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The AGL Energy Limited (ASX: AGL) share price might finally be catching a break as a leading broker upgraded the beaten-down ASX shares to “buy”.

The AGL share price surged 6.2% to $6.03 in after lunch trade. In contrast, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (Index:^AXJO) added 1% and fellow energy provider Origin Energy Ltd. (ASX: ORG) share price gained 1.5%.

It seems everything has a price – even for unpopular ASX shares! AGL is arguably one of the most shunned due to its coal-fired power plants.

Why the AGL share price was languishing

AGL is looking to split the company to separate the carbon polluting plants from its energy retail business.

The market has given the strategy the thumbs down as many can’t imagine who will want to own shares in an entity that only holds coal power generation assets.

This explains why the AGL share price has shed around 60% of its value over the past year. Little wonder that its AGM yesterday was such a tense affair.

How to value the AGL share price

But JPMorgan reckons now is the time to be buying the embattled AGL share price. This is despite the broker acknowledging that few investors would be keen on AGL’s Accel Energy spin-off that houses the climate damaging assets.

Therefore, the value really lies in the energy retailing business that will continue to operate under AGL.

Parts worth more than the whole

“We estimate the value of AGL Australia at A$6 billion, including A$2 billion in debt assuming a post-tax WACC of 6%,” said JPMorgan.

“We value the equity at A$4 billion, which equates to A$5.96/share.

We expect stable free cash flow of A$450-$500 million per annum and assuming a 75% payout, we estimate the entity will provide dividends of 16cps by FY2024.”

M&A appeal adds second tailwind

The valuation doesn’t include AGL’s takeover appeal. Cashed up bidders are scouring the market and you only need to look at recent corporate interest in defensive assets to see what I mean.

There is a takeover tussle for the Ausnet Services Ltd (ASX: AST) share price and Sydney Airport Holdings Pty Ltd (ASX: SYD) share price – just to name a few.

“In our view, there could be very little interest in Accel Energy given its exposure to coal, its leverage to wholesale prices and its sizeable rehabilitation costs,” said JPMorgan.

“However, we see the potential for strong corporate appeal in AGL Australia with a number of large companies looking to grow into energy retailing in Australia.”

AGL share price upgraded to buy

Attractive valuation and takeover appeal were enough to convince the broker to upgrade its recommendation on the AGL share price to “overweight” from “neutral”.

JPMorgan’s 12-month price target on the shares is $7.55.

The post Why the embattled AGL (ASX:AGL) share price is surging higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping trading volumes today
• Which ASX 300 shares are the top movers today?
• Sydney Airport (ASX:SYD) share price struggles amid latest takeover blow
• APA Group (ASX:APA) share price jumps on strong support for its takeover bid
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Transurban falls, Premier Investments jumps

Motley Fool contributor Brendon Lau 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 Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price has been a very positive performer on Thursday.

In late afternoon trade, the banking giant’s shares are up 1.4% to $101.00. This makes the CBA share price the best performer among the big four banks today.

CBA share price outperforms

The CBA share price is currently leading the way in the banking sector with its 1.4% gain.

As a comparison, the Australia and New Zealand Banking GrpLtd (ASX: ANZ) share price is up 1.2%, the National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB) share price is up 0.8%, and the Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price is up 0.9%.

Investors have been buying the shares of the banks despite a warning from one of Australia’s leading brokers.

What is being said?

According to a note out of Morgan Stanley, its analysts have concerns with Australia’s rising household debt.

The broker believes that regulators may need to take macroprudential measures to slow the build-up of household debt relative to income.

In fact, it doesn’t just think Australia needs these measures, it believes they could be coming before the end of the year.

Morgan Stanley suspects this could involve putting limits on high debt-to-income and high loan-to-value ratio lending.

And if this were to occur, the broker feels it could cause a slowdown in loan growth for the big four banks.

CBA shares a sell

Morgan Stanley currently has a sell rating and $90.00 price target on the CBA share price. This implies potential downside of almost 11% at current levels.

It is also lukewarm on ANZ and NAB shares. Its analysts have neutral ratings and $28.00 and $27.90 price targets, respectively, on their shares.

The only big four bank the broker likes at present is Westpac. Yesterday it retained its overweight rating and $29.20 price target on the bank’s shares. Morgan Stanley is expecting Westpac to announce a share buyback in November.

