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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has opened higher this Friday, giving ASX investors a much needed day in the green after a week of red days. At the time of writing, the ASX 200 is up 0.12% to 7,378 points.

But one ASX 200 share is going far better. That would be South32 Ltd (ASX: S32). The South32 share price has run out of the gate today, up a hefty 5.26% so far to $3.40 a share.

This big upward move comes after yesterday’s dramatic sell-off of the diversified ASX miner. The South32 share price plummeted by as much as 5.1% at one point, even though it finished the day down 3.3%.

Today’s move erases those losses and more. South32 shares are now up 3.2% over the past trading week, almost 17% over the past month, and an impressive 36.8% in 2021 so far. Over the past 12 months, South32 shares are up an even more impressive 59.8%.

So, what’s behind this strong share price appreciation?

Rivers of aluminium

Well, since South32 is a mining company, we already have a fair idea of what’s going on here.

Commodity prices have spent the past few months on fire. Yes, iron ore has cooled off in recent weeks, adding pressure to other iron ore miners like South32’s old owner BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO). Gold has been a bit flat, too. But outside these areas, commodity pricing has been exploding.

According to Yahoo Finance, aluminium prices have just notched a 13-year high. Nickel is also at its highest level since 2014. Thermal coal and natural gas prices are also booming.

South32 has extensive operations extracting aluminium, alumina and bauxite, as well as coal and nickel. All of these commodities have seen their pricing shoot the roof in recent weeks.

So, perhaps it’s no surprise the South32 share price has done the same.

What’s next for the South32 share price?

As my Fool colleague James covered this morning, broker Goldman Sachs is currently very bullish on the South32 share price, even after its recent gains.

Goldman currently rates this ASX 200 miner as a ‘buy’, with a 12-month share price target of $3.60. That implies a potential upside of about 5.9% over the next 12 months, not including dividend returns.

Speaking of dividends, Goldman also reckons South32 will be able to provide “double-digit yields from FY 2023 through to FY 2026”.

At the current South32 share price, the miner has a market capitalisation of $15.92 billion and a dividend yield of 1.87%.

The post Why the South32 (ASX:S32) share price is leaping 5% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 2 excellent ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) mining shares that could be buys
• Why Afterpay, CBA, Omni Bridgeway, & South32 shares tumbled lower today
• Here are the 3 heaviest trading ASX 200 shares on Thursday
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday
• Here are the 3 heaviest trading ASX 200 shares today

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 CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) share price has failed to outperform the market as opposed to traditional times. The global biotech noted that the pandemic is causing challenging conditions on its business operations.

At the time of writing, CSL shares are fetching for $302.39, down 1.02%.

What’s happened to CSL recently?

During mid-August, CSL provided investors with its full-year results for the 2021 financial year.

The company noted that its CSL Behring’s portfolio faced headwinds, while its Seqirus business recorded strong tailwinds over the 12 months.

Under the CSL Behring banner, sales of its leading subcutaneous immunoglobulin product, Hizentra, grew by 15%. This contributed to the overall revenue of US$8.8 billion for the CSL Behring portfolio, up 6% on FY20.

CSL’s Seqirus business experienced a strong surge in seasonal influenza vaccines, up 41%. A record volume of around 130 million doses was distributed around the world. As a whole, Seqirus revenue jumped to US$1.7 billion, up 30% from the prior corresponding period.

Investors were also updated on the company’s plasma collection issues.

CSL noted that federal government stimulus packages from early 2021 had driven down the number of donors per week. This momentarily affected plasma levels before soaring again on the back of vaccine momentum, further marketing initiatives, and a “stimulus burn-off”.

As such, plasma collection numbers are down around 20% compared to FY20’s levels.

CSL opened 25 new facilities to attract lapsed and new donors through its doors. In FY22, the company plans to open another 40 centres, expanding its presence, mostly across the United States.

How does the CSL share price compare to the Health Care sector?

