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If you’re interested in investing in some up and coming tech shares, then you might want to check out the two listed below.

Here’s why Goldman Sachs rates them highly:

Hipages Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: HPG)

Hipages is a leading Australian-based online platform and software as a service (SaaS) provider. Its platform connects tradies with residential and commercial consumers, providing job leads from homeowners and organisations looking for qualified professionals.

Last week, analysts at Goldman Sachs retained their buy rating and lifted their price target to $3.40. This compares to the latest Hipages share price of $2.48. The broker has been impressed with its form in recent months, which is supporting its bullish sentiment.

Goldman commented: “HPG is building a compelling marketplace, with a healthy balance between consumers and tradies. App download data and website visits shows HPG is executing on its tradie marketing strategy. App downloads in CY21 YTD are up +24% YoY.”

“Momentum is being maintained on the consumer side of the marketplace with monthly website visits up +21% YoY. The combined effect of tradie and consumer growth is an increase in the number of jobs posted per tradie rising over the forecast period from c.36 in FY20 to c.53 by FY23E.

“Growth in this metric is a key indicator of marketplace balance and demonstrates the value tradies are deriving from the platform. This is a key driver of our forecast 11% CAGR in ARPU,” it added.

PointsBet Holdings Ltd (ASX: PBH)

PointsBet is a growing sports wagering operator and iGaming provider offering innovative sports and racing betting products and services via its scalable cloud-based platform.

It currently operates in the ANZ and United States markets and is generating significant growth in both. Pleasingly, thanks to its huge opportunity in the United States, it has been tipped to deliver very strong growth over the next decade.

Goldman Sachs is a big fan of PointsBet and currently has a buy rating and $17.20 price target on its shares. This compares to the most recent PointsBet share price of $13.50.

The broker commented: “We like PBH due to i) PBH’s leverage to the burgeoning US Sports Betting and iGaming market which we forecast to be a US$53 bn TAM opportunity at maturity, ii) our view that PBH is well-placed to achieve 10% share in states it operates in, iii) upside risk to long-run sustainable margins in Aus and the US which was reaffirmed by the strong margin result in 3Q21, iv) Scalability benefits ahead noting positive impacts from the NBCUniversal deal to come and imminent launch of iGaming (which we believe will provide both cost and revenue synergies), and v) strong management team and execution track record.”

The post 2 growing ASX tech shares this broker rates very highly appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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James Mickleboro does not own any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Hipages Group Holdings Ltd. and Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Pointsbet 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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If you don’t have sufficient funds to build a truly diverse portfolio, then exchange traded funds (ETFs) could be a quick fix. This is because ETFs give investors access to a large number of different shares through a single investment.

With that in mind, I have picked out three ETFs that trade on the ASX that could be good options. Here’s what you need to know about them:

BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF (ASX: ASIA)

If you’re interested in gaining exposure to the growing Asian economy, then the BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF could help you achieve it. This ETF gives investors access to a number of the most promising tech shares in the Asian market. This means you’ll be owning a slice of well-known companies such as ecommerce giant Alibaba, search engine company Baidu, and WeChat owner Tencent.

BetaShares NASDAQ 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ)

If you’re more interested in the US tech sector, then the BetaShares NASDAQ 100 ETF could be one to consider. This ETF provides exposure to the 100 largest non-financial shares on the NASDAQ index. Among the 100 shares included in the fund are household names and some of the highest quality companies in the world. This includes giants such as Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft, Netflix, and Tesla.

Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF (ASX: VGS)

A final ETF to look at is the Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF. This ETF provides investors with exposure to a massive 1,507 of the world’s largest listed companies from major developed countries. This arguably makes it as diverse as it gets for investors. Among the companies you’ll be buying a slice of are Apple, Johnson & Johnson, JP Morgan, Nestle, Procter & Gamble, and Visa. Vanguard notes that this allows investors to participate in the long-term growth potential of international economies outside Australia.

The post 3 high quality ETFs for ASX investors appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• 2 fantastic ETFs for ASX growth investors
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James Mickleboro does not own any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended BETANASDAQ ETF UNITS. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended BETANASDAQ ETF UNITS and BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF. 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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With the shift back to growth shares in full swing, now could be a good time for investors to look at the shares below.

