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I’m a big fan of buy and hold investing and believe it is the best way for investors to grow their wealth. To demonstrate how successful it can be, I like to pick out a number of popular ASX shares to see how much a single $20,000 investment 10 years ago would be worth today.

On this occasion, I have picked out the three ASX shares that are listed below:

Codan Limited (ASX: CDA)

This electronic product company’s shares have been a great place to invest your money over the last decade. This has particularly been the case over the last five years thanks to the surging gold price and its industry leading metal and gold detectors. Sales have been growing very strongly for its Minelab business, underpinning stellar earnings and dividend growth. Positively, this is continuing in FY 2021 and is being bolstered further by a series of acquisitions. These acquisitions are diversifying its offering, which could prove very important when the gold price eventually weakens and demand for detectors softens. For now, over the last 10 years, Codan’s shares have generated an average total return of 28.3% per annum. This would have turned a $20,000 investment into $242,000.

Sydney Airport Holdings Pty Ltd (ASX: SYD)

This airport operator’s shares may be trading well below their highs due to the impact of the pandemic on the travel industry, but this hasn’t diminished their market-beating returns over the last 10 years. Thanks to its position as the busiest airport in Australia and the global tourism boom, Sydney Airport was growing at a consistently solid rate until COVID-19 hit. This has led to its shares providing investors with an average total return of 12.35% per annum since 2011. This would have turned a $20,000 investment into almost $64,000.

Technology One Limited (ASX: TNE)

This enterprise solutions company’s shares have been another great place to invest over the last decade. During this time the company has gone from being a relatively small player to one of the largest in the region. In addition to this, its shift to a software-as-a-service business model has underpinned strong growth in its recurring revenues in recent years. This has gone down well with investors and positioned it well for the future. All in all, this has led to its shares generating an average total return of 26.8% per annum over the last decade. This means a $20,000 investment in its shares 10 years ago would be worth $215,000 today.

More reading

• Why Codan, Flight Centre, Magellan, & Woolworths are sinking
• Leading broker names 3 of its best ASX share ideas for April
• Bullish ASX 200 shares breaking into 52-week highs 
• Acquisitions and spin-offs put these 3 ASX shares on brokers’ “buy” list
• Broker tips Sydney Airport (ASX:SYD) share price to push even higher

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.

The post How to turn $20,000 into $240,000 in 10 years with ASX shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) came back from the Easter break with a bang last week. Over the four days, the benchmark index rose 2.4% to 6,995.2 points.

While a good number of shares climbed higher with the market, some performed better than others. Here’s why these were the best performing ASX 200 shares last week:

Silver Lake Resources Limited (ASX: SLR)

The Silver Lake share price was the best performer on the ASX 200 last week with a gain of 18.2%. A number of gold miner’s raced higher last week after the price of the precious metal climbed to a one-month high. The easing of bond yields was supportive of the gold price over the week.

EML Payments Ltd (ASX: EML)

The EML share price wasn’t far behind with a gain of 17.1% over the four days. Investors were fighting to get hold of its shares following the announcement of the acquisition of Sentenial Limited for up to 110 million euros (~A$170.7 million). Sentenial is a leading European Open Banking and Account-to-Account (A2A) payments provider. It utilises a cloud-native, API-first, full stack enterprise grade payment platform. Among its customers are 4 of the top 7 banks in the United Kingdom.

Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT)

The Afterpay share price was on form last week and surged 15.1% higher. Investors were buying the payments company’s shares following the release of an update on its bi-annual Afterpay Day sale in the United States. According to the release, the U.S. sale drove a 35% increase in new active customer to its platform compared to the same period last year. This means the total number of customers that have signed up to Afterpay in the U.S. now exceeds 16 million. Clearly increasing competition isn’t slowing its growth.

