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There are many investors out there who buy ASX 200 shares just for the dividends. And fair enough too. Receiving passive income from shares can help fund a retirement, boost a portfolio’s returns in times of market turmoil and give an investor cash in the bank to buy even more shares.

But investing for dividends is not without risk. Just because a company pays out a healthy dividend one year does not mean it will continue to do so in the next.

So let’s take a look at some of the highest yielding ASX dividend shares on the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) as it currently stands. You may notice that all 6 of these ASX 200 shares come from one of two industries…

6 ASX 200 dividend shares offering top yields today

Pendal Group Ltd (ASX: PDL)

Fund manager Pendal is first up today. This company has had a rough few months, falling by almost half since September last year. The silver lining though is that Pendal’s dividend yield now tops 9% on current pricing, 9.03% to be exact. That comes from this ASX 200 company’s last two dividends, totalling 42 cents per share, which was an increase on the 37 cents per share Pendal forked out in 2020.

Platinum Asset Management Ltd (ASX: PTM)

Another fund manager Platinum is next up. Platinum is one of the ASX’s old souls in funds management, having started its operations back in the 1990s. Like Pendal, it has been suffering recently, falling more than 55% over the past 12 months.

But given Platinum (as of this Friday) will have forked out 22 cents per share in fully franked dividends over the past year, its dividend yield now sits at 10.19%.

Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO)

ASX 200 mining giant Rio has always been well-known for its dividends. But especially so in recent years as record commodity prices, particularly in iron ore, have fuelled record dividends. Even after Rio’s near-7% rise in 2022 so far, the mining giant still has a dividend yield of 10.22% on current pricing, replete with full franking.

BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP)

The same high commodity prices that have fuelled Rio’s recent share price gains have also lifted BHP. BHP shares have risen more than 7.6% so far this year. But that hasn’t brought the Big Australian’s dividend yield down to earth by any means. BHP still has a 10.51% yield on the table as it currently stands.

Magellan Financial Group Limited (ASX: MFG)

Magellan has been one of the worst-performing ASX 200 shares of the past year. This once-venerated fund manager has struggled with the temporary departure of its star stock picker Hamish Douglass, as well as chronic fund underperformance and an exodus of funds under management.

However, Magellan’s near-70% drop over the past 12 months has pushed its dividend yield up to a staggering 16.42% on current pricing. That’s franked at 75% as well. Interestingly, Magellan paid out its highest-ever interim dividend earlier this month.

Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG)

Another ASX 200 iron ore giant rounds out our list today. Fortescue shares have benefitted from the same tailwinds as BHP and Rio recently, although the company’s share price performance hasn’t been as impressive. Fortescue has dropped more than 16% over the past year, which includes a 13.8% drop in 2022 thus far. Saying that, this has also ratcheted up the dividend yield currently attached to Fortescue shares. Get ready for this one, Fortescue now has a yield of 17.36% on the table today, which also comes fully franked.

However, it is worth noting that the interim dividend of 86 cents per share that the miner will pay out at the end of this month is a big drop from last year’s interim dividend of $1.47. If Fortescue’s final dividend later this year doesn’t match 2021’s whopping final payment of $2.11, we can expect a drop in this yield.

The post Cash machines: 6 ASX 200 shares with the highest dividend yields right now appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• What’s going on with Fortescue (ASX:FMG), green hydrogen and the Egyptian prime minister?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
• Why is the Rio (ASX:RIO) share price down 12% in a week?
• Hero to Xero? The Xero (ASX:XRO) share price is now down 36% in 2022

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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Ask A Fund Manager

The Motley Fool chats with fund managers so that you can get an insight into how the professionals think. In this edition, Investors Mutual Limited senior portfolio manager Simon Conn tells how his fund seeks both dividends and long-term capital growth.

Investment style

The Motley Fool: How would you describe your fund to a potential client?

Simon Conn: It’s our mid and small cap fund — so we invest in stocks outside the top 50, and the investment approach has been consistent for over 20 years with Investors Mutual. We look for companies that have got a good competitive advantage, recurring income streams, are well-managed, and we spend a lot of time talking to management of the companies we own and then looking for new opportunities, and importantly, trading at a reasonable price. 

We’re disciplined around the valuations and look to buy stocks when they’re cheap and out of favour, and then, obviously, if stock prices rally and exceed their valuation targets for us, we’ll exit that position. 

We’re sort of a quality but value manager.

