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The Anatara Lifesciences Ltd (ASX: ANR) share price is one of the best performers on the ASX today. This comes after the company announced it has secured an Australian patent for its animal health product, Detach and provided an update on its piglet challenge study.

At the time of writing, the life sciences company’s shares are swapping hands for 21.5 cents, up 19.4%.

New patent grant

Anatara shares are pushing higher after investors appear pleased with the company’s latest progress.

According to its release, Anatara advised it has been granted a patent to add to its portfolio. Approved by IP Australia, the patent will seek to protect Anatara’s intellectual property, and provide a pathway for future commercialisation.

The new patent is titled, ‘Anti-diarrhea formulation which avoids antimicrobial resistance’ (patent number AU2019204496).

Anatara stated that its product, Detach uses the patent as a non-antibiotic solution to assist in controlling diarrheal disease. The patent covers using bromelain, an extract from pineapple stems, as a way to treat and prevent diarrhea caused by pathogenic microbes. However, the company noted that the new formulation does not kill pathogenic microbes.

The AU2019204496 patent is wholly-owned by Anatara, and is set to expire on 24 August 2038.

Anatara CEO, Steven Lydeamore commented:

The granting of the patent secures our intellectual property position and is a significant milestone towards commercialising our Detach animal health product. Scour in piglets is an expensive, debilitating and in some cases, life-threatening condition, and having a product that is registered for use in Australia, we are well placed to leverage our patent as we work towards a commercial deal.

Piglet challenge study commences

In further news boosting Anatara shares, the company revealed that its BONIFF-SMEC (bromelain-based formulation) (semi-moist extruded creep) study has begun. The project aims to test the formulated feed additive on piglets under an enterotoxigenic E. coli model. Anatara will closely evaluate the efficacy of the modified additive on piglet health, welfare, and performance after weaning.

The study is being conducted in partnership with Ridley Corporation, and is expected to be completed in June 2021.

Lydeamore commented:

Having focused our efforts on research and development over a number of years, we have developed a strong animal health pipeline and I look forward to providing the market with an update on the commercial significance of both the pig and poultry challenge trials in the coming months.

Anatara share price review

Over the past 12 months, the Anatara share price has gained over 20%, with year-to-date jumping 26%. The company’s shares reached a 52-week high of 28 cents during the middle of last year, before treading lower.

More reading

• Why you should buy these 2 defensive ASX shares today
• Alumina (ASX:AWC) share price dips on latest Alcoa update
• Why the Queensland Pacific Metals (ASX:QPM) share price just soared 15%
• Netflix is losing market share, but this is the actual risk to shareholders
• Why Eagers Auto, Mayne Pharma, Monadelphous, & Newcrest are pushing higher

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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The Alumina Limited (ASX: AWC) share price is edging lower today. The negative price movement comes after the aluminium supplier provided an update on the FY21 Q3 of its Alcoa World Alumina & Chemicals (AWAC) business partner, Alcoa Corp (NYSE: AA).

At the time of writing, Alumina shares are trading for $1.76 – down 1.12%. By comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is currently 0.26% lower.

Let’s take a closer look at today’s news and why it could be affecting the Alumina share price.

What’s going on with the Alumina share price?

In a statement to the ASX, Alumina advised shareholders of the Alcoa earnings report. As well, it provided “select information” on the Alcoa Bauxite and Alumina Segments, AWAC joint venture and other market data.

As stated, AWAC is a joint venture between Alumina and Alcoa. Alumina is a minority shareholder in the company, with a 40% stake. Alcoa owns the remaining portion. AWAC is the largest alumina business in the western world with a production capacity of 14.1 million tonnes of alumina per year.

From the Alumina update, Alcoa’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) in its alumina segment increased 134% to $227 million between Q2 to Q3. Its bauxite segment, however, fell 50.8% to $59 million during the same period. The EBITDA margin in the alumina segment increased from 10.4% to 20.2% while in bauxite it decreased from 39.5% to 24.3%. These figures are not overly impressing investors, judging by today’s Alumina share price slump.