Ramelius Resources Limited (ASX: RMS)

The Ramelius share price was a strong performer and charged 13.3% higher over the week. As with Silver Lake, this was driven partly by a rebound in the gold price. But also giving its shares a boost was its third quarter production update which revealed that it achieved its guidance. This went down well with analysts at Macquarie. In response to the update, the broker retained its outperform rating and $1.80 price target on its shares.

More reading

• These were the worst performing ASX 200 shares last week
• Is Bapcor (ASX:BAP) the best defensive ASX share to own?
• Why it looks like a V-shaped recovery for the Xero (ASX:XRO) share price
• Is the Coles (ASX:COL) share price a buy today?
• ASX 200 flat, Flight Centre drops, Air New Zealand rises

James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends EML Payments. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended EML Payments. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was in fine form last week and surged notably higher. The benchmark index rose 2.4% over the four days to end the week at 6,995.2 points.

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

Chorus Ltd (ASX: CNU)

The Chorus share price was the worst performer on the ASX 200 last week with a 6.4% decline. Investors were selling the New Zealand telco’s shares after it revealed that it has reduced its indicative Maximum Allowable Revenue (MAR) range to NZ$680 million to NZ$710 million. This compares to its previous MAR range of NZ$715 million to NZ$755 million.

AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP)

The AMP share price was out form and sank 4.9% over the four days. This may have been driven by profit taking after a strong gain a week earlier. That gain was driven by news that the embattled financial services company’s CEO, Francesco De Ferrari, is resigning. Mr De Ferrari will be replaced by the Australia and New Zealand Banking GrpLtd (ASX: ANZ) Deputy CEO, Alexis George. She will join the company in the third quarter of 2021.

Incitec Pivot Ltd (ASX: IPL)

The Incitec Pivot share price wasn’t far behind with a 3.8% decline last week. Investors were selling the agricultural chemicals company’s shares following an update on its Waggaman ammonia operation. Incitec Pivot warned that the operation is expected recommence production later than previously expected. As a result, it expects an earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) impact of $36 million in FY 2021.

Corporate Travel Management Ltd (ASX: CTD)

The Corporate Travel Management share price dropped 3.7% over the four says. This appears to have been driven by concerns over the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines across Australia. This follows the Government’s announcement that under 50s would not be receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine due to blood clotting worries. This has sparked concerns over the timing of the travel market recovery.

More reading

• Is Bapcor (ASX:BAP) the best defensive ASX share to own?
• Is the Coles (ASX:COL) share price a buy today?
• ASX 200 flat, Flight Centre drops, Air New Zealand rises
• How would Warren Buffett invest in the share market today?
• ASX 200 down 0.4%: Tech shares rise, Afterpay increases US stake

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Corporate Travel Management Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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

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Some smaller ASX dividend shares also have high dividend yields, not just the big blue chips.

Businesses that are smaller may have the ability to generate decent capital and profit growth, as well as paying high dividend payouts.

These three ASX dividend shares are small but have higher yields:

Propel Funeral Partners Ltd (ASX: PFP)

For FY21, Propel Funeral Partners has a grossed-up dividend yield of 5.5% according to Commsec.

Propel is the second largest funeral operator in Australia and New Zealand. The company is aiming to benefit from the ageing population demographics to generate long-term organic growth. It has also been making acquisitions to capture more market share.

The business managed to generate earnings growth in the FY21 half-year result, despite all of the impacts of COVID-19.

Revenue rose 3.5% to $59 million, operating net profit after tax (NPAT) rose by 7.6% to $8.4 million, whilst operating earnings per share (EPS) went up 7% to 8.5 cents. This funded a 50% increase of the dividend to 6 cents per share.

The ASX dividend share is forecasting shorter-term growth because it’s expecting death volumes to revert to long-term trends.  

Accent Group Ltd (ASX: AX1)

Accent is expected to pay a grossed-up dividend yield of 7.5% in FY21, according to Commsec.

