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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to finish the week on a positive note. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is currently up 0.35% to 7,412 points.

Four ASX shares that are climbing more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are charging higher:

Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE)

The Allkem share price is up 3.5% to $11.03. This morning the team at UBS retained its buy rating and $12.40 price target on this lithium miner’s shares. Although the broker expects Western Australian miners to struggle with COVID-19 related disruption to their workforce, UBS expects high commodity prices to help offset this.

Firefinch Ltd (ASX: FFX)

The Firefinch share price is up 6% to 95 cents. Investors have been buying this gold and lithium explorer’s shares following the release of an update on its gold operations. According to the release, recent drilling activities have led to a substantial resource increase for the Viper and N’Tiola Satellite deposits at the Morila Gold Project in Mali.

JB Hi-Fi Limited (ASX: JBH)

The JB Hi-Fi share price is up 3.5% to $54.83. Investors have been buying this retail giant’s shares after brokers responded positively to its sales update. One of those brokers is Morgans, which has retained its add rating and lifted its price target on the company’s shares to $58.00. Its analysts believe JB Hi-Fi’s shares are undervalued.

Piedmont Lithium Inc (ASX: PLL)

The Piedmont Lithium share price has jumped 9% to $1.01. This morning the lithium developer announced the closing of a capital raising which has raised gross proceeds of US$130.8 million. The company intends to use the proceeds to restart operations at North American Lithium in Quebec and support exploration activities at Eyowaa in Ghana.

The post Why Allkem, Firefinch, JB Hi-Fi, and Piedmont Lithium are charging higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Here’s why the Firefinch (ASX:FFX) share price is blazing 8% higher today
• 5 ASX mining shares smashing 52-week highs today
• Why Brickworks, JB Hi-Fi, Mesoblast, and Sayona shares are charging higher
• Could the Firefinch (ASX:FFX) share price have 130% upside? Broker weighs in
• Experts name 3 of the best ASX lithium stocks to buy now

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns Orocobre 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 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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The Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ) share price has been on a rollercoaster ride of late.

Last month, the banking giant’s shares were hovering around the $28 mark before plunging 12% to $24.65. The sudden fall came despite ANZ not making any announcements to the market.

A likely catalyst was the weakness in the banking sector following the US-led sanctions on the Russian financial system. As a result, the S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) fell 4% over the month up until 7 March.

Nonetheless, the ANZ share price has quickly rebounded and is currently at $27.75, up 0.11% for the day.

Let’s take a look at the latest announcement from the bank this week.

Bank launches ANZ Plus

In Wednesday’s media release, ANZ announced it has launched a new digital banking service, ANZ Plus.

Built on a new banking platform, ANZ Plus is an everyday account featuring an array of benefits for customers.

The latest product offering from the bank is designed to give Australians more visibility and control of their money. With no monthly account fees, ANZ Plus is being touted as a ‘multi-goal savings account’.

Some of the new features include:

• Categorising spending within the app, allowing customers to track spending habits more easily.
• Upcoming expenses, like regular bills and subscriptions, can be predicted and planned for; and
• Customers can set and track multiple financial goals without having to open additional accounts.

Is the new digital offering worth the investment?

While there has been criticism about the slow pace of the project, customers are likely to welcome any improvements to their banking.

The biggest drive is for users to better understand where their money is spent and help with savings goals. This approach is to provide the necessary tools to improve a customer’s financial wellbeing.

ANZ CEO Shayne Elliott commented:

The release of ANZ Plus marks the beginning of a multi-year plan to provide modern, digital products and services for our customers, and significantly better systems and processes for ANZ.

Now we have these scalable new technology platforms in place, we can adapt to the needs of customers quickly and add new features and functionality on a regular basis, including new products.

Elliott hopes the new platform will help ANZ shed its reputation as a technology laggard, The Australian reported. There are also plans to add mortgages and credit cards to the platform down the track as the bank revamps its digital approach.

About the ANZ share price

The ANZ share price has continued to move sideways and is trading roughly the same as this time last year.

