Tag: Motley Fool

Most weeks, Commonwealth Bank of Australia‘s (ASX: CBA) CommSec shares service tells us both the ASX and international shares (almost always just US shares) that are the most popular with its Australian customer base.

CommSec is one of the most popular brokers in the country. As such, this information gives us a nice insight into what the average Aussie investor is finding interesting beyond our shores.

My Fool colleague James Mickloboro already looked at the most popular ASX shares earlier this week. So here are the top 10 international shares that investors on CommSec were buying and selling last week. This week’s data covers 19-23 April. 

Tesla and Coinbase dominate most traded International shares on the ASX

1. Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) – representing 4.8% of total trades with a 69%/31% buy-to-sell ratio.
2. Coinbase Global Inc (NASDAQ: COIN) – representing 4.4% of total trades with an 82%/18% buy-to-sell ratio.
3. GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME) – representing 3.5% of total trades with an 89%/11% buy-to-sell ratio.
4. Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) – representing 2.5% of total trades with a 58%/42% buy-to-sell ratio.
5. Nio Inc – ADR (NYSE: NIO) – representing 1.4% of total trades with a 62%/38% buy-to-sell ratio
6. Palantir Technologies Inc (NYSE: PLTR)
7. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT)
8. AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc (NYSE: AMC)
9. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN)
10. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd – ADR (NYSE: BABA)

What can we learn from these trades?

Well, this week’s numbers are strikingly similar to what we reported last week. In fact, the only addition to the top ten list this week is Amazon, which displaced NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) from last week.

Perhaps the most interesting development though is how ASX investors are treating Coinbase Global. Last week’s data covered the first week of Coinbase’s US listing (it IPOed on the Nasdaq on 14 April). Then, we discussed how Coinbase was the most traded US share by a mile, with 98% of trades’ being ‘buys’. Well, it’s only been 2-and-a-bit weeks and apparently, some investors are already looking to cash out. Sell trades for Coinbase were up to 18% last week, which is sad for the sellers seeing as the company’s shares haven’t really stopped falling since its explosive IPO.

But electric vehicle and battery manufacturer Tesla is back on top after being briefly usurped from its throne last week. Investors are still net-buying Tesla, despite the Tesla stock price falling ~9% since 13 April. Tesla’s Chinese EV rival Nio is back in the top 5 as well after dropping out last week. Nio has bounced over the second half of the month – up more than 15% since 15 April.

Finally, it’s worth noting that Apple was also seeing some significant selling pressure with 42% of investors cashing out last week. They might be regretting that decision today, in light of Apple’s well-received quarterly results that were released this morning.

More reading

• Could the Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) share price make it the first $3 trillion company?
• ACCC sends a warning shot at Apple and Google app stores
• The Core Lithium (ASX:CXO) share price jumped over 11% today
• Tesla’s Bitcoin sale helped boost quarterly profits
• Isn the right time to buy Spotify?

John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Teresa Kersten, an employee of LinkedIn, a Microsoft subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Sebastian Bowen owns shares of Coinbase Global, Inc. and Tesla. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and recommends Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, NIO Inc., NVIDIA, and Tesla. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Palantir Technologies Inc and recommends the following options: long January 2022 $1920 calls on Amazon, short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple, short January 2022 $1940 calls on Amazon, and long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Amazon, Apple, and NVIDIA. 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 Ionic Rare Earths Ltd (ASX: IXR) share price is diving today after the company released the results of a completed scoping study.

During late afternoon trade, the mineral exploration company’s shares are going for 3.8 cents, down 19%.

What did Ionic Rare Earths announce?

Investors are heading for the hills, sending Ionic Rare Earths shares south after digest the company’s latest update.

According to its release, Ionic Rare Earths advised it has received positive results from its Makuutu scoping study. The results obtained showed the potential to develop a sustainable, long-life, critical rare earth supply to international markets.

The study looked at an open-pit mine running a modular heap leach operation to create a mixed rare earth carbonate product. The base case scoping study considered running the mine over an initial period of 11 years.