Here’s why they are rated highly:

Altium Limited (ASX: ALU)

Altium is an award-winning printed circuit board (PCB) design software provider. Over the last few years, it has carved out a leading position in this growing market. It is now aiming to take things to the next level and dominate the market with its cloud-based Altium 365 product.

Credit Suisse is positive on the company. It currently has an outperform rating and $42.00 price target.

Aristocrat Leisure Limited (ASX: ALL)

Aristocrat Leisure is one of the world’s leading gaming technology companies. While the pandemic hit Aristocrat hard, it has bounced back strongly in recent quarters and appears to be winning market share. Pleasingly, despite economies reopening, its digital business continues to grow strongly and generate significant recurring revenues.

Citi is a fan of the company. It has a buy rating and $46.00 price target on its shares.

Nanosonics Ltd (ASX: NAN)

Another growth share to look at is Nanosonics. It is the infection control specialist behind the industry-leading trophon EPR disinfection system for ultrasound probes. This system has been growing its footprint at a strong rate over the last few years, generating solid unit and consumables sales.

UBS is positive on Nanosonics and believes it will benefit from the post-COVID infection prevention thematic. It has a buy rating and $7.00 price target on the company’s shares.

REA Group Limited (ASX: REA)

Finally, REA Group could be a growth share to consider. It is of course the dominant player in real estate listings in the Australian market. This puts it in a fantastic position to benefit from the housing market boom. In addition to this, cost cutting, new revenue streams, price increases, and acquisitions look set to give its sales and earnings a boost.

Macquarie is bullish on REA Group. It currently has an outperform rating and $179.10 price target on its shares.

The post 4 quality ASX growth shares rated as buys appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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James Mickleboro does not own any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Altium and Nanosonics Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Altium and Nanosonics Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended REA 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 two ASX shares in this article might be worth looking at over the weekend.

These businesses are generating underlying growth and have been creating returns for shareholders.

Here are two ideas to think about:

VanEck Vectors Video Gaming and eSports ETF (ASX: ESPO)

This is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that is offered by the provider VanEck.

The idea is that it gives exposure to a diversified portfolio of the largest and most liquid companies involved in video game development, e-sports and related hardware and software globally.

It has a total of 25 holdings. The top 10 holdings might be recognisable to some of readers that are gamers: Nvidia, Sea, Tencent, Advanced Micro Devices, Nintendo, Activision Blizzard, Netease, Bilibili, Take Two Interactive Software and Electronic Arts.

According to VanEck materials, the competitive video gaming audience is expected to reach 646 million people globally in 2023, driven in part by the rising population digital natives.

E-sports revenue has grown by an average of 28% per year since 2015. Video gaming revenue has seen an average annual growth of revenue of 12% since 2015.

The e-sports industry has created new potential revenue streams from game publisher fees, media rights, merchandise, ticket sales and advertising.

VanEck believes that video gaming can be a long-term growth story. This portfolio gives access to a diversified portfolio across countries and companies, away from the names like Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Google and Microsoft.

Past performance is not an indictor of future performance. Over the last three years, the index that this ETF tracks has delivered an average return per annum of around 29%.

Kogan.com Ltd (ASX: KGN)

The Kogan share price has fallen 49% since 25 January 2021. That has pushed the forward valuation lower according to the earnings forecast on Commsec. At the current Kogan share price, it’s valued at 23x FY23’s estimated earnings.

As Kogan explained, as the company rapidly grew in the first half of FY21, it has experienced some operational challenges. It significantly expanded its inventory holding and grew its logistics footprint to 31 facilities.

This resulted in supply chain inefficiencies and inventory planning challenges. It has been suffering from demurrage costs over the last few months.

With the excess inventory, management are looking to deal with it by increasing promotional activity, which has led to lower near-term gross margin and higher near-term marketing costs.

The company said it is expected to return to normal inventory levels (relative to the size of the business) and marketing spend as the current inventory is progressively reduced over the coming months.

Regarding the future outlook, Kogan said:

The longer term fundamentals for Kogan.com remain very attractive given the company’s position in the Australian and New Zealand online retail markets, and with online retail sales currently only accounting for a small change of total retail sales in Australia and New Zealand.