Bauxite is an ore that contains aluminium oxides. It is then refined into alumina, which is then itself refined into aluminium.

Alumina also revealed its cost of production in AWAC increased by $23 to $229 per tonne while its realised price of AWAC product also appreciated – up by $26 to $298 per tonne. The net margin, therefore, increasing by $3 per tonne. The business claims the increase in production costs are attributable to “the higher Australian dollar, impacts from the Western Australian crusher move and seasonal maintenance.”

Alumina received $62 million from AWAC during the quarter. This is up by $7.4 million from the previous quarter.

Its net debt position increased from the last quarter from $49.6 million to $77.6 million.

Management commentary

Alumina CEO Mike Ferraro said:

With a slightly higher margin than Q4 2020, AWAC continued to generate significant cash flow for the quarter, distributing a net $62m to Alumina Limited.

An abnormal spike in Handysize freight costs in February 2021 had a negative impact on the Chinese alumina import parity price, which has caused a decline in API in recent weeks. Since late March, the Handysize freight cost has begun to fall and we expect it to continue to decline over the course of 2021, which is likely to put upward pressure on the API. Freight costs of Capesize vessels, which are used to transport bauxite from Guinea to China, have been relatively stable over the same period.

Aluminium commodity price

Aluminium futures are currently trading on the commodities market for US$2,336.50 per tonne. It’s at its highest price since June 2018. Over the past year, the Aluminium price has increased by 57.13%. The website Trading Economics is attributing the rise to increasing global demand and decreasing supply out of China due to emission regulations. In economics, this is known as the law of supply and demand.

Trading Economics is also forecasting the price of aluminium to decrease over the next 12 months. It expects its price to sit around US$2,144 by then.

Alumina share price snapshot

Over the past year, the Alumina share price has increased by around 16%. It is, however, down by around 6% since the beginning of this year. Based on the current price, Alumina shares are paying a dividend yield of 4.29%.

Alumina has a market capitalisation of $5.1 billion.

More reading

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Motley Fool contributor Marc Sidarous 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 Queensland Pacific Metals Ltd (ASX: QPM) share price has rocketed by 15% this morning after news the company has produced battery specification nickel sulfate.

Tests were able to produce battery quality nickel sulfate from nickel-cobalt mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP) produced at Queensland Pacific’s pilot plant operations.

Today, the Queensland Pacific Metals share price opened 5% higher than yesterday’s close. It has continued rising at currently sits at 12 cents a share, up 15%.

Let’s look closer at the news from Queensland Pacific.

Today’s news

In today’s release, Queensland Pacific shared it has defied even its own expectations of the quality of nickel sulfate produced by its pilot plants operations.

It recently engaged The Simulus Group to undertake bench scale test work to produce nickel sulfate.

Currently, MHP is the preferred product to refine nickel sulfate for batteries. The process is a conventional commercial flowsheet that is widely used in the industry.

The conventional industry flowsheet involves re-leach, solvent extraction, impurity removal and crystallization, which Simulus used to successfully produce nickel sulfate.

The result was better than the company’s targets. Queensland Pacific stated that, based on industry specifications, the results meet even the strictest of battery specifications.

It claimed the ability to produce nickel sulfate from its New Caledonian-sourced products is an important milestone for the company.

Queensland Pacific is now beginning pilot scale testwork to produce nickel sulfate from its remaining mixed hydroxide precipitate. It is also working with the CSIRO to find an alternative refining flowsheet to reduce the costs of processing nickel sulfate.

Commentary from management

QPM’s managing director Stephen Grocott commented on the findings. He said:

We have now completed the full process from a raw ore source to a final battery chemical product. The Australian Government is trying to develop the nation’s capability for advanced manufacturing and the TECH Project is the perfect example of a project that would fit this bill.

Queensland Pacific Metals share price snapshot

The Queensland Pacific Metals share price is having a roaring year so far on the ASX.

Currently, it’s up 162.5% year to date. It’s also up a whopping 950% over the last 12 months.

Queensland Pacific Metals has a market capitalisation of around $112 million, with approximately 1 billion shares outstanding.

