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One of the leading brokers that looks at ASX shares thinks that the Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) share price is a buy.

Morgans reckons that the business has more upside even though it has already risen by 26% this year.

It has been a crazy couple of years for Woodside.

Just under two years ago the business was tanking as COVID impacts caused a lot of the world’s vehicles and planes to limit their movement.

But not only is the world recovering strongly from COVID effects, but the war going on between Russia and Ukraine is sending the oil price even higher. It has soared above US$100 per barrel on concerns about what the flow-on effects will be for oil supply and the oil market in general.

There may be questions about what these higher oil prices mean for the inflation picture, but for Woodside, the market seems to think it will benefit the company with the Woodside share price climbing 14% in this month alone.

Why is Morgans positive on the business?

Morgans noted that the recent Woodside result showed that underlying profit was a bit stronger than expected.

For readers that didn’t catch that result, Woodside reported that net profit after tax (NPAT) jumped 149% to $1.98 billion, whilst underlying NPAT surged 262% to $1.62 billion. Operating cash flow increased 105% to $3.8 billion.

Woodside’s realised price was $60.3 per barrel of oil equivalent compared to a unit production cost of $5.3 per barrel of oil equivalent.

The board decided to declare a fully franked final dividend of US$1.05 per share, bringing the full-year dividend to US$1.35 per share.

Morgans also thinks that the merger with BHP Group Ltd’s (ASX: BHP) business will be very helpful for Woodside.

Some of the positives of the merger will mean creating a global energy company which would have the cash generation and balance sheet strength to deliver shareholder returns through economic cycles, opportunities to realise ongoing synergies and greater capacity to participate in the energy transition.

Woodside share price target

Morgans thinks it is a buy, with a price target of $30.35.

Based on the projections for FY22, Morgans thinks that Woodside shares are valued at 11x FY22’s estimated earnings with a projected grossed-up dividend yield of 6.5%.

The post The Woodside (ASX:WPL) share price is a buy – broker appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
• Why is the Woodside (ASX:WPL) share price having such a stellar start to the week?
• Analysts name 2 top ASX dividend shares to buy
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• How might the Ukraine crisis impact the Woodside (ASX:WPL) share price?

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 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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On Monday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was back on form and finished the month on a positive note. The benchmark index rose 0.7% to 7,049.1 points.

Will the market be able to build on this on Tuesday? Here are five things to watch:

ASX 200 futures pointing slightly higher

The Australian share market is expected to open the day slightly higher this morning despite a poor start to the week on Wall Street. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is poised to open the day 5 points higher. In late trade in the United States, the Dow Jones is down 1.7%, the S&P 500 has fallen 1.5%, and the Nasdaq is down 1%.

Zip shares could return

The Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) share price could return from its trading halt on Tuesday. The buy now pay later (BNPL) provider requested a halt on Monday so it could undertake a ~$200 million capital raising. However, that was not the biggest news, which was its agreement to acquire Sezzle Inc (ASX: SZL) for $491 million.

Oil prices jump on supply concerns

Energy producers such as Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) could have a great day after oil prices jumped. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 5.1% to US$96.32 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price has risen 3.1% to US$100.96 a barrel. Oil prices jumped amid fears that Russia’s energy industry could be disrupted.

Gold price rises

Gold miners Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) could have a good day after the gold price pushed higher. According to CNBC, the spot gold price is up 0.75% to US$1,901.70 an ounce. Sanctions placed on Russia are spooking markets and lifting demand for safe haven assets.

Allkem rated as a buy

The Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE) share price could be great value according to the team at Bell Potter. In response to its half year results, this morning the broker retained its buy rating and lifted its price target on the lithium miner’s shares to $18.05. This is almost double the current Allkem share price of $9.07.

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

More reading

• Here are the top 10 ASX shares today
• Why is the Webjet (ASX:WEB) share price having such a lousy start to the week?
• Is Bitcoin or gold a better buy for these uncertain times?
• Why is the Woodside (ASX:WPL) share price having such a stellar start to the week?
• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts on Monday

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns Orocobre Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended ZIPCOLTD FPO. 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 Noumi Ltd (ASX: NOU) share price was out of form on Monday and tumbled lower.

The leading Australian dairy and plant-based beverages, nutritional products, and ingredients producer’s shares ended the day down 12% to 25 cents following the release of its half year results.

Noumi share price falls after COVID weighs on performance

• Net revenue down 7% to $265.3 million
• Adjusted operating EBITDA down 79% to $4.6 million
• Net loss after tax of $65.8 million
• Net loss excluding litigation settlement costs flat at $15.1 million
• Cash at bank of $16.3 million

What happened during the first half?

