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The Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) share price rocketed higher on Tuesday afternoon after the unveiling of the Trans-Tasman Travel Bubble. 

Travel bubble sees Webjet share price surge

ASX travel shares rocketed higher on Tuesday afternoon after the much-anticipated announcement from New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. Ms Ardern said plans were in place for an April 19 two-way travel bubble between Australia and New Zealand.

That marks the first quarantine-free travel arrangement for Australia since the coronavirus pandemic began over 12 months ago. Naturally, investors piled into ASX travel shares following the good news for the sector.

The Webjet share price was no exception as it closed 5.7% higher on Tuesday. It was also a good day for other ASX travel shares given the broad boost to the travel sector.

Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) shares closed 3.1% higher at $5.26 per share while Air New Zealand Limited (ASX: AIZ) shares rocketed 8.2% higher on the news.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) also had a broadly strong day across the board. The benchmark index closed up 0.8% at 6,885.9 points on Tuesday afternoon.

What’s the deal with the travel bubble?

The two-way bubble will open in less than a fortnight despite warnings from Ms Ardern that borders could be closed in the event of outbreaks. The arrangement will allow for both Australian and New Zealand tourists to visit across the ditch without hotel quarantine procedures.

A traffic light system has been introduced to help manage any potential outbreaks across the two countries. That announcement was good enough for investors who sent the Webjet share price surging on Tuesday.

Foolish takeaway

Tuesday was a strong day of trade for many ASX 200 shares. However, the Webjet share price was among a select group of ASX travel shares that rocketed higher on the back of the Trans-Tasman Travel Bubble news in the early afternoon.

More reading

• ASX 200 jumps, Cleanaway’s treasured acquisition, Afterpay soars
• Trans-Tasman Bubble: Does this mean take off for ASX listed airports?
• Records on Wall Street, why the ASX 200 isn’t following, and house prices through the roof: Motley Fool CIO Scott Phillips on Sky News
• Air New Zealand (ASX:AIZ) share price takes off on Trans-Tasman travel bubble news
• Why the SG Fleet (ASX:SGF) share price surged 10% today

Motley Fool contributor Ken Hall has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Webjet 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 the Webjet (ASX:WEB) share price closed 5% higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) rose by 0.8% to 6,886 points today.

One of the highlights of the day was that New Zealand will start allowing Australians to fly there without quarantine in a couple of weeks. However, if there’s an outbreak then people may need to be prepared for borders to be closed again or hotel quarantine coming back temporarily.

Here are some of the other highlights for the ASX:

Cleanaway Waste Management Ltd (ASX: CWY)

The Cleanaway share price jumped around 16% today after the waste management business gave an update regarding its proposed acquisition of the Suez recycling and recovery business in Australia. It may buy the business for $2.52 billion.

At this stage it’s still not a done deal because Suez may terminate the deal if Veolia Environnement ends up acquiring the parent Suez business.

If Cleanaway’s acquisition is going ahead, it will fund it through new equity and debt.

However, if the deal is terminated because of an agreement in principle for a takeover offer, then Cleanaway will buy some post collection assets in Sydney for $501 million.

In the 2020 calendar year, Cleanaway generated $1.4 billion of revenue, normalised earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $216 million and operating free cashflow of $199 million.

The acquisition price is 11.7x normalised CY20 EBITDA before synergies, which are expected to be $70 million per annum, which should be realised by FY25 by the ASX 200 share.

Cleanaway chief operating officer Brendan Gill said:

Importantly, there is also strong alignment of operating approaches. The transition is expected to bring together two highly complementary businesses and be strongly accretive to earnings per share when the integration is completed.

Cleanaway will continue to maintain a strong balance sheet following whichever transition is completed and will retain ample capacity to support future growth for the combined group.

Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT)

The Afterpay share price was one of the best performers in the ASX 200 today, rising by around 10%.

Afterpay revealed that its Afterpay Day sales in the US was a success, which drove a 35% increase in new active customers to the platform and traffic to merchants was also strong, with almost six million referrals to global merchants.

The buy now, pay later business said that the total number of customers that have signed up to Afterpay in the US now exceeds 16 million and the total number of global retail partners has reached almost 75,000. There is also a strong pipeline of new merchants continuing to launch in 2021.

Melissa David, Afterpay head of North America, said:

As evidenced by the numbers, Afterpay Day delivered new customers, drove increased sales and increased basket sizes online and in-store for the more than 3,000 participating merchants in North America.

Regis Resources Limited (ASX: RRL)

The Regis Resources share price went up around 3.4% after the gold miner announced that acceleration of exploration at the Ben Hur deposit after the acquisition in late 2020 has grown the mineral resource by 34% and allows the declaration of its maiden ore reserve.

