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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) looks set to end the week deep in the red. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down 0.9% to 7,089.2 points.

Four ASX shares that have managed to avoid the selloff are listed below. Here’s why they are rising:

Infomedia Limited (ASX: IFM)

The Infomedia share price is up 4% to $1.50. This morning the software solutions provider to the automotive industry revealed that it has appointed its new Chief Executive Officer. According to the release, the company has named Jens Monsees as its new leader. Mr Monsees is an experienced, global executive known for driving digital transformation, innovation, and strategy across a range of industries including automotive and technology.

Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM)

The Newcrest share price is up 1.5% to $25.74. This gain appears to have been driven by the release of an updated mineral resource and ore reserve statement for the Havieron project by Greatland Gold. However, it is worth noting that Newcrest advised that it has not reviewed or verified the analysis conducted by Greatland.

Piedmont Lithium Inc (ASX: PLL)

The Piedmont Lithium share price is up 6% to 79.7 cents. Investors have been buying this lithium miner’s shares after it reminded the market that it will benefit from the doubling of the mineral resource of the North American Lithium and Authier Lithium Projects in Québec in Canada. Yesterday Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA) announced the mineral resource upgrade, with Piedmont Lithium pointing out that it owns a 25% stake in the projects this morning.

Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW)

The Woolworths share price is up 1.5% to $34.65. This is despite there being no news out of the retail giant. However, due to its defensive qualities, some investors may have been buying its shares amid the heightened market volatility.

The post Why Infomedia, Newcrest, Piedmont Lithium, and Woolworths shares are rising today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here’s why the Piedmont Lithium (ASX:PLL) share price is surging 5% today
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• The miner’s ore reserves are climbing, so how is the Newcrest (ASX:NCM) share price responding?
• Here’s why the Woolworths (ASX:WOW) share price is sliding today
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday

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 Infomedia. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Infomedia. 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 Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) share price looks like an attractive buy according to the experts at Macquarie.

Pilbara Minerals is one of the largest lithium miners on the ASX.

The lithium opportunity

Lithium is seeing global demand rapidly increase. The commodity is a key commodity for electric vehicles. Lithium is needed for the battery to be capable enough for travelling long distances.

In the fourth quarter of 2021, Tesla alone produced 305,000 vehicles. For the whole 2021 year it delivered 936,000 vehicles.

According to reporting by the Wall Street Journal, analysts expect that Tesla will be able to deliver around 1.5 million vehicles to customers in 2022. This would be reportedly consistent with the company’s target of growing deliveries by around 50% each year over the next few years.

The mining giant Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) has recognised that lithium is an attractive commodity. That’s why the business has expanded into lithium with the Rincon lithium project in South America. At this stage, its European Jadar project has been blocked.

Rio Tinto says that the market fundamentals for battery grade lithium carbonate are strong, with lithium demand forecast to grow by 25% to 35% per annum over the next decade with a significant supply demand deficit expected from the second half of this decade. This could help the Pilbara Minerals share price in the coming years.

How does Pilbara fit into the lithium picture?

This ASX lithium share owns the Pilgangoora Project in Western Australia’s resource-rich Pilbara region. The Pilgangoora ore body is one of the largest hard rock lithium deposits in the world according to the company.

It has two processing plants, which produce a spodumene concentrate and the the Pilgan Plant also produces a tantalite concentrate.

Having two processing plants provides Pilbara Minerals with ‘speed to market’ by enabling it to rapidly increase production to satisfy rising lithium market demand and flexibility by being able to blend products to meet customer needs, according to the company.

The Pilbara Minerals share price is rated as a buy by Macquarie, with a price target of $3.50 because of the strong lithium prices that the company is currently benefiting from.

In the company’s FY22 half-year result it generated record sales revenue of $291.7 million, making a statutory profit after tax of $114 million.

During the half-year, it shipped 170,228 dry metric tonnes (dmt). It achieved an average selling price of US$1,250 per dmt. Since the end of the half-year, pricing has continued to increase, with price reporting agencies currently indicating spot spodumene concentrate prices in the range of US$3,750 to US$4,500 per dmt.

Expansion and diversification plans

The company says that the Pilgangoora project provides a significant opportunity for the company to expand operations and production with market demand.