The shoe business is planning to keep opening more stores to expand its reach and grow its market share. There continues to be a high level of demand for quality shares, which is why the company saw NPAT growth of 57.3% to $52.8 million.

Total sales only went up 6.6% to $541.3 million, but online sales rose 110% to $108.1 million.

The ASX dividend share’s management team want to keep growing its online sales and investing in innovation, with a long-term objective of at least 10% compound EPS growth.

Growing the dividend is one of the key goals of the business. The FY21 interim dividend was increased by 52.4% to 8 cents per share.

In the first eight weeks of the second half of FY21, like for likes sales went up 10.7%.

Pengana Capital Group Ltd (ASX: PCG)

Pengana is a fund manager that’s backed by investment conglomerate Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL).

It has a trailing grossed-up dividend yield of 7.8% after a 25% increase of its interim dividend in the half-year result.

Pengana has steadily been growing its funds under management (FUM) in recent months. Over the month of February 2021, FUM grew by another $45 million to $3.63 billion.

The ASX dividend share managed to grow its underlying profit before tax went up 17.1% year on year and funds under management grew by 15% in six months to 31 December 2020.

Its funds have been generating outperformance and it continues to launch new funds which could generate more earnings over time.

More reading

• 3 ASX dividend shares to buy today
• 2 high yield ASX dividend shares to buy today
• Why Brickworks (ASX:BKW) is a top class ASX dividend share
• 3 ASX dividend shares to buy with yields above 5%
• Retail shares: buy what you know, but who owns what you buy?

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison owns shares of Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Accent Group and Propel Funeral Partners Ltd. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Prime Media Group Limited (ASX: PRT) share price was not trading today despite news that the Australian media regulator has approved Australian Community Media (ACM) obtaining a 20% stake in the company.

At yesterday’s market close, shares in the rural and regional broadcaster were trading at 21 cents each.

Let’s take a closer look at today’s news and what it might mean for the Prime Media share price.

ACM buys Prime assets

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), approved ACMs purchase from Bruce Gordon, owner of WIN Network and third-largest owner of Nine Entertainment Co Holdings Ltd (ASX: NEC).

The purchase increased ACM’s stake in the company to 19.99% from its previous 14.67%. Under the Broadcasting Services Act (1992) any party which seeks to control 15% or more of a media company must first obtain the approval of ACMA.

ACM made the purchase one month previously.

The purchase has made ACM the largest shareholder in Prime Media, overtaking Seven West Media Ltd (ASX: SWM) major owner Kerry Stokes.

In a note to ACM staff, as reported by The Australian, part-owner Antony Catalano said:

The Prime Media Group is in a strong financial position, it is well-managed, and we believe it has an important role to play in the evolving regional media landscape.

ACM and Prime audiences have similar interests, aspirations and goals. We hope to explore ways in which we can work more closely to ensure we continue to deliver the highest-quality journalism for regional Australians.

As part of the deal, ACM will need to sell its regional newspapers in Bendigo and Wagga Wagga. This is to comply with Australian legislation.

Prime Media share price snapshot

Despite today’s dearth of price movement, the Prime Media share price has been very successful over the past 12 months. In the past year, Prime Media’s value has increased by 112.12%. Media companies suffered heavily from the COVID-induced market crash of last year.

Prime Media has a market capitalisation of $75.2 million.

More reading

• ASX banks are facing millions of cyber attacks each day
• Could this ASX ETF be in a perfect storm in 2021 and beyond?
• Why the Nine (ASX:NEC) share price is falling today
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell next week
• Nine (ASX:NEC) and News Corp (ASX:NWS) share prices rise after Facebook deal

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.

The post Prime Media (ASX:PRT) share price unmoved as ACM tightens grip appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Bapcor Ltd (ASX: BAP) could claim to be one of the best defensive ASX shares to own for a few key reasons.

An auto parts business may not capture many of the headlines, but Bapcor has been steadily growing and has been delivering strong profit growth.

