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The Australian Clinical Labs Ltd (ASX: ACL) share price dropped with the market on Thursday despite the release of a strong half year update from the pathology company.

The company’s shares ended the day 3.5% lower at $4.85.

Australian Clinical Labs share price lower despite strong growth

• Total revenue up 61.2% to $538 million
• EBITDA up 112.1% to $239.3 million
• Net profit after tax up 200% to $130.3 million
• Fully franked interim dividend of 12 cents per share

What happened during the first half?

For the six months ended 31 December, Australian Clinical Labs delivered a 61.2% increase in revenue to $538 million. This strong growth was driven by significant demand for COVID testing and a rapid and substantial increase in capacity to capture it.

This was also supported by modest growth from its non-COVID operations, which reported a 2.8% increase in revenue over the prior corresponding period.

Thanks to significant operating leverage, the company’s EBIT margin increased from 20.5% to 35.5%, which ultimately underpinned a net profit after tax of $130.3 million. This was triple what it achieved a year earlier and ahead of its upgraded guidance of $116.3 million to $128 million. It was also 4% ahead of consensus estimates.

Management commentary

Australian Clinical Labs’ Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director, Melinda McGrath, was pleased with the company’s performance in a challenging operating environment..

She said: “During the past two years, Clinical Labs has played an essential role in Australia’s response to COVID during what was at times a challenging operating environment. At the same time the team have delivered growth in our core business, driven operational improvements across the organisation while simultaneously completing two acquisitions. These achievements are a testament to the commitment and resilience of the ACL team.”

“The strong result achieved in 1H FY22 demonstrates the value of the significant prior investment in the business which resulted in further operating leverage, efficiencies, improved productivity and increased automation and digitisation. There exist several opportunities to continue to grow the business including via our commercial offering and our established clinical trials business. We have strong foundations in technology and systems and a highly experienced performance-driven management team to execute our well-defined growth strategy.”

Outlook

Due to high levels of uncertainty, no guidance has been given for the remainder of FY 2022.

However, management has provided an idea on what it expects to occur in respect to testing volumes during the second half.

It explained: “During the 2H FY22, ACL anticipates testing for COVID to continue to moderate as the response to COVID transitions to an endemic virus. The pace with which COVID testing moderates will depend on several factors including future outbreaks, new variants, vaccination take up and effectiveness and government policy relating to lockdowns and travel.”

“Assuming no significant outbreaks, ACL anticipates the rebound in non-COVID testing to continue as restrictions on essential surgeries ease and hospitals return to full capacity,” it concluded.

The post Australian Clinical Labs (ASX:ACL) share price falls despite tripling profits and beating guidance appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Even the Woodside (ASX:WPL) share price isn’t immune to today’s sell-off. Here’s why
• Telco blip: Telstra (ASX:TLS) share price slips on TPG deal scrutiny
• Qube (ASX:QUB) share price rises on ‘strong result’
• Why Russia was not the only thing that dragged the BHP (ASX:BHP) share price lower today
• Hipages (ASX:HPG) share price plunges 6% on half-year loss

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 Australian Clinical Labs 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 Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) share price fell close to 3% today.

It has been a volatile day for the ASX share market. The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) dropped by around 3%.

What’s going on in Ukraine?

Russia has finally launched a full invasion of Ukraine. International media is reporting that Ukraine is being invaded from multiple locations by Russia, as well as intense shelling and missile strikes.

On Twitter, the Ukraine foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba has called on the world to take a number of actions to deal with Russia and help Ukraine.

He called for:

Devastating sanctions on Russia NOW, including SWIFT

Fully isolate Russia by all means, in all formats

Weapons, equipment for Ukraine

Financial assistance

Humanitarian assistance

The invasion of Ukraine and possible response by the global community is seen as a key reason why the oil price has risen above US$100 per barrel.

Russia is one of the main oil producers in the world. According to reporting by Forbes, Russia produced 10.1 million barrels of oil per day of crude oil and natural gas condensate. That put it in second place behind the US at 11.3 million barrels per day. Saudi Arabia was third at 9.3 million barrels of oil per day.

Sanctions on Russian oil could hurt the available oil supply, when prices are already rising.

Woodside is one of Australia’s biggest oil producers. So why was the Woodside share price sold down?