For the six months ended 31 December, Noumi, formerly known as Freedom Foods, reported a 7% decline in net revenue to $265.3 million.

Management advised that this reflects lower traded milk sales, the removal of an unprofitable product line, lactoferrin sales timing, and the impact of COVID-19 across the business. This was offset partially by growth in out-of-home sales and exports.

One positive was that plant-based Beverage revenue and profit growth continues, with MILKLAB and Australia’s Own sales up strongly and with healthy margins.

This couldn’t stop the company’s margins from being crunched during the six months, though. Noumi’s adjusted operating EBITDA fell 79% to $4.6 million due to the impact of COVID-19 on sales volumes, productivity and costs

On the bottom line, the company reported a net loss after tax of $65.8 million. However, this includes litigation settlement costs. If we exclude these costs, Noumi’s loss was $15.1 million and in line with the prior corresponding period.

Management commentary

Noumi’s Chief Executive Officer, Michael Perich, appeared disappointed with the half but pleased with the performance of some of its key brands.

He said: “The impacts of COVID-19 and the restrictions imposed to combat the pandemic have been felt across the business in this six-month period. While we were hopeful of a return to normal trading conditions, the ongoing disruption caused by COVID-19 here and overseas, as well as the emergence of the Omicron strain late in the year, resulted in a reduction in sales and earnings.”

“Despite these impacts, we have continued to deliver strong growth in sales of key brands, particularly MILKLAB in the out-of-home channel, and we are making significant gains in Asian export markets. In addition, and despite delays to key improvement initiatives, we are starting to see the results of our operational turnaround program and expect these to accelerate through the balance of 2022.”

Mr Perich spoke positively about the future and expects the company’s strategy to start bearing fruit soon.

He commented: “The Company is now firmly in the Transform phase of our Reset, Transform and Grow turnaround strategy. As the impact of COVID-19 restrictions ease, and notwithstanding uncertainty created by rising geopolitical risks worldwide, we expect to see a recovery in financial performance across the business, with positive operating cashflows and increasing economies of scale driving earnings improvement.”

“With the sale of Speciality Seafood and the resolution of our US litigation, we are fully focused on our two growth engines and have the certainty we need to pursue our ambitions and deliver long-term sustainable growth,” Perich concluded.

The post Noumi (ASX:NOU) share price falls 12% on results but ‘growth engines’ ready to fire appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 3 growing small cap ASX shares going places
• Why this top broker just downgraded Domino’s (ASX:DMP) shares
• Analysts names 2 ASX value shares to buy with 20%+ upside potential
• Own NAB (ASX:NAB) shares? Here’s why the bank has been ruffling some customer feathers
• Here are the top 10 ASX shares today

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

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Investing in the small side of the share market carries more risk than other areas.

However, if your risk tolerance allows for it, having a bit of exposure to this side of the market could be a good thing for a balanced portfolio given the potential returns on offer.

With that in mind, here are three small cap ASX shares that could be worth watching closely:

Alcidion Group Ltd (ASX: ALC)

The first small cap share to watch is Alcidion. It is a growing healthcare informatics solutions company. Alcidion provides software which has been designed to improve the efficacy and cost of delivering services to patients and reduce hospital-acquired complications. It appears well-placed for growth in the future thanks to increasing demand and the ongoing shift to a paperless environment in the healthcare sector.

Bigtincan Holdings Ltd (ASX: BTH)

Another small cap ASX share to watch is this leading provider of enterprise mobility software to businesses globally. Bigtincan’s software allows teams to perform at higher levels and deliver better business results by maximising their use of sales collateral to engage with customers and prospects more effectively. Demand for its software continues to grow and has been underpinning strong annualised recurring revenue (ARR) growth in recent years.

Silk Laser Australia Limited (ASX: SLA)

A final small cap to watch is Silk Laser. It is one of Australia’s largest specialist clinic networks, offering a range of nonsurgical aesthetic products and services. Silk’s five core offerings comprise laser hair removal, cosmetic injectables, skin treatments, body contouring and skincare products. Thanks to a combination of growing demand and store expansion opportunities, Silk has been tipped to continue its solid growth long into the future. It released its half year results this morning and revealed a 70% increase in network sales and a 20% lift in EBITDA.