More reading

• Netflix is losing market share, but this is the actual risk to shareholders
• Why Eagers Auto, Mayne Pharma, Monadelphous, & Newcrest are pushing higher
• Selfwealth (ASX:SWF) share price keeps tumbling
• Eagers Automotive (ASX:APE) share price edges higher on trading update
• Telstra (ASX:TLS) share price falls amid overseas expansion talks

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper 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.

Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) is losing market share to be sure — but consider the circumstances. It was the first company to make streaming video a mainstream phenomenon, and for years, it was the only serious name in the business. It’s only natural that the recent launches of big rival services such as Disney’s (NYSE: DIS) Disney+ and AT&T‘s (NYSE: T) HBO Max would chip away at Netflix’s share of the on-demand video space.

But there’s room for more than one winner in this business, and Netflix’s market-leading 204 million paid worldwide subscribers is still only a fraction of its total addressable market. Shareholders need not ramp up the anxiety levels just yet.

Stock-picking can be a funny business. Sometimes investors may use all the wrong reasons to mentally justify why a company deserves to be priced at a steep premium, but then quickly change their minds with little to no warning when circumstances shift.

It’s this phenomenon that should make the streaming market’s new entrants so concerning to Netflix shareholders. We’ve never actually seen Netflix forced to compete seriously until now. To the extent that its commanding market share and impressive growth rates are the reasons the stock’s price-to-earnings ratio has lingered above 60, current investors should at least be cautious.

Netflix is losing ground

Continued dominance of a market is never guaranteed. Just ask investors of Yahoo!, MySpace, or IBM. There was a time when shares of IBM and Yahoo! were priced as if those companies would never stop growing, while privately held MySpace fetched a price of $580 million when News Corp. acquired it back in 2005 — and was in 2007 valued at around $12 billion. Six years after News Corp. bought it, MySpace was sold again — for $35 million. Competitors stepped up to the plate, as they always do.

Netflix is no MySpace, to be clear, but it wouldn’t be a stretch to suggest that its best days are behind it. As tough as things have been competitively speaking over the course of the past year, they’re only going to get tougher as players like HBO Max, Disney+, and Hulu step up their streaming games.

Data from market intelligence outfit eMarketer lets us flesh out this trend with some numbers. It reports that Netflix secured 36.2% of the U.S. over-the-top television industry’s revenue in 2020, down from 44.4% in 2019. By 2022, its share is expected to be down to 28.4%, and almost even with Disney’s slice of the U.S. streaming market.

That math is roughly in line with similar research from Ampere Analysis suggesting Netflix lost 30% of its U.S. market share last year.

Its next customers won’t come cheap

In its defense, Netflix is winning a relatively smaller piece of a rapidly growing pie. Last year’s revenue of $25 billion was up 24% year over year, propelled by subscriber growth at a similar rate, and its profits grew at nearly twice that pace. While year-over-year revenue gains are projected to slow, earnings growth is forecast to remain robust through 2025. This may be why Netflix shares continue to trade at 91 times trailing earnings and 57 times forward earnings.

That’s a profit outlook, however, seemingly based on the assumption that per-subscriber marketing costs will remain suppressed. They won’t. They can’t.

See, players like AT&T and Disney are increasingly supporting their fledgling streaming platforms and gaining traction with their efforts. Whereas eMarketer forecasts that Disney and Netflix will be equals within the U.S. by 2022, Digital TV Research’s principal analyst Simon Murray predicts Disney+ will dethrone Netflix as the nation’s streaming leader sometime between 2024 and 2026. Disney itself says it’s expecting to have between 230 million and 260 million Disney+ subscribers by 2024, versus Netflix’s current headcount of 204 million. Netflix will be forced to respond, likely starting with more — not less — spending on marketing, or content, or both.

Indeed, after reining in its marketing spending early in the pandemic, in the fourth quarter, the company ramped it back up. The result was that marketing spending ate into last year’s surge in operating income … almost dollar-for-dollar. Yet Netflix only picked up a relatively modest 8.5 million subscribers for the fourth quarter, despite the boost to its marketing outlays.