There are some days when nearly every ASX share drops, with indiscriminate selling. The worst of the COVID sell-off in 2020 saw some days like that. But there might be another culprit.

Ex-dividend date

An ex-dividend date is the date that new investors are no longer entitled to a dividend that has been declared. Prior to that date, new investors would be entitled to the dividend. All things being equal, it is not uncommon for a share price to fall by a similar amount to the dividend declared dividend after going ex-dividend.

Woodside’s ex-dividend date was today. It had declared a final dividend of US$1.05 per share, bringing the full-year dividend to US$1.35 per share. That dividend was based on underlying NPAT of US$1.62 billion.

If it hadn’t been Woodside’s ex-dividend date, it may have been possible that the Woodside share price could have risen today.

The post Even the Woodside (ASX:WPL) share price isn’t immune to today’s sell-off. Here’s why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• ASX wipes out $73 billion as Russia invades Ukraine
• Here are the top 10 ASX shares today
• 5 ASX 200 shares tumbling to 52-week lows today
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday
• Expert names 3 commodities set to boom from a Russian invasion

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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The Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) deal with competitor TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPG) could face scrutiny from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).

The Telstra share price fell 1.74% today, while the TPG share price slid 2.73%. However, the  S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO)  took a greater hit, dropping by 2.99%.

Let’s take a look at what is happening at Telstra and TPG.

Telstra and TPG deal may hit a barrier

Rod Sims, the outgoing boss of the ACCC, has revealed the competition authority will be “looking very closely” at a new deal between telco giants Telstra and TPG.

Telstra and TPG have signed a ten-year regional multi-operator core network commercial agreement, as my Foolish colleague James reported on Monday.

As part of the deal, Telstra will gain access to TPG’s spectrum on the 4G and 5G network, while TPG will benefit from access to 3,700 of Telstra’s mobile network assets.

However, this agreement, which TPG described as a “game-changer” in its financial results today, requires ACCC approval.

And the ACCC’s Sims told the Sydney Morning Herald (SMH) his team had yet to look at the deal in detail but was concerned it could impact mobile price plans. Mr Sims, who has been one of the most vocal critics of the 2020 merger between TPG and Vodafone, said:

Post merger — despite what the parties say — it is a fact that post merger prices have gone up. Prepaid and postpaid prices have gone up, so that is as a side effect. I think our concerns with TPG Vodafone merger were justified, and so we’ll be looking very closely at this.

Telstra was one of the most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on the ASX on Thursday, as my Foolish colleague Sebastian reported. More than 37 million shares in the telco have swapped hands in one day.

Meanwhile, TPG’s share price fell nearly 7% in early morning trade after the company released its full-year results. TPG shares have since recovered.

TPG, Telstra share price snapshots

The Telstra share price has soared by about 26% in the past year, while it is plunging 5.5% year to date.

Meanwhile, the TPG share price has fallen 19% in the last 12 months, while it is down 3% year to date.

For perspective, the benchmark ASX 200 has returned about 3% over the past year.

Telstra has a market capitalisation of about $46 billion, while TPG has a market cap of roughly $10.6 billion.

The post Telco blip: Telstra (ASX:TLS) share price slips on TPG deal scrutiny appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday
• Profit plunge: TPG Telecom (ASX:TPG) share price slides 7% on full-year results
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts this Wednesday
• What’s the outlook for the Telstra (ASX:TLS) dividend?

The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Telstra Corporation Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended TPG Telecom 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 Qube Holdings Ltd (ASX: QUB) share price edged slightly higher today following the release of the company’s half-year financial results.

While the Qube share price closed at an increase of just 0.36% at $2.82, shares were trading at a high volume today.

To compare, the S&P/ASX 200 Industrials Index (ASX: XNJ) dropped 2.19%, and the broader All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) closed down 2.95%.

Let’s dive in…

Qube share price up on rise in revenue

The Qube share price made gains today after the logistics provider reported the following highlights for the half-year (ending 31 December 2021):

• Revenue up 26.7% on the prior corresponding period (pcp) to $1.19 billion
• Earnings before interest, taxes and amortisation (EBITA) up 0.7% to $95.1 million
• Net profit after tax (NPAT) down 2.6% to $56.3 million
• Net profit after tax plus amortisation (NPATA) down 2.3% to $64.8 million
• Earnings per share (EPS) down 2.9% to $3.4 million
• Fully franked dividend of 3 cents per share.