The post 3 growing small cap ASX shares going places appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• ‘Transformational’: Bigtincan (ASX:BTH) share price ignites on 142% revenue jump
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• 3 highly rated small cap shares with heaps of potential
• ‘Plenty of bargains’ following ASX tech shares sell-off: expert

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 Alcidion Group Ltd and BIGTINCAN FPO. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended SILK Laser Australia Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alcidion Group Ltd, BIGTINCAN FPO, and SILK Laser Australia 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 Domino’s Pizza Enterprises Ltd (ASX: DMP) share price started the week deep in the red.

The pizza chain operator’s shares dropped 4% to $78.95.

This means the Domino’s share price is now down almost 36% since the start of the year.

Why did the Domino’s share price tumble?

Investors were selling down the Domino’s share price on Monday after the pizza chain operator was the subject of a broker note out of Goldman Sachs.

According to the note, the broker has downgraded the company’s shares to a neutral rating and cut the price target on them by 34% from $136.20 to $89.90.

While this is still meaningfully higher than where the Domino’s share price trades today, it doesn’t appear to have been enough for some investors to stick with it.

What did Goldman say?

Goldman Sachs was disappointed with the company’s performance during the first half. And while it remains positive on its growth outlook in the ANZ and European markets, it fears that medium term risks in Asia are building.

It commented: “DMP reported 1H22 NPAT at -10.3% below GSe and -9.1% vs. Visible Alpha Consensus Data. About 75% of this earnings miss came from the Asia region, largely driven by underperformance of sales in Japan from early 2Q22. The operating deleverage from this factor was greater than GSe as underperformance from fortressed stores was strong.”

“We continue to see a strong earnings growth outlook in the ANZ and Europe regions at c. 6.8% and +17.7% CAGR respectively over FY21-24e. Additionally, we expect the group to continue to engage in M&A activity over the short term either in terms of expansion to new regions or bolt-on acquisitions within the existing regions in line with its stated strategy. However, the emerging risks in Japan remain stronger than these growth opportunities for DMP, in our view,” it added.

The post Why this top broker just downgraded Domino’s (ASX:DMP) shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 2 ASX shares now at an awesome price for buying: expert
• Buy these ASX shares following the market correction: experts
• These were the worst performing ASX 200 shares last week
• ‘Attractive entry point’: Broker upgrades Domino’s (ASX:DMP) shares
• 5 ASX 200 shares tumbling to 52-week lows today

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Dominos Pizza Enterprises 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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If you’re looking for new ASX shares to buy, then you may want to check out the ones listed below.

These two shares have just been named as buys by the team at Morgans. Here’s what the broker is saying:

Adbri Ltd (ASX: ABC)

Morgans was pleased with this building materials company full year results. The broker highlights that Adbri’s result came in ahead of expectations and its outlook remains positive.

Its analysts said: “ABC’s FY21 result came in ahead of our forecasts and consensus expectations and was supported by ongoing net cost savings, strong volume growth across cement, concrete and aggregates, an increased contribution from its JVs and realisation of property profits. Outlook comments were positive and confirmed that earnings growth is targeted in FY22.”

And with its shares trading at just 17x estimated FY 2022 earnings, the broker feels its valuation is undemanding and sees scope for a rerating to higher multiples. Morgans has an add rating and $4.03 price target on its shares. This implies potential upside of 22% for investors over the next 12 months.

GQG Partners Inc (ASX: GQG)

Another ASX share that Morgans believes is attractively priced is fund manager, GQG Partners. Following the release of its full year results, which were in line with the broker’s expectations, Morgans has retained its add rating but trimmed its price target to $2.27.

Morgans explained why it thinks the fund manager is a buy. It said: “GQG has seen a valuation de-rate along with the broader sector, however we view it as unwarranted. Both relative investment performance and flows remain strong. We view GQG’s ~11x FY22 PE as attractive versus its diversity of earnings; current flows momentum; and expected growth. Add maintained.”

Based on the current GQG share price of $1.47, this price target implies potential upside of 54% for investors over the next 12 months.

The post Analysts names 2 ASX value shares to buy with 20%+ upside potential appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• 2 high-yield ASX dividend shares for March 2022
• Why Adbri, Appen, Block, and Life360 shares are storming higher
• Adbri (ASX:ABC) share price soars 9% amid higher profit in full-year earnings
• GQG (ASX:GQG) share price up 5% amid strong FY21 profit growth

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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National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB) customers have raised concerns the bank is no longer taking cash at the branch for card payments. However, the banking giant has denied the claims.

The NAB share price finished the day at $28.94, a 0.1% gain. In contrast, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) climbed 0.73% today.