The post 2 ASX shares that could be worth looking at this weekend appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

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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 Kogan.com ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Kogan.com ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended VanEck Vectors ETF Trust – VanEck Vectors Video Gaming and eSports ETF. 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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With the US Federal Reserve’s ‘hawkish pivot’ this week, much of the talk around the proverbial ASX share market water cooler has once again returned to inflation. On Thursday, the US Fed seemingly reversed its previous guidance and shifted its rhetoric around inflation. To condense its message, the Fed sees inflation as a stronger threat than it had done previously. It warned investors it might have to respond sooner than it had previously flagged.

So what would happen if inflation fears turned out to be real? Here are 3 things ASX investors might expect.

3 things to watch out for on the ASX 200 if inflation returns

Higher interest rates

It’s not really inflation itself that the markets fear, but the thing that usually walks hand-in-hand with it: higher interest rates. Adjusting monetary policy (raising or lowering interest rates) is a government’s primary weapon against inflation (or deflation) in an economy. Raising the cost of borrowing money can cool an economy. Thus, higher rates can be very useful against inflation. If inflation does keep rising, you can bet that governments around the world will immediately begin canvassing the prospects of higher rates in response.

Higher inflation = lower shares?

The great investor Warren Buffett once described interest rates as the ‘gravity’ of the financial world. They pull things back to earth, in other words. It’s no coincidence then perhaps, that as interest rates have fallen to near-zero around the advanced economies of the world over the past 2 years, share markets have gone on to make record highs. US markets are way higher than they have ever been. And the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has been climbing even higher into new record territory over the past month or so.

But if rates start rising in response to inflation, it’s possible we could well see these gains reversed. Higher rates raise the attractiveness of other assets outside the share market. That’s mainly cash and government bonds. There are many investors out there who have been pushed into the share market reluctantly over the past few years. Mostly due to the ultra-low returns offered from these ‘safer’ investments that stem from record low-interest rates.

If rates go higher, some investors might find a term deposit or government bond paying a 4% interest rate, for example, to be more attractive than a ‘risker’ dividend share also offering a 4% yield. This could prompt a lot of capital flowing out of share markets into other asset types. Assets that have been neglected due to the current low rate environment. This would result in downward pressure on share prices.

A different ASX 200 paradigm

If inflation does pick up, there is a strong chance that investors will adjust their investing goals and expectations accordingly. Suddenly, not only will investors be trying to get the best return possible from ASX shares. They will also be looking to protect their wealth from being eroded away by inflation. As such, you may see the ‘movers and shakers’ of the ASX 200 (i.e. fund managers) moving money into companies that are perceived as ‘inflation-proof’. And out of companies that might be relatively disadvantaged by inflation or higher interest rates. On the latter point, investors often tend to shun high growth companies with a lot of debt in this situation. We might have seen a trial run of this potential scenario earlier this year with the huge volatility in the ASX tech shares space that we saw back in March and April.

The post 3 things that might happen to ASX shares if inflation returns appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

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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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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.

A new survey suggests that the honeymoon may be over for streaming video names like Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS) and Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX).

Although consumers were briefly enamored with on-demand video that made the pandemic‘s lockdowns at least bearable, there are indications they’re now falling out of love with most of these platforms. The recently published telecommunication and media-services satisfaction report from American Customer Satisfaction Index LLC indicates a marked downturn in customer satisfaction for these entertainment services.

It’s not the end of the world — at least not yet. But, the timing of the downturn is telling. It materialized at a point when consumers had time to think about optimizing their entertainment budgets, and after a swell of new streaming competitors facilitated plenty of comparison shopping. The suppressed satisfaction scores suggest something much bigger may be underway. That something is the end of easy, huge growth in streaming subscriber bases.

A surprising step back

The survey in question spans from April of last year through March of this year, capturing the pandemic in its entirety. For the 12-month stretch in question, American Customer Satisfaction Index says U.S. consumers’ collective satisfaction with their streaming services fell 2.6%, from a score of 76 to 74.

It’s a seemingly insignificant pullback in the grand scheme of things. But, its significance is made clearer in light of 2020’s stagnation, following 2019’s 1.3% uptick from 75 to 76. Satisfaction went from improving to worsening in just the same couple of years that saw the advent of Disney+ and AT&T‘s (NYSE: T) HBO Max, as well as stepped-up streaming efforts from Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) and ViacomCBS (NASDAQ: VIAC) (NASDAQ: VIAC.A).

