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The market may be pushing higher today but the Xero Limited (ASX: XRO) share price hasn’t been able to follow its lead.

In afternoon trade, the cloud accounting and business platform provider’s shares are down 1.5% to $141.65.

Why is the Xero share price under pressure today?

The Xero share price has come under a spot of pressure today following the release of a broker note out of Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG).

According to the note, the broker has downgraded the company’s shares to an underperform rating and held firm with its $130.00 price target.

Based on the current Xero share price, this implies potential downside of 8% over the next 12 months.

What did the broker say?

The note reveals that Macquarie made the move largely on valuation grounds. The broker doesn’t believe that its growth outlook warrants its shares trading on such lofty multiples. It would prefer to see them trading on fairer multiples before becoming more positive.

The reason Macquarie isn’t as bullish on Xero’s growth outlook as some analysts is due to its belief that the company is running out of room to grow in the ANZ market.

Macquarie notes that Xero now has a 53% share of the small to medium sized business market in the region. In light of this, it feels that its organic subscriber growth in the market will slow to the low single digits in the coming years.

This is disappointing because the lifetime value of its ANZ subscribers is more than double that of its international subscribers.

What do others think?

One broker that doesn’t appear to agree with Macquarie is Goldman Sachs. It recently retained its buy rating and lifted its price target to $165.00.

Based on the latest Xero share price, this implies potential upside of 27% over the next 12 months.

Goldman doesn’t appear concerned that its ANZ growth will slow. It is expecting ANZ EBITDA to increase 142% between FY 2022 and FY 2030 from NZ$512 million to NZ$1,225 million.

Time will tell which broker has made the right call.

The post Xero (ASX:XRO) share price lower following broker downgrade appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Here’s why the Xero (ASX:XRO) share price is up 5% in a week

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 Xero. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Xero. 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 Vmoto Ltd (ASX: VMT) share price is in the green today following a business update on its second quarter performance.

At the time of writing, the electric-powered scooter manufacturer’s shares are up 2.74% at 37.5 cents, after earlier reaching an intraday high of 39 cents.

What’s driving the Vmoto share price higher?

Investors appear pleased with the company’s latest release, sending Vmoto shares higher.

According to the announcement, Vmoto stated it delivered strong operational and commercial performance for the second quarter of FY21.

For the 3 months ending 30 June, the company achieved sales of 7,854 units, reflecting a 23% increase on the prior corresponding period. International sales accounted for 7,503 units with Vmoto experiencing strong momentum in overseas markets. Surprisingly, just under 5% of units were sold in China, indicating significant growth runway.

The company declared a healthy cash balance of $16.7 million with no bank debt. The group noted that the strong cash position allows it to pursue revenue-generating initiatives.

In addition, Vmoto recorded 9,636 units on its order book. This comes after the company secured and delivered the 5,904 units to Greenmo Group during the first half of FY21.

Pleasingly, the company expects sales to continue to increase from both new and existing customers in H2 FY21.

A number of international distributors were appointed for the warehousing, distribution, and marketing of its B2C range of electric vehicles. These included distributors across Indonesia, Mauritius, Bolivia, Czech Republic, Brazil, Cayman Islands, and Azerbaijan.

Vmoto also supplied samples and is engaged in discussions with potential B2B and B2C distributors and customers around the world. Its biggest markets could be Mexico, Pakistan, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain and the United States, along with others.

About the Vmoto share price

It’s been a volatile 12 months for Vmoto shares, down almost 22%. The company’s share price appears to have been hampered by the ongoing impact of COVID-19, forcing restrictions on movement.

At today’s price, Vmoto has a market capitalisation of around $104 million with approximately 278 million shares on issue.

The post Why the Vmoto (ASX:VMT) share price is scooting today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Xero (ASX:XRO) share price lower following broker downgrade
• The Archtis (ASX:AR9) share price slides on quarterly update
• Why Tesla stock bounced ahead of earnings
• Is the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price a buy or a sell?
• Analysts rate these ASX lithium miners as buys

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 Archtis Ltd (ASX: AR9) share price is down today, though rebounding strongly from earlier losses. At time of writing Archtis shares are down 2.94% after earlier posting losses of more than 7%.

