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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to end the week in a subdued manner. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down slightly to 7,384.2 points.

Four ASX shares that are not letting that hold them back are listed below. Here’s why they are charging higher:

Bigtincan Holdings Ltd (ASX: BTH)

The Bigtincan share price has jumped 7% to $1.13. Investors have been buying the sales enablement platform provider’s shares following the release of its quarterly update. Bigtincan reported cash receipts for the fourth quarter of $14.7 million. This was a 40% increase on the prior corresponding period. Overall cash receipts for FY 2021 increased 29% year on year to $41.9 million.

Electro Optic Systems Hldg Ltd (ASX: EOS)

The Electro Optic Systems share price has surged 9% higher to $4.53. The catalyst for this was the release of the communications, defence, and space company’s quarterly update. Investors were pleased to see the company record total cash receipts of $65.5 million for the three months. A total of $30 million came from an overseas contract with Diehl Defence. Positively, EOS expects “a further $100 million from this business in H2 2021.”

Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN)

The Evolution share price is up 5% to $4.28. Investors have been buying the gold miner’s shares following the completion of its $400 million institutional placement. Evolution is raising funds for the acquisition of the Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) assets in the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia. Credit Suisse responded positively to the news, upgrading its shares to an outperform rating with a $4.70 price target.

Western Areas Ltd (ASX: WSA)

The Western Areas share price is up 4% to $2.50. This follows the release of the nickel producer’s fourth quarter update. According to the release, the company produced 4,622 nickel tonnes in concentrate during the quarter. This was up 8% on the previous quarter and the best quarterly performance of the year. This brought its total nickel tonnes in concentrate to 16,180 tonnes, which was in line with guidance. Also in line was its cash cost of $4.23 per pound.

The post Why Bigtincan, EOS, Evolution, & Western Areas shares are charging higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Electro Optic Systems (ASX:EOS) share price up 9% on quarterly report
• ASX 200 midday update: Crown-Star merger talks end, Evolution jumps
• Bigtincan (ASX:BTH) share price jumps 9% on quarterly results
• Why the Evolution (ASX:EVN) share price is charging higher today
• Are these ASX 200 gold miner shares buys?

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 BIGTINCAN FPO and Electro Optic Systems Holdings Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended BIGTINCAN FPO and Electro Optic Systems Holdings 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 Dubber Corp Ltd (ASX: DUB) share price is on the radar today after hitting a new 52-week high in early trading.

Dubber shares are now exchanging hands at $3.23 apiece, after retracing from the intraday high of $3.39.

Today’s gains mark a 0.6% step into the green from market open. Whilst there has been no market sensitive news today, let’s take a look at what Dubber has been up to lately.

Quick recap on Dubber Corporation

Dubber’s main line of business is in the provision of call recording.

It does this by operating as a cloud platform, via the Dubber Connect service, that records and captures calls alongside other forms of communication.

Dubber has a market capitalisation of $823 million at the time of writing.

What has Dubber been up to lately?

On 3 June, the company released that its call recording service is now a “standard feature on Cisco Webex calling and UCM cloud”.

The upgrade comes at no extra cost to users and enables Webex Calling and UCM users to record “any and all conversations as an included feature” on the platform.

In effect, it permits users to extend storage, record videos, transcribe audio, and perform “sentiment analysis or AI-enriched insights”.

Dubber says users with “compliance or regulatory requirements” will be the main benefactors of the upgrade, which it claims is a huge plus due to a “significant shift to remote workforce arrangements”.

Speaking on the announcement, Dubber chief executive Steve McGovern said:

Dubber Foundation benefits Cisco and Dubber customers with a required capability as a standard feature while providing for the broader journey whereby the content of calls can be transformed into rich, usable data for compliance, productivity, insights and customer engagement.

McGovern also added the partnership “provides Dubber with a significant additional revenue stream…to accelerate growth in our core products” whilst protecting its current revenue models.

Dubber shares jumped 12% in the six days following the announcement, and have climbed a total of 14% since that time.

Therefore, it stands to reason that investors continue buying Dubber shares on the back of this fundamental momentum in the company’s growth engine.

Dubber Corp share price snapshot

The Dubber share price has spent this year to date in the green, posting a return of 94% since January 1.

