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The Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME) share price has been a strong performer on Thursday.

In afternoon trade, the health imaging technology company’s shares are up 4.5% to $52.94.

Why is the Pro Medicus share price charging higher?

There appear to have been a couple of catalysts for the strong performance by the Pro Medicus share price today.

One is a rebound in the tech sector following some recent weakness. At the time of writing, the S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) is up a decent 2.2%.

This is more than triple the gain of the the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which is up 0.7% this afternoon.

What else is lifting its shares?

Also giving Pro Medicus’ shares a lift has been a positive reaction by a leading broker to a major new contract win.

Last week the company announced its joint largest contract to date – a seven-year, $40 million deal with US leading healthcare provider, Novant Health.

In response to the news and recent weakness in the Pro Medicus share price, the team at Morgans upgraded its shares to a hold rating with a $54.49 price target.

This price target suggests that its shares could still rise a further 3% from here.

What did the broker say?

Morgans was pleased with the contract win. It said: “A strong announcement which highlights the quality of the offering given the contract to replace multiple legacy PACS solutions for multiple products. The deal marks the seventh major contract over the last 18 months, with the five year contracted pipeline now sitting at an impressive A$350m.”

In respect to its valuation, while Morgans acknowledges that the Pro Medicus share price trades on sky-high multiples, it believes its quality and growth potential justifies this.

It explained: “While valuations remain elevated (~130x FY22 PE), we view PME as a highly impressive company with a strong and growing contracted revenue base which should continue to grow into its high multiple over time. Valuation remains the only barrier to further positivity.”

The post Why is the Pro Medicus (ASX:PME) share price jumping 4% today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Gold miners jump, Pro Medicus wins contract
• Pro Medicus (ASX:PME) share price dips despite positive update
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• The Pro Medicus (ASX:PME) share price is surging 5% on Thursday
• Why Afterpay, Mineral Resources, Pilbara Minerals, & Pro Medicus shares are falling

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 shares of and has recommended Pro Medicus Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Pro Medicus Ltd. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The disastrous long-term performance of the AGL Energy Limited (ASX: AGL) share price continued throughout the first quarter of FY22.

During the 3-month period, shares in the Australian energy company sank by about 29%. This underwhelming stint means shareholders are now down 50% since the beginning of the year.

Interestingly, other ASX-listed electricity providers didn’t perform nearly as badly as AGL. For comparison, Ausnet Services Ltd (ASX: AST) and Origin Energy Ltd (ASX: ORG) gained 44% and 5% respectively. Although, the largest utility company listed on the ASX, APA Group (ASX: APA), slipped 2% during the quarter.

Let’s take a look at what might have affected the AGL share price in Q1 FY22.

Pressures piling on

To AGL Energy, it might feel as though it is stuck between a rock and a hard place. The combination of discontent towards its recent poor financial results — and the increasing pressure to transition its business to a more climate-friendly one — likely seem paradoxical to the management team.

In its FY21 results, the company’s managing director and CEO, Graeme Hunt, highlighted the period as one of the toughest energy markets in its history. This was partly due to incredibly high wholesale electricity prices, the likes of which have not been seen since 2012. Furthermore, the shift from legacy gas suppliers to new contracts resulted in higher wholesale gas supply prices. Likely, these combining factors weighed on the AGL share price during the quarter.

Simultaneously, the company forked out large sums of capital to address its integration of more renewables. This made a dent in AGL’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA). In FY21, EBITDA fell 21% to $1,630 million.

On top of this, the company has been under the scrutiny of the Australian Shareholders Association (ASA). As my colleague Zach covered, ASA and other shareholders voted in favour of AGL setting short and long-term emissions targets in line with the Paris Agreement. However, the outcome is more of an advisable movement, rather than a ‘must do’ instruction.

Looking ahead for the AGL share price

As most investors would be aware, past performance is not an indication of future performance. It appears one analyst is putting that notion into action. Recently, analysts at Ord Minnet outlined their forecast for the AGL share price.

According to the broker note, the broker has slapped a buy rating on the energy company’s shares with a price target of $7.55. For context, at the time of writing shares in AGL are fetching $6.07 apiece. This indicates a potential 24% upside in the eyes of the broker.