Our big aim is to try and deliver some reasonable capital growth through time. We do take a long-term approach to investing, as you need to in this sector of the market, and try to generate income, as well. We’ve got to focus on generating income from the portfolio, as well as capital gain.

MF: Despite all the chaos going on in the world currently, it’s a pretty good time for dividend-paying stocks, isn’t it?

SC: Yeah, I think so. 

The last few years, with interest rates being so low, people and the market have obviously been focused purely on capital growth, and yeah, we’ve had a bit of a reality check in the last 4 or 5 months with interest rates going up and more concerns about potential capital growth going forward. 

Look, income is one of those, the part of the market, part of your return that you should always be able to bank. It should be a consistent part of the return, whereas share prices can move up and down — in recent times, quite a bit over the short term. 

I think if you hold good-quality companies through the long term, you’ll generate some income through a dividend, and then hopefully if you buy at the right price, you can generate some good capital growth over time.

Biggest convictions

MF: What are your two biggest holdings?

SC: Well, actually, two of the biggest holdings in the fund are Crown Resorts Ltd (ASX: CWN) and Australian Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (ASX: API), which are both under takeover.

We’ve had quite a few takeovers in the last 12 months. That’s a feature we’ve found over the years. When good-quality companies are out of favour, you do find M&A becomes a feature, because the stock market’s not treating these companies or rating them appropriately, so you see corporates or other parties bidding for them because they think they’re worth more. And that’s been a feature the last 12 months. 

We’ve had API be bought by Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES), which the transaction’s coming to an end, and then obviously, Crown is one we’ve known for some time. We bought more when it was out of favour. Pretty strong asset backing, and we’ve got the bid now from Blackstone, so I would imagine that will go through in time. 

They’re the two biggest holdings at the moment.

The post Why my 2 biggest ASX shares are about to disappear: fund manager appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Crown (ASX:CWN) share price falls on AUSTRAC court proceedings news
• Crown (ASX:CWN) share price dips despite growing confidence the company has ‘turned the corner’

Motley Fool contributor Tony Yoo 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 owns and has recommended Wesfarmers 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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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

After Chinese tech stocks plunged sharply last week, the rout continued on Monday with several notable names falling by double-digit percentages — among them, JD.com (NASDAQ: JD), Hello Group (NASDAQ: MOMO), Baozun (NASDAQ: BZUN), iQIYI (NASDAQ: IQ), and Zhihu (NYSE: ZH).

Once again, several different news items contributed to the negativity powering the sell-off.

First, news outlets reported over the weekend that Russia had asked China for military assistance in its invasion of Ukraine, and economic aid to combat the harsh sanctions Western countries have imposed in response to it. It’s unclear what China will do, but if that nation provides material aid to Russia, it could lead the U.S., European nations, and other countries to impose sanctions on China, which would further squeeze its economy at a vulnerable time.

Additionally, China is shutting down the tech manufacturing hub of Shenzhen for at least a week to combat a COVID-19 outbreak. That may not hurt the stocks above directly, but it adds to the supply chain and geopolitical concerns that may drive some manufacturing away from China. If that becomes a trend, it would weigh on the Chinese economy.

Finally, Tencent, owner of the super app WeChat and one of China’s biggest tech companies, looks to be facing a large fine for violations of China’s anti-money-laundering rules, showing Beijing’s regulatory crackdown isn’t over. Last week, Chinese tech stocks as a group also fell after the Securities and Exchange Commission said it would delist five Chinese companies from U.S. stock markets by the end of the month if they didn’t cooperate with U.S. auditing disclosure rules.

On Monday, as of 11:50 a.m. ET, JD.com was down by 8.2%; Hello Group was off 17.7%; Baozun had fallen 12.5%; iQIYI had lost 20.5%, Zhihu was down 28.6%, and the KraneShares CSI China Internet ETF (NYSEMKT: KWEB), which holds a basket of Chinese tech stocks, was down by 8.6%.

So what

In addition to the macro news, JPMorgan Chase downgraded several Chinese tech stocks Monday morning. Analyst Andre Chang double-downgraded JD.com, China’s largest direct retailer, from overweight to underweight, and slashed his price target from $100 to $35. The move was largely in response to valuations falling in the sector, but he pointed to possible headwinds from a tougher macroeconomic environment. JD.com reported solid fourth-quarter numbers last week, but the stock still fell as its revenue growth was the slowest it had been in six quarters, and as investors reacted to the news about the delisting threat to Chinese companies. 

