

Let’s break down why the analyst is optimistic about the tech company’s investment potential.

But first, what is Xref?

It’s a relatively unheard of ASX small-cap, but Xref is doing big things in the human resources (HR) sphere.

The technology company provides a cloud-based automated reference checking software for the employee hiring process.

It also has an ID verification leg – acquired in 2019 – and can provide employers with analytics, additional tools, and minimise fraud risks to help companies on their hiring journeys.

For instance, the company will flag with an employer if an applicant’s references were sent from the same device as their application.

Xref has a market capitalisation of around $117 million and has been listed on the ASX since 2007, according to the exchange.

Why does this Motley Fool analyst see in the ASX tech share?

Chris Copley is bullish on ASX tech share Xref for plenty of reasons.

Firstly, he’s been blown away by Xref’s recent growth.

“In terms of execution, it has by far and away exceeded my expectations over the last couple of years,” said Copley.

“In fact, Xref has been one of the very few companies which has managed to buck the growth company trend.”

The Xref share price has gained an impressive 154% over the last 12 months.

For comparison, the S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) has slipped 5% over the same time frame.

“The company generated sales growth of around 95% in the first half of the year,” continued Copley.

“It also generated positive operating cash flow of around $2.3 million, so its top line growth has been very strong and this has been supported by the great resignation around Australia and around the globe over the last year and a half.

“But equally, even more impressive perhaps, is the fact that this growth, even if you look back over the last few years, has come without significant increases in its operating expenses.”

The analyst also likes the niche space Xref is operating within. Though, it’s still large enough.

The company’s technology is available around the globe and in multiple languages. And Copley is impressed by the speed with which Xref has expanded internationally.

He noted that, in 2016, just 1% of its revenue came from overseas. Fast forwarding to Xref’s most recent financial year, 7% of its sales came from Europe, 11% from North America, and 11% from New Zealand.

It also boasts a growing user base of “reputable” companies, says Copley, with plans to add more features to its offerings.

Additionally, since its 2019 acquisition of Rapid ID, the business’ customer base has grown by more than 2,000%.

Copley also likes that Xref is still led by its founder and CEO, who is also its largest shareholder.

Finally, the analyst noted that, at the time of recording, the company was trading at a valuation of slightly more than 30 times its free cash flow.  That valuation “isn’t particularly demanding,” said Copley.

 What are some of the risks of investing in Xref?

While Copley is bullish on the ASX tech share, it’s still important to outline some risks of investing in the company.

Firstly, Xref does have competitors. Copley noted it’s worth keeping an eye on how those industry peers might slow or block Xref’s expansion internationally.

Additionally, there’s a risk that the company’s clients could build their own automated reference checking solutions. That could be a “significant headwind on growth” for the ASX tech share, noted Copley.

There’s also a “significant portion” of the company’s target market that prefer to do reference checks ‘the old-fashioned way’. That could limit the company’s potential market, said the analyst.

Finally, because the company effectively charges users per use, its earnings are more susceptible to market cycles.

Recent record staff turnover has been helping it to grow lately.

But, as Copley noted, the job market will likely stabilise at some point. A more stable job market will probably see the company’s growth scaling back to more ‘normal’ levels.

So, is the ASX tech share a buy?

All in all, Copley believes Xref shares are worth looking into.

“Right now, I think that Xref offers an attractive ‘risk/reward’ proposition for investors,” he concluded.

The opinions expressed in this article were as at 16 March 2022 and may change over time.

The post Why Motley Fool analyst Chris Copley is so bullish on this ASX tech share appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Motley Fool analyst Christopher Copley owns Xref Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Xref Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Xref Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) share price is making early gains after management outlined details of its restructure to unlock “additional value to shareholders”.

Under the plan, shareholders in the country’s largest telco will swap their shares in Telstra Corporation for Telstra Group Limited.

The Telstra share price is currently up 0.9% to $3.905 in morning trade. For comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is up 0.76%.

