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The WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) share price has been climbing of late, adding to its gains from last week.

This comes despite the logistics solutions company not releasing any price-sensitive announcements to the ASX this week.

At yesterday’s market close, WiseTech shares finished 2.39% higher to $45.36 apiece.

WiseTech shares set to go ex-dividend

While the company has been quiet on the news front lately, investors are buying up WiseTech shares.

This is most likely because of the upcoming ex-dividend date for WiseTech shares.

Investors need to buy WiseTech shares before market close on Thursday to be eligible for the interim dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday 11 March.

It’s worth noting though that, 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.

When can WiseTech shareholders expect payment?

For those who are eligible for the WiseTech interim dividend, shareholders will receive a payment of 4.75 cents per share on 8 April. The dividend is also fully franked which means shareholders can expect to receive tax credits from this.

In addition, investors can elect for the dividend reinvestment plan (DRP) which will add a portion of shares to their portfolio instead.

There is no DRP discount rate, however, the price will be determined by the daily volume-weighted average (VWAP) from 16 March to 22 March.

The last election date for shareholders to opt-in to the DRP is on 15 March.

The $16.8 billion half-year dividend represents a payout of 20% of underlying net profit after tax (NPAT).

WiseTech share price snapshot

Since the beginning of 2022, the WiseTech share price has fallen more than 22% but is up around 73% in the last 12 months.

The company’s shares reached a 52-week high of $60.40 in December, before treading 25% lower on today’s price.

WiseTech commands a market capitalisation of roughly $14.80 billion and has a trailing dividend yield of 0.14%.

The post Time is running out to lock in the WiseTech (ASX:WTC) dividend. Here’s why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Glitch! Why are ASX tech shares getting hammered on Monday?
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy next week
• ASX tech shares have been smashed today as market hits 3-week low
• Why Accent, Healius, PEXA, and WiseTech shares are rising today
• Great expectations: Why is the Wisetech (ASX:WTC) share price not gaining more today?

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. owns and has recommended WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended WiseTech Global. 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) share price is in focus after the company announced it is working with Airbus on decarbonisation.

Fortescue Future Industries (FFI) is on a mission to try to decarbonise heavy industry where it’s hard to reduce emissions.

Airbus is one of the biggest aircraft makers in the world.

FFI and Airbus are aiming to help decarbonise the aviation industry with zero-emission green hydrogen.

What’s the decarbonisation idea?

Fortescue Future Industries is looking to become a world-leading producer of green hydrogen. This is where hydrogen is made from water using 100% renewable electricity. It expects to be able to produce an increasing amount of green hydrogen in the coming years.

Airbus and FFI aim to leverage their respective expertise to support an entry-into-service of a green hydrogen-based aircraft by 2035.

They have signed a memorandum of understanding which will allow both companies to collaborate closely, as one focused taskforce, to implement green hydrogen as a fuel within the aviation industry.

What are some of the challenges?

Fortescue Future Industries and Airbus will be looking at some of the challenges surrounding green hydrogen including regulations, infrastructure and global supply chains. This ranges from the production of green hydrogen, all the way to the delivery to airports and transfer onto aircraft.

It was revealed that, under the signed memorandum of understanding, FFI will provide cost outlook and technology drivers on the various elements of the supply chain and will build infrastructure deployment scenarios for the supply of green hydrogen to targeted airports. Airbus will provide characteristics on fleet energy usage, scenarios for hydrogen demand in aviation, refuelling specifications and aviation regulatory framework.

Leadership commentary

The FFI founder and Chair Dr Andrew Forrest points out that the global aviation industry accounts for more than 2.5% of global carbon dioxide emissions. Those emissions have doubled since the 1980s.

Dr Forrest said:

The time is now for a green revolution in the aviation industry. This exciting collaboration brings together leaders in the aviation industry with leaders in green energy for a pollution-free future.

We are all citizens of a global world. People want to travel, reunite with family and friends and explore new places without being forced to pollute the planet. The problem isn’t travel, the problem is how we fuel our planes and ships – all of that must turn emissions free. No greenwash, no mirage, just 100% green.