Below, we take a look at the ASX cyber security company’s quarterly update for the quarter ending 30 June (Q4).

What quarterly update did Archtis report?

Archtis’ share price remains down at time of writing despite the company reporting a record-breaking quarter.

According to the release, total unaudited revenue for Q4 in the 2021 financial year came in at $1.25 million. That’s an increase of 80% on Q3 revenue. It’s also up 1,289% from Q4 in the 2020 financial year, when revenue came in at $162,000.

Archtis said the leap in revenue was mostly thanks to a 39% increase in annual recurring licensing revenue, as well as consulting services derived from its Australian Department of Defence contract.

The innovative software developer also realised an 86% increase in gross profits quarter-on-quarter, to $1.48 million, up from $797,000 in Q3.

With more money going into sales and marketing, operating expenses for the quarter were $2.3 million. This was up 8.6% from the prior quarter. As at 30 June, the company has a cash balance of $12.7 million, compared to $12.0 million in Q3.

Commenting on the results, Archtis’ CEO Daniel Lai said:

Archtis delivered a strong record-breaking quarter. We set out with a plan to scale the business through the expansion of a global sales distribution network, increased market awareness and technology-leading product innovation. This has provided shareholders with another quarter of record revenue growth, strong customer cash receipts and an increasing recurring licensing business.

The company credited the strong growth to some large new customer wins as well as renewals across government agencies, defence contractors and corporations around the world.

Archtis share price snapshot

The Archtis share price has gained 43% over the past 12 months, compared to a gain of 25% on the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) over that same time.

Year-to-date the Archtis share price is up 6%.

The post The Archtis (ASX:AR9) share price slides on quarterly update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• ASX 200 companies take heed: Telstra (ASX:TLS) boss says Australia faces ‘unprecedented’ cyber threat

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

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

What happened

While Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) stock has been a big winner over the last year and a half, it’s actually down about 6% year to date, underperforming the overall market. That is one reason investors are awaiting the company’s second-quarter results due after the closing bell today. That anticipation has Tesla shares trading about 3% higher Monday, as of 1 p.m. EDT.

So what

The leading electric car company’s second-quarter earnings report comes on the same day that a closely watched potential rival began trading publicly. Lucid Motors, which expects to deliver its first luxury electric sedans later this year, is now listed on the Nasdaq stock market. But for today, investors are focused more on what Tesla will say later this afternoon.

Now what

Tesla’s second-quarter report comes after the company previously announced it produced more than 206,000 vehicles in the three months ended June 30. That’s more than twice the 82,272 vehicles the company manufactured in 2020’s second quarter. Analysts think that large increase helped the company generate record revenue and profits in the second quarter.

Expectations are for revenue to soar to about $11.4 billion, compared to $6 billion in the year-ago period. The average analyst estimate is for profit of $1.20 per share, according to data from MarketWatch.

Tesla investors will also be watching how Lucid will perform once it ramps up production. The Lucid Air sedan is expected to be the first electric vehicle to provide a range of more than 500 miles, and could potentially challenge Tesla’s Model S domination of the high-end electric car market. But for today, the upcoming financial report this afternoon is what investors are looking forward to.

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

The post Why Tesla stock bounced ahead of earnings appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

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

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The Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) share price has been volatile in 2021 so far and now there’s a question of whether it’s good value or not.

The buy now, pay later business has been down to $6.70 this year, but it has been as high as almost $14. So, it has seen a hefty decline since February 2021.

Last week the company gave an update for its FY21 fourth quarter.

The numbers

It reported record group quarterly revenue of $129.9 million, up 104% year on year. Zip pointed to record monthly revenue in June, annualising at $537.2 million.

Zip has seen record quarterly transaction volume of $1.8 billion, up 116% year on year. There were also record transaction numbers for the quarter of 14.2 million (up 230% year on year).

Customer numbers increased by 87% year on year to 7.3 million.

Zip is continuing to executive on its global strategy, agreeing to require the remaining shares in both Twisto Payments (in Europe) and Spotii (in the Middle East). The quarter also saw Zip launch organically into Canada and Mexico.