Zhihu, which operates an online question-and-answer platform similar to Quora, reported Q4 earnings Monday morning. It was another quarter of strong growth, with revenue jumping 96% to $160 million.  On the bottom line, the company narrowed its adjusted loss from $0.30 per share to $0.10 per share. However, that came up short of estimates — analysts had been expecting a loss of $0.08 per share. Despite the strong growth, JPMorgan double-downgraded Zhihu in the same way it did JD.com, and gave it a price target of $1.80.

JPMorgan also hit Baozun with a double-downgrade and cut its price target to $5. Those moves came after the e-commerce services provider reported declining revenue and a smaller profit in its fourth-quarter report last week. 

Finally, iQIYI, the Chinese video streaming company sometimes compared to Netflix, was double-downgraded by JPMorgan, which lowered its price target from $8 to $2 based on market sentiment reasons.

Hello Group, which owns the online dating sites Momo and Tantan, only got a one-level chop from JPMorgan. The investment bank lowered its rating on Hello from overweight to neutral with a price target of $7, citing low business visibility for its leading brands.

Now what

There’s no telling if or when the bloodbath in Chinese tech stocks will end; there are several reasons why investors are fleeing the sector, and any of them could persist. If there is a comeback, I’d expect it to be led by stocks like JD.com, a large, established growth company that has thus far avoided drawing the ire of the Chinese government.

But with even stocks like JD.com getting hammered over the last few days, investors are probably best off waiting for things to settle down in China’s tech sector before putting money into it. There’s a good chance things will get worse before they get better. 

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

The post Why Chinese tech stocks were tumbling again today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Cash machines: 6 ASX 200 shares with the highest dividend yields right now
• Why my 2 biggest ASX shares are about to disappear: fund manager
• AMP (ASX:AMP) share price falters amid ‘important step forward’
• Why the Uniti (ASX:UWL) share price jumped 17% before being halted
• What’s the outlook for the Lynas (ASX:LYC) share price?

Jeremy Bowman owns JD.com and Netflix. JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and recommends Baozun, JD.com, Netflix, and Tencent Holdings. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Hello Group and iQiyi. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended JD.com and Netflix. 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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The AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP) share price is heading south during trade on late Tuesday morning.

This comes despite the financial services company releasing a positive media statement on its website.

At the time of writing, AMP shares are fetching 92 cents apiece, down 1.08%.

AMP speeds up loan approvals for customers

Investors appear unfazed by the company’s latest announcement, sending the AMP share price lower.

In its statement, AMP advised it has launched digital signatures (eSign) for loan applications going forward.

The eSign functionality allows customers to sign their forms online, eliminating the need to print and physically sign documents.

It also removes the manual verification process by AMP Bank.

Furthermore, a comprehensive credit report functionality will be introduced from 21 March.

The ‘Access Seeker’ service gives upfront visibility of customer liabilities without impacting the customer’s credit file.

The Bank’s application portal, ApplyOnline flags information missing from an application, assisting clients to submit more accurate and complete applications.

This new capability follows enhancements to AMP’s auto credit decisioning engine, which recorded a 75% improvement in automated decisioning rates. In turn, this has resulted in faster and more consistent approvals.

The company stated that it’s continuing to invest in technology that simplifies and speeds up the home loan approval process.

AMP group executive, Sean O’Malley commented:

The new functionality is another important step forward for AMP Bank to simplify and improve the lending experience for brokers and advisers. Both eSign and the new Comprehensive Credit Reports will make it easier and quicker to originate and approve loans with AMP Bank.

The technology reflects AMP’s ongoing strategic investments to enhance AMP Bank’s systems, and commitment to further reduce loan approval times and increase home loan origination capacity, which increased by 70 per cent last year.

Our focus this year is to further digitise and automate lending processes, which will continue to make it easier for brokers, advisers and customers to do business with us.

About the AMP share price

Founded in 1849, AMP provides superannuation and investment products, financial advice and banking products including home loans and savings accounts.

Headquartered in Sydney, the company operates in both Australia and New Zealand.

Over the last 12 months, AMP shares have fallen almost 37%, and are down 9% when looking at year-to-date. The company’s share price has lost about 83% of its wealth from early 2018, reflecting negative investor sentiment.

Based on today’s price, AMP presides a market capitalisation of roughly $3 billion, with approximately 3.27 billion shares on issue.