Within the first year, production output could achieve 800 tonnes of rare earth oxide equivalent product. However, as more modules are added, the study assumes production could reach up to 3,800 tonnes in year 11.

The life of the mine is expected to deliver earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $1.71 billion. In addition, post tax free cash flow would total $1.02 billion, with a net present value of $428 million.

Pre-production capital expenditure is projected to cost approximately US$89 million for the first module. Expanding operations to cater for the second module is forecasted to be about US$40 million. Thereafter, adding modules from 2 to 5 would amount to US$172 million funded by the company’s project cash flow.

Ionic Rare Earths declared a strong cash position of more than $12 million for the end of March.

More on the Makuutu Rare Earths project

Located 120 kilometres east of Kampala in Uganda, the Makuutu Rare Earths project is an ionic adsorption clay-hosted rare earth element deposit. The project is 100% owned by Rwenzori Rare Metals Ltd., a private Ugandan company. However, Ionic Rare Earths has acquired a 51% shareholding in Rwenzori Rare Metals.

The Makuutu project consists of 5 licences and is serviced by infrastructure such as roads, rail, power, and cell communications.

Words from the managing director

Ionic Rare Earths managing director, Tim Harrison commented on the result, saying:

The completion of this study with its positive project economics represents a critical milestone for the company. Combining the long life potential, with the low-cost modular capital development and high margin basket potential at Makuutu, confirms the project as one of the best potential new sources of critical and heavy rare earths in the near term.

We see this project as technically and financially robust and eminently financeable, and the company has received strong expressions of interest from strategic parties interested in accessing Makuutu’s unique basket composition that contains approximately 70—75% critical and heavy rare earths.

Looking ahead, Mr Harrison further commented on the company’s strategic direction, adding:

…We now move formally towards the BFS (Bankable Feasibility Study) which we plan to complete by Q3 2022, prior to submitting the Mining Licence in October 2022 that will allow us to make a Final Investment Decision with a low capital development threshold, and capable of generating strong shareholder returns over a long-life operation at Makuutu.

About the Ionic Rare Earths share price

Over the past 12 months, the Ionic Rare Earths share price has gained over 560%, with year-to-date performance sitting above 130%. The company’s shares reached a multi-year high of 6.5 cents earlier this month before profit-taking swooped in.

At today’s price, Ionic Rare Earths commands a market capitalisation of roughly $127 million, with 3.1 billion shares on issue.

More reading

• Why the Ionic Rare Earths (ASX:IXR) share price hit a 5-year high today

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras 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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It’s hard to believe that this time last year, on 29 April 2020, Brent crude oil was selling for only US$22.54 per barrel. Or that Australian drivers were able to fill their cars with petrol for less than $1 per litre.

But then those were the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. With most air, sea and even ground transportation idled due to lockdowns and social distancing, the world’s oil supplies suddenly very much exceeded the immediate demand.

Since then that demand has gradually increased as the world moves to reopen. This comes even as supplies have diminished, largely driven by output cuts from OPEC+ and reductions in US shale oil production.

The result has seen crude prices surge, with one barrel of Brent worth US$67.56 at the time of writing. An increase of 200% in just 12 months.

But crude oil could have significantly further to run.

Crude oil to US$80 per barrel?

According to analysts at Goldman Sachs, crude oil is set to benefit from a rapidly increasing demand in an industry that can’t simply drill new wells overnight.

In a note, Goldman Sachs’ Jeffrey Currie and colleagues wrote that they foresee (quoted by the Australian Financial Review) “a significant rebound in global oil demand in coming months, key to our forecast for higher oil prices”.

That forecast is based on downward trends in new coronavirus infections in Brazil, Chile and Europe. The analysts also point to nations leading the charge on vaccinations (the United States, Israel and the United Kingdom) returning to levels of higher mobility, writing:

As a result, we expect global oil demand to increase sharply by June, from 94.5 million barrels a day currently to 99 mb/d in the third quarter of 2021, as the pace of vaccination accelerates in Europe, finally unleashing pent-up travel demand. In particular, we expect the easing of international travel restrictions in May to lead global jet demand to recover by 1.5 mb/d.

