Tag: Motley Fool

Key Points

• Santos has started the year well with its share price up by almost 6% since January 1
• The oil and gas giant is facing fresh legal challenges in the Northern Territory over its fracking expansion activities
• Rallen Australia alleges Santos failed to disclose vital information for fracking on its land

---

Oil and gas giant Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) opened the session at a share price of $7.09 today. The shares have since dipped by 1.27% to $7.00 in early trading after driving hard into the green this week.

ASX investors have been drawn to Santos since late December amid renewed strength in raw materials prices. The price of natural gas, in particular, has shot to a near-record high and is gaining more steam in the new year.

Meantime, Santos is quietly embroiled in a legal case over its fracking operations in the Northern Territory. Here are the details.

Rallen versus Santos

Santos is facing fresh challenges over its exploration activities as it attempts to expand its fracking in the Beetaloo Basin.

The Basin is set to become a gold standard onshore gas region. This follows state and federal government support for development in the area.

Santos is up against the well-capitalised company Rallen Australia. Rallen alleges that Santos failed to disclose vital information before submitting proposals to frack on its Tanumbirini Station.

Rallen is backed by the wealthy Ravazzotti and Langenhoven families, who own pastoral leases on more than 1 million hectares of land. They are reported to “emphatically oppose unconventional gas activities” on their land.

In hearings this week, the court was told that Santos had failed to meet its disclosure obligations and had tried to convince the NT government that it didn’t need an environmental management plan renewal for the proposed 2 wells at Tanumbirini.

Santos was reported to have said that Rallen “could reasonably have been assumed to have known about the revised plan”, according to The Guardian, to which the judge presiding wasn’t so receptive.

Rallen alleges that Santos had a legal obligation under the legislation and land stakeholder engagement obligations. It says it signed agreements with Santos under false pretences in the original court filings.

Rallen’s barrister, Marcus Pesman SC, told the court: “At the very fundamental level, what this case is about is a cavalier attitude by a listed Australian public company to important disclosure regulations imposed on it by regulations designed to balance the interests of the miners and landholders.”

The hearing continues this week.

Santos share price summary

The Santos share price is off to a strong start this year and has climbed 6% to date in 2022.

Santos shares struggled in 2021, and are down 6% over the past 12 months.

In December, Santos finalised its takeover of Oil Search.

The post Santos (ASX:STO) accused in court of “cavalier attitude”. Here’s why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• Is the ‘moment of truth’ coming for gas shares like Santos (ASX:STO)?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday
• Own Santos (ASX:STO) shares? Here’s the outlook for oil prices in 2022
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday

The author has no positions 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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3I4K60Q

Key Points

• BrainChip has submitted a capital call notice to LDA Capital
• It expects to bring in $20 million of funds from the agreement
• Funds will be used to support its commercialisation strategy

---

The BrainChip Holdings Ltd (ASX: BRN) share price is rocketing higher again on Friday.

In morning trade, the artificial intelligence technology company’s shares jumped 21% to a record high of $1.69.

This latest gain means the BrainChip share price is up 141% in the space of a month.

Why is the BrainChip share price shoot higher again today?

The catalyst for the rise in the BrainChip share price on Friday appears to have been a capital call notice.

According to the release, the company has submitted a capital call notice to LDA Capital to subscribe for up to 15,000,000 shares.

This will provide BrainChip with funds to support it through its commercialisation phase.

What is the capital call?

BrainChip and LDA Capital have had a $65 million put option agreement in place for a couple of years.

This agreement allows BrainChip to issue LDA Capital with new shares when it requires funding at ~90% of the volume weighted average price during a particular pricing period. Essentially it is the company’s own private capital raising.

Today’s release reveals that the company expects to bring in $20.3 million from the capital call. This includes $5.3 million that was deferred in 2021.

Why is BrainChip doing this?

Management has explained that the agreement with LDA is to finance the Akida commercialisation strategy and to support the development of successive generations of its technology.