Here’s why Bapcor actually has a really good claim to being one of the leading defensive ASX shares:

Countercyclical demand?

During normal and good economic times, Bapcor has seen good levels of growth. It has comfortably delivered good growth over the last few years.

But what about during recessions? Theoretically, plenty of retail businesses – in-fact most businesses – see lower demand during a recession. You’d also expect some like new car sales to decline during a recession.

But this can actually be a boost for Bapcor. Car owners would try to make their vehicle last longer during difficult economic times and this helps demand for Bapcor’s businesses like Burson and Autobarn.

This is one of the main reasons that Bapcor can deliver defensive returns as an ASX share.

The COVID-19 recession has been particularly strange. Bapcor is seeing enormous demand, partly due to the economic stimulus. The HY21 result saw Bapcor revenue rise 25.8% and net profit after tax (NPAT) grew 49.7% to $67.7 million.

Growing network of domestic locations

Bapcor has a good record of same store sales growth at Burson, which is the key profit-making division within the business.

Burson continues to add five to ten more locations to its national network each year. The business is growing its client base each time it adds a new location and its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) margin. In the FY19 result its EBITDA margin was 14.9% and in HY21 it had increased to 18.3%.

Bapcor plans to increase the Burson, light commercial vehicle, specialist wholesale, retail and service location count significantly over the next few years.

Reliable dividend

Some businesses are able to provide their shareholders with reliable and consistent dividends which can make it easier to hold through volatile periods of time.

Bapcor is one of the few S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) shares to grow the dividend through the difficult year of 2020.

It has a dividend growth streak record going back several years to when it first started paying a dividend. Bapcor currently has a grossed-up dividend yield of 3.4%.

International growth

There is international growth potential with Bapcor. Not only does it now own a quarter of the largest auto parts distributor in south east and north east Asia, but Bapcor is also aiming to grow its Thailand Burson locations from six to more than 80.

This would translate to more than $100 million of revenue according to management. It could expand to other Asian markets after that.

These two Asian investments could drive growth for Bapcor for years to come.

More reading

• Is the Coles (ASX:COL) share price a buy today?
• ASX 200 flat, Flight Centre drops, Air New Zealand rises
• How would Warren Buffett invest in the share market today?
• ASX 200 down 0.4%: Tech shares rise, Afterpay increases US stake
• ASX 200 climbs 1%, Westpac rises, Western Areas jumps

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Bapcor. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

The post Is Bapcor (ASX:BAP) the best defensive ASX share to own? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The Xero Ltd (ASX: XRO) share price looks to make a V-shaped recovery after falling as much as 30% from its record all-time highs of $155 back in late December 2020.

Its shares have since bounced ~30% and within 10% of record highs. 

What’s driving the Xero share price? 

Strength coming back to tech shares 

Surging bond yields and a rotation out of tech shares meant that the fundamentally sound Xero share price was swimming against the tide for most of late February and early March. 

With bond yields largely topping out for now and strength coming back into the broader market, tech shares have been able to breathe a sigh of relief. The S&P/ASX Information Technology (INDEXASX: XIJ) is up almost 10% in April, after falling more than 20% between 11 February and 9 March.

This has seen strength come back into leading ASX 200 tech shares such as Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) and Xero. 

Xero spending money to make money 

Xero went on a small shopping spree with the acquisition of workforce management platform, Planday, on 4 March for €155.7 million (~A$242 million) and e-invoicing business, Tickstar on 24 March for SEK 150 million (~A$23 million). 

On 8 March, Macquarie noted that Planday is expected to contribute around 10% of the group’s revenue over the longer term. It reduced FY22 earnings estimates by 2% to account for additional losses from the integration of Planday, while it boosted FY23 estimates by 17%. Despite the positive upgrade to earnings, the broker was neutral rated with a $120.00 target price. 