It’s doing a number of improvement works to increase production. Pilbara says the proposed Stage 2 expansion would increase processing capacity to 5Mt per year, to produce 800,000t to 850,000t per year of 6% spodumene concentrate, and 800,000 pounds per annum of tantalite concentrate.

The company is also thinking about diversifying by manufacturing high-value battery-grade lithium products through downstream processing, which has the potential to deliver “significant additional value” for Pilbara Minerals.

Pilbara Minerals share price valuation

Macquarie’s earnings estimate puts the Pilbara share price at 12x FY23’s estimated earnings.

The post Why the Pilbara (ASX:PLS) share price is a buy right now: expert appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Is the ASX set to welcome yet another BNPL share? Macquarie-backed company gears up for IPO
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares this Thursday
• How did ASX lithium shares perform in February?
• Is Macquarie (ASX:MQG) gearing up to ink its next big deal?
• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts this Tuesday

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 Macquarie 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 Piedmont Lithium Inc (ASX: PLL) share price is reaching for the skies today after providing a resource estimate update.

At the time of writing, the lithium producer’s shares are up 5.3% to 79 cents. However, optimism among investors was higher earlier in the session — hitting an intraday high of 85 cents apiece.

Why is the Piedmont Lithium share price lifting?

The United States-based lithium company informed the market that its Quebec lithium resource estimates had doubled. Though, the increased lithium prospects are not directly a consequence of Piedmont’s operations.

On Friday, Piedmont shareholders were reminded that the company made a strategic investment in fellow ASX-listed lithium explorer, Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA). The deal carried out in January last year means Piedmont owns a 25% interest in Sayona’s North American Lithium (NAL) and Authier projects in Quebec.

As we covered earlier in the week, Sayona believes its lithium resource is now double its previous estimates. The revised estimate takes the mineral explorer to a 119.1 million tonne resource base at 1.05% lithium oxide. This evidently bodes well for the Piedmont Lithium share price.

Commenting on the development, Piedmont chief operating officer, Patrick Brindle said:

We are happy and excited for our partners. Sayona Quebec is one of the largest and best-located spodumene businesses in Canada and, as a past producer with the bulk of plant and equipment in place, we believe is also the most advanced at this time.

We look forward to Sayona’s upcoming release of a new technical studies for both Authier and North American Lithium as we advance our plans to jointly restart spodumene concentrate production at North American Lithium in 2023 as the world’s demand for electric vehicles and lithium hydroxide continues to accelerate.

The Sayona share price closed 11.1% higher on Tuesday following the news.

Despite the recent resurgence, the Piedmont Lithium share price is down 12.4% over the past 12 months.

The post Here’s why the Piedmont Lithium (ASX:PLL) share price is surging 5% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• This junior ASX mining share just leapt 50%. Here’s why
• Here’s why the Starpharma (ASX:SPL) share price is tumbling 8% today
• The NAB (ASX:NAB) share price has only gained $3 in 12 years. Have the dividends been worth it?
• Mission possible: Why this ASX mining share is surging 17% today

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. 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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It has been another busy week for Australia’s top brokers. This has led to the release of a large number of broker notes.

Three broker buy ratings that you might want to know more about are summarised below. Here’s why brokers think these ASX shares are in the buy zone:

Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE)

According to a note out of UBS, its analysts have upgraded this lithium miner’s shares to a buy rating with an improved price target of $12.40. UBS was pleased with Allkem’s performance during the first half, noting that its result was ahead of its forecasts. And with lithium prices continuing to increase, the broker has lifted its earnings estimates and valuation accordingly. The Allkem share price is trading at $9.85 on Friday.

Corporate Travel Management Ltd (ASX: CTD)

Another note out of UBS reveals that its analysts have retained their buy rating and $28.20 price target on this corporate travel specialist’s shares. This follows news that the ACCC will not oppose its acquisition of the ANZ corporate travel segment of Helloworld Travel Ltd (ASX: HLO). UBS believes the acquisition will allow the company to win a greater share of the market. It also highlights that trading conditions have been improving meaningfully, though acknowledges that the Russia-Ukraine crisis is a risk. The Corporate Travel Management share price is fetching $21.25 today.