Goldman Sachs is forecasting crude to reach US$80 per barrel in the next months. That’s more than 18% higher than the current price.

And it should offer some more welcome tailwinds to leading ASX 200 oil and gas shares.

Two leading ASX oil shares

Just as the price of oil was smashed in the early months after the outbreak of the pandemic, so too were the share prices of ASX oil and gas companies.

But as the price of the black gold they pump from the ground has rocketed, ASX oil shares have managed to recoup much of those early 2020 losses.

The Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price, for example, is up 56% in the past 12 months, far outpacing the 31% gain on the  S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO). Year-to-date Santos continues to outperform, with shares up 10% so far in 2021. At the current price of $7.06 per share, Santos has a market cap of $14.7 billion.

On the smaller end of the scale, with a market cap of $587 million, Senex Energy Ltd (ASX: SXY) has also enjoyed a strong 12 months, with shares up 100% since 29 April last year. Year-to-date the Senex share price is up 27%.

Investors holding or considering ASX oil shares will surely be keeping a close eye on Goldman Sachs’ forecast of US$80 per barrel crude oil. Should that eventuate, share prices should enjoy a new round of tailwinds.

More reading

• Why ASX bank shares may be facing a big sell-off in the next few weeks
• Are Woolworths (ASX:WOW) shares too expensive?
• QBE Insurance (ASX:QBE) set to face AGM shareholder revolt
• Goldman Sachs has good news for ASX 200 copper shares
• Why do ASX dividend shares underperform the market?

Motley Fool contributor Bernd Struben 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 Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd (ASX: VUL) share price has been a strong performer on Thursday.

In afternoon trade, the Europe-based lithium developer’s shares are up 6% to $8.35.

Incredibly, this means the Vulcan Energy share price is now up over 200% since the start of the year.

Why is the Vulcan Energy share price charging higher today?

A number of lithium producers are climbing higher today despite there being no real industry news to speak of.

The likes of Galaxy Resources Limited (ASX: GXY), Orocobre Limited (ASX: ORE), and Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) are all recording solid gains of their own.

So, today’s gain in the Vulcan Energy share price might have more to do with that than the release of its quarterly update this afternoon.

What did Vulcan Energy report?

Given that the company is still some way off producing lithium at the Zero Carbon Lithium Project in Germany, its quarterly report was more of a reminder of what it has achieved during the quarter. And it certainly has achieved a lot!

During the quarter the company undertook the Zero Carbon Lithium Project’s pre-feasibility study (PFS).

That PFS demonstrated strong potential to develop a cutting edge, combined renewable energy and lithium hydroxide project, in the centre of Europe, with net zero carbon footprint.

The study also estimates that the full project has a positive post-tax net present value (NPV) of 2.25 billion euros.

It also has options to phase its developments, with phase one estimated to have an NPV of 700 million euros and phase two having an NPV of 1.4 billion euros.

The company also successfully completed a $120 million placement, with strong support from ESG-focused institutions. Interestingly, the cornerstone investment was provided by Hancock Prospecting. It is one of the most successful private companies in Australian history, led by Executive Chair Gina Rinehart.

These funds will be used for project development, feasibility study costs and permitting, drill site acquisition and preparation, and strategic opportunities to accelerate project development. In respect to the latter, Vulcan advised that it is assessing options to acquire existing infrastructure in Germany to accelerate development.

More reading

• Why Bingo, Life360, Tabcorp, & Vulcan shares are storming higher
• Why the Vulcan (ASX:VUL) share price is surging 7%
• Vulcan Energy (ASX:VUL) share price slumps amid asset spin-off
• Why this broker thinks the Vulcan (ASX: VUL) share price can double again
• The Vulcan (ASX:VUL) share price has rocketed 9% today. Here’s why

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of Galaxy Resources 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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ASX bank shares have been outperforming recently, but one expert is warning that the sector is in for a rude shock next month during their reporting season.