Despite registering a 4% gain in the past month, when looking at year to date, its shares are also flat.

ANZ has a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 15.82 and commands a market capitalisation of approximately $77.83 billion.

The post Is the new ANZ digital offering all it’s cracked up to be? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Own ANZ shares? The ASX 200 bank just became the first to launch its own crypto
• Why are ASX 200 bank shares underperforming on Thursday?
• Own ANZ shares? Here’s why today was a big day for the bank
• NAB, ANZ and CBA shares in focus as top broker tips extra $5b share buyback
• The ANZ share price has gained under 4% in 3 years. Have the dividends been worth the wait?

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 Bruce Jackson.

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Crypto investors have no shortage of choice these days.

By some estimates there are more than 18,000 different crypto assets in virtual circulation.

Though the vast majority are tiny. And many are prone to disappearing as readily as they came into existence.

With that in mind, our focus today remains within the top-10 cryptos by market cap.

This crypto left Bitcoin in the dust this week

While most everyone has heard of Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) and Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) by now, we’d wager far fewer investors are familiar with Cardano (CRYPTO: ADA).

With a total market valuation of US$37.6 billion, Cardano ranks as the world’s 7th biggest digital token.

And Cardano, up 1% today, has now gained 35% since this time last week, currently trading for US$1.12.

By comparison, the Bitcoin price is up 8% in 7 days, while Ethereum has gained 11%.

So, what does Cardano do?

According to CoinMarketCap, “Cardano is a proof-of-stake (PoS) blockchain platform that says its goal is to allow changemakers, innovators and visionaries to bring about positive global change”.

What’s driving the Cardano price surge?

Addressing the big jump in the Cardano (ADA) price over the past week, Josh Gilbert, crypto analyst at multi-asset investment platform eToro, told the Motley Fool:

Attributed to this spike is Grayscale Investments’ recent announcement of the launch of a new fund, which offers exposure to various smart contract networks outside of Ethereum. Cardano topped the list as the fund’s biggest holding, coming out at 25.35%.

Given that Grayscale Investments currently has around US$43.6 billion in cryptoassets under management, it clearly has the attention of ADA’s active community.

Gilbert said that Cardano’s founder, Charles Hoskinson, may also have helped drive interest in the token.

Hoskinson “recently tweeted that the crypto asset is scheduled for a hard fork for June 2022. The hard fork aims to help grow the Cardano protocol, and significantly increase its transaction throughput,” he told us.

“It’s currently one of the most popular altcoins at eToro Australia, and was the second most traded crypto asset behind Bitcoin in 2021,” he added.

Gilbert sounded a final note of caution to potential investors:

While ADA has been dubbed an Ethereum challenger for years due to its innovative smart contract platform and other decentralised applications, it may start to face challenges once Eth 2.0 officially launches later this year.

The pending shift to proof-of-stake (PoS) from proof-of-work (PoW) protocols is set to make Ethereum transactions faster, cheaper, and far more energy-efficient.

Despite the big boost for the crypto over the past week, the Cardano price remains down 64% since hitting all-time highs of US$3.10 on 2 September last year.

The post Why this lesser-known crypto left Bitcoin in the dust this week appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why Bitcoin and Coinbase are rising today
• Investing in cryptos? Here’s what you need to know come tax time: expert
• Why Ethereum, Solana, and Dogecoin are surging higher today
• Can Ethereum reach $4,000?
• Why Bitcoin, Ethereum, and crypto stocks are soaring

The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Bitcoin and Ethereum. 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 Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: TLX) share price is cratering today despite the company’s silence.

The plunge follows yesterday’s tumble that saw the biotech stock close 7.42% lower.

At the time of writing, the Telix Pharmaceuticals share price is $4.09, 13.71% lower than its previous close.

For context, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is currently up 0.45%.

The company’s fall comes despite analysts at Wilsons flagging they’re still bullish on the company. They’ve noted its a stock worth looking at, reports The Motley Fool Australia’s Tony Yoo.