Regis’ managing director, Jim Beyer, said:

Regis prioritised the work at Ben Hur and as a result the team has been able to efficiently realise some of the potential of the project within seven months of acquiring it.

The maiden reserve feeds straight into Regis’ strategy of internal value growth through mine life extension for our Duketon operations. We remain very excited by the potential for continued exploration success at Ben Hur and across the Duketon Greenstone Belt generally.

More reading

• Records on Wall Street, why the ASX 200 isn’t following, and house prices through the roof: Motley Fool CIO Scott Phillips on Sky News
• Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price rockets on US update
• Why the SG Fleet (ASX:SGF) share price surged 10% today
• Why the Cleanaway (ASX:CWY) share price is soaring 9% today
• ASX 200 up 0.9%: Cleanaway jumps, tech shares rise, Incitec Pivot sinks

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. 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.

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This afternoon the Reserve Bank of Australia opted to keep the cash rate on hold at 0.1%. While this was largely expected to be the case, cash rate futures were hinting that a cut to zero could be coming.

Unfortunately, the central bank looks unlikely to be raising rates any time soon. Governor Lowe stated: “…wage and price pressures are subdued and are expected to remain so for some years.”

And while there may be a slight uptick in inflation in the near term, this is only expected to be temporary.

Mr Lowe explained: “It will take some time to reduce this spare capacity and for the labour market to be tight enough to generate wage increases that are consistent with achieving the inflation target. In the short term, CPI inflation is expected to rise temporarily because of the reversal of some COVID-19-related price reductions. Looking through this, underlying inflation is expected to remain below 2 per cent over the next few years.”

In light of this, ASX dividend shares look set to be the best place to earn a passive income for the foreseeable future.

But which ASX shares should you buy? Two to consider are listed below:

Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL)

This supermarket operator could be a top option for income investors. This is due to its strong market position, defensive qualities, positive long term growth outlook, and attractive valuation.

Goldman Sachs thinks its shares are good value. Its analysts have a buy rating and $20.70 price target on its shares currently. 

Goldman is also forecasting a 62 cents per share dividend in FY 2021. Based on the current Coles share price, this represents a fully franked 3.9% yield.

Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF)

Rural Funds is another ASX dividend share to consider. It is an Australian agricultural property company with a collection of high quality assets.

These are leased to some of the biggest players in the industry on long term agreements. And thanks to fixed rental increases, the company is positioned to deliver on its target of 4% growth in its distribution each year.

In FY 2021, Rural Funds plans to pay a distribution of 11.28 cents per share. After which, it has provided guidance for an FY 2022 distribution of 11.73 cents per share.

Based on the current Rural Funds share price, this will mean yields of 4.8% and 5%, respectively, over the next couple of years.

More reading

• Lynch Group (ASX:LGL) share price falls after completing $206 million IPO
• 3 reasons why Rural Funds (ASX:RFF) is a great ASX dividend share
• 2 ASX dividend shares to buy this April
• Top ASX shares to buy in April 2021
• 2 top ASX dividend shares to buy this month

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended RURALFUNDS STAPLED. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of COLESGROUP DEF SET. 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 Greenvale Mining Ltd (ASX: GRV) share price shot up again today as investors continued to back its Georgina Basin Project in the Northern Territory.

The Greenvale share price has risen 12.9% to close at 17.5 cents per share today.

Greenvale is an international energy company focused on the discovery and exploitation of oil shale deposits. The company owns a 99.99% interest in the Alpha oil shale deposit located in Queensland, Australia and, more recently, 100% of the Georgina Basin IOCG Project in the NT. 

Project backed by Geoscience Australia

The Greenvale share price has now risen more than 34% since early March, when the company announced the initial drilling results of its Georgina Basin project enhanced the “prospectivity” of the mine. 

The Australian Government undertook the drilling through its National Drilling Initiative (NDI) program conducted with Geoscience Australia.

“This shows that the East Tennant area is an exciting frontier area for mineral exploration in Australia,” said Dr Andrew Heap, the Minerals, Energy and Groundwater Division chief at Geoscience Australia. This government-backed interest in the area has continued to drive up the Greenvale share price. 

Drilling results

The NDI said its preliminary data released from 10 deep diamond holes drilled across the Barkly Tableland, east of Tennant Creek, showed that “the area is set to become one of Australia’s most exciting exploration frontiers”.

The holes contain mineralogical and geochemical evidence of large-scale gold- and copper-rich mineral deposits. Greenvale’s exploration team is currently reviewing the results and will combine this information with data from a recently completed airborne geophysical survey. 