That’s when three of the big four ASX banks will hand in their profit report cards. And while their results are expected to be good, this may not be enough to save them from a big sell-off.

That’s the view of Bell Potter’s high profile institutional dealer Richard Coppleson.

ASX bank reporting season a double-edged sword

He pointed out that ASX bank shares typically rally into their results before falling off a cliff around the middle of May.

The three big banks that will report their results next month include Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC), Australia and New Zealand Banking GrpLtd (ASX: ANZ) and National Australia Bank Ltd. (ASX: NAB).

Their shares have been outperforming the S&P/ASX 200 Index (Index:^AXJO) in the last three months.

ASX bank share prices outperforming

The ANZ Bank share price jumped 20%, the Westpac share price rallied 18% and the NAB share price gained 12%.

In contrast, the ASX 200 benchmark is up a more modest 6.5% over the period.

The outlier is the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price, which only kept pace with the broader market. The bank reported its first half results in February.

Seasonal weakness during the ASX bank reporting period

But their golden run could be interrupted. Coppleson noted that in six of the last 11 years, the ASX banking sector lost ground. The average loss over those years is around 1.6%.

History shows that it’s the Westpac share price and ANZ Bank share price that fare worse than the broader group too.

It’s worth pointing out that May tends to be a seasonally weak period for share markets. That’s how the adage “sell in May, go away” came about.

The interesting thing though is that ASX bank shares are usually the second worst performing group in May, right after ASX insurance shares.

Not all trends are your friends

Another significant point worth noting is that ASX bank shares have broken the rules in the last three consecutive years. These shares have rallied in the month of May from 2018.

The COVID-19 market rebound helped ASX bank shares chalk up an impressive 4.2% jump last year.

But Coppleson believes ASX bank shares will revert to trend and fall next month. This is because they are now a “crowded trade” as most institutional and retail investors have rushed to buy these shares.

Why this May could be particularly bad

Investor have jumped on the bandwagon due to high expectations of a good result and a big rebound in dividends.

This means they may be quicker to dump the three reporting big bank shares the instance they go ex-dividend by around the middle of next month.

Having said that, the sell-off could be temporary. The fact is, the outlook for our banks remain positive.

Further, ASX banks are tipped to keep increasing their dividends over the next few years. A sell-off may mark a buying opportunity for longer-term investors.

More reading

• Are Woolworths (ASX:WOW) shares too expensive?
• QBE Insurance (ASX:QBE) set to face AGM shareholder revolt
• Goldman Sachs has good news for ASX 200 copper shares
• Why do ASX dividend shares underperform the market?
• ASX 200 up 0.3%: Woolworths and Fortescue lower on updates, Newcrest impresses

Motley Fool contributor Brendon Lau owns shares of Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Limited, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, National Australia Bank Limited, and Westpac Banking. Connect with me on Twitter @brenlau.

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 Iluka Resources Limited (ASX: ILU) share price is rising slightly higher today after the company conducted its 2021 AGM, releasing its 2021 AGM chairman’s and managing director’s addresses to the market afterwards.

Iluka shares have responded modestly, up 1.97% to $7.76 per share at the time of writing.

Iluka is an international mining company with a focus on exploration, project development, mining operations, processing, and marketing. It works primarily with mineral sands, which are ore deposits that contain heavy minerals like titanium and tungsten. Let’s see what its AGM revealed.

Highlights from the Iluka AGM

Iluka chair Greg Martin highlighted the company’s international sustainability and safety programs.

Iluka had a 20% reduction in serious potential safety incidents in the past 12 months, rehabilitated 584 hectares of disturbed land in Sierra Leone, and increased indigenous employment at its Jacinth-Ambrosia operation to almost 30% of its workforce.

Iluka told the AGM it contended with a significant drop in demand for the mineral zircon during the COVID-19 pandemic, but protected its profit margins by cutting supply.