FFI also included a quote from the Airbus Vice President of Zero Emissions Aircraft Glenn Llewellyn:

Airbus has identified green hydrogen as the most promising option for decarbonisation to meet our environmental challenges. You heard it here first: We are starting the green aviation revolution.

Fortescue share price snapshot

Since the start of 2022, Fortescue shares are down 6%.

The post Will the Fortescue (ASX:FMG) share price fly as it links up with Airbus? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 15% yield! But are these ASX high-yield shares dividend traps?
• WAM boss urges cashed-up ASX 200 companies to buy, invest or pay dividends
• Why is the Fortescue (ASX:FMG) share price having such a stellar start to the week?
• Why is the iron ore price hitting 6-month highs?
• To infinity and beyond! Here’s why Fortescue (ASX:FMG) is spending $50m developing a brand new toy

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison owns Fortescue Metals Group Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has 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, Monash Investors portfolio manager Sebastian Correia shows the criteria that he puts ASX shares through when deciding whether to buy.

Hottest ASX shares

The Motley Fool: What are the 2 best stock buys right now?

Sebastian Correia: I’m going to have to disappoint you a little bit because I had a good think about this, and it’s really very hard to answer the question appropriately without knowing the reader’s risk tolerance, investment horizon, and ESG requirements.

So what I thought instead, I might give you 3 characteristics that I personally look for in a company as economies start to or continue to experience inflationary pressures and heightened geopolitical risk at the moment. Something that I use as a very good starting point to assess companies, and hopefully readers will find it useful. 

I should say it’s not an exhaustive list. For example, management quality and experience is very important but, unfortunately, not every investor has access to management like we do. 

Nevertheless, out of the 3 things that I think are absolutely critical when assessing a company at the moment, the first one is pricing power.

So the company has to be able to effectively pass on price increases to its customers. It’s critical in our inflationary environment obviously to protect margins. But also, the knock-on effect is, down the track, it provides the company with a stronger competitive position to actually take advantage of those that don’t have that ability to pass on their price increases. Statistically, and there’s been a lot of studies on this, margin resilience has been a pretty good barometer of business survivability in the past.

It’s also quite important for valuation because when margins compress, generally the market price or the stock will decline to adjust for the contraction in the valuation multiple. So by being quite prudent on companies you invest in, if they have pricing power, you actually protect yourself from two elements, not just the valuation multiple that it trades at, but also the underlying earnings that it could achieve in an inflationary environment.

Number two, free cash. It has to be free cash-flow positive, or at least operating cash-flow positive, and preferably net cash. If not net cash, very low debt on the balance sheet. This one is pretty self-explanatory, but it’s very important. So easy to miss because it seems obvious. 

I’m sure if interest rates rise, the more cash the company generates, the better-placed management will be to make optimal capital decisions. For example, paying down debt as interest rates rise or bolstering up the balance sheet to make acquisitions that turn up as an opportunity.

Then last but not least, number three, for us anyway, because we like to make investments in companies that are going to go through some sort of step change in earnings that will allow us to anticipate a repricing by market. The company has to have some sort of tailwind behind it. 

It’s very difficult to swim against the tide. Just ask Kodak, for example. It has to be leveraged to some sort of tailwind to allow it to not just get lost in a broader sell-off from a sector or thematic purpose, particularly in the ever-increasing influence of passive, bespoke investment vehicles like ETFs, thematic ETFs. 

So those are the three. I look at those 3 every day when I’m looking at a company and, hopefully, it will be useful to the readers.

The post 3 things I always check before buying an ASX share: expert appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 2 ASX dividend shares with big yields that analysts rate as buys
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• 2 high quality ASX growth shares analysts believe have 20%+ upside
• 4 ASX shares we’re holding for both reopening and higher interest rates: expert
• Here are the top 10 ASX shares today

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 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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If you’re currently building an income portfolio, then you may want to look at the shares listed below.