This extends the previous 12 month’s return of 130%, outpacing the S&P / ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO)’s return of ~21% over the same time frame.

Dubber shares have also gained ~12% in the last 5 trading sessions to now.

The post Dubber Corp (ASX:DUB) share price hits 52 week high today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 2 highly rated ASX tech shares tipped for strong long term growth

The author Zach Bristow has no positions in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Dubber Corporation. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Dubber Corporation. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) share price looking to finish the week on a positive note after a sharp selloff on Thursday.

At the time of writing, the Zip share price is up 2.86% to $7.19.

Tech sector and large cap BNPL shares making headway on Friday

The S&P/ASX Information Technology (INDEXASX: XIJ) index is pushing higher on Friday, up 1.63%.

In addition, leading ASX-listed BNPL shares are also making gains alongside the Zip share price.

Headlining the gains is the Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) share price, rallying 3.07% to $109.09.

The Sezzle Inc (ASX: SZL) share price is also eking out some gains, up 0.62% to $8.12.

Despite the larger end of the BNPL town making headway on Friday, the same can’t be said about the smaller BNPL players.

Splitit Ltd (ASX: SPT), Openpay Group Ltd (ASX: OPY), Laybuy Holdings Ltd (ASX: LBY) and Humm Group Ltd (ASX: HUM) have all failed to bounce on Friday, falling 0.94%, 2.99%, 1.08% and 1.01% respectively.

What happened to the Zip share price yesterday?

The Zip share price took a 7.9% tumble on Thursday after the release of its quarterly update.

The company delivered classic triple digit growth across key performance metrics, including a 116% year-on-year increase in quarterly total transaction volume to $1.8 billion and a 104% increase in quarterly revenue to $129.9 million.

Despite a well-rounded announcement with strong growth figures and continued geographic expansion, it might have missed lofty broker expectations.

The selling pressure on Thursday witnessed just over 30 million Zip shares change hands, compared to its 10-day average of about 13.6 million shares.

The post Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price gaining on Friday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here’s what brokers think about the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price
• The Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price is gaining 3% today
• Zip share price falls, Pilbara Minerals flies. And the BHP share price gets a Tesla bounce. Scott Phillips on Nine’s Late News
• Why Kogan, Service Stream, Whispir, & Zip shares are sinking
• Here are 3 ASX 200 shares flying around the markets today

Motley Fool contributor Kerry Sun has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Humm Group Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) share price is firmly in the red today. This comes after two leading brokers provided an update following yesterday’s quarterly report and a major asset sale.

At the time of writing, the Australian gold miner’s shares are down 5.86%, trading at $10.13.

What’s did Northern Star report?

The Northern Star share price is faltering in early afternoon trade despite revealing it has divested its Kundana assets to Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) on Thursday. The price tag for Kundana’s operations is listed for $400 million.

In addition, the company also announced yesterday that it hit its FY21 guidance.

According to its release, Northern Star achieved a strong operational and financial result for the 2021 June quarter.

Gold sales during the three months totalled 444, 012 ounces at an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of $1,459 per ounce. This brings gold sold for the full-year (FY21) to 1.6 million ounces at an ASIC of $1,483 per ounce.

Northern Star highlighted that this was in-line with its FY21 guidance of 1.5 million ounces to 1.7 million ounces. AISC also came within the guidance range of $1,390 to A$1,520 per ounce.

Net mine cash flow for the quarter came to $182 million. The miner attributed this to investments of $176 million in growth capital and $39 million in exploration activities.

Northern Star declared a healthy balance sheet with a liquidity of $1.14 billion, including $338 million in undrawn revolving facilities. Cash and bullion stood at $803 million, along with $662 million in corporate bank debt.

The company’s hedge book (total outstanding contracts and transactions) is at 801,570 ounces at an AISC of $2,286 per ounce.

Reserves lifted 8% to 21 million ounces and resources grew by 15% to 56 million ounces over 9-month period. Closing ore stockpiles are currently sitting at 3.2 million ounces.

Words from the managing director

Northern Star managing director Stuart Tonkin welcomed the company’s result, saying:

It was a strong operational performance from our recently-merged team with production and costs comfortably in line with the undertakings we provided to the market.