The post AMP (ASX:AMP) share price falters amid ‘important step forward’ appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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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The Uniti Group Ltd (ASX: UWL) share price rocketed higher in early trade before being quickly placed into a trading halt.

The telco’s shares were up 17% to $3.69 prior to the pause in trading.

Why did the Uniti share price rocket higher?

Today’s rapid rise by the Uniti share price appears to have been driven by speculation that the company is in takeover talks.

However, on this occasion, the would-be suitor is rumoured not to be Vocus, which was taken private last year by Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA) and Aware Super.

There was speculation that Uniti and Vocus were in talks regarding a takeover last month, but nothing eventuated. Though, this speculation appears to have prompted an unknown third-party to the table this week.

According to the Australian, Uniti is understood to have entered into exclusive talks with a party for a potential sale. The report suggests that the suitor has put forward an offer of between $4.00 and $5.00 per share. This compares to the 52-week high of Uniti share price of $4.69.

The report suggests that Canadian private equity firm Brookfield could be the party in question. Particularly given its recent penchant for Australian assets.

It recently acquired electricity company AusNet, bought a stake in Intellihub, snapped up La Trobe Financial, and made a play for AGL Energy Limited (ASX: AGL) with Mike Cannon-Brookes.

In addition, EQT has been touted as a potential buyer of Uniti, along with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR). The latter has just raised US$17bn for a new infrastructure fund, giving it plenty of firepower.

What’s next?

Uniti has requested a trading halt until tomorrow morning but has neither confirmed nor denied the speculation.

It stated that the trading halt was requested: “To enable an orderly release of information regarding an announcement in response to media speculation.”

Though, given how quickly an announcement could be made to refute speculation, it appears that this could prove to be more than just rumours. Stay tuned for that.

The post Why the Uniti (ASX:UWL) share price jumped 17% before being halted appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 recommended Uniti Group 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 Lynas Rare Earths Ltd (ASX: LYC) share price is in the red year to date but has surged more than 11% in the past month.

Lynas shares are currently swapping hands at $9.72, a 5.17% fall on yesterday’s closing price. In comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is also down 0.7% today.

So what does the future look like for Lynas?

Rare earths producer

Lynas is the only major producer of separated rare earths outside of China. The company’s Mt Weld mine in Western Australia is one of the highest grade rare earth deposits in the world, according to the company. Lynas also operates a rare earth processing plant in Malaysia. These materials are then exported to Asia, Europe, and the United States.

Red Leaf Securities chief executive John Athanasiou recently told my Foolish colleague Tony if the market closed tomorrow he would want to hold Lynas given its “global strategic importance”.

He explained:

Rare earth materials are required for all sorts of things that we consume on a daily basis — from electric cars, mobile phones to superconductors. And the western world really wants a producer outside of China, so it enhances strategic importance. 

They announced recent record sales revenue of, I think, $202 million dollars. And that’s despite supply chain [issues], which we think will be resolved fairly soon. So there’s even more upside to them. So I think if you hold Lynas now, you’ll be happy in four years’ time.

Speaking at the Australian Financial Review Business Summit in Sydney recently, Lynas CEO Amanda Lacaze said when she first joined Lynas her vision was to return to the ASX 100 and now the company is “knocking on the door of the 50”.

Lacaze, asked where she sees the company in 2050, said:

We have a 25-year mine life, right? We are exploring now so we can extend that mine life because we want to increase our production. Australia as a whole, we should be able to be very successful in this area. Because we do have this wonderful mineral endowment.

I think there’s a risk sometimes we think we have to compete with each other in business. There are enough competitors out there. We can all win together if we actually work in a positive fashion together.

In early March, Macquarie released a positive broker note on Lynas. The broker retained its outperform rating on the share and lifted its price target to $12.60. That suggests a potential upside of almost 30% on the current Lynas share price.

Lynas reported a record net profit after tax of $156.9 million in the company’s half-year 2022 results.

Lynas share price snapshot

The Lynas share price has rocketed nearly 60% over the past year but has fallen 10% since market open on 4 January.

In comparison, the benchmark ASX index has returned about 4% in a year.

Lynas has a market capitalisation of about $9.2 billion.

The post What’s the outlook for the Lynas (ASX:LYC) share price? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Up 10% in one week, down 10% in the next. What’s going on with the Lynas (ASX:LYC) share price?
• These were the best performing ASX 200 shares last week
• Why has the Lynas (ASX:LYC) share price rocketed 21% in a week?
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• Lynas (ASX:LYC) share price jumps amid record interim net profit

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 Adore Beauty Group Ltd (ASX: ABY) share price is edging into the red on Tuesday morning.