Perhaps more alarming is the list of names that led the charge lower. Netflix and Apple’s TV app both slumped 4% from their 2020 scores, while Disney+, Disney’s Hulu, Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) Prime, CBS All Access (now Paramount+), and Apple TV+ all tumbled 3%; these are supposed to be the best of the best. No service improved by more than 1%.

The American Customer Satisfaction Index survey indicates the sheer number of TV shows and the variety of movies available to them — or lack thereof — were the top two reasons satisfaction declined for the year-long span. Though the report didn’t spell it out, studies and streamers are building and filling their own silos. Rather than licensing shows and movies to Netflix, for instance, AT&T’s WarnerMedia and Walt Disney are now offering their programming exclusively on their own distribution platforms. Ditto for Comcast‘s (NASDAQ: CMCSA) NBCUniversal, which launched its ad-supported streaming service Peacock in July of last year. Consumers appear to be noticing.

Less theorized but still worth considering is the fact that consumers were afforded a great deal of time to engage with their subscription-based services while exploring alternatives. Viewing research outfit Nielsen reports that as of the end of last year’s Q2, the average household was streaming 142.5 minutes worth of content per week, up 74% from the year-earlier comparison of 81.7 minutes. Consumers clearly found something they wanted to watch, but when forced to hunt for additional entertainment, they may have learned their available content libraries weren’t as relevant as previously hoped.

Most plausibly, last year’s waning satisfaction is a reflection of both factors.

Regardless of the reasons, consumers are clearly less impressed now than they were just a year earlier with the entire streaming media industry.

Connecting the dots

As was noted, it’s not yet a reason to panic. All of the major services still have sizable customer bases, and all still have the ability to grow.

The changing sentiment does underscore the idea, however, that there’s a limit to how many consumers are ready to tack on and then maintain yet another monthly subscription. The easy-to-win subscribers are already on board; the next ones could be much tougher to garner. In this vein, while Netflix’s subscriber base of 208 million is still the industry’s biggest headcount, its addition of only 4 million paying customers in the first quarter was a disappointment. Even more concerning is its call for subscriber growth of only 1 million members for the three-month span ending this month.

If this is a hint of what lies ahead for other streamers — and it is — this means more promotional dollars may be needed. At the same time, streaming platforms need to focus on curbing attrition (or churn) more than they ever have in the past.

It’s a challenge for all players, but it’s a particular problem for Netflix which has historically demonstrated the lowest churn rates in all of streamingdom. It’s a risk to Netflix shareholders simply because the company’s never faced this much of a retention/net-growth hurdle before.

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

The post Streaming’s easy-growth days are over, Apple and Netflix face greatest risk appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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James Brumley owns shares of AT&T. John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Walt Disney. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Comcast and has recommended the following options: long January 2022 $1,920 calls on Amazon, long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple, short January 2022 $1,940 calls on Amazon, and short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Walt Disney. 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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While there are hopes that interest rates may now improve sooner than expected, this is still like to be a couple of years away.

In light of this, the Australian share market looks likely to be the best place to generate a passive income for the time being. But which dividend shares could be top options? Here are two blue chips to consider:

Australia and New Zealand Banking GrpLtd (ASX: ANZ)

This banking giant certainly has returned to form in FY 2021. Last month ANZ released its half year results and revealed a statutory profit after tax of $2,943 million and cash earnings from continuing operations of $2,990 million. This was up 45% and 28%, respectively, on the second half of FY 2020.

Positively, thanks to favourable trading conditions, a booming housing market, and the relaxation of responsible lending rules, ANZ looks well-placed to build on this in the second half and in FY 2022.

Analysts at Morgans are very bullish on the bank. They currently have an add rating and $34.50 price target on its shares.

The broker is also forecasting fully franked dividends of 145 cents per share in FY 2021 and 163 cents per share in FY 2022. Based on the latest ANZ share price of $28.98, this represents yields of 5% and 5.6%, respectively.

Sonic Healthcare Limited (ASX: SHL)

Sonic Healthcare is one of the world’s leading healthcare providers, with operations in Australasia, Europe and North America. It currently employs more than 1,500 pathologists and radiologists, and more than 10,000 medical scientists, radiographers, sonographers, technicians, and nurses.