The message? The streaming market’s cheap, the low-hanging fruit has been picked.

Bottom line

It’s clear that Netflix’s status as the bully on the block is in jeopardy. To what degree that matters remains to be seen. Just know that not much takes the wind out of a stock’s sails like seeing the underlying company lapped by a newcomer, or seeing its market share chipped away by a flock of new competitors. Just ask IBM, which was once the dominant name of the business computing industry, but was ultimately upended by a combination of Intel, HP, and the army of motherboard manufacturers they led away from IBM’s ecosystem.

NFLX data by YCharts.

Given all of this, it’s curious that Netflix shares have considerably underperformed the broad market over the course of the past six months — a period when the appeal of a host of new streaming competitors became clear. It may be a subtle, subconscious hint of the market’s brewing doubts about Netflix stock’s steep valuation. Perception isn’t everything, but it’s certainly a lot.

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

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James Brumley owns shares of AT&T. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and recommends Netflix and Walt Disney. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Intel and recommends the following options: long January 2023 $57 calls on Intel and short January 2023 $57 puts on Intel. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended 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.

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

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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to end a positive week on an underwhelming note. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down 0.25% to 7,041.5 points.

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

Eagers Automotive Ltd (ASX: APE)

The Eagers Automotive share price is up 3% to $15.58 following the release of a first quarter update. According to the release, the auto retailer expects to report an underlying operating profit before tax of around $98 million for the quarter. This is more than double the underlying operating profit before tax of $40.3 million it recorded in the entire first half of FY 2020.

Mayne Pharma Group Ltd (ASX: MYX)

The Mayne Pharma share price has jumped 9% to 50.2 cents. Investors have been buying the pharmaceutical company’s shares after it announced US FDA approval for a new contraceptive pill. Mayne Pharma intends to launch the novel combined oral contraceptive in June. It estimates that it has a US$3.6 billion opportunity in the United States.

Monadelphous Group Limited (ASX: MND)

The Monadelphous share price is up 5.5% to $11.38. This morning the mining services company announced a settlement with Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO). This relates to a fire incident which occurred at Rio Tinto’s iron ore processing facility at Cape Lambert, Western Australia, in January 2019. Positively, the settlement is being covered by its insurance.

Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM)

The Newcrest share price is up 3.5% to $27.78. This solid gain has been driven by a rise in the gold price and a positive broker note out of Goldman Sachs. In respect to the latter, Goldman Sachs has upgraded Newcrest’s shares from neutral to a buy rating with a $33.50 price target. It believes its shares are cheap compared to ASX 100 gold peers and North American gold majors.

More reading

• Eagers Automotive (ASX:APE) share price edges higher on trading update
• ASX 200 down 0.2%: Origin sinks on earnings downgrade, gold miners charge higher
• Why Newcrest (ASX:NCM) and Northern Star (NST) shares are flying high today
• Here’s why the Mayne Pharma (ASX:MYX) share price is shooting 28% higher
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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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Selfwealth Ltd (ASX: SWF) shares are continuing to tumble today. At the time of writing, the Selfwealth share price is trading 1.79% lower at 55 cents. Today’s falls have contributed to losses of more than 14% for the company’s shares over the past month.

Selfwealth is an Australian-based company, engaged in the provision of flat-fee online brokerage services.

The Selfwealth platform allows users to trade in various securities, including ordinary shares, Australian listed property shares, investment company shares, debt securities and exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

It offers various account types, including for individuals, companies, trusts, self-managed super funds, and joint accounts. The company derives its revenue from trading, membership subscriptions and interest income.

Selfwealth’s recent record

Selfwealth could be excused for feeling a little hard done by given its current share price losses are in the wake of a 178% increase in annual revenue, reported four days ago.

In its quarterly appendix, the company announced a record quarterly operating revenue of $5.78 million, a record quarterly increase of 18,645 active traders to 85,944 (up 166% year on year) and a positive quarterly cash flow from operating activities of $558,000.