This flowed through to our financial results, with cash flow rising significantly from the previous quarter, leaving us with cash and bullion of more than A$800M at the end of the financial year.

Mr Tonkin also commented on its merger with Saracen Mineral Holdings, adding:

As we bed down the merger, the savings and the productivities are coming through at numerous levels. And the scale of our business, now underpinned by Reserves of 21Moz exclusively in tier-one locations, is exceptional.

Broker update

The most recent broker note came from Goldman Sachs today which raised its price target by 3% to $13.10.

Citi followed suit by providing its 12-month outlook for Northern Star, initiating a price of $12.90.

The latest reports from both brokers imply an upside to the current Northern Star share price of around 25%.

About the Northern Star share price

Northern Star shares have failed to take off over the last 12 months, dropping more than 36% since this time last year. In 2021 alone, the company’s shares are down around 23%.

Based on valuation grounds, Northern Star is the ASX’s 40th largest company with a market capitalisation of approximately $11.8 billion.

The post Why the Northern Star (ASX:NST) share price is sinking 6% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• ASX 200 midday update: Crown-Star merger talks end, Evolution jumps
• Why the Evolution (ASX:EVN) share price is charging higher today
• Are these ASX 200 gold miner shares buys?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• Why the Northern Star (ASX:NST) share price is on watch today

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras owns shares of Northern Star 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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Australian Finance Group Ltd (ASX: AFG) shares have started Friday’s trade under pressure. The Aussie mortgage broker’s share price is down more than 2% after an early morning market update.

Why are Australian Finance Group shares under pressure?

The big news this morning was a delay in its proposed merger with Connective Group. The deal to create Australia’s largest mortgage aggregator with nearly 40% of the broking market was first announced back in August 2019.

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) approval in June 2020 sent Australian Finance Group shares soaring. However, this morning’s update indicates that the proposed merger might be on ice for the time being.

AFG needed to achieve two key things by 31 August 2021 – ACCC approval and court validation of the transaction. It got regulatory approval but a court decision has not been reached despite hearings concluding in March 2020.

According to today’s release, the Australian Finance Group has “concluded that it is not likely that the merger will be able to complete prior to the expiry of the Implementation Deed”.

AFG CEO David Baily said, “The extraordinary length of time that the judgement has taken has blocked our ability to complete this transaction”.

“Disappointingly, this means the merger is not likely to proceed at this time”, he added. It seems as though investors are similarly disappointed by the news.

Australian Finance Group shares have dipped lower on the news, but it isn’t all doom and gloom. Mr Bailey noted, “The two businesses are very complementary, and we remain convinced the merger would deliver benefits to our brokers and customers”.

That provides some hope of a future deal between AFG and Connective, even if the current Implementation Deed expires. Despite today’s movements, Australian Finance Group shares remain up 52.3% in the last 12 months with a $700 million market capitalisation.

The post Why Australian Finance Group (ASX:AFG) shares are falling today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 2 ASX shares rated as strong buys by brokers
• Broker warns that small lenders are set to beat ASX bank shares
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Motley Fool contributor Ken Hall 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 SelfWealth Ltd (ASX: SWF) share price is climbing on Friday following an update on the second part of its capital raise.

At one stage during intraday trade the online brokerage company’s shares were up 4% to 39 cents. However, at the time of writing they have partially retreated to 38 cents — still a gain of 1.33% on yesterday’s closing price.

SelfWealth commences Share Purchase Plan

Investors appear to be bargain hunting after the SelfWealth share price hit a 52-week low yesterday.

According to its release, SelfWealth has opened its Share Purchase Plan (SPP) to all eligible shareholders. This comes after the company completed a $10 million placement last week.

The SPP is aiming to raise an additional $2 million by the issue of new fully paid ordinary shares.

SelfWealth noted a minimum of $2,500 up to a maximum of $30,000 worth of shares can be applied for. However, it may accept oversubscriptions or scale back applications at its discretion based on the result of the SPP.

The shares will be issued at the lower of the issue price (39 cents per share), or a 2.5% discount to the volume-weighted average price (VWAP) over the 5 trading days to 14 July 2021.

Proceeds of the SPP, combined with the monies received from the placement, will be used to accelerate SelfWealth’s growth strategy.