These statutory earnings also account for discontinued operations — including its Moorebank Logistics Park (MLP) in South Western Sydney that was monetised in the middle of December. Qube said this monetisation of the site would realise “substantial value for shareholders”.

Excluding discontinued operations, EBITA was $112.3 million.

Qube aims for continued growth

Looking at its underlying earnings (NPATA), Qube experienced a record 16.9% increase against the prior corresponding period. Underlying EBITA also rose 18.9% while underlying EPS was up 15.9%.

Despite facing COVID-19 challenges, the company attributed its earnings to “continued organic growth” and “acquisitions and growth capex (capital expenditure) completed in the prior and current periods”.

Looking more closely at its operations, the company saw particular earnings growth at Patrick — “Australia’s leading container terminal operator”. This came “despite scheduling issues and industrial disputes”.

Moving forward, Qube aims to see these earnings and EPS growth continue, should the climate of the wider market and COVID-19 challenges remain favourable.

As such, the company said its “strong balance sheet” would assist its “capital management initiatives of $400 million”. These are aimed to start in the second half of the financial year.

Finally, the company revealed a 20% boost to its dividend, to 3 cents per share (fully franked). It will be paid to investors on 8 April.

What did management say?

Commenting on the results that helped edge the Qube share price into the green, managing director Paul Digney said:

This is a very strong result in the face of COVID uncertainty and the global supply chain disruptions. It demonstrates once again the robust and resilient nature of Qube’s diversification strategy.

For more than a decade we have been building Qube to ensure diversification by asset, location and customer nationwide.

Qube is well placed to manage any emerging inflationary pressures including through contractual protections, ongoing productivity initiatives to increase efficiency and reduce costs, and pro-active engagement with customers to review their roaster logistics supply chain requirements.

Qube share price snapshot

Over the last 12 months, the Qube share price has dropped by nearly 9%. During that year, its shares saw a 52-week high price of $3.46 in September, following the company’s announcement to acquire Newcastle Agri Terminal (NAT).

The Qube share price hit a 52-week low of $2.72 earlier this week.

The company has a market capitalisation of $5.39 billion.

The post Qube (ASX:QUB) share price rises on ‘strong result’ appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday

Motley Fool contributor Alice de Bruin 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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Thursday was a disastrous day on the ASX as the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) recorded one of its worst performances in years.

The index crashed 2.99% to 6,990.6 on the market’s close after Russia invaded Ukraine and some of the exchange’s heavyweights posted disappointing earnings.

According to The Australian, the crash has seen $73 billion of value wiped from the market.

Let’s take a look at closer look at Thursday’s carnage on the market.

Did Russia’s invasion spark an ASX sell off?

The ASX 200 Index tumbled nearly 3% and the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) fell 2.95% after Russia officially begins military operations in Ukraine on Thursday.

According to live reporting by the ABC, Russian President Vladimir Putin appeared in a televised announcement declaring that the nation would invade Ukraine just before the ASX closed for the day.

Expectations that tensions between the two countries could escalate likely weighed on the market for most of Thursday’s trade after Australia joined nations around the globe in placing sanctions on Russia in an effort to dissuade it from attacking Ukraine yesterday.

Prime Minister Scott Morison also announced that the government would be “fast track[ing]” Ukrainian visa applications ahead of the conflict’s commencement.

The Moscow Exchange suspended all trading for an undetermined amount of time shortly after Putin announced the invasion.

As The Motley Fool Australia reportedly earlier today, experts have previously said a Russian invasion could bring heightened volatility to global markets and cause some commodity prices to surge.

ASX giants tumble on earnings

Additionally weighing on the ASX today, the Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) share price plummeted 5% after it announced a $5.5 billion after tax loss for the first half of financial year 2021.

The Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) share price also fell 10% on its half year results.

The tech sector was also hammered, with the S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) tumbling 5.3% and the S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ) falling 6.4%.

Both Life360 Inc (ASX: 360) and Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) saw their share price fall 28% on the release of their respective full year results, making them the 2 worst performing ASX 200 shares on Thursday.

Meanwhile, stock in the ASX’s biggest company, BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) fell 6% as it traded ex-dividend.