It also recorded promising US results. The performance of its new US trading product throughout the GameStop trading frenzy was “particularly pleasing” according to the report, amidst platform issues and trading restrictions at competing trading platforms.

This led to record client acquisition for SelfWealth together with a “much larger than expected” 25% take-up of the US trading functionality.

The Selfwealth share price falls are possibly a slight market correction, given its share price has rocketed by more than 290% over the past 12 months. However, Selfwealth shares have declined each day since the release of the company’s quarterly update. 

Selfwealth share price snapshot

The Selfwealth share price has fallen 5.17% this week, meaning the company’s shares are now trading flat for the year so far.

It is up by around 235% against the broader financial services sector over the past year but is now a long way off its all-time high of 79 cents, reached in September last year.

More reading

• SelfWealth (ASX:SWF) share price on watch following trading update
• SelfWealth (ASX:SWF) share price flat despite new CEO

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 Eagers Automotive Ltd (ASX: APE) share price is climbing in early morning trade following the release of a trading update. At the time of writing, the automotive retailer’s shares are swapping hands for $15.57, up 0.39%. In comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX:XJO) is flat at 7,055 points.

How did Eagers Automotive perform for the period?

Eagers Automotive shares are within sights of breaking new territory after the company delivered a strong result.

For the quarter ending 31 March 2021, Eagers Automotive expects to report an underlying operating profit before tax of around $98 million. On a statutory basis, the group anticipates net profit before tax from its operations to come at $105 million.

Management stated that the sound result is being driven by unusually strong market tailwinds. Demand is outstripping supply, and the company’s material cost-out program, completed within the last year, is also seeing ongoing benefits.

Eagers Automotive reiterated that it remains attentive on balancing the risk of changing market dynamics aligned with its growth plans. The company’s Next 100 strategy with managing its cost base efficiently is continuing to advance.

Furthermore, Eagers Automotive revealed that the robust result does not include the sale of the Daimler Truck operations and Milperra property. The transaction, valued at $108 million, is slated for completion sometime in the first-half of 2021.

Once the divestment is transferred to Velocity Vehicle Group, Eagers Automotive believes this will simplify its automotive retail businesses. An estimated net gain of before tax between $32 million and $36 million is estimated to be delivered.

Eagers Automotive share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, the Eagers Automotive share price has gained more than 280%, with year-to-date up around 14%. The company’s shares reached an all-time high of $15.89 on Wednesday and could break that feat again.

Based on the current share price, Eagers Automotive commands a market capitalisation of roughly $3.9 billion. In addition, the company has close to 257 million shares on issue.

More reading

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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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The Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) share price is trading 1.2% lower this morning after reports the company has been in talks with a private equity firm to expand overseas.

Telstra wants to connect with the world

Speculation is rife that Telstra is looking to expand its operations overseas. According to a report in The Sydney Morning Herald, Telstra has been in “advanced talks” with I Squared Capital and PCCW Global of Hong Kong to merge its international division with the company. The move is seen by some as clear intent of the former government entity’s plans to expand outside of Australia. PCCW is a subsidiary of Hong Kong Telecom.

According to the report, Telstra and I Square are planning on launching a joint bid for PCCW to then run the company as a joint venture. The reporting only confirms talks were held between Telstra and I Square as late as February this year. It is not clear if the talks are still ongoing. 

What else might be affecting the Telstra share price?

Last month, the company said it would be restructuring its operations into four entities. InfraCo Fixed would own and operate Telstra ducts, fibre, data centres, and exchanges. InfraCo Towers would own and operate its mobile tower assets and ServeCo would own the radio access network and spectrum assets. The first three assets would be held by a holding company owned by Telstra shareholders.

In the announcement, Telstra said its international business would become another subsidiary within the group. It will own and operate undersea cables as well as oversee overseas operations. The company also would be looking to sell off InfraCo sometime into the future.

The news at the time, unlike today, sent the Telstra share price flying.

Telstra share price snapshot

Over the last 12 months, the Telstra share price has increased a modest 8.9%. Only four days ago, the company’s share price hit an 8-month high of $3.48. Pre-COVID, the company was trading around the $3.80 mark.