This includes expanding product offerings as well as investing in user experience and high-demand features. The company is also seeking to implement a robust data and analytics strategy, and increase headcount to support mobilisation.

Settlement of the shares from the SPP is expected to happen on 12 August 2021.

About the SelfWealth share price

Over the last 12 months, SelfWealth shares have continued their descent to hit a 52-week low of 37.5 cents yesterday. This amounts to a sizeable loss of around 25%, with 2021 falling more than 30%.

Based on today’s price, SelfWealth commands a market capitalisation of roughly $87 million, with approximately 227 million shares outstanding.

The post Why the SelfWealth (ASX:SWF) share price is lifting today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• SelfWealth (ASX:SWF) share price sinks 9% on capital raising efforts
• SelfWealth (ASX:SWF) share price on watch next week after $10 million capital raising
• Why is the SelfWealth (ASX:SWF) share price frozen today?
• SelfWealth (ASX:SWF) share price dives 11% after fourth quarter results

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 Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) share price is bouncing back on Friday following a selloff yesterday.

In early afternoon trade, the buy now pay later (BNPL) provider’s shares are up 3% to $7.19.

This appears to have been driven by a reasonably positive response to its update by brokers this morning.

How did brokers respond?

One of the more positive brokers was Morgans. This morning the broker retained its add rating but trimmed its price target to $8.57.

Based on the latest Zip share price, this implies potential upside of 19% over the next 12 months.

It commented: “Zip Co’s 4Q21 update showed continuing strong growth momentum across the group, with key metrics increasing ~13%-14% sequentially. With growth trends broadly reasonable, the size of the share price weakness (-8%) on the day was somewhat of a surprise, in our view. However, we do note factors including no comment on recent media speculation of potential corporate interest in Z1P and some rise in arrears.”

What else was said?

Analysts at Ord Minnett are similarly positive on the quarterly result and the Zip share price.

This morning the broker retained its accumulate rating but cut its price target down to $10.50. This implies potential upside of 46% over the next 12 months.

According to the note, the broker was pleasantly surprised by the performance of its US QuadPay business. It notes that it has exceeded its expectations four quarters in a row now.

QuadPay added over 600,000 new customers during the quarter, which was 1.6% higher than the broker was forecasting. Also beating Ord Minnett’s expectations were Zip’s total transaction value (TTV) and average spend per customer. They came in 6% and 4% higher, respectively, than what its analysts were expecting.

One broker thinks the Zip share price is overvalued

However, not all brokers are positive on the Zip share price at the current level.

A note out of UBS reveals that its analysts have retained their sell rating and lowly $5.60 price target. This implies potential downside of 22% over the next 12 months.

Contrary to Ord Minnett’s views, UBS notes that Zip underperformed its expectations in the US during the quarter, with QuadPay’s revenue falling over 10% short.

Outside this, the broker continues to have concerns over execution risks and costs.

The post Here’s what brokers think about the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• The Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price is gaining 3% today
• Zip share price falls, Pilbara Minerals flies. And the BHP share price gets a Tesla bounce. Scott Phillips on Nine’s Late News
• Why Kogan, Service Stream, Whispir, & Zip shares are sinking
• Here are 3 ASX 200 shares flying around the markets today
• Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price down 7% despite crypto plans and positive outlook

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 ZIPCOLTD FPO. 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 Damstra Holdings Ltd (ASX: DTC) share price is rocketing higher for a second day today.

The workplace management software-as-a-service provider hasn’t released any news today.

However, just yesterday, Damstra released its quarterly activity report and results detailing record breaking revenue and cash receipts.

Right now, the Damstra share price is $1.13. This is 16.49% higher than yesterday’s closing price. This is pretty impressive following the stock rising 20.75% yesterday!

That’s right. The Damstra share price has gained 41.25% since market close on Wednesday.

So, what news is warranting such a dramatic boost to the price? Let’s take a look.

The latest from Damstra

Damstra reported receiving its highest ever recorded revenue at $9.1 million over the June 2021 quarter.

It also achieved a record-breaking $10 million worth of cash receipts.

Also in June, Damstra received a $20 million debt facility, 55 new clients, and 74% more active users.