NextDC Ltd (ASX: NXT)

Analysts at Citi have retained their buy rating but trimmed their price target on this data centre operator’s shares slightly to $14.55. While the broker has reduced its estimates a touch to reflect the slower conversion of its sales pipeline, it remains very positive on the company’s outlook. Particularly with its third-generation centres opening in Melbourne and Sydney soon. The NextDC share price is trading at $10.69 on Friday afternoon.

The post Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why Morgans rates this ASX lithium share and this retail share as buys
• 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
• Top broker tips another 28% upside for the Allkem (ASX: AKE) share price
• How did ASX lithium shares perform in February?

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns NEXTDC Limited and 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 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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Shares in Ballymore Resources Ltd (ASX: BMR) are flinging higher today and now trade 9% in the green at 18 cents apiece.

At one point today, Ballymore shares were rallying as high as 50% before receding the line back down to current levels.

Why is the Ballymore share price soaring today?

The company announced it has received gold assay results for the initial drilling program at the Seventy Mile Mount prospect.

The site is located within the Ravenswood Project area, itself situated in the Charters Towers Province in northeast Queensland.

According to Ballymore, the findings demonstrate the potential for Seventy Mile Mount to “host a significant breccia-hosted gold deposit similar in style to Mount Leyshon (3.8 Moz Au) and Mount Wright (1.0 Moz Au)”.

Results also show significant new intersections of 40m at 1.06 g/t Au from 47m (including 3m at 9.38 g/t Au) in and 15m at 0.55 g/t Au from 76m (including 5m at 1.44 g/t Au) in two separate holes.

“Matched with historic drilling, these results support the interpretation that Seventy Mile Mount is a zoned system with grade improving with depth”, the company remarked.

Management commentary

Speaking on the results, Ballymore Technical Director, David A-Izzeddin said:

The Seventy Mile Mount breccia target has a lot of similarities to major breccia hosted gold deposits in the region and these recent holes are the first completed in the area since 2004. These holes targeted a previously unrecognised breccia zone with similarities to the higher grade breccia zones present at Mount Leyshon and Mount Wright, both major gold producers in the local region in the past 30 years.

This initial drilling program was designed to test the continuity of the gold from the eastern margins to the west, and has proven successful in intersecting shallow, ore grade mineralisation 200m west of the zone of best historic drill results. Initial assessment of the breccias and geochemical data suggests that we are at the top of a zoned system similar to Mount Wright. The only previous deep drilling at Seventy Mile Mount was completed on the eastern margin of this breccia zone and these results support the interpretation that grades will improve with depth.

What’s next for this ASX mining share?

Ballymore says that it will now receive assay results for Matthews Pinnacle CEI drill hole and then commence drilling at Ruddygore mine in March 2022.

It also aims to design a Stage 2 drilling program for Seventy Mile Mount, complete soil sampling and mapping program at its Dittmer Project and also mapping of the Day Dawn and Tea Tree prospects located at Ravenswood.

Since listing in September last year, Ballymore shares have collapsed 10%, however are up 3% this year to date, and another 12% in the green over the past week.

The post This junior ASX mining share just leapt 50%. Here’s why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• Here’s why the Starpharma (ASX:SPL) share price is tumbling 8% today
• The NAB (ASX:NAB) share price has only gained $3 in 12 years. Have the dividends been worth it?
• Mission possible: Why this ASX mining share is surging 17% today
• QBE (ASX:QBE) share price backtracks as CEO realigns group’s strategy

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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Shares in Starpharma Holdings Limited (ASX: SPH) are on the move today after the company released a market sensitive announcement. At the time of writing, the Starpharma share price is down 7.87% at 82 cents.

The announcement relates to a story in today’s The Age regarding the company’s Viraleze nasal spray.

Viraleze is an antiviral nasal spray used overseas for the treatment of Covid-19. It is registered for sale in Europe, Vietnam, India, Saudi Arabia, and New Zealand, and “available outside Australia in certain markets online”, according to the company.

Starpharma is awaiting the outcome of an application for approval from the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) to sell the product in Australia.

What did the media article say?

The article states that the TGA “believes the company has applied for the wrong therapeutic goods category”.

In the article, a TGA spokeswoman is quoted as saying:

The TGA can confirm that Starpharma submitted an application for Viraleze for inclusion in the Australian register of Therapeutic Goods as a medical device. According to the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989 and based on information provided by Starpharma to the TGA and information they have published in the public domain, Viraleze would be a medicine, not a medical device.