The company also re-entered the rare earths market through its “strategic stockpile” at Eneabba. Rare earth minerals are hot property in international trade, given their use in renewable energy technology.

The company also de-merged one of the mining royalty arms of the business, creating “Australia’s largest listed royalty company”, Deterra Royalties, in which Iluka has retained a 20% stake.

Comments from the chair

Given the impact of the international economic recession on Iluka’s business, Martin took the chance to signpost the company’s future strengths.

Iluka’s disciplined performance in the face of external uncertainty reflects a resilience we have talked about for some time but which, on any objective measure, was on display and well demonstrated last year in dealing with a good number of curve balls.

This is a vital organisational capability as we look to meet the continuing challenges to the many parts of the global economy where COVID-19 remains a very large and present threat to lives and livelihoods.

The objective we’ve set ourselves at Iluka is to deliver sustainable value and, while we pursue that objective diligently and talk about it at every opportunity, it’s often observed that actions speak louder than words.

Iluka share price snapshot

Despite the company’s talk of COVID-19 challenges, the Iluka share price has been on a tear the past 12 months and more than doubled in value since May last year. It’s up 113% in that timeframe.

More reading

• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell today
• Top broker tips Iluka (ASX:ILU) share price to keep on rising
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Tuesday
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday
• These were the best performing ASX 200 shares last week

Motley Fool contributor Lucas Radbourne-Pugh 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 Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) share price is not having a great day today. Woolworths shares are, at the time of writing, down a hefty 3.67% to $39.89. That contrasts even more poorly with the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which is currently up 0.23% today.

Why such a disparate performance for Woolies shares today? Well, it appears to be a reaction to the third quarter update the grocery giant released to the markets this morning. As we dissected earlier today, this update outlined how Woolworths managed to increase sales by 0.4% over the quarter ending March 31 2021. The company also reported that its plans to emerge its Endeavour group division (which houses Woolworths’ bottle shops and pubs business) is on track to proceed by June. Additionally, it announced that its plan to open a new Dan Murphy’s bottle shop at Darwin Airport will be scuppered.

Investors are evidently not too impressed with one or more of these pieces of news today.

But perhaps that begs a deeper question: are Woolworths shares too expensive? They certainly don’t look cheap if we use conventional metrics.

Woolies and its peers

The Woolworths share price currently has a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 35.65, and a trailing dividend yield of 2.53%. Compare that to Woolworths’ rivals in Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) and Metcash Limited (ASX: MTS). At current pricing, Coles has a P/E ratio of just 20.71 – and a dividend yield of 3.72% as well. Metcash is sitting on a P/E ratio of 16.16, and a trailing dividend yield of 3.97%.

That looks (and is) far cheaper than Woolworths on a pure earnings basis. Perhaps that is affecting how Woolworths’ shares are responding today. Shares that are priced at relatively high earnings multiples usually are so because the market has placed high expectations on their performance. As a comparison, iShares has the average P/E ratio for ASX 200 companies at the current time sitting at 23.75.

Are Woolworths shares overvalued today?

Well, one broker who doesn’t think so is investment bank Goldman Sachs. According to CommSec, Goldman has retained its ‘buy’ rating for Woolworths shares, and a 12-month price target of $43.60, following the quarterly update. This implies an upside of around 9% on the current pricing. Goldman has based this target on Woolworths’ fundamentals and cash flow estimates.

More reading

• Woolworths (ASX:WOW) fails the pub test with Darwin Dan Murphy’s
• Why Airtasker, Ecofibre, Nuix, & Woolworths shares are sinking
• QBE Insurance (ASX:QBE) set to face AGM shareholder revolt
• What are brokers saying about the Coles (ASX:COL) share price?
• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy now

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of COLESGROUP DEF SET and Woolworths 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 Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) price is up 21% over the past 24 hours, currently trading for 33.3 US cents (42.7 Aussie cents).

The Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) price is heading the other way over the past full day, down 1.1% to US$54,227 (AU$69,522).