So, without further ado, let’s take a look at what could be weighing on the ASX 200 newbie’s shares on Friday.

What’s dragging on the Telix Pharmaceuticals share price?

The Telix Pharmaceuticals share price is in the red once more today despite no news having been released by the company. However, the market did hear from it on both Tuesday and Wednesday.

First, the company announced that the buildout of its Beligian radiopharmaceutical production facility has begun.

To fund the development, the company has secured an $18.2 million loan and applied for $3 million of grants. The first stage of the build is expected to cost $21.2 million.

Then, it released news its glioblastoma multiforme therapy candidate TLX101 has progressed to the next stage of clinical development – a phase 1 dose escalation study.

The Telix Pharmaceuticals share price gained 1.4% on Tuesday and 2.2% on Wednesday, before plummeting towards the end of the week.

It’s a similar story to the recent performance of the S&P/ASX 200 Health Care Index (ASX: XHJ). It fell 0.61% yesterday and it’s currently down another 0.71%. Telix Pharmaceuticals is the sector’s weight today.

Also worth noting, the company’s short-selling interest has risen from approximately 1% this time last month to 2.25% as of the most recent data. That means more market participants are expecting the stock to go lower.

So far since last Friday’s close, the company’s stock has tumbled nearly 20%. It’s worth noting, it gained 4.5% last week.

Though, the Telix Pharmaceuticals share price is likely used to being in the red. It has fallen 50% since the start of 2022. Still, it’s only 9% lower than it was this time last year.

That’s despite the company taking the place of the formerly-listed Sydney Airport in the ASX 200 in February.

The post Why is the Telix Pharmaceuticals (ASX:TLX) share price plunging 14%? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 5 profitable small-cap ASX shares to buy right now: Wilsons

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 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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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

The price of the world’s largest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), and several crypto-related stocks including the large cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase Global (NASDAQ: COIN) and the crypto bank Silvergate Capital (NYSE: SI) all are rising today. The cryptocurrency market has been in recovery mode this week, while Silvergate and Coinbase received positive sentiment from Wall Street. 

The price of Bitcoin had risen more than 4% over the last 24 hours, as of 3:07 p.m. ET today. Meanwhile, shares of Coinbase and Silvergate traded nearly 3.3% and 5.6% higher, respectively, during normal trading hours.

So what

Bitcoin is having a nice week and recently reached roughly $43,971, which is close to its highs for 2022, following a major pullback that began last October. It’s hard to say exactly what is leading to the recovery and there’s no indication that it will last.

But BlackRock CEO Larry Fink recently said in his annual letter to shareholders that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will hasten the speed at which central banks warm to and ultimately utilize digital assets. 

“The war will prompt countries to reevaluate their currency dependencies,” Fink wrote in his letter. “Even before the war, several governments were looking to play a more active role in digital currencies and define the regulatory frameworks under which they operate.”

Ukraine, for instance, has received roughly $100 million in crypto donations. Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation Alex Bornyakov said recently that because “the national bank is not really operating, crypto is helping to perform fast transfers, to make it very quick and get results almost immediately.”

The flip side is in Russia, where digital assets may be helping some in the country avoid sanctions. Russian lawmakers have also discussed accepting cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin as payment for oil. Although there are both good and bad outcomes, it’s likely countries and their governments and central banks will look at and think about cryptocurrencies differently now.

In other news, Silvergate and Coinbase saw a lot of bullish sentiment from Wall Street, as well some negative sentiment. 

Earlier this week, Bank of America analyst Brandon Berman initiated a buy rating on Silvergate and a $200 price target, implying strong upside from current levels even after a nice run this week. Silvergate has built a proprietary real-time payments network that allows parties on the network to send and clear payments instantly, which better facilitates crypto trading. Parties that join the network bring large sums of deposits to Silvergate Capital, which the bank can deploy into higher-yielding assets as interest rates rise. The bank is expected to see profits soar in a rising-rate environment. 