Damstra now has 724 clients and 157 joined during the 2021 financial year. It also has 737,000 active users.

Commentary from management

Damstra’s CEO Christian Damstra commented on the company’s activities:

In [the fourth quarter] we continued to see material increases in users across all of our product modules and delivered increased value to our customers through constant product innovation. We remain in productive contractual negotiations with several potentially material clients in the United Kingdom and North America.

Damstra share price snapshot

Despite this week’s impressive growth, the Damstra share price is still in the red on the ASX for 2021.

It is 27% lower than it was at the start of the year. It is down 34% since this time last year.

The company has a market capitalisation of about $213 million, with approximately 186 million shares outstanding.

The post Damstra (ASX:DTC) share price surging again up 16% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Why BHP, Damstra, Galaxy, & Piedmont Lithium shares are racing higher
• Here’s why the Damstra (ASX:DTC) share price is gaining 13% today
• 3 growing small cap ASX shares to watch closely
• Why the Damstra (ASX:DTC) share price is on the move today
• Why Cettire, Damstra, IGO, & Rhipe shares 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. owns shares of and has recommended Damstra Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Damstra Holdings 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 Tabcorp Holdings Ltd (ASX: TAH) share price could be set to benefit from its proposed demerger.

According to one industry expert, the demerger of its lotteries business represents greater long-term potential for shareholders.

Let’s take a look at what this industry expert had to say and why the Tabcorp share price could benefit.

Tabcorp share price could benefit from demerger

Recently, a senior analyst from Montgomery Investment Management penned an article on Tabcorp’s proposed demerger.

The analyst noted the proposed demerger could provide a better outcome than a trade sale for shareholders.

According to the article, the demerger would “provide potential bidders with a level playing field and greater transparency”.

In addition, the analyst said strong and stable cash flow and moderate growth would see Tabcorp’s separate lotteries and Keno business get rerated by the market.

As a result, the article noted the new business could get the attention of income-seeking pension funds.

The analyst also highlighted that the broader market did not view the demerger as a positive for Tabcorp.

According to the article, this was due to the perception that a trade sale would generate greater value. In addition, higher costs associated with the demerger could impact Tabcorp’s share price.

Overall, the analyst noted a demerger would allow both entities to focus on and control their separate strategies.

More information on Tabcorp’s demerger

Earlier this month, Tabcorp announced the conclusion of a strategic review. As a result, the company is contemplating a decision to demerge its lotteries and Keno business. The Tabcorp share price fall sharply on the news.  

A demerger would see two separately listed companies — the standalone lotteries and Keno business, and the existing listing of Tabcorp.

Under the demerger, Tabcorp aims to retain its wagering, media and gaming businesses.  

If a demerger results, Tabcorp shareholders will receive shares in the lotteries and Keno business proportional to their existing holdings.

Tabcorp estimates the demerger process will incur between $225 million and $275 million in one-off separation costs. In addition, the company estimates $40 million to $45 million per year of ongoing incremental costs.

Following the news earlier this month, Tabcorp shares were sold off. Shares in the company were down more than 8% for the month, hitting a low for the month of $4.69.

At the time of writing, the Tabcorp share price has recovered slightly, currently trading at around $4.92. It is down 0.71% on yesterday’s closing price.

The post Expert expects demerger to benefit Tabcorp (ASX:TAH) share price appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here’s the latest on the Tabcorp (ASX:TAH) demerger/spin-off battle
• The 3 ASX shares that top brokers just upgraded to “buy”
• Why Australian Ethical, Clinuvel, Liontown Resources, & Tabcorp shares are dropping
• Why A2 Milk, Airtasker, BetMakers, & Sydney Airport shares are storming higher
• Why the BetMakers (ASX:BET) share price is up 5% at lunchtime

Motley Fool contributor Nikhil Gangaram 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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Here in Australia, investors tend to obsess over the day in, day out performance of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO). And fair enough too. The ASX 200 is our flagship Australian share market index, tracking the performance of the 200 largest public companies in the country. Nothing gives us a better look at how Australian shares are performing than the ASX 200.

But Aussies also like to look at other indexes around the world as well. There’s the S&P 500 Index (INDEXSP: .INX), and the NASDAQ-100 (INDEXNASDAQ: NDX) indexes for American shares.