The post ASX wipes out $73 billion as Russia invades Ukraine appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why Russia was not the only thing that dragged the BHP (ASX:BHP) share price lower today
• Here are the top 10 ASX shares today
• 5 ASX 200 shares tumbling to 52-week lows today
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday
• Why Appen, City Chic, Flight Centre, and Life360 shares are sinking

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Appen Ltd and Life360, Inc. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Appen Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Flight Centre Travel 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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With the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) closing down 3% today, the kind of fall we haven’t seen for more than a year, it would be natural to expect at least a commensurate drop in the BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price. After all, BHP is now the largest share on the ASX 200 by market capitalisation, and by a mile too. That means it has an equally-large weighting and influence on the movements of the ASX 200 Index. 

But the BHP share price has today fallen by more than double the broader market. BHP shares have closed at a share price of $44.77 each. That’s a whopping drop of 6.92% against yesterday’s closing share price. 

It’s likely that the ASX 200 is losing so much steam today thanks to the escalation of the Russia-Ukraine crisis we have unfortunately seen. But that isn’t the only thing impacting the BHP share price. 

In what might come as some relief to BHP shareholders, the ‘Big Australian’ has (perhaps unfortunately in hindsight) selected today as the day its shares trade ex-dividend for its upcoming shareholder payment. 

Why has a dividend knocked 7% off the BHP share price?

When a company trades ex-dividend, it means that any new shareholders from that day onwards are not entitled to the upcoming payment. It also means anyone who held the shares prior to the ex-dividend date will receive the payment. That’s even if they sell the shares between the ex-dividend date and the date of payment. 

As such, the market usually ‘prices in’ this now-lost dividend into the company’s share price. It’s of no more value to new shareholders, and the share price fall reflects this. The drop is the value of the dividend leaving the company’s corporate bank account, never to return. 

That is what has happened to BHP shares today. 

It was only last week that BHP reported its half-year earnings results. These happened to include a record interim dividend of US$1.50. The Aussie dollar amount hasn’t been determined yet. But that dividend would be worth a payment of roughly $2.09 per share on today’s currency exchange rates. 

So today, we have likely seen roughly $2.09 come out of the BHP share price as a result of the ex-dividend date arriving. The other losses can be attributed to the normal swings of the market. 

BHP shareholders will receive the dividend on 28 March. 

The post Why Russia was not the only thing that dragged the BHP (ASX:BHP) share price lower today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• How BHP (ASX:BHP) has become ‘The Bigger Australian’ and why this might not be good news for the ASX 200
• Does BHP (ASX:BHP) really have a 14% dividend yield right now?
• The iron ore price outlook could be darkening amid China’s latest plans
• 2 ASX 200 dividend shares named as buys
• ASX 200 shares stage comeback amid Russia optimism

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 market was hit with a storm on Thursday as share prices across the boards tumbled. In the midst of the chaos several S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) favourites plunged to new 52-week lows.

The ASX 200 Index fell 2.99% over today’s session. The All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) also suffered a 2.95% drop.

Let’s take a look at some of the ASX big-wigs trading at their lowest point in 12-months.

5 ASX 200 shares that fell to long-forgotten lows today

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P)

The embattled Zip share price wasn’t able to escape today’s carnage despite delaying the release of its results for the first half of financial year 2022.

After close yesterday, the buy now, pay later (BNPL) company announced that, rather than releasing its earnings today as planned, it will be dropping them on Monday morning.

The BNPL giant – while not technically a tech share – may have been caught up in today’s tech tumble.

The S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) slumped 5.3% today while the S&P/ASX 200 Info Tech Index (ASX: XIJ) fell 6.4%.

As of Thursday’s close, the Zip share price is $2.08, 10.34% lower than it was at the end of yesterday’s session.

Earlier in the day, it hit its new 52-week low of $2.03.

Domino’s Pizza Enterprises Ltd (ASX: DMP)

The Domino’s Pizza share price also had a rough trot today.

It followed on from yesterday’s 14% tumble, spurred by the release of the company’s first half earnings.

During the 6 months ended 31 December, Domino’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) and net profit after tax (NPAT) both fell 5%.

When the ASX closed today, the Domino’s share price was $80.52 – 6.51% lower than its previous close and the lowest its been in 52-weeks.

Xero Limited (ASX: XRO)

Another ASX 200 stock that’s likely been caught up in the troubling day for tech shares is Xero.