Sonic has been a particularly positive performer in FY 2021 thanks to increased demand for COVID-19 testing. This led to the company reporting a 33% increase in first half revenue to $4.4 billion and a massive 166% increase in first half net profit to $678 million.

A similarly strong second half is expected. And with COVID testing demand expected to remain high into 2022, it looks well-placed to continue its positive form into FY 2022.

Credit Suisse is a fan of the company. Its analysts currently have an overweight rating and $40.00 price target on its shares. The broker is forecasting dividends of 97 cents per share in FY 2021 and 98 cents per share in FY 2022. Based on the latest Sonic share price of $37.81, this will mean yields of 2.55% and 2.6%, respectively.

The post 2 blue chip ASX dividend shares with attractive yields appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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James Mickleboro does not own any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Sonic Healthcare 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 S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) climbed to another record high last week. The benchmark index climbed 56.6 points or 0.8% over the four days to 7,368.9 points.

While a good number of shares climbed higher, some recorded stronger gains than others. Here’s why these were the best performing ASX 200 over the period:

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P)

The Zip share price was the best performer on the ASX 200 last week with a gain of 13.9%. Investors were buying the buy now pay later provider’s shares after rotating out of value stocks and back into growth. It wasn’t just Zip that was climbing last week. The S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) rose a sizeable 4.4% over the shortened week.

ResMed Inc. (ASX: RMD)

The ResMed share price wasn’t far behind with a gain of 12.5% last week. Investors were buying the sleep treatment focused medical device company’s shares after one of its rivals was hit with a major product recall. On Monday, global technology giant Philips announced that it would be voluntarily recalling 3.5 million ventilation devices for treating sleep apnoea. Philips determined, based on testing, that there were possible risks to users related to the polyester-based polyurethane sound abatement foam component in these devices.

Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME)

The Pro Medicus share price was a strong performer and recorded a 10.9% gain over the four days. This also appears to have been driven by the shift back into growth stocks by investors. This latest gain means the health imaging company’s shares are now up a sizeable 63% since the start of the year.

HUB24 Ltd (ASX: HUB)

The HUB24 share price was on form and surged 10.7% higher. There may have been a couple of catalysts for the rise in the investment platform provider’s shares last week. One is investors flooding back into the tech sector again. The other is the prospect of rate hikes coming sooner than anticipated. HUB24’s margins have come under pressure from low interest rates.

The post These were the best-performing ASX 200 shares last week appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Here are the 3 most traded ASX 200 shares today

James Mickleboro does not own any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Hub24 Ltd, Pro Medicus Ltd., and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended ResMed. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Pro Medicus Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Hub24 Ltd and ResMed Inc. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was on form again last week and climbed to a new record high. The benchmark index finished the shortened week 56.6 points or 0.8% higher at 7,368.9 points.

Unfortunately, not all shares were able to climb higher with the market. Here’s why these were the worst performing ASX 200 shares over the period:

Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST)

The Northern Star share price was the worst performer on the ASX 200 last week with a disappointing 13.9% decline. Investors were selling Northern Star and other gold miners after a sharp pullback in the gold price. Traders sold off the precious metal after the US Federal Reserve pulled forward its rate hike plans. For the same reason, Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM), Ramelius Resources Limited (ASX: RMS), and Westgold Resources Ltd (ASX: WGX) all recorded declines of at least 8.2% last week.

OZ Minerals Limited (ASX: OZL)

The OZ Minerals share price wasn’t far behind with a sizeable 12.2% decline over the four days. A sharp decline in copper prices last week appears to have been behind this decline. Copper prices came under pressure initially due to concerns that Chinese authorities were going to try to curb a recent rally in commodity prices. A strengthening US dollar late in the week also weighed on commodity prices.

Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC)

The Whitehaven Coal share price was out of form and tumbled 9% over the week. Investors sold off the coal miner’s shares after it downgraded its guidance. Whitehaven Coal revealed that it now expects FY 2021 production to be 20.4Mt. This compares to its previous guidance of 20.6Mt to 21.4Mt. One positive is that its cost guidance remains unchanged for FY 2021.