This comes as insiders have recently taken advantage of the share price weakness to purchase more shares.

At the time of writing, the online beauty retailer’s shares are down 1.5% to $1.97 apiece.

Directors top up on Adore Beauty shares

In a statement last week, Adore Beauty revealed that two of its directors, James Height and Kate Morris, have each bought a portion of new shares.

Executive director Height picked up 46,265 Adore Beauty shares through an on-market acquisition on 9 March at $2.054 apiece. He further added to his holding by buying another 153,735 shares at $2.11 each the following day.

In total, Height increased his portfolio by 200,000 Adore Beauty shares. This means that the executive director now has 10.4 million fully paid ordinary Adore Beauty shares.

In addition, executive director Morris also supplemented her portfolio with 46,266 shares on 9 March, and 153,734 shares on 10 March. The price paid per share was the same as in Height’s transactions, outlined above.

The 200,000 Adore Beauty shares were purchased via an on-market trade, bringing Morris’s total to 10.4 million shares.

Both transactions equate to a value of almost $840,000.

It appears the directors believe that Adore Beauty shares may have bottomed out, particularly after UBS’s latest recommendation.

Adore Beauty share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, the Adore Beauty share price has sunk by around 62%, with year-to-date losses at 50%.

The company’s shares have been moving along on a downhill trajectory, particularly since the start of 2022.

Although, currently the relative strength index (RSI) is at 30, indicating the company’s shares have been oversold.

The RSI is a momentum oscillator that is used to assess the strength or weakness of a share price. Normal levels range between 30 and 70, as anything outside that range reveals if the share price is attractive to buy, or expensive.

Adore Beauty commands a market capitalisation of roughly $186 million.

The post 135% upside? Adore Beauty (ASX:ABY) insiders pounce on beaten-up shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 recommended Adore Beauty Group Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Adore Beauty Group 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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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.

Investors are getting hit on all sides by news that raises big concerns, and stocks haven’t been able to inspire much confidence from traders on Wall Street.

The Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: .IXIC) is now back to being down more than 20% from its highs, with a drop of more than 2% at 1.45pm ET that shows just how little conviction many investors have in high-growth stocks right now.

However, some stocks in the Nasdaq managed to hold up well even in Monday’s decline. Moderna (NASDAQ: MRNA) was once again a beneficiary of troubling news on the health front, this time from China. Meanwhile, investors continued to look for safe havens, and that helped consumer products giant PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP) maintain a modest gain Monday afternoon.

China’s COVID-19 cases boost vaccine stocks

Shares of Moderna were up more than 11% on Monday afternoon. The vaccine maker wasn’t alone, with BioNTech (NASDAQ: BNTX) seeing gains of more than 12%.

The news that was behind the upward move for vaccine stocks came from China, where an outbreak of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 has prompted government officials to impose new lockdown measures and travel restrictions. More than 1,300 cases have appeared, with the majority coming from the northeastern province of Jilin. In addition, the city of Shenzhen has seen new cases, prompting a lockdown of the city. Even though the number of cases is relatively small, China has been adamant in following its zero-COVID policy.

Even more troubling is the fact that many of these cases involve a new subvariant of Omicron that shows signs of being more transmissible and more harmful for those who become infected. It’s unknown how well Moderna and BioNTech’s vaccines will protect against this “stealth Omicron” variant, but investors believe the companies can work to potentially refine their vaccines over time.

Meanwhile, Moderna announced a study with the goal of making a vaccine to protect people against HIV. Such a breakthrough would show that Moderna isn’t a one-trick pony and prove once and for all the efficacy of its mRNA technology.

Pepsi is fizzing higher

Elsewhere, shares of PepsiCo were up a more modest 2%. The soft drink and snack foods manufacturer has traditionally had some defensive characteristics that make it an attractive investment for those seeking shelter from tough market environments.

PepsiCo has become a staple for millions of consumers around the world, and its brand name strength gives it a competitive advantage over many smaller companies in the food and beverage space. With many consumers devoted to its brands, PepsiCo is better able to pass on any cost increases in the ingredients that go into its products. That helps PepsiCo sustain its profit margin even when rival companies have to suffer declining earnings.

Dividend investors also appreciate PepsiCo. The stock yields 2.8% currently, and the company has an impressive streak of consistently boosting the amount of its quarterly dividend payments that dates back decades.