Here’s why these ASX dividend shares could be in the buy zone right now:

Charter Hall Social Infrastructure REIT (ASX: CQE)

The first ASX dividend share for investors to consider is the Charter Hall Social Infrastructure REIT.

It is a real estate investment trust with a focus on social infrastructure properties which have specialist use, limited competition, and low substitution risk. These are bus depots, police and justice services facilities, and childcare centres. In respect to the latter, the Charter Hall Social Infrastructure REIT is actually the largest owner of early learning centres in Australia.

Goldman Sachs is very positive on the company’s future. So much so, it currently has a conviction buy rating and $4.20 price target on its shares.

It is also forecasting growing dividends per share of 17.2 cents in FY 2022 and 18.3 cents in FY 2023. Based on its current share price of $3.74, this implies yields of 4.6% and 4.9%, respectively.

Super Retail Group Ltd (ASX: SUL)

Another ASX dividend share to look at is this retail conglomerate. It is the company behind popular retail brands BCF, Macpac, Rebel, and Supercheap Auto.

Super Retail’s shares have come under pressure this year following a tough first half of FY 2022 due largely to COVID lockdowns. Though, it is worth highlighting that it still delivered strong double-digit like for like sales growth across its BCF, Rebel, and Supercheap Auto businesses on a two-year basis.

The team at Morgans believe the company will bounce back strongly and see the recent share price weakness as a buying opportunity. In light of this, it recently upgraded Super Retail’s shares to an add rating with a $13.80 price target.

As for dividends, the broker is forecasting fully franked dividends of 59 cents per share in FY 2022 and 61 cents per share in FY 2023. Based on the current Super Retail share price of $9.77, this will mean yields of 6% and 6.2%, respectively.

The post 2 ASX dividend shares with big yields that analysts rate as buys appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 3 ASX retail shares slumping to 52-week lows today
• 5 ASX 200 shares slumping to 52-week lows on Friday
• Morgans just upgraded these ASX shares to buys
• These ASX dividend shares have been given buy ratings by analysts
• Morgans names 2 ASX 200 dividend shares to buy right now

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Super Retail Group Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Super Retail 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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On Tuesday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was out of form and tumbled lower again. The benchmark index fell 0.8% to 6,980.3 points.

Will the market be able to bounce back from this on Wednesday? Here are five things to watch:

ASX 200 expected to rise

The Australian share market looks set to rise on Wednesday following a decent night of trade on Wall Street. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 29 points or 0.4% higher this morning. In late trade in the United States, the Dow Jones is up 0.35%, the S&P 500 is up 0.3%, and the Nasdaq is up 0.75%. Things were looking even better at one stage before US markets pared some of their gains.

Oil prices jump

Energy producers such as Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) could have a good day after oil prices surged higher. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 4.7% to US$125.04 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price has risen 4.9% to US$129.96 a barrel. News that the US and UK are banning Russian oil imports has boosted prices.

Nickel price surges

Miners with exposure to nickel, such as IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO), will be on watch today after a crazy night for the metal. According to the Financial Times, the spot nickel price surged to a record US$100,000 a tonne in one of the biggest short squeezes in history. Chinese billionaire Xiang Guangda is believed to be nursing losses in the billions after he bet against the metal. The nickel price was trading at around US$21,000 a tonne at the start of the year.

Gold price continues to rise

Gold miners Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) could have a strong day after the gold price continued to push higher. According to CNBC, the spot gold price is up 2.6% to US$2,048.2 an ounce. This has been driven by increasing demand for the safe haven asset due to the war in Ukraine.

Platinum shares upgraded to hold rating

Platinum Asset Management Ltd (ASX: PTM) shares could have ended their slide and now be a hold according to the team at Bell Potter. This morning the broker upgraded the fund manager’s shares to a hold rating with a $1.90 price target. This follows the release of its latest funds under management update.

The post 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here are the top 10 ASX shares today
• How these 2 Aussie fund managers have delivered 30%+ gains in the past year
• Up 17% this month, why the IGO (ASX:IGO) share price can keep gaining: broker
• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts on Tuesday
• 15% yield! But are these ASX high-yield shares dividend traps?