The TGA has discussed the differences between a medicine and medical device with Starpharma verbally and in writing on several occasions, as recently as mid-January 2022. To date, Starpharma has not sought advice from the medicines authorisation branch of the TGA nor have they submitted an application for this product to be included in the [register] as a medicine.

What is Starpharma’s response?

In its release today, Starpharma affirmed it has submitted an application to the TGA for Viraleze as a medical device. It said this is in line with other countries, and that the regulatory process “is ongoing”.

Starpharma said:

Starpharma does not normally comment on ongoing regulatory processes and was not anticipating the TGA to make public comment, given we are currently awaiting a response from the TGA, having provided additional information as recently as last week, including information related to the nasal spray mechanism of action and the appropriateness of its classification as a medical device.

Starpharma’s submission for this product as a medical device is consistent with multiple other nasal sprays with antiviral indications that are registered by the TGA as medical devices and have been marketed in Australia for several years.

This is important because, as the company notes, Viraleze is already registered as a medical device in Europe and elsewhere, but also under the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989.

Let’s not forget that Starpharma and the TGA have had a fairly colourful past. Last year, the TGA fined Starpharma more than $90,000 for promoting Viraleze on YouTube despite it not yet having approval.

Starpharma stated further:

We appreciate the TGA’s important role in regulating the supply of therapeutic goods in Australia and look forward to working with the TGA to achieve registration of the nasal spray in Australia to make the product available to Australian consumers.

It remains to be seen what the TGA will decide regarding Viraleze. The application is still being evaluated.

Starpharma share price snapshot

In the past 12 months, the Starpharma share price has collapsed by 60%. It is trailing the broader S&P/ASX 200 Health Care Index (ASX: XHJ) in 2022. The index is down 15% while the Starpharma share price has lost 37% year to date.

The post Here’s why the Starpharma (ASX:SPL) share price is tumbling 8% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Starpharma (ASX:SPL) share price lifts on Omicron study results
• Not enough: Starpharma (ASX:SPH) share price plunges despite 200% revenue growth

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

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As a big four bank share on the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), the National Australia Bank Ltd. (ASX: NAB) share price arguably casts a long shadow on our share market. It’s one of the largest companies in Australia, and also one of the most well known. This has been accentuated in recent years as NAB has grown in size. A few years ago, this bank was the baby of the big four. Today, it is the ASX’s second-largest bank, behind Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), of course. 

And NAB shares have proven to be a rewarding investment in recent times too. As it currently stands, the NAB share price has given investors a return of 9.35% over the past 12 months. That’s more than double the return of the broader ASX 200.

But this recent run masks a longer-term performance that isn’t so rosy. If we look at the NAB share price over the past 5 years, we can see that it has fallen by more than 13.5% over this period.

And even stretching back to 12 years, NAB shares have only seen roughly $3 added to their price.

But, as any bank investor would know, part of the appeal of an ASX bank like NAB are the dividends. And NAB has certainly paid out some hefty dividends over this period. So let’s see if those payments have added meaningfully to NAB’s returns. 

Do NAB’s dividends make the past 12 years worthwhile?

Ok, so back in early March 2010, NAB shares were going for roughly $25.63. Say if an investor invested $10,000 in NAB shares back then, it would have netted them 390 NAB shares with some change. 

Today, those 390 NAB shares would be worth $11,161.80 at NAB’s present share price of $28.62. That’s a rather anaemic capital return of 11.62% over 12 years. On that alone, you would probably have been better off having the cash stored in a NAB savings account instead. That doesn’t include any share buybacks, capital initiatives, or NAB’s dealings with the old Clydesdale Bank, just for simplicity. 

But let’s get to the dividends. So Since March 2010, NAB has forked out $20.37 in dividends per share. That’s including both of NAB’s 2021 dividend payments.

For an investor owning 390 NAB shares, that would amount to $7,944.30 in dividend income. Again, we won’t include the value of franking for simplicity’s sake. 

So if we add that $7,944.30 in dividend income to NAB’s capital return of $1,161.80, we can conclude that that $10,000 invested would have netted an investor a total of $9,106.10. Or $19,106.10 including our principle.