On the same day, broker UBS was also positive on the acquisition, highlighting that it will push Xero outside its core accounting software verticals and into employee and workforce management. The deal may also help Xero build direct relationships with employees and present future opportunities, said UBS. The broker retained a sell rating with a pessimistic $79.50 target price. 

Ord Minnett wasn’t too bullish on the company’s acquisition of Tickstar, noting that it does not see it as a material growth or earnings contributor in the medium term. On 25 March, it rated Xero shares as lighten with an $88 target price. 

Is the Xero share price too high? 

The Xero share price is currently trading above all but one broker target price. Even then, Morgan Stanley‘s target price of $140.00 is just less than 1% higher than its current price of $139.00. 

Broker target prices aren’t the be-all and end-all for where prices are going. If anything, Morgan Stanley’s commentary supersedes the black and white price target. The broker said that data checks and industry feedback point to continuing SME subscriber growth. The two recent acquisitions increase the broker’s convention in long-term subscriber, revenue, and earnings targets.

While $140.00 might be a key price point to watch, the broker clearly believes in the Xero share price in the long run.  

More reading

• The Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price is up almost 20% this month
• ASX 200 down 0.4%: Tech shares rise, Afterpay increases US stake
• Looking for the next Afterpay and Zip? Try these small cap ASX shares
• Why the Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price is pushing higher today
• 2 of the best ASX growth shares to buy now

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

The post Why it looks like a “V” shaped recovery for the Xero (ASX:XRO) share price appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) share price is not having a great day today. Or a great week for that matter. At the time of writing, Coles shares seem set to end the trading day at (or near) $15.84 a share, down 0.19% for the day. That’s just a little bit worse than the broader S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which is currently down 0.14%. Over the week so far, Coles is down 0.44%.

In fact, since reaching an all-time high of $19.26 in August last year, the Coles share price is down almost 18%. So is this a buying opportunity for Coles shares today?

What’s to like about the Coles shares?

Let’s just take a look at how the Coles share price is looking to start with. So at $15.84 a share, Coles has a market capitalisation of $21.14 billion, a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 20.14 and a trailing dividend yield of 3.82%. With Coles’ full franking, that dividend yield grosses-up to 5.46%. 

According to iShares, the companies that make up the ASX 200 Index have an average P/E ratio of 23.19 at the present time. That means that Coles is currently being valued at less than the current market average. 

Coles certainly looks cheap compared to its arch-rival Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) too. On the current Woolworths share price of $41.20, the company has a P/E ratio of 36.77 and a dividend yield of 2.45%.  Although saying that, another Coles rival in IGA-owner Metcash Limited (ASX: MTS) presently has a P/E ratio of 16.22 and a dividend yield of 3.96%.

Down Down is back back

We got some news this morning that may be weighing on the Coles share price today. Coles has reportedly relaunched its famous ‘Down Down’ campaign, cutting the prices of more than 250 products. Whilst this might initially attract more customers, the double-D’s return may also flag the return of the ‘supermarket wars’, which plagued both Coles and Woolworths’ profits a few years back. As they say, no one wins in a race to the bottom. We’ll have to wait and see if this news proves to be a long-term development.

Is the Coles share price a buy today?

One broker isn’t too concerned about Coles though and still rates it as a buy. According to CommSec, investment bank broker Goldman Sachs has a price target of $20.70 for Coles shares with a ‘buy’ rating, citing “resilient supermarket sector profitability”. That implies an upside of more than 30% on the current share price. And that’s not including dividends either.

More reading

• ASX 200 flat, Flight Centre drops, Air New Zealand rises
• Why Codan, Flight Centre, Magellan, & Woolworths are sinking
• How would Warren Buffett invest in the share market today?
• Fears of new supermarket war could hit Coles (ASX:COL) and Woolworths (ASX:WOW)
• ASX 200 down 0.4%: Tech shares rise, Afterpay increases US stake

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.