At the current price, Dogecoin — a digital token represented by a smiling Shiba Inu — claims the 7th largest market cap of any cryptocurrency, at US$41.4 billion. That’s up from 8th place just a few weeks ago when Dogecoin was trading for 23.8 US cents. Even then, on 16 April, Dogecoin had already clocked a mind-boggling 4,996% gain in 2021.

At today’s price, the year-to-date gains for Dogecoin are even more jaw-dropping, with the meme coin up 6,990% since 1 January, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

Lacking a time machine, the question crypto investors are asking now is if those kinds of gains mean Dogecoin is in for a major correction. Or if more outsized gains could still be ahead.

Dogecoin price rocketing…who’s laughing now?

Coming to life as an offspring of Litecoin in 2013, the dog meme themed crypto’s creators intended for it to be a light-hearted version of the more serious cryptos, like Bitcoin.

Billionaire Mark Cuban, who owns the Dallas Mavericks NBA team, still embraces that lighter side of Dogecoin.

In a groundbreaking move, the Mavericks franchise decided to accept Dogecoin as well as Bitcoin and Ethereum in lieu of cash. Though they’re happy to take your cash as well.

Speaking on The Ellen DeGeneres Show Cuban said (quoted by Bloomberg), “Bitcoin is like a digital version of gold, Ethereum is a digital version of a currency and then you got Dogecoin, which is just fun.”

Asked whether Dogecoin is a good investment, Cuban replied:

Overall, when someone brings up Dogecoin to you and asks you if it’s a good investment, I would say it’s not the world’s best investment but it’s a whole lot better than a lottery ticket, and it’s a great way to learn and start understanding cryptocurrencies. And you know what? It could go up. And the second part about it is if it doesn’t go up and you want to spend it, you can buy merchandise on the Mavericks store.

There you have it from one of Dogecoin’s more ardent and high-profile public supporters. It “could go up” even after this year’s epic run. And if not, well, you can load up with NBA jerseys and coffee mugs well ahead of the Christmas season.

A word of caution

Certainly not everyone is a fan of Dogecoin.

Like Jeffrey Halley, a senior market analyst at Oanda Asia Pacific which specialises in trading fiat currencies.

According to Halley (quoted by Bloomberg):

Dogecoin has no apparent commercial or investment use other than as a conduit for speculative mania and the attempt to make a buck. I suspect much of its appeal lies in the fact that it is very, very cheap to buy and sell, as opposed to $60,000 for Bitcoin, making it much more approachable to a retail trader who fancies a flutter.

Of course, you don’t have to buy or sell an entire Bitcoin at once. The world’s largest cryptocurrency is split into tiny fractions, called satoshi, after the mysterious founder (or founders) of Bitcoin. A single Bitcoin is comprised of 100 million satoshi.

But Halley certainly has a point regarding investor psychology. Buying into a digital asset worth US$54,000 presents a higher psychological bar than buying into one worth a mere 33 cents.

Will that continue to support the Dogecoin price? I’ll get back to you on that one in a few weeks’ time.

More reading

• Tesla’s Bitcoin sale helped boost quarterly profits
• Should you invest your super in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin?
• Is Dogecoin still a joke?
• Is Square the long-term stock for you?
• Aussie fintech lets ANYONE receive salary in Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC)

Bernd Struben has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and recommends Bitcoin. 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 Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) share price is firmly in the red following the release of two statements to the ASX today.

They include the company’s quarterly sales update which we talked about at the Motley Fool this morning, and an announcement on its proposed Dan Murphy’s outlet near Darwin’s airport.

At the time of writing, the Woolworths share price is down 3.62%, trading at $39.91 per share. Meanwhile, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is 0.24% higher.

Let’s delve into the update on Dan Murphy’s.

Thumbs down from independent review

Following plenty of pushback from various organisations, Woolworths launched an independent panel review into its proposed Dan Murphy’s in Darwin. This review was led by the co-founder of law firm Gilbert + Tobin, Danny Gilbert.