It’s share price fell 5.47% today to close at $93.21.

In the meantime, it slumped to an intraday – and 52-week – low of $91.81.

Boral Limited (ASX: BLD)

This building products and materials company wasn’t luckily enough to dodge today’s drama.

The Boral share price fell to a 52-week low of $3.58 today, where it finished the session – representing a 1.65% fall.

Unfortunately, the company’s stock has been trading at and around 12-month lows since it tumbled 41% after a capital return and its ex-dividend date earlier this month.

Though, if investors could ever pick a good reason for their shares’ value to fall, a capital return is probably it.

Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES)

Finally, ASX 200 giant Wesfarmers saw its share price hit a 52-week low of $47.44 on Thursday.

Though, it bounced back slightly to close at $47.75, representing a 2.23% slump.

There’s been no news from the conglomerate this week. However, the market bid the company’s stock down 7% last Thursday after COVID-19 battered its half year earnings.

The post 5 ASX 200 shares tumbling to 52-week lows today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here are the top 10 ASX shares today
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday
• Expert names 3 commodities set to boom from a Russian invasion
• These are some of the only ASX shares in the green today. Here’s why
• ASX tech shares have been smashed today as market hits 3-week low

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Xero and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Wesfarmers Limited and Xero. 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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The Hipages Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: HPG) share price slumped today after the company released its half-year results.

At the close of trading, Hipages shares were swapping hands at $2.45 apiece, a 5.77% drop. In comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) closed down 2.99%.

Let’s take a look at what the online tradie platform and software-as-a-service (SaaS) provider reported today.

Hipages share price slips as profits slip

Highlights of the company’s H1 FY22 results include:

• 153% drop in net profit after tax (NPAT) compared to prior corresponding period (pcp) to record an $0.8 million loss
• 39% fall in EBITDA before significant items to $4.2 million
• EBITDA margin of 14%, a 12% drop on the pcp
• 12% boost in total revenue to $30.1 million
• 14% boost in recurring revenue to $28.8 million
• No dividend declared

What else happened in the half?

Hipages said the trade industry’s recovery has been delayed by the COVID-19 Omicron outbreak. The company’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) margin of 14% was in line with expectations due to greater investment.

The company supported tradie customers throughout COVID-19 restrictions and disruptions during the half.

Job volumes for the half jumped by 4% on the previous quarter, including record job volumes in the second quarter.

Hipages reported a robust balance sheet and positive operating cash flow with net cash of $15.4 million.

Tradie subscriptions improved by 19% on the pcp to 34,300.

Hipages acquired 100% of New Zealand tradie marketplace Builderscrack and gained a 25% stake in Australian property management technology platform Bricks and Agent.

Further, Hipages rolled out hew scheduling features on the Tradiecore platform, with a new payments product also on the way. The company management see this platform as important to the future of the company.

Management commentary

Commenting on the results which have seen the Hipages share price plunge today, chief executive officer Roby Sharon-Zipser said:

In a challenging period for the trade industry, we have continued to deliver growth in our key metrics, showing the power of our subscription model and strategy.

In the second half we expect revenues and margins to continue to improve, and we are seeing strong inbound demand from tradies, with registrations and yields increasing.

What’s next for Hipages?

Hipages is expecting a further moderate impact to FY22 revenue with slower growth in quarter three. In quarter four, it predicts a return to double-digit growth provided market conditions improve.

The company is already starting to see a rebound in the second half of the financial year. New tradie registrations are surging by 48% compared to the second quarter.

In FY22, Hipage is accelerating its investment to improve its market leadership position.

Commenting on this future outlook, Sharon-Zipser added:

We will continue to invest in our brand, product and people to strengthen our market leadership position in Australia and New Zealand, while exploring other opportunities to increase our TAM.

I look forward to updating the market on the next evolution of our product strategy later in the year, as we look to provide even more flexibility and value for our tradie customers

Hipages share price summary

The Hipages share price has climbed 4% in the past 12 months but it is down 36% year to date.

For perspective, the benchmark ASX 200 index has returned around 3% over the past year.

Hipages has a market capitalisation of about $319 million.