Perhaps best of all, PepsiCo hasn’t been afraid to set trends rather than react to them. When consumers started demanding healthier options, PepsiCo was among the first major companies to respond aggressively by moving away from sugary soft drinks toward carbonated water and other now-popular beverage alternatives. Similar moves on the snack side of the business have built up even more loyalty for the company.

As inflation hits hard, PepsiCo is in a better position than most to avoid the brunt of higher prices. Stock investors appreciate that kind of protection now more than ever.

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

The post 2 Nasdaq stocks bucking Monday’s market drop appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Dan Caplinger has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Moderna Inc. 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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The Imugene Limited (ASX: IMU) share price is marching higher in early trade. Imugene shares are up 4% even as the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) tumbles 1%.

The Imugene share price closed yesterday at 25 cents and is currently trading at 26 cents.

Below we look at the immuno-oncology company’s clinical trial collaboration announcement.

What collaboration was announced?

The Imugene share price is gaining after the company reported that it’s entered into a new clinical trial collaboration and supply agreement with US pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK), under its tradename MSD.

The collaborative trial will treat patients with HER-2 positive gastric cancer with Imugene’s HER-Vaxx, combined with MSD’s pembrolizumab. The trial will evaluate both the safety and efficacy of the combined treatment approach.

Commenting on the collaboration, Leslie Chong, Imugene’s CEO, said:

HER-Vaxx has already shown a tolerable safety profile and encouraging efficacy in patients with metastatic HER-2 positive gastric cancer, and we look forward to further evaluating HER-Vaxx with pembrolizumab in a relapsed/refractory metastatic setting.

This collaboration with MSD is significant for our company as it provides the opportunity to optimize and enhance our formulations and utility in an additional setting in an effort to improve outcomes for more patients.

Imugene said the main goal of the study is to evaluate the safety and response rate of the combination therapy. It will also assess patients’ “duration of response, progression free survival, overall survival, and biomarker evaluation”.

In accordance with the agreement, Imugene will sponsor and fund the clinical study. It said this will be done from its existing budgets and resources.

In return, MSD will provide pembrolizumab for the duration of the study, which is expected to run for at least 24 months.

Imugene share price snapshot

The Imugene share price has been a stellar performer over the past 12 months, up 112%. By comparison, the All Ordinaries has gained 5% over that same time.

The post Imugene (ASX:IMU) share price lifts on major collaboration announcement 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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The News Corp (ASX: NWS) share price is heading south during early Tuesday trading.

This comes despite the media giant not releasing any market-sensitive news today.

At the time of writing, News Corp shares are down 0.9% to $29.65 apiece.

Why are News Corp shares falling today? 

Following the company’s second-quarter and half-year results released on 4 February, investors are eyeing News Corp shares as they go ex-dividend today.

Typically, one business day before the record date, the ex-dividend date, is when investors must have purchased shares. If the investor does not buy News Corp shares before this date, the dividend will go to the seller.

Historically, when a company reaches its ex-dividend day, its shares tend to fall in proportion to the dividend paid out. This is because investors tend to sell off the company’s shares after securing the dividend.

What does this mean for News Corp shareholders?

For those eligible for News Corp’s interim dividend, shareholders will receive a payment of 9.83 cents per share on 13 April. Although, the dividend is unfranked, which means investors won’t receive any tax credits from this.

The dividend is slightly higher when compared against the prior corresponding period despite recording lower free cash flow.

Management said the decline was primarily due to lower cash provided by operating activities and higher capital expenditures.

Are News Corp shares a buy now?

Following the company’s financial scorecard, a couple of brokers weighed in on the News Corp share price.

The team at Macquarie raised its 12-month price target by 16% to $50.00 for the media company’s shares. Its analysts believe there is still more upside in News Corp shares in line with its sound performance recently.

Based on the current share price, this implies an upside of about 67% for investors.

Furthermore, UBS also lifted its rating on News Corp shares by 2.4% to $42.50 a pop. This also implies an upside of around 42% from where the company trades today.

News Corp shares price summary

Since the beginning of 2022, News Corp shares have lost more than 4% on the back of weak investor sentiment on the ASX.

The company’s shares reached a 52-week low of $28.18 last week, before rebounding slightly higher thereafter.

On valuation grounds, News Corp commands a market capitalisation of around $1.36 billion, with approximately 45.32 million shares outstanding.

The post Why the News Corp (ASX:NWS) share price is edging lower today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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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