The post Is the Coles (ASX:COL) share price a buy today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Seaspiracy – you’ve probably seen it trending on Netflix – you might have even watched it. The film delves into the environmental and ethical impacts of fishing. Covering topics ranging from bycatch and overfishing to seafloor deforestation and slave labour.

Which casts a very gloomy cloud over the sustainability of ASX-listed aquaculture shares.

Unsure why? Let me elaborate.

Seaspiracy questions the very fabric of sustainability

The general thrust of the film is that there is no such thing as ‘sustainable fishing’. This is disconcerting if you’re a shareholder in an ASX-listed aquaculture company, thinking it was an ethical investment.

In what has quickly become a point of contention, the film points to an assortment of debilitating predictions and ‘facts’ – including the prediction that oceans will be empty of life by 2048; 46% of the Great Pacific garbage patch is made up of fishing nets; that salmon farms require more fish to make their feed than the farms produce.

All plastic in the oceans is harmful to marine life, but one type of plastic pollution is especially deadly – Fishing gear.

Why is it more deadly?

Fishing gear is designed to catch and kill marine life, and it continues to do that even when it is abandoned or lost at sea. pic.twitter.com/OxdGaT9O1u

— seaspiracy (@seaspiracy) April 5, 2021

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

I use the term ‘facts’ loosely simply due to the continued dispute over them. Whether or not the details are factual, I’ll leave for others to decipher.

I myself am a Tassal Group Ltd (ASX: TGR) shareholder. And I’ll admit, the film made me jump back on the computer to have a look at what the salmon producer’s ‘sustainable’ initiatives really are.

Which prompted a whole new methodology for evaluating such companies… sustainability itself. After all, it’s not very wise to be invested in a company that’s destroying its own industry.

Sustainability of our ASX salmon shares 

Getting to the point – there are three dominant ASX-listed players when it comes to salmon production in Australia and New Zealand.

Each has various sustainability goals and initiatives – and invariably, different ways of reporting them. But let’s not let that stop us from taking a look at what efforts each company is making.

New Zealand King Salmon Co Ltd (ASX: NZK)

The New Zealand-based King salmon producer is the smallest ASX-listed company on the list, with a market capitalisation of $195 million. Yet, New Zealand King Salmon still has a whole section in its annual report dedicated to environmental sustainability.

The company commissioned a Life Cycle Analysis report to measure its own carbon footprint and determine areas for improvement, for starters. The report found that improvements could be made in its feed conversion ratios (FCR) and reducing animal by-products in the Salmon feed.

Interestingly, NZK pointed out the complexity of these two endeavours. Due to the unique nutritional needs of King salmon, the only way to decrease land animal proteins is to increase marine protein, which poses a conundrum.

Despite this, the company decreased its reliance on fish meal in its feed by 7.7% from 2019 to 2020. While also reducing its FCR by 2% over the same period.

The company has also committed to 100% reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging across its business by 2025.

Huon Aquaculture Group Ltd (ASX: HUO)

Huon is the next largest ASX-listed salmon producer on the list, with a market capitalisation of $290 million. Predominantly in the Tasmanian region, the company farms Atlantic salmon.

On the surface, Huon appears to be more comprehensive with its sustainability reporting than NZK. Additionally, it is the only seafood producer participating in the RSPCA Approved Farming Scheme, meeting detailed animal welfare standards.

Notably, the company’s feed formulation has dramatically increased its composition of vegetables, making up 60%, compared to 31% in 2015. This is aimed at addressing FCR.

On top of this, Huon incorporates other sustainable practices, including:

• ‘Wellboats’ for treating amoebic gill disease by bathing the salmon in freshwater;
• Maintaining a stock density at half the 15 kilograms per cubic metre maximum allowed by the RSPCA;
• Spelling the seabed between restocking, allowing the seafloor to return to baseline conditions.

Lastly, the company provides transparent reporting on seal interactions. Unfortunately, Huon experienced 5 accidental seal deaths during FY20.