Telstra has a market capitalisation of $40.8 billion.

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Motley Fool contributor Marc Sidarous has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Telstra 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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At lunch on Friday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to end the week on a subdued note. The benchmark index is down 0.2% to 7,043.3 points.

Here’s what has been happening on the market today:

Origin guidance downgrade

The Origin Energy Ltd (ASX: ORG) share price is sinking today after downgrading its earnings guidance for FY 2021. The energy company made the move due to an adverse and unexpected outcome on a domestic gas contract price review and continued headwinds in energy markets’ operating conditions. Origin now expects its energy markets division to post a 30% to 35% decline in operating earnings in FY 2021.

Gold miners upgraded

Gold miners Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) are charging higher today. This has been driven by a rise in the gold price and a positive broker note out of Goldman Sachs. In respect to the latter, this morning the broker upgraded Newcrest and Northern Star’s shares to buy ratings from neutral. It notes that their shares are trading at a deep discount to their net asset value in comparison to peers. The S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Gold index is up 3% at lunch. 

Mineral Resources update disappoints

The Mineral Resources Limited (ASX: MIN) share price is under pressure today following the release of a disappointing quarterly update. During the March quarter the company only managed to ship 4.1 million wet metric tonnes of iron ore. This was due to a shortage of truck drivers caused by coronavirus-related border closures. This compares to the average of approximately 4.8 million to 5.1 million wet metric tonnes per quarter required to achieve its guidance.

Best and worst ASX 200 performers

The best performer on the ASX 200 on Friday has been the Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) share price with a 4.5% gain. This follows a rise in oil prices and a favourable decision relating to the Origin domestic gas contract price review. Conversely, the Origin share price is the worst performer today with a 6% decline following its guidance downgrade.

More reading

• Why Newcrest (ASX:NCM) and Northern Star (NST) shares are flying high today
• Mineral Resources (ASX:MIN) share price sinks on activities report
• Here’s why the Origin (ASX:ORG) share price is sinking 5% today
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• ASX 200 rises, Zip sinks, BOQ reports

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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 RTG Mining Inc (ASX: RTG) share price is soaring today after the company shared a decision made by the Philippines Government.

The government’s decision has caused the RTG Mining share price to surge 11.76%, with shares in the company currently trading for 19 cents.

But why has a Philippines Government decision affected the RTG Mining share price? Let’s take a look.

New mining licences

RTG Mining shared today that Philippines leader President Duterte has lifted a 9-year ban on new mining licences in the country.

This means Mt. Labo Exploration and Development Corporation, of which RTG Mining owns 40%, can proceed with the development and operation of its Mabilo Project.

The Mabilo Project is a high-grade gold/copper magnetite skarn deposit. Its shallow deposit is amenable to low-cost, open-pit mining.

In its release, the miner stated the government expects new mining agreements will stimulate economic growth. Particularly, in remote and rural areas, such as the area in which the Mabilo Project is located.

Mabilo Project controversy

Through a series of interesting events, Mt. Labo owns 100% of the Mabilo Project.

In 2016, Mt. Labo terminated its joint venture agreement with Galeo Equipment Corporation. After this, legal proceedings began, questioning the legality of the agreement’s termination.

In 2020, a tribunal found in favour of Mt. Labo, confirming the joint venture agreement was validly terminated.

Mt. Labo’s interest in the Mabilo Project was then increased to 100% at no cost to the company. It was also awarded $33. 6 million in damages and costs.

RTG Mining share price snapshot

Today’s news will come as a much-needed boost to RTG Mining shareholders.

Even with today’s gains, the company’s share price is down 13.64% since the start of the year. Although, RTG shares are up by an impressive 217% over the last 12 months.

The company is dual-listed on both the ASX and the Toronto Stock Exchange. 

RTG Mining has a market capitalisation of around $108 million, with approximately 680 million shares outstanding.

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Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper 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.

The post Why the RTG Mining (ASX:RTG) share price is soaring 12% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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