The post CBA (ASX:CBA) share price leads big four banks today despite broker’s bearish view appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell today
• CBA (ASX:CBA) share price slumps amid RBA concerns of sector vulnerabilities
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Evergrande news boosts market, Zip’s Indian investment
• Westpac (ASX:WBC) share price on watch after asset sale terminated
• The Westpac (ASX:WBC) share price has fallen in the last week. Here’s why

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of Westpac Banking Corporation. 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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Investors in S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) iron ore shares will have welcomed the 17% boost in iron ore prices overnight.

At time of writing iron ore is trading at US$109 (AU$151) per tonne.

The lift is largely accredited to massively indebted Chinese property giant China Evergrande Group (HKG: 3333) coming through with today’s interest payment to bond holders, despite wide expectations of a default.

Today’s payment doesn’t get Evergrande out of hot water though. The company has some US$300 billion worth of liabilities outstanding.

Despite the 17% lift in iron ore prices, the ASX 200 iron ore miners haven’t seen their shares dramatically react.

In afternoon trading the Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (ASX: FMG) share price is up 0.55%, the Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO) share price is up 0.4% and the BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price is heading the other way, down 0.6%.

ASX 200 investors may be hesitant to snap up what some brokers perceive as a bargain, fearing iron ore’s retreat from record highs of US$220 isn’t over yet.

Indeed, according to analysts at the Bank of America, the key steel making metal may

What is Bank of America forecasting for iron ore?

“All the king’s horses and all the king’s men unlikely to put iron ore together again”, BofA wrote in a note, forecasting iron ore could sink more than 35% from current prices, down to US$70 per tonne.

According to the bank’s global commodities team (quoted by the Australian Financial Review):

China’s steel production has fallen by 12.6 per cent in August as authorities have required steel mills to reduce output over emissions. With the Olympics just around the corner and several steel production hubs in close vicinity to Beijing, it is highly likely that the current curbs will prevail into 2022…

[O]ur colleagues in China’s steel team expect a drop in crude steel production of 1.4 per cent year over year next year. As iron ore shipments are rising, the price of the feedstock will in all likelihood face headwinds in the coming weeks and could cut well into the cost curve, with $US70 a tonne possible.

Now, US$70 appears to be the bank’s worst case scenario.

The Bank of America estimates and average price of US$91 per tonne for iron ore in 2022.

That’s still well above extraction and production costs for the ASX 200 miners.

How have these ASX 200 iron ore miners been performing?

The ASX 200 iron ore giants have struggled this year.

BHP’s shares are down 11% in 2021. Rio’s share price is down 14%. And the Fortescue share price is down 37%.

The ASX 200, on the other hand, is up 10% year-to-date.

The post Bank of America flags more headwinds for ASX 200 iron ore shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• AMP Capital’s chief economist on Evergrande and ASX 200 resource shares
• Top broker tips Fortescue (ASX:FMG) share price to rise 36%
• Fortescue (ASX:FMG) share price jumps 4%, iron ore back above US$100 a tonne
• Should investors buy Fortescue (ASX:FMG) shares in September 2021 for the 16% dividend yield?
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares this Wednesday

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 4DMedical Ltd (ASX: 4DX) share price is in the green today. Meanwhile, the company’s boss has detailed its “rapid year of transformation”.

4DMedical’s CEO and managing director Dr Andreas Fouras looked back on what he believes was a successful financial year 2021 (FY21) before outlining what FY22 may look like for 4DMedical.

 The company’s boss’ comments were included in its annual report, which was released to the market this morning.

At the time of writing, the 4DMedical share price is $1.46, 1.04% higher than it was at yesterday’s close.

Let’s take a closer look at the company’s first annual report as a listed entity.

FY22 for 4DMedical

The 4DMedical share price is performing well today amid the release of the company’s annual report.

In it, Fouras commented on the 12-months that’s been for 4DMedical, saying:

[the company’s transformed] technologically, organisationally, financially, and in terms of impact through clinical translation.

He also said the company’s ready to “disrupt the global lung diagnostics market”, following the headwinds it made with its XV Technology in FY21.

According to 4DMedical, its XV Technology can pick up early-stage lung disease that traditional CT-scans and X-rays cannot.

4DMedical recently announced the technology received praise after phase one of its pilot program. Unfortunately, the 4DMedical share price ultimately fell 4.3% on the back of the news. The company will finish XV Technology’s second phase before the end of 2021.

Additionally, Fouras noted the company expects to deliver major milestones for its VQ offering and XVD Scanner in 2022.

The company is planning to focus on securing commercial contracts with hospitals over the current financial year.

It also plans to keep working towards using its technology to improve the treatment of COVID-19. According to Fouras, the technology’s particularly suited to treating people post-COVID-19 diagnosis.