Over the last 12 months, the CSL share price has moved 7% higher, with year-to-date also up around 6%. The company’s shares hit a 52-week high of $320.42 in November 2020, before moving in circles.

In contrast, the S&P/ASX 200 Health Care index (ASX: XHJ) has gained 12% from this time last year and is up 11.5% year-to-date. The sectors also registered a record high of 48,213 points in late August.

Undoubtedly, CSL shares are lagging behind the Health Care Index which has continued to accelerate since March 2020.

Based on today’s price, CSL commands a market capitalisation of roughly $137.7 billion, with approximately 455 million shares on issue.

The post How is the CSL (ASX:CSL) share price performing against its sector in 2021? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• How have ASX healthcare shares performed during the August 2021 earnings season?
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Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras owns shares of CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended CSL Ltd. 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 Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price is rising today. That’s after the company confirmed itself and Oil Search Ltd (ASX: OSH) have come to an agreement to merge.

At close of trade yesterday, shares in Santos were $6.03 and Oil Search shares were $3.65. At the time of writing, the Santos share price is up 0.91% to $6.08 while Oil Search shares are up 2.47% to $3.74.

Let’s take a closer look at today’s news.

What’s driving the Santos share price?

Here are the specifics of the deal that is heating up the Santos share price:

• The transaction will be all scrip. Oil Search shareholders will receive 0.6725 Santos shares for each Oil Search share they own.
• Once completed, Oil Search shareholders will own approximately 38.5% of the new company and Santos’s shareholders will own about 61.5%.
• Given the last Santos share price and 2.08 billion Oil Search shares outstanding, today’s deal values Oil Search at about $8.43 billion or $4.06 per share. This is an 11.2% premium on the previous share price.
• The combined value of the new company will be approximately $21 billion, according to the statement.
• The deal is still subject to shareholder approval, regulatory approval and approval from Papua New Guinea courts.

Management commentary

Speaking about the news which could be affecting the Santos share price, Santos chair Keith Spence said:

The merger represents an attractive combination of two industry leaders to create a regional champion of quality, size and scale with a unique and diversified portfolio of long-life, low-cost oil and gas assets.

The merged entity will be well positioned for success in the new era of oil and gas, with strong cash-flow generation from a diverse range of assets providing a platform to self-fund growth and deliver shareholder returns.

Oil Search chair Rick Lee added:

Put simply, this merger provides Oil Search shareholders with a compelling opportunity to participate in a larger entity with significant scale, product mix, ESG and geographic diversity, and access to capital. The combined entity will have the capacity to deliver on an exciting pipeline of organic growth opportunities.

What happens now?

The new company will be led by Santos managing director and CEO Keith Gallagher. PNG courts will hold hearings on the deal by the end of October and, if all goes to plan, the new company should come into existence by 16 December this year.

According to the statement, the merger will result in synergies, pre-tax, of “US$90-115 million per annum (excluding integration and other one-off costs) creating value for both sets of shareholders”.

Santos share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, the Santos share price has increased by about 19%. Year-to-date, however, the share price has fallen around 5%.

The post Santos (ASX:STO) share price climbs as Oil Search merger confirmed appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• Oil Search (ASX: OSH) share price falters after market update
• A closer look at how ASX hydrogen shares are faring in 2021?
• What is the future for the Santos (ASX:STO) share price?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday

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. 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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Like most ASX retail shares, the Dusk Group Ltd (ASX: DSK) share price has been trading sideways for the past couple of months.

Shares such as JB Hi-Fi Limited (ASX: JBH), Accent Group Ltd (ASX: AX1) and Super Retail Group Ltd (ASX: SUL) have largely been range bound amid the cycling of elevated sales and prolonged lockdowns across major Australian cities.

Looking through the potential near-term volatility, Datt Capital considers the fair value for the Dusk share price to be “around $5 a share”, according to a recent article.

That’s a potential upside of 60% on today’s price of $3.10 at the time of writing.