The company’s CEO, Sean Hehir, commented: “The proceeds raised from the capital call will be used to expand our go-to-market capabilities as we move the company aggressively into the commercialization phase. The company will also accelerate our continuous innovation of the groundbreaking Akida technology to ensure we remain the industry leaders in Edge AI.”

The post Why the BrainChip (ASX:BRN) share price is rocketing 21% to a new record high appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why BrainChip, Crown, Objective, and South32 shares are racing higher
• Why BrainChip, PointsBet, PolyNovo, and Syrah shares are pushing higher
• Why have BrainChip (ASX:BRN) shares become such hot property?
• Why Afterpay, BrainChip, Medibank, and WiseTech shares are racing higher
• Why Anteotech, Brainchip, RAIZ, and Santos shares are pushing higher

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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/33ijFGa

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

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

Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) was one of the best-performing cryptoassets in 2021, with gains of more than 11,000%, according to data from YCharts. The smart-contract platform gained the attention of investors thanks in part to its blazing fast transaction speeds and rapidly expanding developer community.

Yet after soaring above $260 in early November 2021, Solana went on to shed half its value by Jan. 10, 2022. Like other blockchain projects, Solana has been negatively impacted by an industrywide swoon that has driven the prices of many cryptocurrencies sharply lower in recent months.

However, Solana’s token price has recovered some of its losses and climbed back above $150 this week. Following bullish analyst commentary, the cryptocurrency appears set for a rebound.

On Tuesday, Bank of America analyst Alkesh Shah praised Solana’s impressive ability to scale its network, which has long been a major challenge for other blockchain networks like Ethereum.

“Ethereum prioritizes decentralization and security, but at the expense of scalability, which has led to periods of network congestion and transaction fees that are occasionally larger than the value of the transaction being sent,” Shah said. In contrast, Solana’s average cost per transaction is currently only $0.00025.

Solana’s steep cost advantage will allow it to wrestle away market share from Ethereum in areas such as micropayments and gaming, according to Shah. Moreover, Solana’s advantages in blockchain-based payments are so formidable that Shah believes it could become the “Visa of the digital asset ecosystem.” 

Developers clearly appreciate Solana’s speed and low-cost transactions. More than 400 projects, in areas like decentralized finance and non-fungible tokens, are being built upon Solana’s network, and that figure is likely to rise further in the coming years. A thriving developer community is often a powerful catalyst for token price appreciation, and it could help to fuel sharp gains for Solana’s investors. 

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

The post Why Solana could be poised to rally appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Could this crypto be the Solana of 2022?
• Can these 3 ‘Ethereum Killers’ actually kill Ethereum in 2022?
• Why Solana jumped 17% today
• What crypto investors should know about these ‘Ethereum killers’

Joe Tenebruso has no position in any of the stocks or cryptocurrencies mentioned. Bank of America is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and recommends Ethereum and Visa. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3refS4M

Key points

• The Lumos Diagnostics share price is rising today
• COVID-19 rapid antigen tests are in focus this week
• The company’s CoviDX RAT test is waiting on TGA approval

---

The Lumos Diagnostics Holdings Ltd (ASX: LDX) share price is rising today as COVID-19 rapid antigen tests (RATS) hit the headlines.

At the time of writing, the company’s share price is trading hands at 1.01, up 1.5%.

Let’s take a look at what might be impacting the company’s share price.

Awaiting TGA approval

The Lumos Diagnostics share price has been skyrocketing in recent weeks as demand for COVID-19 RAT tests increases globally.

Since Christmas Eve, the company’s shares have gained 44%, rising from 70 cents to the current share price. Lumos Diagnostics achieved record revenue of $22.7 million in the 2021 financial year, up 188% from FY2020.

The company is one of a few in Australia — including Brisbane-based AnteoTech (ASX: ADO) — waiting on TGA approval for its diagnostic test despite lodging the application in September, ABC News reported.

Executive chairman Sam Lanyon told the publication.

We’re working with the TGA on adding some additional clinical data to the application”.

The company currently has manufacturing facilities for its rapid antigen tests in Florida and California in the United States, but not Australia.

In an investor presentation provided to the market in August, the company said it is hoping to launch its CoviDx rapid COVID-19 antigen test solution in the US, Canada and Australia in FY22 pending regulatory approvals.