The post Why did the AGL (ASX: AGL) share price have such a shocking FY22 first quarter? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why this broker sees 30% upside for the AGL (ASX:AGL) share price
• Why did the AGL share price have such a lousy month in September?
• 3 ASX 200 shares down more than 50% in 2021
• Why is the AGL (ASX:AGL) share price down almost 4% on Tuesday?
• How has the AGL (ASX:AGL) share price performed since reporting FY21 results?

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 owns shares of and has recommended APA Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Shares in the immunotherapy company Imugene Limited (ASX: IMU) are 7.8% higher in afternoon trade and are now changing hands at 44 cents each.

The Imugene share price is gaining ground today despite there being no market-sensitive news from the company.

However, Imugene shares have risen 54% from their previous low on 20 August. So, it appears there is momentum behind the biotech’s share price when scoping out a wider timeframe.

Imugene also released an investor presentation on Tuesday that is worthwhile covering. Here are the details.

What did Imugene announce in its investor presentation?

In the presentation, Imugene detailed several investment highlights regarding its novel technology and treatment platforms.

These include the company’s HER-Vaxx Phase 2 trial in gastric cancer and PD1-Vaxx trials in its “B-Cell activating immunotherapies” platform, both of which have gained traction of late.

The company also has early-stage trials underway with its ‘Oncolytic virotherapies’ and ‘OnCARlytics in cellular therapy’ platforms.

They also discussed the progress and timeline of each, outlining each stage of the pipeline. Imugene has intellectual property protection over each of its 5 treatment segments until 2036, at least.

Imugene also included information on the value that the Vaxina Pty Ltd acquisition provides with its CF33 oncology technology.

Whilst the presentation was relatively brief, it did encapsulate Imugene’s recent clinical trial momentum and its progress in other business segments.

For instance, the company recently announced positive readouts from its Phase 2 HER-Vaxx clinical trial and was granted patent protection in Japan.

The Imugene share price quickly rallied 13% from 45.5 cents to a new 52-week high of 51.5 cents in the days following the patent announcement on 22 September.

From this point, Imugene shares began the march back down.

Imugene shares have moved directly in line with the S&P/ASX 200 Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology index (ASX: AXPBKD), which has slumped 8.6% in this time.

The broader S&P/ASX 200 Health Care index (ASX: XHJ) has also dropped 7.8% over the same period, indicating weakness in the wider ASX biotechnology and health care sectors.

Imugene share price snapshot

The Imugene share price has exploded 340% higher this year to date, doubling its return over the past 12 months to 685%.

These results far outpace the S&P/ASX 200 index (ASX: XJO) which has returned about 20% this past year.

The post Why is the Imugene (ASX:IMU) share price lifting 7% today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• These were the best performing ASX biotech shares in September
• Which ASX 300 shares are on the move for the start of the week?
• How did ASX healthcare shares perform in the FY22 first quarter?
• Which ASX 300 shares are the major movers at the end of the week?
• Imugene (ASX:IMU) share price jumps 6% on Japanese patent news

The author Zach Bristow 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.

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S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) tech shares scored a turnaround on Thursday after a very difficult past two weeks.

The S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) is up 72 points or 2.43%, bouncing off 2-month lows on Tuesday.

The gains are headlined by tech heavyweights Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT), Xero Limited (ASX: XRO) and WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC), all of which are up around about 3%.

ASX 200 tech shares in the mid cap space have also found a footing. Electronics software provider Altium Limited (ASX: ALU) is up 3.03% to $33.98. Data centre and network connections company Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1) is rallying 4.04% to $16.47. IT hardware and software distributor Dicker Data Ltd (ASX: DDR) is pushing 3.20% higher to $12.27.

ASX 200 tech shares find a footing

The seasonally volatile months of September and October have lived up to expectations, giving investors motion sickness as the index seems to climb or fall by more than 1% every day.

Investors have become fixated on bond yields, with the US 10-year Treasury yield surging to 3-month highs of 1.575% on Wednesday.

Yields have ticked higher on concerns about higher energy prices and inflation, which could trigger tighter monetary policy in the near term.

On Wednesday, New Zealand’s central bank raised its interest rates for the first time in seven years, signalling further hikes to come as it looks to get on top of inflationary pressures.

The era of ultra-low interest rates could very well come to an end soon.

Tech stocks have copped the brunt of the selling as rising yields can make a fast-growing company’s future cash flows appear less valuable.

As a result, ASX 200 tech shares have been subject to whipsaw like action as investors rotate to more value or cyclical sectors.

At the same time, on days like today, bargain-hunters have stepped up to ‘buy the dip’.