Coinbase has also seen some action on Wall Street. Earlier this week, the famous short-seller Jim Chanos disclosed that he and his fund are shorting the stock because they believe the company’s earnings are inflated.

But today on Yahoo! Finance, MoffettNathanson analyst Lisa Ellis called Coinbase a “one-of-a-kind asset providing the infrastructure layer for the crypto economy.” MoffettNathanson has maintained its buy rating on Coinbase and has a price target of $600, implying significant upside from Coinbase’s current roughly $190 share price. 

Now what

I certainly think Fink makes some interesting points about how cryptocurrencies and digital assets have been positioned during the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Governments and central banks will likely take an even closer look at how they can use these newer digital currencies.

I am very interested and uncertain right now as to how Bitcoin will perform in the upcoming rising-rate environment. But I am bullish on Coinbase and Silvergate, as I like companies that provide the infrastructure for the burgeoning crypto industry, especially as the case for crypto adoption gets clearer every day. 

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

The post Why Bitcoin and Coinbase are rising today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Investing in cryptos? Here’s what you need to know come tax time: expert
• Why Bitcoin, Ethereum, and crypto stocks are soaring
• Why this expert says the Ethereum price will triple in 2022
• Will higher interest rates take a bite out of the Bitcoin price in 2022?
• What’s ahead for the Bitcoin price in 2022 amid rising interest rates?

Bank of America is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. Bram Berkowitz owns Bitcoin and Silvergate Capital Corporation. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Bitcoin and Coinbase Global, Inc. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Silvergate Capital Corporation. 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.

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

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Analysts believe the Bank of Queensland Limited (ASX: BOQ) share price and dividend will both rise from the current levels.

BOQ is one of the ‘challenger’ banks on the ASX. According to the ASX, it has a market capitalisation of more than $5 billion. But, it’s still nowhere near as big as the big four ASX bank shares of Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB), Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC), and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ).

But the acquisition of ME Bank has increased the size of the business, giving it more financial firepower to challenge in the sector.

ME Bank to help profit?

Just over a year ago, BOQ announced it was buying ME Bank for $1.325 billion, to create a compelling alternative to the big banks.

BOQ said it was a transformational acquisition that is strategically aligned.

At the time, BOQ said the deal was expected to deliver material scale, broadly doubling the retail bank and providing geographic diversification. It believed the deal would combine strong complementary trusted brands, with shared customer-centric cultures and differentiated customer segments.

Management said there was a clear pathway to a scaled, cloud-based digital retail bank technology platform.

The acquisition was expected to be financially compelling, adding to cash earnings per share (EPS) by low double-digits to mid-teens, including full run-rate synergies in FY22. It was also expected to add to the cash return on equity (ROE) by over 100 basis points including the full run rate of first-year synergies. Synergies were expected to reach between $70 million and $80 million pre-tax by year three.

Analyst thoughts on the BOQ share price

Morgan Stanley is one of the brokers that likes the look of BOQ. It has a price target of $10.20, suggesting an upside of around 20% on the current share price of $8.45.

BOQ’s recent performance update showed that ME Bank only returned to growth in the month of November. But the bank did say its growth momentum continued in the first quarter of FY22, with strong application volume across both the housing and business lending portfolios.

The BOQ, Virgin Money, and BOQ specialist housing portfolio increased by around $1 billion for the quarter. Business banking lending grew by around $200 million in the first quarter, with the asset finance business also performing “well”.

The broker noted that BOQ is focused on delivering “positive jaws”. FY22 expenses are expected to be around 1% lower than FY21, reflecting additional productivity benefits. The ME Bank integration program remains “on track”, with approximately $23 million of full-year synergies delivered during the first quarter.

It was also noted the banking industry is experiencing net industry margin (NIM) headwinds as a result of more challenging trading conditions, partly due to price competition.

In terms of projections, Morgan Stanley thinks the current BOQ share price is valued at 11x FY23’s estimated earnings, with profit growth expected in FY23. The FY23 grossed-up dividend yield is expected to be 8.6%.

At the time of writing, the BOQ share price is up 0.24% today at $8.45.