Let’s take a look at what is worrying NAB customers.

What is worrying NAB customers?

NAB is facing concern from customers who claim the bank is no longer taking cash for credit card payments within the branch, The Age reported. Two branches that have attracted customer complaints are the Ballarat branch in Victoria and the Bribie Island branch in Queensland.

The Financial Sector Union blasted the NAB over the reports, The New Daily stated. The union’s national secretary Julia Angrisano said:

This is an outrageous bid by NAB to block its customers from using branches for a common transaction many older people make.

There is no other reason for the NAB to specifically target credit card payments, except to force customers onto digital banking.

However, the NAB group executive personal banking group executive Rachel Slade denied the claims. She said:

NAB continues to take credit card payments over the counter in branches.  Any suggestions otherwise are wrong.

I want every one of our customers to have a simple and easy experience banking with NAB. That’s why our branch teams are showing customers additional ways to repay their credit cards. 

More than 94% of customer interactions are now taking place over the phone, by video or online. 

The NAB share price gained 4.51% on February 10 after the bank released its first-quarter update. The bank reported a 12% surge in cash earnings to $1.8 billion and an 8% boost in revenue compared to the FY21 second half quarterly average.

My Foolish colleague Tony recently reported analysts are bullish on NAB’s latest results. A CMC markets survey found 11 out of 17 professional investors rate NAB shares as a buy. Eight of these rate it as a strong buy, while three see it as a moderate buy.

NAB share price snap shot

The NAB share price has soared more than 17% in the past 12 months, while it is up 0.35% year to date.

For perspective, the benchmark ASX 200 has returned about 5.63% over the past year.

NAB has a market capitalisation of about $93 billion.

The post Own NAB (ASX:NAB) shares? Here’s why the bank has been ruffling some customer feathers appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Should you be buying ASX 200 bank shares in February?
• Why NAB (ASX:NAB) has been losing market share, but its shares are set to soar
• Rate rise coming? 2 finance ASX shares to buy right now
• 2 ASX 200 dividend shares named as buys
• Why NAB (ASX:NAB) and this ASX dividend share could be buys

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, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) rallied despite an intensification of sanctions on Russia. At the end of the session, the benchmark index finished 0.73% higher at 7,049.1 points.

Kicking off a new week, the Australian share market was mostly green, aside from a few unloved sectors. However, the heavyweights bringing home the green were the miners and energy shares. Impacts from sanctions started to factor into potential commodity shortfall, pushing mining companies into the positive.

The question is: which shares managed to stay in the green on the ASX today? Here are the top ten stocks that pulled through for investors:

Top 10 ASX shares countdown today

Looking at the top 200 listed companies, John Lyng Group Ltd (ASX: JLG) was the biggest gainer today. Shares in the building restoration and repairs company gained 7.96% following a destructive weekend of flooding across south-east Queensland. Find out more about John Lyng Group here.

The next biggest gaining ASX share today was Lynas Rare Earths Ltd (ASX: LYC). The rare earths producer notched up a 6.90% gain despite there not being any official announcements from the company. Though, positive sentiment was experienced broadly across the resource sector today. Uncover the latest Lynas Rare Earths details here.

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

ASX-listed company	Share price	Price change
John Lyng Group Ltd (ASX: JLG)	$7.60	7.96%
Lynas Rare Earths Ltd (ASX: LYC)	$10.23	6.90%
Bluescope Steel Ltd (ASX: BSL)	$20.24	6.25%
AVZ Minerals Ltd (ASX: AVZ)	$0.79	6.04%
Iluka Resources Ltd (ASX: ILU)	$10.69	5.32%
Zimplats Holdings Ltd (ASX: ZIM)	$25.30	4.50%
BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP)	$46.66	4.41%
Medibank Private Ltd (ASX: MPL)	$3.18	4.26%
South32 Ltd (ASX: S32)	$4.81	4.11%
Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX: MFG)	$18.40	3.49%

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

• Why is the Webjet (ASX:WEB) share price having such a lousy start to the week?
• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts on Monday
• 5 ASX 200 shares trading ex-dividend today
• InvoCare (ASX:IVC) share price jumps as earnings surge 22%
• Which ASX 200 shares have delivered the biggest dividend payout increases this earnings season?

Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler owns Lynas Corporation Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia 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’s fair to say that the Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) share price is one that punches above its weight. Although this lithium producer is a member of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), its market capitalisation of $8 billion or so pales in comparison to some of the other big miners on the ASX. Take Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG), which is worth more than $55 billion. Or BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), with its $220 billion-plus size. 