The post Here’s why ASX 200 tech shares are surging today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Top broker names Altium (ASX:ALU) share price as a buy
• Why Afterpay, Austal, Baby Bunting, & Nick Scali shares are storming higher
• Why the Afterpay Ltd (ASX:APT) share price is bouncing back on Wednesday
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: A2 Milk class action, tech shares rebound
• Why is the Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price plunging 5% today?

Motley Fool contributor Kerry Sun has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO, Altium, Dicker Data Limited, MEGAPORT FPO, WiseTech Global, and Xero. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO, Altium, Dicker Data Limited, WiseTech Global, and Xero. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended MEGAPORT FPO. 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 Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) share price is rocketing today.

At the time of writing, shares in the buy now, pay later (BNPL) provider are trading for $6.88 – up 5.52%. For context, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is 0.71% higher.

While the company hasn’t made any price-sensitive announcements today, something clearly has investors excited.

Let’s take a closer look.

Why is Zip zapping?

Share prices move for a myriad of reasons and sometimes it is not always clear what the reason is.

One reason may just be a general lift in the market’s mood. The ASX 200 is rising today and comes off the back of a few weak days for the index. Investors may very well just be in a buying mood. Zip and other growth shares tend to move with the market. Not necessarily at the same levels, and not always every day, but over the long term, the movements of the market and Zip share price match pretty well.

BNPL shares in particular are having a very good day. Besides the Zip share price, the Humm Group Ltd (ASX: HUM) share price is also about 5% higher and Sezzle Inc (ASX: SZL) shares are up 13.6% as of writing.

Sezzle is having a particularly good day today, which could be down to its new partnership with Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) in the US.

Overnight, the US retailing giant announced the official launch of its BNPL offering with Sezzle and Affirm (NASDAQ: AFRM) ahead of the busy holiday season. As Motley Fool has reported already, the deal with Target has the potential to boost Sezzle’s sales materially in the coming years.

Today’s Sezzle announcement may be boosting the entire BNPL sector. It may be a sign to investors of opportunities across the industry.

What else has affected the Zip share price recently?

Last week, the Zip share price received a huge boost when the company came to an agreement with software giant Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT).

According to its release, Zip will integrate its technology into the shopping experiences within Microsoft Edge. In turn, shoppers using the web browser will be able to use a digital payment option provided by Zip.

The integration into the company’s web browser will begin rolling out in the United States first. Microsoft is the second-largest company on the planet by market capitalisation. This news was a big deal for Zip. It is not uncommon for momentum from material developments to carry on for days afterwards.

The post Why the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price is storming 5% higher this Thursday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Afterpay & Zip sink, energy shares rise
• Why the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price is down 4% today
• ASX 200 tech shares set to slide as Nasdaq plunges 2%
• These were the best performing ASX BNPL shares in September

Teresa Kersten, an employee of LinkedIn, a Microsoft subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Motley Fool contributor Marc Sidarous has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Affirm Holdings, Inc., Microsoft, and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Humm 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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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on form and charging higher. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 0.7% to 7,258.3 points.

Four ASX shares that have failed to follow the market higher today are listed below. Here’s why they are falling:

A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M)

The A2 Milk share price is down 2% to $5.90. Investors have been selling this embattled infant formula company’s shares this week after it was hit with a class action. Slater & Gordon Limited (ASX: SGH) alleges that a2 Milk was or ought to have been aware that it would not achieve its FY 2021 guidance.

Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX: MFG)

The Magellan share price is down 1.5% to $32.04. This morning the team at UBS retained their sell rating and cut their price target on this fund manager’s shares to $29.00. This follows the release of a disappointing funds under management update. Magellan recorded a greater than expected outflow of funds. UBS suspects the underperformance of its flagship global fund is to blame.

Santos Ltd (ASX: STO)

The Santos share price is down 2% to $7.28. This appears to have been driven by a pullback in oil prices overnight and profit taking from some investors. In respect to the latter, prior to today, the Santos share price was up a massive 20% in the space of a month. Some investors may have decided to lock some of these gains in after the oil price rally stalled.

Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC)

The Whitehaven Coal share price has dropped 7% to $3.34. Investors have been selling this coal miner’s shares after a poor night of trade for the thermal coal price. According to CommSec, the thermal coal price fell a sizeable 10.2% to US$242.00 per tonne.