The post Bank of Queensland (ASX:BOQ) tipped for both share price and dividend boost appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Why has the Bendigo Bank (ASX:BEN) share price been smashing BOQ in 2022?
• The Bank of Queensland (ASX:BOQ) share price has rallied 11% in 2 weeks
• Brokers: Buy these 2 underrated ASX dividend shares
• Are Bank of Queensland (ASX:BOQ) shares cheap right now? Read what analysts say
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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Westpac Banking Corporation. 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 NextDC Ltd (ASX: NXT) share price is edging higher on Friday.

In afternoon trade, the data centre operator’s shares are up 0.5% to $11.05.

This latest gain has reduced its year to date decline to approximately 13%.

Is the NextDC share price good value?

While the weakness in the NextDC share price is disappointing for shareholders, it could be a buying opportunity for others.

For example, a recent note out of Citi reveals that its analysts see plenty of upside for the company’s shares from current levels.

According to the note, the broker has a buy rating and $14.55 price target on its shares. Based on the current NextDC share price, this implies potential upside of almost 32% for investors over the next 12 months.

What did the broker say?

Citi was pleased with NextDC’s half year results last month and highlights improving revenue metrics.

And while it has trimmed its earnings estimates slightly to reflect a slower than expected conversion of its sales pipeline, it remains very positive on the future. Particularly given how its FY 2023 earnings estimates are already largely locked in thanks to NextDC’s sales backlog.

The broker explained:

“NXT delivered a strong result with increasing utilisation of Gen 2 assets driving solid revenue growth and margin expansion, while revenue metrics improved HoH (revenue per MW up 7% HoH).

“While the current backlog underpins FY23e earnings, we have lowered our forecasts to reflect a slower ramp and conversion of the pipeline. We maintain our Buy call and see the conversion of Hyperscale customer commitments in Sydney and Melbourne as the next key catalyst (likely in 1H23e).”

All in all, with the NextDC share price trading well off its highs, this broker appears to see it as a buying opportunity for investors.

The post Why this top broker tips 30% upside for the NextDC (ASX:NXT) share price appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns NEXTDC 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 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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Many S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) shares have been struggling in 2022 so far. The ASX 200 Index is itself still down around 2.3% year to date thus far, despite the recent run of pleasing performance we have seen. And the Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) share price hasn’t done much better. 

Woolworths shares are today going for $36.24 at the time of writing. That puts the grocery giant at a 2022 loss of 5.8%, significantly under the index. 

So why this disappointing performance from Woolworths shares?

Well, it’s not entirely clear. The last major announcement out of the company was the half-year earnings results last month. This was something of a mixed bag. Although Woolies reported 8% revenue growth, it also revealed that earnings and net profits were both down. Investors were also asked to weather a 26.4% cut to the company’s interim dividend.   

Investors didn’t seem too phased at the time, judging by the movements, or lack thereof, in the Woolworths share price at the time. But equally, they didn’t seem inspired either.

But we also have some headwinds that the company continues to face in 2022. As confirmed in the earnings report, Woolworths’ costs are rising. And not least fuel. The higher fuel prices we have seen in recent weeks will be hurting Woolworths. Distribution centres need to be filled and stores need to be stocked. This is usually done via road transport, which of course is a fuel-intensive exercise at the best of times, but would have only gotten more expensive in recent weeks. So perhaps this has been weighing in investors’ minds too.

Is the Woolworths share price a buy right now?

Of course, Woolworths is not alone in facing these pressures, so the company always has the option to raise prices to compensate. But one could still argue Woolworths shares are facing a few obstacles to higher profitability at the moment.

However, one expert ASX investor reckons the Woolworths share price is still cheap at today’s levels. As we covered earlier this month, broker Citi liked what it saw in Woolies’ half-year earnings, and maintained a buy rating on the shares. The broker has a 12-month share price target of $40.30, which implies a potential future upside of just over 11% on current pricing. 