Why this fund is bullish on the Dusk share price

Tailwinds for consumables sector

Datt Capital highlights a combination of “soft and hard factors” that make the Dusk share price an attractive investment proposition.

Dusk is most widely known for scented candles, in addition to diffusers, essential oils and homewares.

In its article, Datt Capital said that the “products are orientated towards making homes and offices pleasant environments, which has become exceptionally important given the recent lockdowns”.

“This ‘soft factor’ advantage translates into hard benefits; for example, the company’s loyalty program now boasts almost 700,000 highly engaged members.

“This translates into exceptional gross margins of almost 70%, while the team has maintained and exercised exceptional capital discipline and allocation decisions. We expect this outperformance to persist over time,” they said.

Dusk pushing through recent lockdowns

The fund was pleased with Dusk’s recent performance amid the Victorian and NSW lockdowns.

“Around half the company’s store network is within these two states, but it has only affected top-line revenue by 28%. This relative outperformance demonstrates that the company’s products are actively sought by its loyal customers, despite the state lockdowns.”

Looking ahead, the fund is hoping that Dusk “may be able to achieve at least 80% of FY21’s revenue, while maintaining an EBIT above $30 million”.

Other Dusk share price drivers

Datt Capital pointed to both domestic and international expansion as another catalyst for the Dusk share price.

It notes that the company is currently running about 122 physical stores in Australia. It plans to grow this figure to about 160 stores throughout Australasia by 2024.

In addition, the fund said: “We believe there is significant scope and potential to begin examining larger international markets such as the UK and US for near-term expansion.”

The post The Dusk (ASX:DSK) share price is worth $5: fund manager appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 Super Retail Group Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Accent Group and Dusk 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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The AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP) share price has struggled this week and landed itself around 3.5% in the red.

That’s behind the return of the broad indices this week, and really just a continuation of the longer-term trend it has been on over the past 12 months.

Let’s dive in a little deeper to understand the full picture.

What has led us to this point?

The AMP share price is still reeling the effects of the Royal Commission into Misconduct into Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry, which turned into a 3-year ordeal for the company.

This has undoubtedly plagued AMP shares over the last three years, particularly after AMP admitted wrongdoing in its “fees for no service” policies that the company was found guilty on.

However, ASIC dropped its investigations into AMP’s conduct in July this year. Keep in mind that the Royal Commissioner had recommended criminal proceedings in the outcomes of the hearing.

Nonetheless, there’s been no recovery for AMP shares from this event. They came off highs of $5.43 back in March of 2018 and have cratered over 81% to currently trade at $1.05.

What else is weighing in?

Alongside this, AMP’s series of failed deals with Ares Management Corp over the last 2 years has been a weighting factor in its share price.

Ares sought to acquire AMP back in 2020, before withdrawing from the deal. However, the pair were back at it again in 2021, trying to establish a joint venture (JV) to hold AMP Capital’s private markets segment.

The deal would have netted AMP a $1.55 payoff. But as they say, history doesn’t repeat itself – it rhymes – and Ares and AMP simply just let the 30-day exclusivity period conclude.

Then there are AMP’s demerger plans to form two separate entities – AMP Limited and Private markets. The former will focus on the retail investing crowd, whereas its other business will be a global investment manager.

AMP’s decision here aligns with the spate of demergers that have occurred or have been proposed for ASX listed entities over the last 12 months.

Not even a robust FY21 earnings report was enough to reverse the longer-term downtrend AMP shares have been stuck in since the beginning of this year.

There’s been no market sensitive information released by the company this week, so the AMP share price is likely decreasing this week as a continuation of the longer-term trend.

AMP share price snapshot

The AMP share price has posted a loss of 33% this year to date, extending the loss over the last 12 months to 33%.

Both of these returns have lagged the S&P/ASX 200 index (ASX: XJO)’s return of 25% over the past year.