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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Looking for growth shares to buy? Well, here’s some good news! Listed below are two growth shares that have recently been named as buys with material upside potential.

Here’s what you need to know about them:

Altium Limited (ASX: ALU)

The first ASX growth share to look at is Altium. It is an electronic design software provider behind the Altium 365 and Altium Designer platforms.

Altium also has a number of complementary businesses such as Nexus and Octopart which have large opportunities and are generating significant revenues.

All in all, this means Altium has a portfolio of businesses that have positioned it perfectly to profit from the increasing demand for electronic design software due to the rapidly growing Internet of Things (IoT) and AI markets.

Bell Potter is a fan of Altium and was pleased with its “strong” half year results last month. It currently has a buy rating and $38.75 price target on the company’s shares.

Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME)

Another ASX growth share that is highly rated is Pro Medicus. It provides industry-leading software that facilitates the clinical assessment of medical images.

The team at Morgans is positive on the company and was very impressed with its recent half year update. This was particularly the case with its margins, which surprised to the upside.

It commented: “While revenues were in-line with our forecasts, EBIT margins (~65%) was really the standout, with a 600bp improvement versus our expectation of a 100bps decline on the pcp, where we assumed the resumption of major marketing conferences and travel expenses would curb margin growth. We were wrong.”

Morgans also notes that the company’s sales pipeline continues to strengthen, which bodes well for its future growth and is expected to underpin further operating leverage over the long term.

In light of this positive outlook, it recently retained its add rating and lifted its price target on the company’s shares to $56.20.

The post 2 high quality ASX growth shares analysts believe have 20%+ upside appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Altium (ASX:ALU) share price hinges on this key detail, top brokers say
• Glitch! Why are ASX tech shares getting hammered on Monday?
• Why we just sold Zip and bought Pro Medicus (ASX:PME) shares: fundie
• 3 buy-rated ASX growth shares analysts are recommending
• 2 ASX healthcare shares analysts rate as buys

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. owns and has recommended Altium and Pro Medicus Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Pro Medicus Ltd. 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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A portfolio manager has shed light on reasons to hold selective ASX shares amid the COVID-19 reopening and rising interest rates.

The fundie is holding Aristocrat Leisure Limited (ASX: ALL), Corporate Travel Management (ASX: CTD), Cleanaway Waste Management Ltd (ASX: CWY), and Qube Holdings Ltd (ASX: QUB).

Let’s take a look at why this expert is interested in these shares.

Why are these ASX shares beneficial?

SG Hiscock High Conviction Fund portfolio manager Hamish Tadgell outlined why he favours certain “reopening trades” at this time. Speaking to the Australian Financial Review, Tadgell said:

We continue to favour selective reopening trades and higher cyclical exposure which not only stand to benefit as demand recovers from the pandemic but also as rates tighten.

Outlining his reasons for this outlook on specific shares, Tadgell said:

Aristocrat Leisure and Corporate Travel … have experienced COVID-19 headwinds, but [have] been able to emerge stronger through taking market share and actively participating in industry consolidation.

Aristocrat is an Australian gaming technology company operating in 90 countries with multiple product offerings including pokie machines and casino management systems.

Meantime, Corporate Travel Management is a travel company offering events, leisure, loyalty, and wholesale travel to the corporate sector.

Commenting on two other shares he would hold, Tadgell added:

Cleanaway and Qube Logistics are two other quality companies with market leadership, a strong competitive advantage, assets that [are] hard to replicate and should benefit as borders open and volumes in their respective sectors recover.

Cleanaway is a waste management company providing environmental solutions in Australia and the United Kingdom.

Meanwhile, Qube is a logistics company operating in 130 locations including Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, and Papua New Guinea.

The Aristocrat share price finished 1.65% higher on Tuesday, while Corporate Travel slid 2.48%. Cleanaway closed the session 0.37% in the green today and Qube dropped 1.99%.

Share price recap

Aristocrat shares have gained 6% in the past year, while Corporate Travel Management is 7% higher.

Cleanaway has had a solid past 12 months, climbing nearly 19% although Qube has dropped more than 1% over that time.