That means NAB shares have returned 91.06% over those 12 years. That works out to be an annual rate of return of 5.54% per annum. You can probably throw on a couple of percentage points to that to account for the franking if you’d like. 

Going off of how an ASX 200 ETF like the iShares Core S&P/ASX 200 ETF (ASX: IOZ) has given its investors an average return of 9.29% over the past 10 years, it’s unlikely that NAB has been a market beater over the past 12 years. But at least those returns beat out a savings account now.

At the current NAB share price, this ASX 200 bank has a NAB has forked out $20.37 in dividends per share of $92.48 billion, with a dividend yield of 4.44%. 

The post The NAB (ASX:NAB) share price has only gained $3 in 12 years. Have the dividends been worth it? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why brokers rate these ASX 200 dividend shares as buys
• Australia’s newest tech unicorn, Zeller, is taking on the ASX banks. Here’s how
• Why did the NAB (ASX:NAB) share price leap 7% in February?
• ‘A lot of headroom to grow’: Is 2022 the year ASX investors turn to ESG shares?
• Own NAB (ASX:NAB) shares? Here’s why the bank has been ruffling some customer feathers

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen owns National Australia Bank 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 Minerals 260 Ltd (ASX: MI6) share price is roaring today and is now 17.02% higher at 55 cents. At one point today, Minerals 260 shares were trading as high as 59 cents apiece, before recoursing back to current levels.

Investors are responding well to an announcement out of the company’s camp today regarding its 100%-owned Moora project, located approximately 150km northeast of Perth.

What did Minerals 260 announce?

The Minerals 260 share price is surging after the company advised it has received assays for a further nine holes from the recently completed drilling program at the Moora site. The findings confirm a wide copper-gold zone at the project.

According to Minerals, the Moora project forms part of a contiguous, 1,000km2 land position that also includes the Koojan venture with Lachlan Star Ltd (ASX: LSA) next door.

Earlier in January, Minerals 260 completed a 37-hole diamond core and reverse circulation (RC) drilling program for a total of 6,196 metres on various anomalies at the site.

Results from the Mynt prospect show mineralisation was intersected at 24m at 1.9% copper and 0.7 grams of gold per tonne from 99-123m.

“[The] mineralisation hosted by a quartz-veined zone with disseminated to semi-massive chalcopyrite and pyrrhotite,” Minerals 260 said.

Minerals 260 also notes the presence of mineralisation with “significant geochemical and geophysical anomalies” indicates the potential for a large sulphide-related system.

Assays received for a further eight drill holes at another prospect located on the site confirm the continuity of gold mineralisation. This has now been intersected on five sections over 400 metres of strike in all directions.

Management commentary

Speaking on the news fuelling the Minerals 260 share price today, managing director David Richards said:

The recent drilling and geophysical results continue to highlight the potential for large mineralising systems at Moora and Koojan. While we still have a lot of assay and other data to review and analyse, we are developing a clearer understanding of the priority areas for follow-up drilling.

One is clearly the exciting new copper-gold zone delineated at the Mynt prospect, where geophysics indicates potential for a significant mineralised system. The other is at Angepena, where we have now delineated significant gold mineralisation over an extensive area.

Minerals 260 share price snapshot

Since listing last year the Minerals 260 share price has gained 12%. It is also up 5.6% this year to date.

During the past month, its shares are up 1.8% and they have exploded by almost 32% over the past week.

The post Mission possible: Why this ASX mining share is surging 17% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• QBE (ASX:QBE) share price backtracks as CEO realigns group’s strategy
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Block, Zip tumble, QBE’s asset sale
• Why is the ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price getting battered more than the other banks this week?
• 3 ASX shares to cash in from the energy crisis: expert
• The CSL (ASX:CSL) share price is falling today, but here’s what investors can look forward to next week

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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The QBE Insurance Group Ltd (ASX: QBE) share price is looking to finish Friday’s trading session in the red. This comes after the insurance giant provided a market release in relation to a divestment of its United States-based business.

At the time of writing, QBE shares are down 1.28% to $10.77 apiece. In comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is down 0.54% to 7,112.6 points.

Let’s take a closer look at what the company updated the ASX with today.

What did QBE announce?

In today’s statement, QBE advised it has entered into an agreement to sell its Westwood Insurance Agency to Baldwin Risk Partners (NASDAQ: BRP).