The post Here’s why the AMP (ASX:AMP) share price is down 4% in a week appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• How have ASX financial shares performed during the August 2021 earnings season?
• What does the future look like for the AMP (ASX:AMP) share price?
• When was the best day ever on the AMP share price chart?
• The AMP (ASX:AMP) share price is down 28% so far in 2021. Here’s why
• August has been a good month for the AMP (ASX:AMP) share price

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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The Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) share price has been outperforming over the last 12 months.

The online travel agent was hit hard by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic during early 2020 and didn’t truly begin recovering until November last year.

This time last year, shares in Webjet were going for $3.91. Right now, the Webjet share price is $5.94, having gained another 1.37% today.

So, what spurred Webjet’s shares to take off? Let’s take a look.

What’s been driving the Webjet share price?

The last 12 months have been good to the Webjet share price, boosting it by 51%.

For comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has gained 25% over the same period.

Webjet’s best day of the last year was on 10 November 2020.  It’s a day many investors will remember for one extraordinary reason: It was the day that Pfizer Inc (NYSE: PFE) announced it had created a vaccine for COVID-19.

The Webjet share price soared 13.5% as a pathway out of the pandemic was finally realised.

Webjet’s recovery was bolstered again when it released its earnings for the first half of financial year 2021.

While travel restrictions plagued the company over the 6 months ended 31 December 2020, the market seemingly saw past its underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) loss of $40.1 million and a massive fall in revenue.  

While the Webjet share price initially fell on the back of its results, it ended the day 5% higher than it had started.

Most recently, Webjet’s stock surged following the release of a trading update late last month.

Within the update, Webjet announced it expects to be cash-flow positive for the first half of financial year 2022. Of course, Webjet recently changed its financial year to run from 1 April to 31 March. Therefore, it expects to announce its first-half earnings in November.

Additionally, it announced its WebBeds business finally returned to profitability in July.

WebBeds operates as a business-to-business provider of accommodation. Webjet stated it managed to get back into the green as travel restrictions eased in Europe and North America.  

The Webjet share price gained 3.4% on the day of the update. It has since gained another 4.9%.

The post Here’s why the Webjet (ASX:WEB) share price is up 50% this last year appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• How have ASX travel shares performed during the August 2021 earnings season?
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• These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares
• How do you value the Webjet (ASX:WEB) share price?
• Why Metalstech, Mineral Resources, TechnologyOne, & Webjet are storming higher

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 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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Iron ore prices have plunged more than 40% since May, dragging the Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) share price well into negative year-to-date territory.

At its highest point in the past 12 months, the Fortescue share price was up almost 50% by late July to $26.58. It then rapidly deteriorated and is trading today at $18.01, a gain of just 0.67% over the year.

However, Citi’s veteran mining analyst Paul McTaggart thinks there could be some benefits to lower iron ore prices, according to a report in the Australian Financial Review (AFR).

What’s so good about lower iron ore prices?

Well, lower iron ore prices isn’t exactly a positive factor for the Fortescue share price.

After all, higher iron ore prices were the main driver behind Fortescue’s bumper FY21 full-year results, which included a massive fully franked dividend of $2.11 per share.

According to the AFR report, McTaggart believes “falling iron ore prices will reduce the competition facing Australian miners, as higher-cost producers from countries outside Australia, Brazil and to a lesser extent India are forced out of the market”.

The report said that Citi estimates if iron ore falls below $US100 a tonne, China’s imports from outside the major producing nations would fall from 200 million tonnes a year to 120 million tonnes.

McTaggart also highlighted that the potential entry of production from Guinea, Africa appears to be far less certain following the coup that deposed president Alpha Conde.

The Simandou project in Guinea is expected to produce 150 million tonnes per annum of iron ore at full capacity. It is partly owned by Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO).

However, the coup is likely to add greater uncertainty to the “already complicated and expensive project”, the report said.

What does this mean for the Fortescue share price?

Fortescue’s record FY21 net profit of US$10,295 million would not be possible without high iron ore prices. The company’s average realised price increased from US$79/dry metric tonne (dmt) in 2020 to US$135 dmt in FY21.