The post Why A2 Milk, Magellan, Santos, & Whitehaven Coal shares are falling appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here are the 3 heaviest trading ASX 200 shares so far this Thursday
• Which ASX 300 shares are the biggest winners and losers on Thursday?
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• ASX 200 energy shares pull back as oil prices take a breather
• Why the Whitehaven Coal (ASX:WHC) share price is slumping 7% 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 A2 Milk. 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 Wide Open Agriculture Ltd (ASX: WOA) share price is edging higher during late afternoon trade. This comes as the regenerative food and farming company provided investors with an update on its lupin protein project.

At the time of writing, Wide Open Agriculture shares are up 1.35% to 75 cents.

What did Wide Open Agriculture announce?

In today’s statement, Wide Open Agriculture advised that its new product development (NPD) team is progressing development of two new oat milk products.

Research into lupin began in May 2020 with the company producing a modified lupin-based protein (MLP) at pilot-scale in December. Nutritional analyses showed that the production process retained the nutritional quality of the modified lupin protein concentrate.

However, further testing is still being conducted as Wide Open Agriculture aims to expand its scientific, engineering and commercialisation capacity.

Initial samples have been sent to potential off-take partners across Europe, North America and Australia. The company is hoping to unlock significant commercial gains using lupin protein to create food and beverage products.

In addition, internal competitive analysis studies are underway to determine the competitive strengths of MLP against Soy, Pea and Faba proteins. So far, the results indicate that MLP has advantages over all other major plant-based proteins currently available in the market. This relates to protein concentration, kernels protein content, digestibility, and so on.

Wide Open Agriculture also has identified the site for its in-house, pilot manufacturing facility. The plant will be located at its distribution centre in Kewdale, Western Australia.

The first lot of equipment has arrived and will be used to test the company’s manufacturing technology.

Wide Open Agriculture share price summary

Wide Open Agriculture shares have largely moved in circles over the past 12 months. During the period, its shares have lost around 25% in value, with year-to-date down about 15%.

The company’s shares are treading at the lower end of its 52-week range of 62 cents to $1.25.

Wide Open Agriculture has a market capitalisation of roughly $75.12 million, with approximately 100.2 million shares outstanding.

The post Why the Wide Open Agriculture (ASX:WOA) share price is lifting on Thursday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why is the Seafarms (ASX:SFG) share price frozen on Thursday?
• Here are the 3 heaviest trading ASX 200 shares so far this Thursday
• The Syrah (ASX:SYR) share price is down 25% in a month: What’s happening?
• The ETFS Hydrogen ETF (ASX:HGEN) just debuted on the ASX. How is it going?
• Which ASX 300 shares are the biggest winners and losers on Thursday?

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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The Seafarms Group Ltd (ASX: SFG) share price has been put in the freezer today as the company prepares to make an announcement to the market.

Upon requesting that its shares are halted from trade today, Seafarms noted it was aware of information regarding project costs. However, it was unable to prepare a market release before trade began on Thursday.

As a result, the Seafarms share price has remained unmoved from its previous close of 5.7 cents.

Let’s take a closer look at what we know of the prawn aquaculture company’s trading freeze.

Why is Seafarms frozen on Thursday?

The Seafarms share price’s trading halt has continued all day while the market awaits news of the company’s project costs.

Investors who are on the edge of their seats waiting for the update might have a while left to bite their nails. The company has until trade begins on Monday to release its update.

If it doesn’t do so, the company’s stock will be back to normal when the ASX opens on Monday.

Seafarms is currently working on Project Sea Dragon.

Project Sea Dragon will see the company developing 10,000 hectares of prawn production ponds and facilities across 5 separate locations. The project is expected to provide year-round production of black tiger prawns.

The company provided an update on the project within its results for financial year 2021.

Then, the company said it was seeking $150 million worth of construction debt and needed further debt for the development of Project Sea Dragon’s stage 1a.

Seafarms also recently completed a capital raise that saw it banking an additional $107.5 million, allowing it to begin construction on part of the project.

Project Sea Dragon’s first production is expected to occur in the third quarter of 2023. It has major project status from the federal, Western Australia, and Northern Territory governments.

Seafarms share price snapshot

This year hasn’t been good to the Seafarms share price.

It has fallen 36% since the start of the year. It is also 52% lower than it was this time last year.