Telstra’s four new entities

The Telstra share price is gaining after the telco revealed the restructure would result in a new holding company — Telstra Group Limited. This will in turn control four divisions — InfraCo Fixed, Amplitel, Telstra Limited, and Telstra International.

InfraCo owns the fixed infrastructure like poles and wires. Amplitel owns the mobile phone towers, in which Telstra sold a 49% stake for $2.8 billion. The sale was part of its T22 strategy announced in 2018 to realise value for investors.

Telstra Limited will be the customer-facing service arm of the group, while Telstra International owns assets like subsea cables.

Management has taken steps to establish InfraCo as a standalone business. This includes intercompany agreements developed between InfraCo and Telstra Limited to “support strong and sustainable earnings for both entities”.

The move will also make it easier for Telstra Group to divest or spin off InfraCo at a later stage to crystallise further value for shareholders.

But there are a few more steps Telstra needs to make to complete the restructuring. This includes getting approvals from the Australia Competition and Consumer Commission as well as the courts.

Legal hurdles

“Telstra is using a Scheme of Arrangement to implement key parts of the restructure as the most practical and efficient way to create the new Telstra Group,” said the company.

“The restructure involves the transfer of assets and liabilities within entities of the Telstra Group, and the Scheme of Arrangement will enable those assets and liabilities to be transferred by order of the Court.”

Once the new entity is in place, Telstra wants to put its international business under a separate subsidiary. This is to keep that business together as one entity within the Telstra Group.

When will the new Telstra share price start trading?

Telstra will also need to renegotiate its contracts with NBN Co (the owner of the national broadband network). This is where the ACCC approval comes in to ensure the new agreement is authorised under competition law.

Assuming everything goes to plan, Telstra Group shares will start trading on the ASX by the end of October 2022.

The Telstra share price has jumped 15% over the past year. In contrast, the ASX 200 is up less than 10%.

The post Ringing the changes: Telstra share price jumps amid latest restructuring news appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Brendon Lau owns Telstra Corporation 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 owns and has recommended Telstra Corporation Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Shares in Cimic Group Ltd (ASX: CIM) have opened the session at $22.01 apiece on Tuesday after starting the week in the red.

Whilst there’s been nothing out of Cimic’s camp today, it did update the market via a company announcement regarding its target’s statement in response to a takeover offer on Monday.

What’s going on with Cimic shares?

The company announced that it has released its target statement in response to the off-market takeover offer by German construction group, Hochtief Australia Holdings Ltd.

Hochtief AG (FRA: HOT), the holding company’s chief, made the offer in February at an offer price of $22 cash per share.

It already owns a 78.58% stake in the company. If successful, this transaction would mean Hotchief will acquire all the remaining shares of Cimic it doesn’t already own.

Cimic says that after it received the offer, it appointed an Independent Board Committee (IBC), comprising independent directors Russell Chenu and Kate Spargo, “with responsibility for considering, evaluating and responding to the offer.”

Afterwards, the IRC appointed an independent expert to assess the offer and determine if it was in the best interests of stakeholders.

“The Independent Expert has concluded that the Offer is fair and reasonable to Cimic Shareholders other than Hochtief Australia,” the release notes.

“The Independent Expert has assessed the estimated market value of Cimic Shares on a controlling and 100% basis to be in the range of $19.26 and $25.05 per Cimic share,” it added.

Cimic also stated the target’s statement has or will be sent to Hochtief and lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) on Monday.

Cimic share price snapshot

In the past 12 months, the Cimic share price has crept up by 23% and is now soaring 30% higher this year to date.

During the past month, shares have slipped into the red and trade less than 1% down in the past week.

The post What’s impacting the Cimic (ASX:CIM) share price this week? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 Bruce Jackson.

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There is an ever-growing list of ASX exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for investors to consider.

Following Russia’s invasion of neighbouring Ukraine, the Betashares Global Cybersecurity ETF (ASX: HACK) has certainly earned its place on that list.

If you’re not familiar, HACK provides ASX investors exposure to 41 leading global cyber security shares. Top holdings for the ASX ETF include Crowdstrike Holdings, Cloudflare Inc and Palo Alto Networks Inc.