Citi sees Woolies benefitting from easing COVID restrictions and margin benefits as customers return to stores. It also expects that the grocer will be able to benefit from food inflation, noting shelf price increases of 2-3% in the second half of FY2022 alone. 

So at least one ASX broker reckons Woolworths shares are a buy right now. No doubt shareholders will be hoping that the 11% upside Citi sees in the company turns out to be accurate. But, as always, we shall have to wait and see. 

At the current Woolworths share price, this ASX 200 blue-chip has a market capitalisation of $43.74 billion, with a dividend yield of 2.59%. 

The post The Woolworths (ASX:WOW) share price has been struggling in 2022. Could it be set for a turnaround? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Premier’s record dividend, BHP upgraded
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts on Thursday
• Is the Appen (ASX:APX) share price on the comeback trail?
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Brickworks impresses, Uniti confirms takeover approach

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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The BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price is having a positive finish to the week.

In early afternoon trade, the mining giant’s shares are up over 1% to $49.89.

Why is the BHP share price rising?

Today’s rise by the BHP share price appears to have been driven by the release of a broker note out of Morgans this morning.

According to the note, the broker has upgraded the Big Australian’s shares to an add rating with a $51.80 price target.

Based on the current BHP share price, this suggests potential upside of almost 4% for investors. And while this isn’t overly exciting upside potential, let’s not forget that BHP is a big dividend payer.

Morgans is forecasting fully franked dividends per share of $3.68 in FY 2022 and $2.68 in FY 2023. This equates to yields of 7.4% and 5.4%, respectively, over the next two financial years.

What did the broker say?

The broker made the move after upgrading its iron ore price forecasts to factor in an expected steepening cost curve and higher sustaining steel demand.

Morgans expects BHP to benefit more than its rivals Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO). As a result, it has only got hold ratings on the latter two. Its analysts explained:

“While all trading in a narrow range in terms of discount to valuation, BHP remains our standout top preference amongst the iron ore miners. BHP offers superior diversification, operational performances, ability to defend against cost and labour pressures, and a solid yield profile.”

We also see potential catalysts around: Completing petroleum divestment, Potential coal divestments, Capital management, and New growth additions.

We remain neutral on Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group, both on Hold. For RIO we see strong earnings offset by ongoing operational issues across its business continuing to bite. While for FMG we also see bumper FCF continuing but believe consensus is materially underestimating FMG’s capex profile for the next decade.”

The post BHP share price higher on broker upgrade appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• The Fortescue (ASX:FMG) share price has gained 11% since early last week. What’s been happening?
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Premier’s record dividend, BHP upgraded
• The Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO) share price is up 9% in a week. Here’s why
• What do Fortescue (ASX:FMG), kinetic energy, and Formula One have in common?
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy 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 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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The Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) is marching higher today, up 0.5%.

Shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) iron ore miner closed yesterday at $18.94 and are currently trading for $19.04.

That puts the Fortescue share price up 11% since the closing bell on 15 March.

So why is the miner having such a good run?

What’s been piquing ASX 200 investor interest?

One of the tailwinds helping push the Fortescue share price sharply higher has been the rebound in iron ore prices.

The industrial metal is currently trading for US$146 per tonne, up from US$136 per tonne on 15 March.

That’s also helped propel rival ASX 200 miners BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) to roughly 9% gains over the same period.

The Fortescue share price may have gotten an extra boost, as unlike its 2 major rivals, the miner is almost a pure iron ore play.

Income investors may also be attracted to the company after it made the list of top-10 dividend paying companies in the world earlier this month. (Full details here.)

At the current price, Fortescue pays a whopping trailing dividend yield of 15.6%.

Fortescue share price snapshot

Despite the big recent rally, the Fortescue share price has underperformed that of BHP and Rio Tinto in 2022.

Year-to-date, Fortescue shares are down 4.1%. By comparison BHP and Rio Tinto shares have both gained 17.1% over that same period.

Year-to-date the ASX 200 is down 2.2%.

The post The Fortescue (ASX:FMG) share price has gained 11% since early last week. What’s been happening? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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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