Yet it is Pilbara shares that have given investors a 5-year return of more than 500%. And Pilbara shares that consistently dominate the ASX 200’s trading volume charts more days than not.

But although the Pilbara share price is still up more than 168% over the past 12 months, the past few weeks haven’t been too kind to the lithium giant. After today’s meaty fall of 1.1% or so, the Pilbara share price has now lost 16.9% over the past month alone. 

So what’s gone wrong in February for Pilbara? Well, let’s start with the company’s earnings. Pilbara reported its half-year earnings back on 23 February. 

As my Fool colleague James covered at the time, the company saw some impressive growth metrics. Shipments increased by 49%, while half-year sales revenue grew by an even heftier 394% to $291.7 million. That helped Pilbara bring in $151.1 million in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA). That was up from $3.2 million a year earlier. 

Is the Pilbara Minerals share price a buy?

And yet investors didn’t seem impressed. The Pilbara share price fell 7% at one point that day, and has fallen more than 8% since. Sometimes, even a fast-growing company can have too much good news baked in, one could argue. Even at today’s prices Pilbara still boasts a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 93.15. That’s quite high compared to the broader market right now. 

So now that the Pilbara share price has had a haircut, could it be good value at these prices? Well, as we covered last week, Eley Griffiths Group analyst and portfolio manager Tim Serjeant now reckons Pilbara could be the best value lithium stock on the ASX. He described the company as having “the best exposure to current pricing dynamics”.

Earlier this month, my Fool colleague Tony covered how Burman Invest chief investment officer Julia Lee was also buying Pilbara, based on the company’s position as a ‘hard-rock’ lithium producer. 

So some professional investors are certainly finding this dip in the Pilbara share price appealing. 

At today’s closing Pilbara Minerals share price of $2.71, the company is almost in the middle of its 52-week range of 88 cents and $3.89 a share. 

The post The Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS) share price has lost 17% in a month. What’s going on? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts on Monday
• Is this the best-value ASX lithium share right now?
• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts this Friday
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday
• How have ASX lithium stocks been faring this reporting season?

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

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The Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) share price fell by more than 3% today. What happened?

Webjet is one of the largest travel businesses on the ASX, with a global presence thanks to its WebBeds business.

There has been a lot for investors to think about in recent weeks.

Not only has the chatter about inflation and interest rates soared as high as the International Space Station, but Ukraine being invaded by Russia has also increased uncertainties.

What’s happening with the Webjet share price?

The global travel market is underpinned by safety and access to most countries and open air travel.

Conflict between two countries may not be calming for global travellers or the global market.

Most European nations, including the UK, Finland, Poland and so on have shut their airspace to Russian planes, including the private jets of oligarchs. They are not allowed to fly over any EU nation, or land there.

In retaliation, Russia has banned flights from some European nations.

This will add extra flying time to different airlines from different destinations as they avoid the airspace from Ukraine and Russia. Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) will use a flight path that takes longer between Darwin and London where it’s not passing over Russia.

Russian economic plunge

Various economic areas of Russia have plunged. Over the last five days the Russian share market has plunged 35%.

According to reporting by CNBC, the Russian currency fell almost 30% against the US dollar on Monday morning.

Whilst Russia is not exactly a major market for Webjet, this can add to the uncertainty for the market.

ASX share market response

Whilst the Webjet share price fell by more than 3% today, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) rose by 0.7%. So there was a difference in performance of around 4% today.

However, Webjet wasn’t the only one to suffer a decline today in the ASX travel sector. The Corporate Travel Management Ltd (ASX: CTD) share price dropped 2% and the Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) share price went down 3.4%.

The last couple of years has been a volatile time for Webjet. COVID-19 sent ASX travel shares dramatically down. In November 2021, the Omicron variant caused another sell-off. The Webjet share price has fallen more than 10% over the last couple of weeks.

Is the Webjet share price an opportunity?

UBS certainly thinks so. It rates it as a buy, with a price target of $6.85. That implies a possible upside of almost 30% over the next several months.

The post Why is the Webjet (ASX:WEB) share price having such a lousy start to the week? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts on Monday
• 5 ASX 200 shares trading ex-dividend today
• InvoCare (ASX:IVC) share price jumps as earnings surge 22%
• Which ASX 200 shares have delivered the biggest dividend payout increases this earnings season?
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Zip to buy Sezzle for $491m, GrainCorp storms higher

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 Corporate Travel Management Limited, Flight Centre Travel Group Limited, and Webjet 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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