The post Why is the Seafarms (ASX:SFG) share price frozen on Thursday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here are the 3 heaviest trading ASX 200 shares so far this Thursday
• The Syrah (ASX:SYR) share price is down 25% in a month: What’s happening?
• The ETFS Hydrogen ETF (ASX:HGEN) just debuted on the ASX. How is it going?
• Which ASX 300 shares are the biggest winners and losers on Thursday?
• Why has the Helloworld (ASX:HLO) share price leapt 12.5% in a week?

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.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is having a pretty decent day on the ASX boards today, in what would be a nice change for investors, the ASX 200 is currently up 0.6% to 7,2450 points at the time of writing.

But let’s now look at the ASX 200 shares that are currently being the most heavily traded in terms of raw volume so far today. That’s according to investing.com.

The 3 heaviest trading ASX 200 shares so far this Thursday

Ausnet Services Ltd (ASX: AST)

ASX 200 energy company Ausnet is our first share to check out today. This electricity provider has seen a hefty 15.1 million of its shares change owners so far today. That’s despite not much major news out of this company.

However, the Ausnet share price is bucking the broader market today. It’s currently down a notable 1.19% to $2.49 a share. It’s possible that this slide downwards is responsible for the high volume of Ausnet shares trading this Thursday.

Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC)

Our second ASX 200 share today is coal miner Whitehaven. Whitehaven makes yet another appearance this week with a sizeable 19.16 million shares flying around the markets so far today. Whitehaven has been on an extraordinary run this week, up almost 7% since Friday’s close to yesterday’s close.

However, investors seem to have gotten cold feet over Whitehaven shares today. The company is presently down a nasty 7.8% so far today to $3.31 a share, which my Fool colleague Mitchell dug a little deeper into earlier today. This dramatic slide is probably the reason why we are seeing so many Whitehaven shares bought and sold this Thursday so far.

Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS)

Pilbara is often the ASX 200’s most traded share of the day. And it seems today will be no different. A whopping 22.21 million Pilbara shares have swapped hands thus far this Thursday.

This seems to be a reaction to Pilbara’s announcement this morning. The company revealed that commissioning has begun on its Ngungaju lithium plant, which Pilbara seemed to have bought for peanuts last year, according to my Fool colleague Kerry.

Investors seem to overwhelmingly approve, seeing as the Pilbara share price is now up by an impressive 6.42% to $1.99 a share

 

The post Here are the 3 heaviest trading ASX 200 shares so far this Thursday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Which ASX 300 shares are the biggest winners and losers on Thursday?
• Why Collins Foods, Pilbara Minerals, Sezzle, & Super Retail are pushing higher
• Why the Whitehaven Coal (ASX:WHC) share price is slumping 7% today
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Pilbara Minerals jumps, Whitehaven Coal sinks
• Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS) share price higher on lithium project update

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 Syrah Resources Ltd (ASX: SYR) share price is pushing higher on Thursday.

At the time of writing, the graphite producer’s shares are up 2.5% to $1.03.

However, despite this gain, the Syrah share price is still down a very disappointing 25% since this time last month.

Why is the Syrah share price down 25% in a month?

Investors have been selling down the Syrah share price since the release of an announcement in the middle of September.

That announcement revealed that the company has been struggling to ship its product from the Balama Graphite Operation in Mozambique.

This isn’t a demand issue but rather a container ship shortage. Syrah advised that approximately 12kt of natural graphite sales from Balama were planned to ship from the Port of Nacala in late September. However, due to container shipping market disruption, this shipment was delayed to October.

As a result, the company’s third quarter natural graphite sales are only expected to be 17kt. This compares to its previous guidance of 29kt for the quarter.

Will things improve?

The good news for the company, and potentially the Syrah share price, is that management expects the situation to improve in the near term.

It advised that it expects container shipping constraints impacting its sales and operations to ease through the fourth quarter. This is due to additional vessel capacity and container equipment for East Africa being added.

Syrah certainly will be hoping this proves accurate. The company is experiencing strong demand and forward contracting for Balama products.

Management advised that its sales order book is currently underpinning 45kt of natural graphite sales in the fourth quarter. That’s almost 200% greater than its third quarter sales. Furthermore, there is additional spot sales demand evident according to the update.

Time will tell, but judging by the Syrah share price performance, not everyone is as confident as management.

The post The Syrah (ASX:SYR) share price is down 25% in a month: What’s happening? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why Fortescue, IRESS, Newcrest, & Syrah shares are tumbling lower
• Why the Syrah (ASX:SYR) share price is tumbling 7% lower 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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