Tassal Group Ltd (ASX: HUO)

The last ASX-listed company on this list is the biggest. Tassal is another Tasmanian salmon farmer, boasting a market capitalisation of $811 million.

Being the biggest, you would hope the company delves into sustainability at a granular level. Fortunately, Tassal provides a dedicated sustainability report. In fact, Tassal has been providing sustainability reporting for 10 years now. Although, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s doing more than the rest.

Tassal addresses the issue of marine debris from its own operations by conducting multiple shoreline clean-ups per week on average. The last annual report attributed 15.3% of the collected debris to the company’s operations.

The company also utilises roughly 44% of agricultural ingredients (wheat, vegetable oils, etc) in its salmon feed production – less than the 60% reported by Huon.

Tassal has many other actions towards addressing sustainability, including:

• The use of ‘wellboats’;
• 100% recyclables target;
• Benthic compliance, requiring environmental impacts not to extend 35 metres from the lease boundary.

Finally, Tassal also provides transparency on its seal and bird interactions. It experienced 6 accidental seal deaths in FY20 due to entanglement.

ASX sustainability takeaway

Seaspiracy points out some major issues within the overall fishing industry. As always, more could likely be done – though it is reassuring that our ASX-listed salmon producers are taking these issues seriously. 

An ASX-listed company’s sustainability is certainly harder to evaluate than the simple price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio. Though, it will likely become a more important tool for evaluation for years to come.

More reading

• ASX stock of the day: Tassal Group (ASX:TGR) shares rise 5%
• These are the 10 most shorted shares on the ASX
• New Zealand King Salmon (ASX:NZK) share price steady despite loss
• These are the 10 most shorted shares on the ASX
• These are the 10 most shorted shares on the ASX

Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler owns shares of Tassal Group 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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If you’re currently looking for some ASX tech shares to add to your portfolio, then you might want to take a look at the options listed below.

Here’s why these ASX tech shares could be in the buy zone:

BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF (ASX: ASIA)

The first tech share is actually an ETF that gives your exposure to a group of tech shares. The BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF provides Australian investors with easy access to 50 of the largest technology and ecommerce companies that have their main area of business in Asia (excluding Japan).

This means you’ll be buying a piece of tech giants such as Alibaba, Baidu, JD.com, Samsung, and Tencent Holdings.

In respect to Alibaba, it is widely regarded as the Amazon of China. At the end of the September quarter, the company had 757 million annual active customers across its Alibaba, Taobao, and Tmall brands. From this, the company is estimated to control a massive 56% of China’s e-commerce market.

BetaShares notes that due to its younger and tech-savvy population, Asia is surpassing the West with technological adoption. As a result, this area of the economy is expected to be a growth sector for a long time to come.

Damstra Holdings Ltd (ASX: DTC)

Another ASX tech share to look is this integrated workplace management solutions provider.

It provides a cloud-based workplace management platform which is used by businesses globally to track, manage, and protect their workers and assets. This is becoming increasingly important for businesses and can potentially save significant costs relating to workplace injuries. 

Damstra has been growing strongly over the last couple of years thanks to increasing demand. This strong form has continued in FY 2021, with Damstra delivering a solid half year result in February.

For the six months ended 31 December, Damstra reported a 29.6% increase in revenue to $13.3 million. And while it posted a 4% decline in EBITDA to $2.5 million, this was due to the impact of the acquisition of the loss-making Vault Intelligence business during the half.

Shaw and Partners is positive on the company. It currently has a buy rating and $1.93 price target on its shares.

More reading

• Love tech shares? This ASX ETF is a great buy today
• These ASX tech shares are all trading near their lowest prices in months
• 2 compelling ASX shares to buy in April 2021
• 3 exciting small cap ASX shares that could be destined for big things
• Is this the best ETF that ASX investors can buy today?

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

The post 2 highly rated ASX tech shares to buy this month appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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