4DMedical share price snapshot

Despite the productive year, the 4DMedical share price has struggled since it listed.

Right now, it is 7% lower than it was when it debuted on the ASX in September last year. It has also fallen 39% lower than it was at the start of 2021.

The post 4DMedical (ASX:4DX) share price gains amid boss’ confidence for FY22 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• ASX 200 falls, Metcash down, 4DMedical drops
• 4DMedical (ASX:4DX) share price is lifting on its COVID-related technology
• 4DMedical (ASX:4DX) share price lifts on 71% income increase in FY21

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 Splitit Ltd (ASX: SPT) share price is rebounding strongly after heavily being sold off last month. This comes after the company reported that one of its directors have taken the opportunity to buy some shares.

At the time of writing, Splitit shares are up 10.84% to 46 cents a pop. This means that in a week, its shares have gained almost 25%.

Who bought the shares?

Taking advantage of the Splitit share price weakness, the company’s non-executive director and non-executive chair, Dawn Robertson made a series of purchases.

As such, Ms Robertson picked up 100,000 fully paid ordinary Splitit shares over 3 on-market transactions on 21 September. They are as follows:

• 33,540 shares acquired at a price of 35.5 cents;
• 50,000 shares acquired at a price of 35 cents; and
• 16,460 shares acquired at a price of 34.5 cents.

Following the number of shares added, Ms Robertson’s holdings now consists of a total of 600,000 full paid ordinary Splitit shares. In addition, Ms Robertson also has a number of unlisted options at hand. They include:

• 500,000 unlisted director options exercisable at 40 cents each on or before 22 January 2022;
• 70,422 unlisted options exercisable at $1.41 each on or before 11 May 2026; and
• 70,422 unlisted options exercisable at $1.42 each on or before 11 May 2026.

Interestingly, Ms Robertson holds the most direct shares in the company, with next in line, non-executive director, Thierry Denis (338,462). In terms of options, however, Ms Robertson sits 5th on the ladder.

About the Splitit share price

Over the past 12 months, Splitit shares have sunk almost 70%, with most of these losses coming from 2021.

When zooming out, its shares traded for as little as 20.5 cents when COVID-19 hit in March 2020. But just 5 months later, the company’s shares zipped to a record high of $1.93 on 31 August, before tumbling down again.

Based on today’s price, Splitit presides a market capitalisation of roughly $193.52 million and has 466.32 million shares outstanding.

The post Why the Splitit (ASX:SPT) share price is surging 10% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• ASX tech shares are leading the market’s gains on Thursday
• Why the Splitit (ASX:SPT) share price has tumbled 32% in a month
• How have ASX BNPL shares performed during the August 2021 earnings season?
• Splitit (ASX:SPT) share slips on record half-year result and CEO transition
• Why did the Splitit (ASX:SPT) share price just hit its 52-week low?

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras owns shares of Splitit Ltd. 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 stellar day of trading so far this Thursday.

At the time of writing, the ASX 200 is sitting pretty at 7,372 points, up 1.03% for the day.

But let’s dive a little deeper and check out the ASX 200 shares topping today’s charts in terms of trading volumes, according to investing.com.

3 ASX 200 shares topping trading volumes today

Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS)

ASX 200 lithium producer, Pilbara is our first share to check out today, with a healthy 15.81 million shares traded so far this Thursday. There are no major announcements out of Pilbara today.

The company is currently down 0.7% to $2.14 a share after initially popping shortly after the market open to $2.20 today. It’s likely that this bouncing around is why so many Pilbara shares are being traded today.

South32 Ltd (ASX: S32)

Diversified ASX 200 mining company, South32 is next up here. A sizeable 17.64 million shares have swapped hands so far today. As with Pilbara, there are no official announcements or news we can point to that explains this high volume.

The South32 share price has been on fire today. It went as high as $3.48 a share around lunchtime, but is presently trading at $3.42, up 2.54%. It’s probably this great leap that is behind the high volume of shares trading today.

AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP)

Our final ASX 200 share is wealth manager and financial services company, AMP.

AMP has seen a whopping 21.46 million shares bought and sold today. This seems to be in response to the significant jump in the AMP share price in earlier trade.

As my Fool colleague Ken covered earlier today, AMP shares rose as much as 6% at one point today. They are presently sitting at 96 cents a share, up a still-impressive 4.35%.

As Ken points out, it is the first time in almost 2 weeks that AMP shares are in the green. This is probably why we are seeing AMP top the trading volume charts thus far this Thursday.