The business revealed very strong growth in the US. American revenue improved by 280% to $64.3 million, transaction values increased 247% to $857.1 million and US transaction numbers went up 250% to 4.9 million. Revenue as a percentage of total transaction value (TTV) was maintained at 7%, continuing to deliver “market-leading” unit economics.

In its first full quarter of trading, the Zip UK segment saw revenue of $1 million, with a transaction volume of $13.9 million.

‘Zip Business’, which is focusing on small businesses, saw revenue growth of 39% quarter on quarter to $3.2 million. That was on volume of $38.7 million, an increase of 79% quarter on quarter (or 430% year on year).

Zip managing director and CEO Larry Diamond said:

We are now a truly global player with a presence in 12 months, and this is a real point of difference as we target global retailers and fulfil our mission to become the first payment choice every day.

We believe Zip can become the most fair and responsible brand in the world, on the side of merchants and consumers.

Is the Zip share price a buy or not?

There are very differing opinions about the buy now, pay later business.

Citi is very positive on the business, with a buy rating and a price target of $10.25. That suggests Zip shares could rise around 50% over the next 12 months. The ability to shop anywhere Visa is accepted with Quadpay in the US offers a good positive for the broker.

But there’s also the broker Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) with sell rating and a price target of $6.15. That suggests a decline of almost 10% over the next 12 months. The broker isn’t sure about Zip’s move to change the name of Quadpay to Zip considering it’s the name Quadpay that consumers know. The broker is also concerned about rising competition in the US.

The post Is the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price a buy or a sell? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell today
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• Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price tumbles 4% on Monday. Here’s why
• These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares
• 6 ASX shares to rocket when COVID Delta passes

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Macquarie 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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If you’re looking to diversify your portfolio, then you might want to look at adding a little exposure to the resources sector.

But which shares should you consider? Two lithium miners that could be worth considering are listed below. Here’s why they are highly rated:

Galaxy Resources Limited (ASX: GXY)

The first ASX mining share to consider is Galaxy. It is a leading lithium producer that owns the world class Mt Cattlin operation in Western Australia. It also has the James Bay asset in Canada and Sal De Vida asset in Argentina.

In addition, Galaxy is on the verge of merging with rival Orocobre Limited (ASX: ORE). It is a lithium miner with operations in Argentina. This includes the Olaroz Lithium Project in the Jujuy Province of northern Argentina and Borax Argentina in the Salta-Jujuy region.

If the merger goes ahead as planned, management believes it will create a new force in the global lithium sector. The merged entity will also be the world’s fifth largest lithium chemicals company with a diversified production base and exciting growth platform. Management also sees opportunities to unlock significant synergies in the future.

Macquarie is very positive on Galaxy as well. Last week it put an outperform rating and $4.90 price target on the company’s shares. It also put an outperform rating and $8.60 price target on Orocobre’s shares.

Mineral Resources Limited (ASX: MIN)

Another ASX mining share to look at is this mining and mining services company.

Mineral Resources owns the Wodgina operation. It is one of the largest known hard rock lithium deposits in the world with a production life of over 30 years. The company also has the Mt Marion Lithium project in its portfolio. This project is operated by Mineral Resources under a life-of-mine mining services contract and is jointly owned by it and Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium.

Another commodity the company has exposure to its iron ore. This is through the Iron Valley Iron Ore project and the Koolyanobbing Iron Ore project in Western Australia.

Demand for these two commodities is very strong at the moment. As a result, they are commanding very high prices, which bodes well for Mineral Resources’ profits and dividends.

It is for this reason that Macquarie is very positive on Mineral Resources. The broker currently has an outperform rating and $75.00 price target on its shares.

The post Analysts rate these ASX lithium miners as buys appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here’s why the Mineral Resources (ASX:MIN) share price is up 27% in the last month
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• Why BHP, Damstra, Galaxy, & Piedmont Lithium shares are racing higher
• Why the Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS) share price is up 9% this Thursday

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of Galaxy Resources Limited. 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 Origin Energy Ltd (ASX: ORG) share price is starting this Tuesday off on a positive note. Origin shares at the time of writing, are up 0.67% to $4.50 a share. That’s not quite as buoyant as the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which is up 0.36% today to a new all-time high as we speak. But it’s still a good performance.