There currently aren’t any Aussie listed cyber security firms among the ASX ETF’s holdings. That’s because the market caps of the Aussie shares are still too small to be included.

Why is HACK in the spotlight this week?

Russia is said to have one of the most advanced cyber armies in the world. To date, it’s restrained its cyber attacks largely to Ukrainian territory and assets.

But businesses and governments fear that may not remain the case.

Of particular concern is how businesses might recoup their losses, which can run into the many millions of dollars, from any potential cyber attacks.

Currently, businesses can take out cyber insurance to help cover the costs of a hacking attack.

But major state sponsored cyber attacks may be interpreted as an act of war. Meaning insurance companies may not cover the costs.

Indeed, as The Australian reports, insurance broker Marsh has sounded the alarm on the potential for Russia’s aggression against Ukraine to result in cyber attacks in other nations.

Should that happen, insurance rates would likely increase and some coverage may be exempted.

Kelly Butler, head of cyber at Marsh said, “We haven’t seen any claims hit the market as a result of the war. It will depend on what happens. If there are large losses, I would imagine premiums would increase.”

The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) has also raised its concerns on the existing policies for cyber insurance.

In a recent report the ICA noted:

A major cyber event or a smaller series of connected successive attacks could render cyber insurance financially unviable. The impact of an accumulation event is of underlying concern to many insurers.

It’s urging the Australian government to come up with a national cybersecurity standard for cyber insurance issues and their clients in order to “evaluate their cyber maturity according to uniform and constantly evolving standards”.

That sounds like a fair recommendation.

In the meantime, and with HACK in mind, the best defence is, well, a good defence.

How has this ASX ETF been performing?

We’ll pick 24 February for our ‘as of performance date’ for HACK. That’s the day Russian troops officially invaded Ukraine.

Since 24 February the ASX ETF’s share price is up 13.9%.

By comparison, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) has gained 6% in that same period.

The post Why this leading ASX ETF is in the spotlight this week appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended BETA CYBER ETF UNITS. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended BETA CYBER ETF UNITS. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

What happened

Today’s bullish move in various cryptocurrencies has picked up steam nearly across the board. For top meme token Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB), the fact this momentum hasn’t slowed has led to some rather incredible price action today.

After The Motley Fool reported on Shiba Inu’s impressive 14% move over the past 24 hours as of around noon ET today, the token has picked up steam. As of 2:45 p.m. ET, Shiba Inu had surged 18% over the past 24 hours, blowing away most other tokens. Currently, this represents the largest move of all top-40 tokens by market capitalization.

As reported earlier, much of the rise seen today in Shiba Inu appears to be related to skyrocketing short liquidations. However, news this afternoon that Canadian exchange Netcoins has listed Shiba Inu has provided yet another catalyst for investors to jump on today.

So what

Overall, Shiba Inu appears to remain a rather speculative trading vehicle. There’s a strong retail base of holders willing to wait out near-term volatility. However, the day-to-day price action with this token simply precludes many investors from holding Shiba Inu for any extended period of time.

That said, retail demand for Shiba Inu continues to be one of the metrics investors watch with respect to where this token could be headed. The addition of yet another exchange to buy and sell Shiba Inu raises the prospect that retail buying activity could spur additional surges in the days to come. Accordingly, speculators are doing what they do best, and diving into SHIB in a big way today.

Now what

The big question many investors have is just how long this rally can be sustained. Meme mania appears to be picking up steam once again, seen in the stock market as well, with the likes of GameStop and other meme stocks taking off. GameStop’s 10-day winning streak has been impressive and appears to be emboldening the ShibArmy today.

For now, the outlook among those adding Shiba Inu is bright. This will certainly be a fun token to watch in the days and weeks to come.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post Shiba Inu’s ride higher accelerates as the token surges 18% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Is Shiba Inu ready for a bull run?
• Shiba Inu vs. Dogecoin: Which pupcoin’s more bite than bark? 

Chris MacDonald has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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