Austal Limited (ASX: ASB)

The Austal share price was a poor performer, losing 8.1% of its value over the period. This was also caused by a guidance downgrade. The shipbuilder downgraded its earnings guidance due to COVID-19 related delays. Austal expects its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) to be in the range of $112 million to $118 million in FY 2021. This is down from its previous EBIT guidance of $125 million.

The post These were the worst-performing ASX 200 shares last week appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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James Mickleboro does not own any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Austal Limited. 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.

Significant price fluctuations are common in the famously volatile cryptocurrency market, but there’s a curious trend emerging over the last year or so: whenever Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk tweets about a crypto coin, the price often shoots to the sky or sinks like a stone.

Musk has embraced the cryptocurrency community with open arms, positioning himself as the world’s best-known Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) fan and briefly boosting the fortunes of Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC). The market is susceptible to the changing winds of social media sentiment, and Musk has become the face of that up-and-down action thanks to his expansive reach, including 57 million Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) followers.

He’s a champion to Dogecoin investors in particular, as his frequently shared memes and goofy tweets often result in a notable price leap for the “joke” coin. However, Musk’s recent dabbling in the Bitcoin market has lost him some fans in the process, given how much the price has dipped following big news he shared from Tesla. Here’s a look at how Musk’s Twitter use has impacted the crypto markets.

The Dogefather

As the CEO of multiple major firms, Musk’s public affection for Dogecoin and its community might catch some investors off-guard. He has called himself the “former CEO of Dogecoin” and “The Dogefather,” and briefly planned to sell a non-fungible token (NFT) original music video inspired by DOGE before deciding to hold onto it (the top bid was over $1.1 million).

Musk first came out as a Dogecoin fan in March 2020 and has since tweeted about it many times, often with a startling price jump thereafter. For example, when Musk tweeted a Lion King-inspired Dogecoin meme in February 2021, the price jumped more than 50%. When he teased a Dogecoin cameo for his May Saturday Night Live hosting gig, the price increased by more than 20%.

As of this writing, Dogecoin’s price is up more than 5,800% since the start of the year, and Musk’s continued impact is hard to deny. Still, not every Musk move pumps DOGE’s price: it dropped some 30% after his SNL appearance, during which he joked that it was a “hustle.” Doge hype deflated!

Bitcoin back-and-forth

Could Musk’s positive price impact extend to Bitcoin, the original cryptocurrency and most valuable coin by market cap? For a while, yes. Musk began tweeting occasionally about Bitcoin in 2020 and even changed his Twitter profile to simply say “#bitcoin” in January 2021, starting a trend among other influencers. A study from the Blockchain Research Lab suggests that the move led to a 19% increase in Bitcoin’s price over the span of seven hours.

In February 2021, Musk sent the price of Bitcoin soaring when he announced that Tesla had purchased $1.5 billion worth of the cryptocurrency to hold as a reserve asset, and that the company would soon accept BTC payments for its electric cars. Bitcoin’s price rose by more than 10% soon after, hitting a new all-time high price, and continued climbing in the days and weeks thereafter.

That building momentum came crashing down in May, however, when Musk announced that Tesla would stop accepting Bitcoin payments due to the environmental impact of Bitcoin’s energy-intensive mining process. Musk tweeted the news from his own personal account, and Bitcoin’s price rapidly sank: it dropped from around $55,000 to about $48,000 within 24 hours, and has since seen recent lows around $32,000.

Musk has lost some of his crypto-enthusiast admirers as a result, but to be fair, he has helped nudge the price back upwards too—such as this week, when he tweeted that Tesla could eventually resume Bitcoin transactions once enough of the mining apparatus goes green. Bitcoin’s price is up more than 20% over the last week.

Will it continue?

Whether silly or serious, Musk’s tweets about cryptocurrency always seem to have some kind of impact on the price of the coin in question. However, as cryptocurrency becomes more mainstream and the market hopefully calms, we’ll see how long that remains true.

Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) co-creator Vitalik Buterin, for example, recently told CNN that he believes that the crypto market will gradually build an “immune system” against such social media meddling. “Elon is not going to have this influence forever,” he said. Frazzled cryptocurrency investors can only hope that Buterin is right.

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

The post How Elon Musk’s tweets move the cryptocurrency market appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Andrew Hayward owns Bitcoin, Dogecoin, and Ethereum. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Bitcoin and Twitter. 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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