However, Origin’s good graces don’t hold up as well if we zoom out a little. This energy company remains down 6.8% year to date in 2021 so far, and an even more disappointing 21.5% over the past 12 months.

The pain doesn’t end there either. Origin is also down 18.2% over the past five years. Additionally, at today’s share price, an investor can pick up Origin shares for the same price as what it would have cost them back in early 2004.

This might be music to at least some investors’ ears though. As any dividend investor would know, lower share prices mean higher starting dividend yields. And, as an energy utility company, Origin is already known as an ASX dividend heavyweight.

So on today’s pricing, Origin shares offer a trailing dividend yield of 5%. This stems from Origin’s last two dividend payments – a final dividend of 10 cents a share that was paid out in October last year. And an interim dividend of 12.5 cents per share that was paid out on 26 March this year. Both dividends were unfranked.

But that’s all in the past now, so what of the future? Is the Origin share price a buy for this 5% dividend yield – objectively a very attractive yield, especially in this era of near-zero interest rates?

Are Origin shares a buy for the 5% dividend yield today?

Well, one broker who is answering in the affirmative today is investment bank Goldman Sachs. Goldman currently rates the Origin share price as a ‘buy’, with a 12-month share price target of $6.40 a share. That implies a potential upside of just over 42% on the current share price.

Goldman is bullish on Origin as it sees the rising oil price as a cushion for the current low price of wholesale electricity that is battering Origin’s near-term prospects. Goldman sees FY2022 as a tough year for the company, but it also sees the headwinds it’s facing as temporary beyond FY2022.

But what about Origin’s dividend, the reason we’re all here? Well, Goldman Sachs also sees plenty of upside in this department too. The broker reckons Origin’s annual dividend will rise to 26.5 cents per share for FY2021, and keep rising until it hits 39.4 cents per share in FY2023.

That implies a potential forward FY2023 yield of 8.78% on the current Origin share price.

The post Should you buy Origin Energy (ASX:ORG) shares in July 2021 for the 5% dividend yield? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a solid gain. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 0.5% to 7,429.6 points.

Four ASX shares that are climbing more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are storming higher:

BlueScope Steel Limited (ASX: BSL)

The BlueScope share price is up 4.5% to $24.03. Investors have been buying the steel producer’s shares following the release of its preliminary full year results. That result revealed that BlueScope outperformed its second half EBITDA guidance. This led to the company achieving full year underlying EBITDA of ~$1.72 billion. Management advised that this was driven by both strong demand and pricing.

Japara Healthcare Ltd (ASX: JHC)

The Japara share price has jumped 18% to $1.38. The catalyst for this was news that the aged care operator has received a takeover offer from Calvary. The Catholic not-for-profit organisation has offered $1.40 cash per share. The Japara board has unanimously recommended shareholders vote in favour of the scheme.

OZ Minerals Limited (ASX: OZL)

The OZ Minerals share price has stormed 8% higher to $23.82. Investors have been buying the copper producer’s shares after the release of its second quarter update. OZ Minerals performed strongly during the quarter. This led to management making positive revisions to its FY 2021 guidance. It has increased its gold production guidance and reduced its cash costs guidance.

Temple & Webster Group Ltd (ASX: TPW)

The Temple & Webster share price is up 11% to $12.86 following the release of a strong full year result. According to the release, the online furniture and homewares retailer delivered an 85% increase in revenue to $326.3 million and a 141% jump in EBITDA to $20.5 million. This was driven by a strong increase in active customers, repeat use, and increased spending per active customer. The company also revealed that FY 2022 has started strongly, with revenue up 39% between 1 July and 24 July.

The post Why BlueScope, Japara, OZ Minerals, & Temple & Webster are storming higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Temple & Webster (ASX:TPW) share price charges 7% higher on strong FY 2021 result

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 Temple & Webster Group Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Temple & Webster Group 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 Nuix Ltd (ASX: NXL) share price is falling again today despite no news having been released by the company.