The post These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping trading volumes today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• AMP (ASX:AMP) share price climbs 6% in first upwards move in 2 weeks
• APA Group (ASX:APA) share price jumps on strong support for its takeover bid
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Transurban falls, Premier Investments jumps
• ASX 200 shares jump as Fed flags bond tapering
• Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS) share price falls as Chinese lithium prices hit new high

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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Australia’s corporate watchdog has warned that investors using social media to drum up a ‘pump and dump’ of ASX shares could end up in jail.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) announced Thursday that it was seeing “a concerning trend” of people conducting such online campaigns, which could amount to illegal market manipulation.

“‘Pump and dump’ activity occurs when a person buys shares in a company and starts an organised program to seek to increase (or ‘pump’) the share price. They do this by using social media and online forums to create a sense of excitement in a stock or spread false news about the company’s prospects,” stated the commission.

“They then sell (or ‘dump’) their shares and take a profit, and other shareholders suffer as the share price falls.”

A classic recent example has been in the US, where GameStop Corp (NYSE: GME) multiplied 20 times in January and has been on a rollercoaster since.

It seems ASIC is worried about copycat campaigns targeting ASX shares.

‘Blatant attempts to pump share prices’

ASIC stated it has witnessed on social media “blatant attempts to pump share prices” of certain stocks, which set up a particular time to buy — then a target price to dump.

“In some cases, posts on social media forums may mislead subscribers by suggesting the activity is legal,” the commission stated.

“If an investor decides to buy shares as part of one of these campaigns, they may become the victim. The people behind the campaign may start dumping their shares and taking profits before they reach the target price.”

ASIC warned that market manipulation was illegal, and a conviction could result in 15 years’ imprisonment and a fine of more than $1 million.

Warning: ASIC is watching 

Commissioner Cathie Armour said ASIC had been “working closely” with market operators to catch pump and dump campaigns.

The authority performs data matching from multiple sources to find networks of investors conspiring together.

“We expect anyone involved in these campaigns to recognise the potential impact on market integrity and to be aware ASIC monitors all trading on the ASX equity market on a real-time basis,” she said.

“We will continue to target actions that threaten the integrity of markets and to take enforcement action where appropriate.”

Armour added that brokers, which ASIC calls market participants, should take “active steps” to stop stock manipulation before it starts.

Signs of such campaigns could include groups of clients trading in the same ASX share at the same time in the same direction.

“They may have opened accounts at a similar time, been referred by the same person, have the same account contact details, or transfer funds between themselves.”

ASIC stated it expected brokers to promptly report suspicious activity.

ASX-listed companies were also warned to report any strange trading of their shares, either to ASX Ltd (ASX: ASX) or ASIC. This included sudden but unexplained price moves.

The post ‘Pump & dump’ of ASX shares could lead to jail, ASIC warns appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why has the ASX (ASX:ASX) share price slumped 6% in 3 weeks?

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.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on track to record a stellar gain on Thursday. In late afternoon trade, the benchmark index is up 1.1% to 7,376.4 points.

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

Lake Resources N.L. (ASX: LKE)

The Lake Resources share price is down 4% to 58.5 cents. This decline appears to have been driven by profit taking after a strong gain on Wednesday. Investors were scrambling to buy this lithium developer’s shares following the announcement of a partnership with Lilac Solutions. According to the release, the partnership is for technology and funding to develop Lake’s Kachi Lithium Brine Project in Argentina.

Ramelius Resources Limited (ASX: RMS)

The Ramelius share price is down 2.5% to $1.38. Investors have been selling Ramelius and other gold miners today after investor sentiment improved greatly and reduced the appeal of safe haven assets. This follows yesterday’s news that Chinese property giant Evergrande has staved off defaulting by agreeing to make a bond repayment.

Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: TLX)

The Telix share price is down 5% to $6.48. This radiopharmaceutical company’s shares have come under pressure today following an update on its prostate cancer imaging investigational product, Illuccix. According to the release, the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) has extended its review period by 3 months. This is to allow the regulator time to further review a few items.

Transurban Group (ASX: TCL)

The Transurban share price is down almost 1.5% to $14.00. This morning the toll road operator completed the institutional component of its equity raising. Transurban has raised $2.9 billion at an 8.3% discount of $13.00 per share. Management advised that the offer attracted strong demand from institutional shareholders, with approximately 93% of eligible entitlements taken up. Transurban is raising funds to acquire the remaining stake in WestConnex.