This CoviDX RAT can return a result within 15 minutes of a viral swab.

The company approached Federal and State governments about local manufacture of the tests from mid-2020, but got nowhere with these discussions due to the preference for PCR tests, the ABC reported. Mr Laynson said:

For that reason, we set up our manufacturing capability out of Florida and California, which is there today, providing our range of tests into the US, European and Canadian markets at this point in time.

Lumos also has another flagship product, FebriDX, which can tell the difference between bacterial and viral infections. This product was launched in more than 100 pharmacies in the UK this week. FebriDX is also approved in Europe, Canada and Australia.

Share price snapshot

The Lumos Diagnostics share price has shed 19% in the past 52 weeks but is up 29% in the past month.

For comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has returned nearly 11% to investors in the past year.

The company commands a market capitalisation of roughly $152 million based on the current share price.

The post Lumos diagnostics (ASX:LDX) share price climbs amid RAT mania appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why did the City Chic (ASX:CCX) share price just drop then pop 13%?
• AnteoTech (ASX:ADO) share price surges amid ambition to join scramble for RATs
• 2 reasons Tesla stock is toast today
• Here’s why the Pendal (ASX:PDL) share price is tumbling 6% lower today
• Can Beforepay replicate Afterpay when it lists on the ASX on Monday?

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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/33iefef

Key points

• The AnteoTech share price is up 4% in early morning trade.
• The gain may relate to reports AnteoTech’s boss is hopeful its RAT device is in the final stages of TGA approval
• The company’s reportedly preparing to ramp up production in Australia on the back of the regulator’s green light

---

The AnteoTech Ltd (ASX: ADO) share price is in the green this morning.

The gain comes amid reports AnteoTech plans to ramp up Australian production of its point-of-care rapid testing device as it awaits the Therapeutic Goods Administration’s (TGA’s) tick of approval.

At the time of writing, the AnteoTech share price is trading at 26.5 cents, 3.92% higher than its previous close.

AnteoTech shares climb as it readies for Australian approval

The AnteoTech share price is gaining after the company’s CEO Derek Thomson told ABC News it’s getting ready to hit the ground running as soon as its RAT is given the green light for use in Australia.

The Australia-based company is also reportedly prepared to push some of its tests produced in Spain into its home country until domestic manufacturing gets on its feet.

The ABC quoted Thomson as saying:

We can manufacture, currently, a small volume of tests here…

Our plan now, as Australian governments have indicated that RATs are going to be a frontline tool for the pandemic, is to scale up manufacturing here in Brisbane significantly over the next 9 to 12 months.

AnteoTech’s RAT works through its EuGeni Rapid Diagnostic Platform. It’s a point-of-care platform – meaning it can be operated by healthcare professionals. The company’s COVID-19 RAT is the first test to be used with EuGeni.

Thomson said AnteoTech had put an order in for equipment that could see it producing 12 million RAT strips annually in Australia. It expects production to start in the second quarter of 2022.

Additionally, he told the publication AnteoTech would be able to make more than that 12 million over the next 12 months, providing “a real sovereign manufacturing capability for the Australian market”.

Finally, Thomson noted the company’s tests could be in the final stages of TGA approval. He said AnteoTech was planning to supply more information to the regulator next week.

Spotlight on RATs

There’s plenty of other news likely putting the focus on RAT developers today.

Overnight, United States President Joe Biden announced the government will soon hand out 1 billion at-home RATs – meaning they’ll be out shopping for an additional 500 million tests.

Meanwhile, controversy surrounding the Australian Federal Government’s acquisition of RATs hit headlines today. If reports are correct, demand for RATs at retail outlets may well increase.

According to yesterday’s reporting by SBS, retailers claim the government seized their RAT orders at the point of import. The Department of Health has denied diverting supplies.

AnteoTech share price snapshot

The AnteoTech share price has had a rough start to 2022. Prior to today’s open, it had fallen 17% since the final close of last year.

However, shares in the company are currently trading 120% higher than this time last year.