In fact, the most recent price sensitive news from the company hit the market in the middle of June. However, Nuix has been in the headlines multiple times since.

The Nuix share price is down 2.61% today. Shares in the technology company are swapping hands for $2.61.

Nuix shares also fell yesterday. Today’s drop brings its total losses for the week so far to about 6%.

Let’s take a look at the latest news about Nuix.

The latest news on Nuix

The Nuix share price is falling this week amid news of the Australian Securities and Investment Commission’s (ASIC) investigation into the company.

The company was back in the headlines on Sunday when The Australian reported ASIC Commissioner Cathie Armour has stood down from the body’s investigation into Nuix.

ASIC is currently investigating whether Nuix’s initial public offering (IPO) contained false statements.

Since its ASX debut in December 2020, the prophesied market darling has released 2 revenue downgrades, been the subject of an investigative media campaign, been investigated by the Australian Federal Police, and seen its CEO and CFO walk out.

Previously, Labor senator Deborah O’Neill questioned whether Commissioner Armour properly investigated Nuix’s IPO.

Armour is a former Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) executive and, according to The Australian, has worked alongside Nuix board member Daniel Phillips.

Macquarie backed Nuix in the tech company’s float and still holds around 30% of Nuix’s shares.

In June, O’Neill used parliamentary privilege to flag Commissioner Amour’s involvement in Nuix’s IPO, saying:

What did Commissioner Armour not investigate? Why did she not investigate? What contact did she have from Macquarie in regard to this IPO that led her to such a complete abdication of responsibility in this regard? Did she even read the Nuix prospectus? Did any of her fellow commissioners at ASIC read and act on concerns validly raised?

Nuix shares fell 2.5% during the session following O’Neill’s comments.

Nuix share price snapshot

It’s no surprise the Nuix share price has been suffering on the ASX.

Right now, its shares have dropped 67% since its IPO, within which Nuix shares were offered to investors for $5.31 apiece. In early 2021 the Nuix share price hit its all-time high of $11.86.  

The company has a market capitalisation of around $850 million, with approximately 317 million shares outstanding.

The post The Nuix (ASX:NXL) share price is falling today. Here’s why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: Just like that… ASX back to record highs
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• Nuix (ASX:NXL) share price plunges 7% in 7 days
• Could the ASA send the Macquarie (ASX: MQG) share price plummeting?
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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 recommended Nuix Pty Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Macquarie 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 A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M) share price is sliding again today, down 3% in late morning trade.

A2 Milk already holds the unfortunate title as leader of the Dogs of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) over the past 12 months. That’s the list of the 10 worst performing shares on the ASX 200.

And with the A2 Milk share price down 68% since this time last year, the company edges out ASX 200 tech share Appen Ltd (ASX: APX), down 66%, for the worst performing share.

Year-to-date, A2 Milk is the third worst performing share on the ASX 200, down 46% so far in 2021. Appen, in case you’re wondering, is down 50% this calendar year.

What’s going on with the A2 Milk share price?

The A2 Milk shares hit an all time closing high of $19.83 per share on 3 July 2020. At time of writing it’s trading for $6.19 per share, down 69% from the record.

Though it’s worth noting that investors who bought shares when the company first listed in April 2015 will still be sitting on paper gains of more than 1,000%.

The A2 Milk share price received a bit of a reprieve earlier this month when the company reported it had acquired a 75% interest in Mataura Valley Milk, with China Animal Husbandry Group retaining the other 25%.

And it’s China that many analysts are pointing to as putting pressure on the A2 Milk share price. Specifically, fears of increased regulation on dairy products as the Chinese government ramps up regulations across numerous imports.

The resurgence of COVID-19 in Australia and the resulting lockdowns also appear to be driving concern over shorter-term demand.

The post A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) share price slides 3% in morning trade appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• ASX 200 midday update: BlueScope & OZ Minerals updates impress
• Lynas share price soars, BHP and Rio on watch, A2 on the naughty list. Scott Phillips on Nine’s Late News
• Why a2 Milk, Cann, Flight Centre, & GPT shares are tumbling lower
• Here’s why the Bubs (ASX:BUB) share price is down 4% on Monday
• These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares

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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