The post Why Lake Resources, Ramelius, Telix, & Transurban shares are falling appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Which ASX 300 shares are the top movers today?
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Transurban falls, Premier Investments jumps
• Telix (ASX:TLX) share price sinks 6% on FDA update
• Why the Transurban (ASX:TCL) share price is falling today
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of TELIXPHARM DEF SET. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended ResMed. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended ResMed Inc. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Ramsay Health Care Limited (ASX: RHC) share price is pushing through a turbulent day on the ASX, despite the wider market’s day in the sun.

Right now, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has gained 1.07% or 77.9 points. Meanwhile, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is 1.15% higher having increased by 87.7 points today.

On the other hand, the Ramsay Health Care share price has been seesawing today. It has recorded an intraday high of $70.19 and a low of $69.09.

At the time of writing, it’s down 0.24%, with shares in the company trading for $69.58 a piece.

So what’s weighing on the Ramsay Health Care share price? Let’s take a look.

What’s up with Ramsay’s stock today?

The Ramsay Health Care share price is struggling on what is a fantastic day for the broader market.

Interestingly, there hasn’t been any happenings to explain the healthcare company’s tough day’s trade.

In fact, the market hasn’t heard price-sensitive news from Ramsay since it released its earnings for financial year 2021 nearly a month ago.

However, Ramsay’s stock isn’t alone in its struggles. The S&P/ASX 200 Health Care Index (ASX: XHJ) is the worst performing sector of the ASX 200 today.

It has fallen 0.09%, or 46.3 points, at the time of writing, with Ramsay being one of its worst performing stocks.

Only Ansell Limited (ASX: ANN) is weighing on the sector more than Ramsay. It has currently fallen 1% to trade at $34.69.

Meanwhile, the Clinuvel Pharmaceuticals Limited (ASX: CUV) share price is leading the sector with a 4.4% gain.

Ramsay Health Care share price snapshot

Despite today’s dip, the Ramsay Health Care share price has been performing alright lately.

It has gained 11% since the start of 2021. It is also 0.2% higher than it was this time last year.

The post The market’s having a good day, so why’s the Ramsay Health Care (ASX:RHC) share price struggling? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 3 experts pick 3 ASX shares to rocket in next 12 months
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy next week
• The Ramsay Health Care (ASX:RHC) share price is down 5% in 8 days. Could it be a buy?
• 2 ASX shares that won’t stay cheap: fund manager
• Why analysts rate these ASX healthcare shares highly

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 recommended Ansell Ltd. and Ramsay Health Care 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 Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) share price is creating fresh 6-month highs on Thursday thanks to America’s plans to reopen its international borders.

In early afternoon trade, the Webjet share price hit a high point of $6.23. This is a 5.23% bump on yesterday’s closing price of $5.92 and a new 6-month high for the ASX travel share.

At the time of writing, the price has settled back to $6.18, which is a 4.39% gain.

International restrictions to ease by November

The White House announced on Monday that it will lift travel restrictions for fully vaccinated travellers from 33 countries, according to Reuters.

These countries include most of Europe, China, India, Brazil, Iran, and South America. Unfortunately, the list did not include Australia.

Reuters reported upbeat commentary from airlines such as British Airways, which said that its customers were “keen to fly again”. The airline reported an almost 700% jump in searches for holidays to US destinations on its website, following the White House announcement.

How does this impact the Webjet share price?

The Webjet share price has been range-bound since late November. It has struggled to break above $6.20 but has found plenty of buying support about the mid-$4 mark.

Webjet shares tried and failed to break above $6.20 in November last year and again in March. They finally broke through today.

From a financial perspective, Webjet’s FY21 results pointed out that the US market is opening up the fastest. It said total transaction volumes were already at 83% of April 2019 volumes.

The WebBeds business was profitable in July and August, and is exposed to “significant upside as more markets open”, said Webjet.

The company is confident that when markets normalise, WebBeds will have “greater market share, lower costs and improved profitability”.

In addition, Webjet reported that the Webjet Online Travel Agency (OTA) was also profitable from April through to July. Despite recent lockdowns, Webject said its OTA will continue to be profitable as soon as domestic Australia reopens.

The post Webjet (ASX:WEB) share price jumps 5% amid more US travel optimism appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why the Webjet (ASX:WEB) share price is lifting off this Tuesday
• These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares
• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• How has the Webjet (ASX:WEB) share price performed since reporting FY21 results?
• How have these 3 ASX 200 travel shares performed since reporting results?

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. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Webjet Ltd. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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