The post AnteoTech (ASX:ADO) share price surges amid ambition to join scramble for RATs appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why Anteotech, Brainchip, RAIZ, and Santos shares are pushing higher
• Are AnteoTech (ASX:ADO) rapid COVID tests available in Australia?
• Why Anteotech, Bega Cheese, Humm, and Syrah shares are racing higher
• Here’s why the Anteotech (ASX:ADO) share price is spiking 13% today
• AnteoTech (ASX:ADO) share price falls on TGA update

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. 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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3fkKNGT

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

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

What happened

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) shares took another tumble on Thursday, falling 6.75% by the close in response to a couple of negative news items.

So what

Biggest news first: Tesla’s electric Cybertruck, which was first unveiled in 2019 with a promise of production by 2021, obviously missed that deadline. Tesla subsequently suggested Cybertrucks might be available for purchase by 2022, but now, even that’s in doubt.

As automotive industry website Edmunds.com pointed out last week, and TheVerge.com re-reported today, “reference to a 2022 production schedule [for Cybertruck] was scrubbed” from Tesla’s website last week. Instead of the promise that “you will be able to complete your configuration as production nears in 2022,” the site now says simply that “you will be able to complete your configuration as production nears” — with no indication of how near to production Cybertruck actually is.

Separately and unrelated to the first story, The New York Post reported yesterday afternoon that a 19-year-old German “IT specialist” is claiming he has successfully hacked into “25 Tesla vehicles across 13 countries” and been able to “turn on their radios, flash their headlights and even start their engines and begin keyless driving” remotely.

Now what

Now, the second story sounds more alarming — but according to the hacker in question, his hacking success was not tied to any “vulnerability in Tesla’s infrastructure.” Rather, it was due to some basic precaution that the car owners apparently failed to follow — akin to a computer user failing to turn on their antivirus software.

The continued delays in Cybertruck’s arrival, on the other hand, seem a greater risk to Tesla stock. On the one hand, as The Verge points out, Cybertruck may simply be “a relatively low priority” for Tesla right now. Given that Tesla is already having trouble just keeping up with “fantastic” demand for its Model 3 and Model Y electric cars, bringing Cybertruck to market too soon might simply interfere with Tesla’s other, more immediate production goals.

That being said, the longer Tesla waits to introduce Cybertruck for sale, the more time General Motors and Ford Motor Company will have to grab market share for their own electric pickups, and the more room to maneuver for Rivian Automotive as well. The longer Tesla waits, the more Cybertruck pre-orders will vanish from its order books.

And if Tesla waits too long, it may find itself shut out of the electric truck market entirely, and confined to building electric cars and SUVs forevermore. 

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

The post 2 reasons Tesla stock is toast today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Tesla stock is back above $1,100. Is the EV leader a buy?
• Top 5 stocks mentioned on Reddit’s WallStreetBets right now
• Why Tesla shares jumped 50% last year
• Why Tesla stock just keeps falling
• Could Tesla deliveries double this year?

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

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

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3foE132

Key Points

• Pendal had a disappointing quarter and reported net fund outflows of $6.8 billion
• The fund manager’s FUM fell 2.5% to $135.7 billion during the December quarter
• JOHCM performance fees are expected to be marginally higher year on year

---

The Pendal Group Ltd (ASX: PDL) share price is on course to end the week in the red.

In morning trade, the fund manager’s shares are down 6% to $5.58.

This means the Pendal share price is trading withing sight of its 52-week low of $5.40.

Why is the Pendal share price sinking?

The weakness in the Pendal share price on Friday has been the release of its latest funds under management (FUM) update.

According to the release, at the end of the December quarter, Pendal’s FUM stood at $135.7 billion. This was down 2.5% since the end of September despite receiving a $3.8 billion boost from favourable market movements.

During the three months, Pendal reported a $6.8 billion net fund outflow. This was driven by weakness across its Australian funds and outflows of $5.1 billion from its segregated mandates in Europe.

Pendal also provided an update on its JOHCM performance fees for the 12 months ended 31 December. It revealed that performance fees totalling $43.4 million were realised for the period, up marginally from $41.2 million a year earlier.