And there’s also the FTSE 100 Index (INDEXFTSE: UKX). The FTSE 100 measures the performance of the largest 100 companies over in the United Kingdom. It’s this latter index that we’ll be taking a closer look at today.

The FTSE 100 is an interesting case. Because, unlike the ASX 200, or the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, the FTSE 100 has not yet surpassed its pre-COVID highs.

How has the FTSE 100 performed in 2021 compared to the ASX 200?

So just to recap, the ASX 200 is currently up 10.53% year to date in 2021, including today’s movements so far. What of the FTSE 100? Well, the FTSE is currently up 6.03% in 2021 as of today. It’s also up 12.18% over the past 12 months, again not quite matching the ASX 200’s 21.23% over the same period.

So why this underperformance compared to the ASX 200?

Well, to answer that question, let’s check out the shares that make up the majority of the FTA 100’s weightings right now. This data comes from BetaShares, the provider of the ASX’s only FTSE 100 exchange-traded fund (ETF), the BetaShares FTSE 100 ETF (ASX: F100):

FTSE 100 share	Index weighting (%)
AstraZeneca plc (LON: AZN)	7%
Unilever plc (LON: ULVR)	5.7%
Royal Dutch Shell plc (LON: RDSA)(LON: RDSB)	5.7%
HSBC Holdings plc (LON: HSBA)	4.4%
Diageo plc (LON: DGE)	4.3%
GlaxoSmithKline plc (LON: GSK)	3.7%
Rio Tinto plc (LON: RIO)	3.3%
British American Tobacco plc (LON: BATS)	3%
BP plc (LON: BP)	3%
BHP Group plc (LON: BHP)	2.5%

How have FTSE 100 shares performed lately?

Ok, so some interesting observations here. Firstly, you might see some familiar names here with BHP and Rio Tinto. These actually reflect these Australian companies’ London listings (they are also both listed over in the United States). So yes, these two companies contribute to the ASX 200, as well as the FTSE 100.

You might also notice the FTSE 100’s largest holding is none other than AstraZeneca, a company that most of us would probably be familiar with these days for obvious reasons. AstraZeneca shares have had a rather successful 2021 so far, gaining close to 14% year to date. However, the shares are also still down 3.34% over the past 12 months.

GlaxoSmithKline is also a pharmaceutical company (it’s the face behind brands like Panadol). GSK is up slightly year to date, but down 12.3% over the past year.

Other than that, we see the consumer staples giant Unilever here (the company behind Lynx deodorant, Dove soap, Omo washing powder, and Lipton tea). Unilever shares are down more than 9% in 2021 so far, and down more than 13% over the past year.

We also see the oil giants BP and Royal Dutch Shell. Like ASX energy shares, these companies have been struggling over the past year or so. Both are up in 2021 so far but BP remains down over the past 12 months.

We also have a bank in HSBC (which stands for Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation). HSBC shares are up moderately in both 2021 and over the past year.

Rounding it out we have a couple of ‘sin stocks’ in Diageo and British American Tobacco. Diageo is the giant alcohol company behind famous brands like Johnny Walker, Guinness and Tanqueray. While British American Tobacco makes cigarettes and tobacco products (including the Winfield brand).

Diageo has been a top FTSE 100 performer, putting on gains of almost 18% in 2021 so far, and 21.7% over the past 12 months. British American Tobacco is in the red over both periods.

Foolish takeaway

So it’s pretty easy to see where some of the FTSE 100’s lacklustre performance has come from in 2021 so far. Unlike the ASX 200, the FTSE 100 is not concentrated heavily on banks and mining companies, although they are present.

Shares like Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) and BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) have done most of the heavy lifting when it comes to the ASX 200’s performance this year so far. In contrast, top FTSE shares like AstraZeneca and Unilever have performed far more poorly. As such, we can see what has made both indexes tick in recent times.

Still, every index tends to have its day in the sun, so who knows what the future might hold for both the FTSE 100 and the ASX 200.

The post How is the ASX 200 performing against the FTSE 100 in 2021? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen owns shares of Betashares FTSE 100 ETF. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Diageo, GlaxoSmithKline, HSBC Holdings, and Unilever. 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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