Based in California, Westwood is a leading full service personal lines agency, specialising in builder sourced homeowners’ insurance.

Under the deal, QBE will receive a total consideration of $375 million, subject to regulatory approval.

The transaction is expected to increase the group’s Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) prescribed capital amount (PCA) multiple by around 0.05x.

The capital adequacy prudential standards require an insurance company to maintain enough capital against any risks associated with its activities. It is also a requirement that the insurer make certain public disclosures about its capital adequacy position.

QBE group CEO, Andrew Horton commented:

QBE’s strategy in North America is focused on building its Commercial, Specialty and Crop insurance portfolios. Whilst an attractive franchise, the Westwood business does not align with this strategy, and following this transaction QBE will no longer own any agency businesses in North America.

The sale is anticipated to be finalised by 1 May 2022.

In addition to the announcement, QBE touched on the recent flooding in Queensland and New South Wales.

Since the heavy rains swept a number of regions, around 3000 claims were lodged by customers. While a majority of those were personal lines, QBE is anticipating further claims in the coming weeks.

Management noted that it is still too early to assess the financial impact of the weather-related event.

However, the group has a maximum event retention of $125 million for non-peak events in the Australia Pacific Division. QBE’s FY22 catastrophe allowance is $962 million including a first-quarter allowance of $248 million.

About the QBE share price

Over the past 12 months, QBE shares have been somewhat volatile, moving in peaks and troughs throughout the period.

While its shares have gained around 13% since this time last year, it’s still heavily down from pre-pandemic levels. In early 2020, the QBE share price was swapping hands for as high as $15.19, before plummeting to record lows.

Based on today’s price, QBE commands a market capitalisation of roughly $15.92 billion, with more than 1.48 billion shares outstanding.

The post QBE (ASX:QBE) share price backtracks as CEO realigns group’s strategy appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Block, Zip tumble, QBE’s asset sale
• ‘$2 billion cost’: How are the floods impacting ASX 200 insurance shares this week?
• 4 ASX shares that love rising interest rates: report
• Should you buy QBE (ASX:QBE) shares as an inflation hedge?
• 3 ASX 200 value shares to buy for higher inflation: fundie

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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At lunch on Friday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to end the week deep in the red. The benchmark index is currently down 1.7% to 7,030.8 points.

Here’s what is happening on the ASX 200 today:

Tech shares tumble

The tech sector is weighing heavily on the ASX 200 on Friday. At the time of writing, the S&P/ASX All Technology Index is down a sizeable 3.5% due to heavy declines from the likes of Block Inc (ASX: SQ2) and Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P). This follows a poor night of trade on the tech-focused Nasdaq index and futures contracts pointing to more of the same tonight.

CSL lower despite acquisition update

The CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) share price is falling on Friday despite the release of an update out of the biotherapeutics giant. That update reveals that its proposed acquisition of Vifor Pharma for ~$17 billion has taken a step closer to completion. This follows news that 74% of Vifor shares have been tendered following CSL’s offer. If everything else goes to plan, management expects the transaction to complete in mid-2022.

QBE asset sale

QBE Insurance Group Ltd (ASX: QBE) has announced a deal to sell its Westwood Insurance Agency business in the United States. The insurance giant has entered into an agreement that will see the North American agency sold to Baldwin Risk Partners for $375 million. Westwood is a leading national full service personal lines agency, specialising in builder sourced homeowners’ insurance.

Best and worst ASX 200 performers

The best performer on the ASX 200 on Friday has been the Incitec Pivot Ltd (ASX: IPL) share price with a modest 1% gain. This appears to be due to the prospect of higher urea/ammonia prices due to the Russia-Ukraine crisis. The worst performer has been the Zip share price with an 11% decline amid weakness in the tech sector.

The post ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Block, Zip tumble, QBE’s asset sale appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• The CSL (ASX:CSL) share price is falling today, but here’s what investors can look forward to next week
• The 14% discount offered on the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share purchase plan has now vanished. What now for investors?
• Think you have the ‘right skills’ for investing in ASX shares? Read this
• CSL (ASX:CSL) share price on watch following Vifor Pharma acquisition update
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday

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 Block, Inc., CSL Ltd., and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Block, 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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