“A disappointing quarter”

Pendal’s Group CEO, Nick Good, wasn’t pleased with the company’s fund flows during the quarter.

He said: “It has undoubtably been a disappointing quarter in terms of our flows. However, we are responding with a clear set of actions and have delivered strong performance fees in line with those recorded in the prior year.”

“Pendal continues to invest in distribution in key target markets, is working closely with fund managers to strengthen investment performance, and has launched new impact and thematic products that are quickly gaining traction and meeting the changing needs of clients. We remain committed to bringing investment excellence to our clients over the full market cycle,” he added.

The post Here’s why the Pendal (ASX:PDL) share price is tumbling 6% lower today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 2 reasons Tesla stock is toast today
• Why the City Chic (ASX:CCX) share price is dropping 4% today
• Can Beforepay replicate Afterpay when it lists on the ASX on Monday?
• 2 exciting ASX tech shares that actually jumped last month
• How did the Webjet (ASX:WEB) share price perform in 2021?

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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3trhpXY

Key Points

• City Chic’s sales grew 49.8% during the first half
• Revenue growth has been supported by the strategic investment in inventory
• But softer margins mean earnings will be flat

---

The City Chic Collective Ltd (ASX: CCX) share price is under pressure on Friday.

At the time of writing, the plus-sized fashion retailer’s shares are down 4% to $4.28.

Why is the City Chic share price falling?

Investors have been selling down the City Chic share price on Friday following the release of a trading update.

According to the release, during the first half of FY 2022, City Chic delivered unaudited sales revenue growth of 49.8% to $178.3 million. This represents 44% growth on a comparable store basis.

City Chic’s sales growth was underpinned by positive performances across all markets. ANZ revenue rose 14% to $80.8 million and Americas revenue rose 62% to $77.2 million. The EMEA segment contributed $20.3 million of total revenue as a result of acquisitions. The company’s online business played a key role in this positive form. Website traffic increased 22% to 70.6 million visits during the half.

Things weren’t quite as positive for its earnings. Due to the impact of store closures, acquisitions, and COVID-related cost savings a year earlier, the company’s margins were materially weaker year on year. As a result, underlying EBITDA is only expected in the range of $22.5 million to $23.5 million. This is in line with the prior corresponding period.

Management commentary

City Chic’s Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Phil Ryan, said: “I am pleased with our trading results for the first half, with strong revenue growth in all regions despite well publicised labour shortages and impacts to global logistics and supply chains, and government directed lockdowns related to the pandemic.”

“We are continuing to drive growth across all our regions while adapting our business to address the ongoing challenges. While we acknowledge the environment remains uncertain, the performance of the business to date demonstrates the team’s ability to navigate volatile market conditions.”

Mr Ryan was particularly pleased with the performance of City Chic’s US business and remains very positive on its prospects in the key market.

He concluded: “The particularly strong performance in the USA demonstrates our potential to capture and grow our share of international markets. The global opportunity for City Chic is stronger than ever and we continue to experience growing customer demand across our multi-channel offering.”

The post Why the City Chic (ASX:CCX) share price is dropping 4% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• The City Chic (ASX:CCX) share price tumbled 8% today. What’s happening?
• Potential buys: 2 excellent ASX shares
• Bell Potter names the best ASX retail shares to buy in 2022

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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3HXPNxo

Growth, and especially technology, ASX shares have taken a brutal beating in the past couple of months.

The S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) has dipped almost 14% from its November highs.

Inflation and interest rate fears are driving down stocks that are perceived to be relying on future earnings to justify their valuations.

But a business can overcome market jitters if it is growing so rapidly that investors just cannot ignore them.

Cyan portfolio manager Dean Fergie pointed out 2 examples in a memo to clients this week.

Both ASX shares rocketed upwards during the month of December, going against market sentiment. And Fergie’s fund continues to hold both tightly:

ASX share with ‘strong positive catalysts’

Fergie has spoken many times about Playside Studios Ltd (ASX: PLY), which listed in December 2020. But he still remains a huge fan.