For perspective, the  S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has returned 3.57% in the past year.

The post 4 ASX shares we’re holding for both reopening and higher interest rates: expert appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• WAM boss urges cashed-up ASX 200 companies to buy, invest or pay dividends
• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Corp Travel Management’s ACCC boost, Zip downgraded
• Corporate Travel Management (ASX:CTD) share price higher on ACCC Helloworld update
• 2 great ASX shares to buy in March 2022: experts

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 Corporate Travel Management 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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Today, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) broke below 7,000 points once again as miners and energy shares lost their gusto. At the end of the session, the benchmark index finished 0.83% lower at 6,980.3 points.

Despite concerns of a material and energy supply shortage, companies operating in these sectors took a moment on the sidelines today as investors cashed in on the recent strength. Meanwhile, supermarket giants and healthcare shares added some green to the boards on Tuesday.

However, the question is: which shares delivered the biggest returns to investors on the ASX today? Here are the top ten stocks that came through for investors:

Top 10 ASX shares countdown today

Looking at the top 200 listed companies, Meridian Energy Ltd (ASX: MEZ) was the biggest gainer today. Shares in the New Zealand renewable electricity generator jumped 6.43% after the company released a copy of its slides from a presentation to the New Zealand Shareholders’ Association. Find out more about Meridian Energy here.

The next biggest gaining ASX share today was Imugene Ltd (ASX: IMU). The clinical-stage immuno-oncology company pushed higher despite there being no new announcements. Shares in the company gained 4.44% while the broader market weakened. Uncover the latest Imugene details here.

Today’s top 10 biggest gains were made in these ASX shares:

ASX-listed company	Share price	Price change
Meridian Energy Ltd (ASX: MEZ)	$4.80	6.43%
Imugene Ltd (ASX: IMU)	$0.235	4.44%
Zimplats Holdings Ltd (ASX: ZIM)	$29.37	3.89%
Summerset Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: SNZ)	$11.40	3.64%
Johns Lyng Group Ltd (ASX: JLG)	$7.98	3.64%
Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW)	$35.74	3.36%
CSL Ltd (ASX: CSL)	$256.65	2.80%
Wisetech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC)	$45.36	2.39%
Resmed Inc (ASX: RMD)	$33.70	1.94%
Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL)	$17.50	1.86%

Our top 10 ASX shares today countdown is a recurring end-of-day summary to ensure you know which companies were making big moves on the day. Check-in at Fool.com.au after the market has closed during weekdays to see which stocks make the countdown.

The post Here are the top 10 ASX shares today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• How these 2 Aussie fund managers have delivered 30%+ gains in the past year
• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts on Tuesday
• 15% yield! But are these ASX high-yield shares dividend traps?
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: CSL and St Barbara charge higher
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday

Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended CSL Ltd. and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended ResMed. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended COLESGROUP DEF SET and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended 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 AVZ Minerals Ltd (ASX:AVZ) tracked lower today and finished 7% in the red by the close of trade on Tuesday.

The AVZ share price walked lower today despite no market-sensitive information from the company or its constituents.

Although, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) also finished down 65 basis points alongside the S&P/ASX 300 Metals & Mining Index (ASX: XMM), itself trailing the market at a 3.37% loss today.

One important factor to consider is that AVZ was just added to the benchmark index on 4 March, meaning shares are now susceptible to buying and selling from large investment funds restricted to ASX 200 shares in their mandate.

With both major indices taking a hit today, it appears there was weakness across the board in Australian markets today.

What else could be at play?

Understandably, many investors might be confused as to why AVZ is faltering today as the price of lithium continues to set record highs.

The battery metal has climbed more than 29% in a month and is up more than 600% in the last single year. Recently, it surged again from November last year and has set continuous record highs to today.

Even more perplexing, is that when zooming out and scoping out a longer time frame, the AVZ share price and the price of lithium (and what the market expects to pay) track each other very closely.

The chart below shows AVZ versus the March 2022 lithium futures contract’s rolling return over the past 12 months, plus the corresponding changes.