From a production perspective, Fortescue isn’t expecting a significant jump in iron ore shipments. It is forecasting 180 to 185 million tonnes in FY22 compared to 182.2 million tonnes in FY21.

Perhaps what McTaggart is getting at is that Australia’s iron ore giants will be in a far better position than most to weather lower iron ore prices due to their highly competitive margins.

The post Could falling iron ore prices be good for the Fortescue (ASX:FMG) share price? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 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 Rhinomed Ltd (ASX: RNO) share price is on the move during mid-morning trade. This comes after the medical device company provided the market with a positive release in regards to its Rhinoswab product.

At the time of writing, Rhinomed shares are up 20% to 45 cents apiece. In comparison, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) has travelled 0.60% higher to 7,704 points.

What did Rhinomed announce?

Investors are fighting to get a hold of Rhinomed shares after the company announced a deal with the Victorian government.

According to the release, Rhinomed advised the Victorian Department of Health has made an initial purchase order for 1 million Rhinoswabs.

Pleasingly, this follows the recent New South Wales Health Pathology order of one million Rhinoswabs on 11 August.

Rhinomed’s Rhinoswab technology is stated to be more comfortable and easier to use than the standard nasal swab. The medical product is able to capture a larger sample, and can quickly process the data, thus reducing queues and waiting times.

As a result of the orders, Rhinomed is ramping up its manufacturing capabilities to accommodate the growing demand.

The Rhinoswab is registered with the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) and has a European CE mark.

Rhinomed CEO, Michael Johnson commented:

We are pleased to receive further validation of the Rhinoswab from the Victorian Government.

The Rhinoswab can make a meaningful impact on the SARS-CoV-2 testing process and enable more people to be tested quickly and easily. With well over 2 billion SARS- CoV-2 tests having been carried out globally over the past 18 months (close to 26 million in Australia alone), there is a major opportunity for Rhinoswab to radically improve the testing process, clinical outcomes and user experience…

The Victorian government order represents approximately 35% to 45% of unaudited FY21 revenues of $3.9 million.

About the Rhinomed share price

Since this time last year, Rhinomed shares have accelerated 450%, with year-to-date gains above 175%. The company’s share price reached a multi-year high of 48.5 cents today before some profit-taking took place.

Rhinomed presides a market capitalisation of roughly $111.6 million and has around 253 million shares on its books.

The post Why the Rhinomed (ASX:RNO) share price is soaring 20% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Why the Rhinomed (ASX:RNO) share price is rocketing 23% today
• Why Core Lithium, IRESS, Lake Resources, & Rhinomed are storming higher
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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 Aston Minerals Ltd (ASX: ASO) share price is rocketing up 15% at time of writing, having earlier posted gains of more than 18%.

Below we take a look at the ASX resource explorer’s latest drill results that appear to be driving investor interest.

What did Aston report?

Aston Minerals’ share price is soaring after the company reported promising drill results at its Edleston Project in the Canadian province of Ontario.

The results, from drill hole DDED21-059, intersected “semi massive, blebby, and disseminated styles of nickel sulphide mineralisation” at Aston’s Boomerang Target.

Commenting on the results, Aston Minerals managing director, Dale Ginn said:

To have such an early success in terms of hitting semi massive, blebby and disseminated styles of nickel sulphide mineralisation in the second hole provides very strong encouragement of a proof of concept of the Boomerang Target. The mineralisation intersected starts within 50 metres of surface and is therefore ideal for targeting using electromagnetic (EM) methods.

Aston is still drilling deeper on the promising hole, currently down to 262 metres.

Once the drilling is completed, the company said it will conduct downhole EM surveys to determine the extent of sulphide mineralisation as well as identifying potential additional off-hole conductors.

It has also just received an airborne EM survey of the area conducted by the project’s former operators. The company is currently analysing that data.