“It is rapidly building a strong reputation as a high-quality game developer that can develop games with its own original IP and engage in large work-for-hire contracts for significant multinational clients.”

His loyalty has been well rewarded, with the stock climbing more than 145% over the past 12 months.

“This Melbourne-based game developer continued its impressive share price run as it reached its 12-month anniversary of listed life,” he said in his memo.

“It recently raised further capital to continue its expansion and looks to have some strong positive catalysts in the months ahead.”

Playside shares closed Thursday at $1.05.

‘Excited about the future’ of this tech stock

Video technology provider BirdDog Technology Ltd (ASX: BDT) listed on the ASX only 3 weeks ago.

Against all odds, the stock has climbed since then.

“This emerging video technology company listed just prior to Christmas and, unlike many other IPOs around the time, held an 11% premium to issue price in a challenging market,” said Fergie.

BirdDog shares closed Thursday at 70 cents, up 3.70%.

Fergie is licking his lips at the potential of this Melbourne company.

“We are excited about the future of this truly scalable business as it grows from an already substantial base of revenues ($38 million in FY21) and profitability ($2.6 million EBITDA),” he said. 

“It is now well funded with proven technology and an impressive management team with the ability to execute on a clear expansion strategy.”

The post 2 exciting ASX tech shares that actually jumped last month appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 3 small cap ASX shares to watch in 2022
• 5 investment themes to watch on the ASX share market in 2022
• This metaverse ASX share is a buy: expert

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

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3qoINnd

Beforepay Group Limited (ASX: B4P) shares will list Monday on the ASX, with the fintech hoping to follow in the footsteps of its similarly named predecessor Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT).

Afterpay shares were sold for $1 each at its initial public offering (IPO), before rising as high as $160.05 last year.

Beforepay is not a buy now, pay later provider, although it’s in the related business of payday lending.

The business, which allows customers to access money before they receive their real pay packet, raises revenue from a 5% transaction fee.

Borrowers can pay back the debt from the coming paycheque, or over a 4-week period.

“Beforepay’s product is designed to support customers who do not want to live beyond their means or accumulate revolving debt, but may need a bit of breathing room until they receive their next pay,” the prospectus reads.

“Beforepay was committed to designing a business model that did not require consumers to take long-term, expensive and opaquely priced revolving debt.”

Beforepay shares went for $3.41 apiece during its IPO, which closed last month.

All eyes will be on the stock price once it is unleashed on the ASX for general trade on Monday.

Strong growth but Beforepay burning through cash

The IPO gave Beforepay a market capitalisation of $158.4 million.

The company started signing up customers in August 2020 but by the time the prospectus was written in November, it had 125,000 active users.

Despite this growth, Beforepay is burning through cash like nobody’s business.

The business made a $19.6 million net loss after tax for the 2021 financial year, off revenue of $4.5 million.

Beforepay chair and former Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) chief executive Brian Hartzer said the numbers are on the improve.

“Loss rates and costs continue to decrease and growth is increasing in both the acquisition and retention of a well-diversified customer base of working Australians,” Hartzer said in November.

“This demonstrates the broad appeal of the product and a sizable market opportunity.”

In an argument similar to buy now, pay later, Beforepay appeals to younger generations that want to avoid traditional forms of credit, according to Hartzer.

“Beforepay’s business model creates a strong value proposition for customers looking to take control of their finances without turning to credit cards or other forms of revolving debt.”

Beforepay was founded in 2019 by Tarek Ayoub, who was chief executive until he stepped aside last May. The current chief, Jamie Twiss, is another former Westpac executive.

Ayoub still holds an 11.8% stake after the IPO, worth $18.8 million.

The post Can Beforepay replicate Afterpay when it lists on the ASX on Monday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Down 13% in 9 days, is the Xero (ASX:XRO) share price now an undervalued buy?
• Here’s how the Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price performed in 2021
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• Are Afterpay (ASX:APT) shares a buy before they convert into SQ2 shares?
• Here’s why ASX 200 tech shares (ASX:XTX) outperformed today

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

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/3GtSHcS