The post Hipages (ASX:HPG) share price plunges 6% on half-year loss appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 3 excellent ASX growth shares to buy before it’s too late
• 4 fantastic ASX growth shares to buy
• Why Champion Iron, Dusk, Hipages, and Imugene shares are charging higher
• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• Why Evolution, Cettire, Hipages, and Kogan shares are sinking

The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Hipages Group Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Hipages Group Holdings 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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The Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA) share price won’t be going anywhere for the rest of the day.

During late morning trade, the emerging lithium producer requested that its shares be placed in a trading halt.

As such, Sayona Mining shares are frozen at 11.5 cents apiece, down 2.6%. It’s worth noting that the company’s shares have sunk more than 13% in value in the past month.

Why is the Sayona Mining share price halted?

The company requested that the Sayona Mining share price be halted while it prepares an announcement.

According to the release, the company is planning to make a pending announcement. This is in regards to an updated resource statement in relation to its North American Lithium and Authier projects.

Sayona Mining has requested that the trading halt remains in place until the release of the announcement or the commencement of trade on Monday 28 February.

More on Sayona Mining’s Lithium projects

While at this stage, no further details have been about the company’s latest JORC resource update, let’s take a look at the projects.

Based in Québec, Canada, Sayona Mining’s Authier Lithium Project is a hard rock spodumene lithium deposit. It has been scheduled for development as an open cut mine, initially producing a 6% Li2O spodumene concentrate.

Sayona Mining acquired 100% of the Authier project back in July 2016. Management believes it will create significant share value-uplift for shareholders as the project is advanced towards development.

In addition, the nearby North American Lithium is an established lithium mine, which will integrate with the Authier Lithium Project.

Sayona Mining is supported by a strategic partnership with American lithium developer Piedmont Lithium Inc (ASX: PLL).

Sayona Mining also holds a 60% stake in the Moblan Lithium Project.

About the Sayona Mining share price

Since this time last year, Sayona Mining shares have gained more than 260% in value.

However, in 2022, the company’s shares are down by around 13% following heavy losses on the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO). The latter has fallen a tad over 6% year to date.

Based on valuation grounds, Sayona Mining has a market capitalisation of roughly $798.4 million, with approximately 7.1 billion shares on issue.

The post Sayona Mining (ASX:SYA) share price halted ahead of lithium news appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here are the top 10 ASX shares today
• Own ASX shares? Expert reveals why uncertainty and risk are not the same
• Brainchip (ASX:BRN) share price sinks 7% as ‘Most successful year in history’ comes at a cost
• Top broker says it’s time to buy Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO) shares
• Bad ATM? The ANZ share price was hammered more than any other ASX 200 bank 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. 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) suffered its worst fall in nearly 18 months as Russia launches an invasion of Ukraine. At the end of the session, the benchmark index had plunged 2.99% to 6,990.6 points.

It was a devastating day for all sectors across the Australian share market today. Not a single one was able to evade the immense souring of sentiment amid Russia’s attacks. Investors responded with an abundance of selling pressure, with the tech sector falling 6% — making it the worst-performing.

However, 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, Cimic Group Ltd (ASX: CIM) was the biggest gainer today. Shares in the construction company skyrocketed 33.41% after receiving an off-market takeover offer from Hochtief Australia. Find out more about Cimic Group here.

The next biggest gaining ASX share today was Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST). The gold mining company rallied 5.90% as the precious metal gained appeal amid the destabilisation created by the Russia-Ukraine situation. Uncover the latest Northern Star Resources details here.

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

ASX-listed company	Share price	Price change
Cimic Group Ltd (ASX: CIM)	$22.00	33.41%
Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST)	$10.59	5.90%
Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN)	$4.39	4.77%
Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM)	$25.60	4.02%
Zimplats Holdings Ltd (ASX: ZIM)	$24.88	3.67%
NextDC Ltd (ASX: NXT)	$10.55	3.43%
Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT)	$1.55	2.65%
Coronado Global Resources Inc (ASX: CRN)	$1.585	1.60%
Nine Entertainment Co Holdings Ltd (ASX: NEC)	$2.74	1.11%
Viva Energy Group Ltd (ASX: VEA)	$2.43	0.41%

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

• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday
• Why Cimic, Lovisa, NextDC, and Nine shares are charging higher
• Expert names 3 commodities set to boom from a Russian invasion
• ASX 200 gold shares shining bright amid market selloff
• These are some of the only ASX shares in the green today. Here’s why

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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