Gilbert’s review focused on several key areas. These included assessing the adequacy of stakeholder engagement with respect to public health concerns; the extent to which stakeholder concerns are factored into decision-making; and best practices for the supply of alcohol in the best interests of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

BREAKING: Woolworths Group just announced they are NOT proceeding with Darwin Dan Murphys development!
Congratulations to Aunty Helen, Olivia Williams (BlakBusiness), @FAREAustralia, and the NT orgs who fought so hard to protect the Bagot community. #KeepGrogOut pic.twitter.com/t3KUsKsfX2

— Nic Holas (@nicheholas) April 28, 2021

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

Today, Woolworths has announced that it will not proceed with the Dan Murphy’s development in Darwin. The abandonment of the project follows Gilbert’s panel advising not to go ahead based on their findings. In addition to its sales update, the announcement has been met with a decline in the Woolworths share price.

In the release, Woolworths’ divulged some of Gilbert’s findings, as follows:

The Gilbert Review has made it clear that we did not do enough in this community to live up to the best practice engagement to which we hold ourselves accountable.

In particular, we did not do enough stakeholder engagement with a range of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and organisations.

Woolworths intends to release the Gilbert review in full no later than mid-June.

Woolworths share price socially distancing

It is probably no coincidence that Woolworths is looking to spin off the Endeavour Drinks division by the end of June. This would allow Woolworths to hold a stake in the business but distance itself from the social blowback surrounding alcohol businesses.

CEO Brad Banducci stated that any decision to open a Dan Murphy’s store in the future would be in the hands of Endeavour Drinks management. Demonstrating the already developing efforts in separating the businesses.

The strategic move may alleviate social pressures on the Woolworths share price in the future. Meanwhile, Woolworths would still stand to gain from a mega-store opening if it held a position in the spin-off.

More reading

• Why Airtasker, Ecofibre, Nuix, & Woolworths shares are sinking
• ASX 200 up 0.3%: Woolworths and Fortescue lower on updates, Newcrest impresses
• Woolworths (ASX:WOW) share price lower on third quarter sales update
• 4 ASX shares to boom when inflation goes up: fundie
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday

Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Woolworths 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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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a gain. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 0.2% to 7,080.5 points.

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

Airtasker Ltd (ASX: ART)

The Airtasker share price is down 3.5% to $1.33. This appears to have been driven by profit taking after a solid gain on Wednesday following the release of its third quarter update. That update revealed that the company has been performing stronger than expected since its IPO earlier this year. This led to Airtasker upgrading its guidance for FY 2021.

Ecofibre Ltd (ASX: EOF)

The Ecofibre share price has sunk 10.5% to 94.5 cents. This may be a delayed reaction to the hemp company’s quarterly update earlier this week. Ecofibre reported quarterly revenue of $6.8 million, which was down 10% on the second quarter and 52% on the prior corresponding period. Hemp-based face mask sales boosted its performance a year ago.

Nuix Ltd (ASX: NXL)

The Nuix share price is down almost 6% to $4.02. This is despite there being no news out of the investigative analytics and intelligence software provider. However, investors have been selling the company’s shares since the release of a trading update and guidance downgrade this month. Disappointingly, the Nuix share price hit a record low of $3.95 earlier in the day.

Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW)

The Woolworths share price is down almost 4% to $39.87. Investors have been selling the retail conglomerate’s shares following the release of its third quarter update. For the three months ended 31 March, Woolworths posted a 0.4% increase in group sales to $16,566 million. While this sales result was stronger than expected, the company’s outlook for the fourth quarter appears to have spooked investors.   

More reading

• ASX 200 up 0.3%: Woolworths and Fortescue lower on updates, Newcrest impresses
• Woolworths (ASX:WOW) share price lower on third quarter sales update
• 4 ASX shares to boom when inflation goes up: fundie
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday
• ASX 200 rises, Kogan jumps, gold miners sold off

James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Nuix Pty Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Woolworths Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Nuix Pty Ltd. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

The post Why Airtasker, Ecofibre, Nuix, & Woolworths shares are sinking appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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