Aston Minerals’ executive chairman, Tolga Kumova added:

We are astounded by the potential scale of the system. With only our second hole into this 5-kilometre-long strike, we have uncovered broad scale disseminated nickel-cobalt sulphides.

With the availability of low cost, environmentally responsible hydroelectric power, the project has the potential of providing a green source of nickel into what is emerging as a region of global significance with respect to battery manufacturing and electric vehicles.

Aston Minerals share price snapshot

The Aston Minerals share price has been a standout performer in 2021, up 288% year-to-date. That compares to a gain of 11% on the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO).

Over the past month Aston Minerals shares have gained 19%.

The post Why the Aston Minerals (ASX:ASO) share price is rocketing 15% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• September hasn’t been a great month so far for the AGL (ASX:AGL) share price
• How have ASX healthcare shares performed during the August 2021 earnings season?
• It hasn’t been a great week for the Woolworths (ASX:WOW) share price
• Ramelius (ASX:RMS) share price lifts on boosted resource statement
• Up 1,450% in 2021, why Province Resources (ASX:PRL) share price is up again today

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 AGL Energy Limited (ASX: AGL) share price is falling again in morning trade today, down 0.24% to $6.14.

It hasn’t been a fantastic month for AGL shares as they continue to swim in the sea of red that is negative shareholder returns.

Whereas the S&P/ASX 200 index (ASX: XJO) has slipped 1.5% into the red since trading started in September, AGL shares have fallen 6%.

Let’s dive in a little deeper to understand what’s going on here.

AGL share price overview

AGL shares have struggled the entire time over the last 12 months. Back in September 2020 for instance, the AGL share price was at a high of $14.70. That means AGL’s shares would have to climb back up 139% to reach those levels from where it trades now at $6.14.

Over the past 18 months, AGL shares have repeatedly set new all-time lows, breaching levels not seen on their chart for 19 years.

However, it has been over the past year that the AGL share price has really fared poorly. It has taken a significant nosedive, and barrel rolled to its current all-time low.

Looking at AGL’s share price chart over the past 12 months, there are no periods of “reversal”, or “rest” for that matter. It’s just been one long continuous drive down south.

The drivers of this price action are centred on AGL’s planned demerger into two separate entities, and the company’s ongoing saga with climate risk management.

However, there have been a number of other setbacks in this regard, such as temporary closures at its Liddell coal-fired power station in New South Wales. The company recognised significant losses across the board in its FY21 earnings report.

AGL faces mounting pressure on climate change disclosures

AGL was recently slapped with an activist shareholder resolution ahead of its annual general meeting (AGM), scheduled on September 22.

The resolution was filed by the Australiasia Centre for Corporate Responsibility (ACCR). Specifically, the ACCR is unsatisfied with AGL’s commitment to set “Paris-aligned emission reduction targets”.

The ACCR then reiterated its posture on the matter in an investor briefing released last month.

Shareholder proxy adviser Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) has now weighed in, and has shown its support for the resolution, according to reporting from The Australian.

As such, ISS has recommended that AGL shareholders vote to support the resolution at the company’s upcoming AGM.

It said supporting the resolution “should not be unreasonable” seeing as AGL plans to let shareholders vote on climate change disclosures anyway, should the company successfully complete its planned demerger.

ISS is adamant the resolution will also increase transparency on the demerger, and allow shareholders to make an informed decision prior to their vote on the matter at AGL’s AGM.

AGL share price snapshot

The AGL share price has had a horrendous year, posting a loss of nearly 50% since January 1.

It is also down 58% over the past 12 months, making AGL one of the ASX’s worst performing shares in the past year. In the last month alone, AGL shares have fallen a further 17%.

Both of these results have lagged the S&P/ASX 200 index (ASX: XJO)’s return of around 25% over the last year.

The post September hasn’t been a great month so far for the AGL (ASX:AGL) share price appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• The AGL (ASX:AGL) share price is now trading on a forecast 11.7% dividend yield

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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