However, over the past week or so, the relationship has soured and there appears to be more at play than just the correlation between the price of lithium and AVZ stock.

Stock markets around the world have taken a beating in the past few weeks amid the tension and conflict arising from the Russia-Ukraine situation in Europe.

In fact, across the board asset classes are absorbing losses and there isn’t much escape for investors in the form of a safe haven.

Raw commodities, such as gold, lithium and nickel (and not necessarily equities backing these) are just about the only asset group that is faring gains in 2022, with most other sectors and/or products down considerably.

Nickel spot basically doubled overnight amid supply fears from the conflict in Europe, for example.

It has soared 144% in the past 5 days while the iShares MSCI World Index Fund (NYSE: URTH), i.e. the ‘world stock market’ has dropped nearly 4%.

As seen on the chart below, benchmarks for all major stock indices around the world are crumbling in 2022.

Each of the London FTSE 100 Index (UKX), the S&P 500 Index (NYSE: SPX), Germany’s DAX Performance Index (GDAXI), the S&P/ASX 200 Index and Euro Stoxx 50 (SX5E) are down considerably this year to date and have diverged completely from the commodities sector.

Notably, each of these benchmarks is (or was, anyway) heavily weighted towards a tech bias.

However, the global commodities bucket has outstripped traditional equity markets and is soaring to new highs, as seen by Bloomberg Commodities Index (BCOM) in purple and the S&P/ASX 300 Metals & Mining performance above.

When looking at AVZ from a longer timeframe – the last 6 months to be exact – we see it has tracked the Australian mining basket closely and is trading above the benchmark index by a considerable amount.

As such, it appears the selloff in AVZ shares is a part of a wider selloff across the board in markets today. A homage to remaining diligent to a long-term perspective when investing.

AVZ share price snapshot

In the last 12 months, the AVZ share price has soared over 303% and another 4% this year to date. During the past month of trading, shares have eclipsed a gain of 6%.

The current levels that AVZ is trading at mark the highest prices in its history since first listing on the ASX back in 2007.

The post Lithium’s up 29%, but the AVZ Minerals (ASX:AVZ) share price is down. What gives? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why these 2 ASX mining shares are in the spotlight today
• These ASX 200 shares are being dumped out of the index and replaced with…
• How have ASX lithium stocks been faring this reporting season?
• ASX 200 tech shares take a hammering as Ukraine fears escalate
• Here’s why this ASX All Ordinaries lithium share is surging 13% today

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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Today wasn’t a great day for most ASX shares. The All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) ended up losing 0.93% over this Tuesday’s trading session. But that loss was eclipsed by the Race Oncology Ltd (ASX: RAC) share price.

Race shares ended up finishing at $2.30 a share, down a nasty 9.8% for the day. What’s worse, the company hit $2.27 during intra-day trading a new 52-week low for Race Oncology. That puts the company’s losses over 2022 so far at 36%, including 17.3% over the past 5 trading days. Its 12-month loss now stands at 38%.

So why did this company have such a lousy day of trading today?

Race to the bottom for Race Oncology share price

Well, unfortunately, it’s not entirely clear. There were no announcements or news out of the company to speak of. Nor have there been since a major update in January, which was an activities update for the December quarter. Back then, the company announced that its capital raising had been successful and oversubscribed at $3 a share. Race also reported a healthy cash position as well as a “preclinical discovery into heart protection during cancer treatment”.

That caused the Race share price to rise at the time. But investors appear to have forgotten all about those developments today.

So while it’s unclear exactly what spooked investors today, it could just be the nature of the company itself. As a small-cap ASX share with a market capitalisation of just over $400 million, Race is a company that could have been treated as a more speculative investment by some of its shareholders. As such, on a day like today when investors didn’t seem in the mood to take risks, Race shares might have just been the victim of some fear-provoked selling pressure.

Whatever the reasons for today’s sell off, Race shareholders will undoubtedly be hoping for better fortunes over the rest of the week.

The post Why did the Race Oncology (ASX:RAC) share price drop 10% today? 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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