Greenvale says the geology intersected by the drill holes has confirmed the presence of rocks of the right age to host large-scale copper and gold deposits. The company has yet to release the results of those surveys. However, it has since passed resolutions for executive pay increases and incentive-based performance rights.

What Greenvale management said

Greenvale managing director Neil Biddle said the government’s initial program had unlocked the potential of the region.

Having high-quality stratigraphic diamond drill holes completed by the government to unlock the potential of this exciting frontier mineral province is a huge leg-up for companies exploring in this area.

The preliminary results of the drilling, based on the photos of the core I have seen are absolutely outstanding and have provided a massive injection of confidence into the district. The holes have provided clear evidence that we are well and truly in the right area to unlock an entirely new generation of IOCG (iron-oxide copper gold) deposits in Australia.

Greenvale share price snapshot

The Greenvale share price is up 34% year-to-date. Its return of more than 1,700% over the past 12 months has beaten both the basic materials sector and the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) by more than 1,670%.

More reading

• Trans-Tasman Bubble: Does this mean take off for ASX listed airports?
• Why did the Exopharm (ASX:EX1) share price surge 12% today?
• Is the GameStop (NYSE:GME) share price about to go in full retreat?
• 2 of the best small cap ASX shares to watch
• Why is the Cobre (ASX:CBE) share price up 17% today?

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.

The post The Greenvale (ASX:GRV) share price up 13% today. Here’s why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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ASX listed airports might be set to take off today after the trans-Tasman Bubble was announced this afternoon. The Sydney Airport Holdings Pty (ASX: SYD) share price has jumped slightly since the news was announced but the Auckland International Airport Limited (ASX: AIA) share price is experiencing some turbulence.

At the time of writing, the Sydney Airport share price is up 2.8% today, trading for $6.24.

While the Auckland International share price is $7.15, up 1.13%.

Here’s what we know so far about the implications of the trans-Tasman bubble for the ASX listed airports and their share prices.

What it means for the Auckland International and Sydney Airport share prices

The Trans-Tasman Bubble will see Australians and New Zealanders able to travel between the two countries without quarantining on arrival.

It will begin on April 19. Though, New Zealand’s prime minister Jacinda Ardern cautions that travel plans may change at short notice as a result of outbreaks.

Ardern also stated there may be deemed necessary for Australians to receive a COVID-19 test prior to travel to New Zealand and participation in the bubble may vary from state to state. With that said, Queensland is not expected to be participating on 19 April.

Airline input

Qantas Airways Ltd (ASX: QAN) has announced that it and Jetstar will operate up to 122 return flights over 15 routes between Australia and new Zealand per week, beginning on 19 April.

While the airline hasn’t announced how many flights will be taking off or landing at either Sydney Airport or Auckland International, it has stated it will initially be flying only to Auckland. There, Qantas and Jetstar will continue to operate its domestic schedules. There’s a potential that the Auckland International share price may fare better than that of Sydney Airport as there looks to be more flights landing and taking off there. 

Qantas will also launch two new direct routes from Auckland. It will be flying return to Cairns 3 times a week and daily to the Gold Coast. The two new routes are set to launch in time for the June long weekend.

Qantas says these flights will see its operating capacity increase to 83% of what it was before the pandemic. The statistic is good news for both ASX listed airports. 

Air New Zealand (ASX:AIZ) is also flying across the ditch, starting on 19 April. It will be operating 3 to 5 direct flights a day between Sydney and Auckland.

It will also be operating between 17 and 28 return flights from Wellington, Christchurch, and Queenstown to Sydney. Auckland will be receiving Air New Zealand flights from 8 other Australian airports, with between 25 and 31 flights a week landing and taking off from the city.

While it is likely flights to and from Auckland and Sydney will be land in or taking off from one of the two ASX listed airports, it hasn’t yet been confirmed.

Comments from Virgin

Virgin Australia has stated it won’t begin flights to New Zealand until September. Even then it will only fly into Queenstown until late October.

It commented:

While the airline remains committed to Trans-Tasman flying when the market fully recovers, we are mindful of evolving border requirements which add complexity to our business as we push ahead with plans to grow our core domestic Australia operations.

Sydney Airport share price in a nutshell 

The Sydney Airport share price is powering up on the ASX, having climbed 24% higher over the last 12 months. 

Though, even with today’s gains the airports share price is still down 2% year to date. 

It has a market capitalisation of around $16 billion, with 2.7 billion shares outstanding.

Auckland International share price snapshot

The Auckland International share price isn’t travelling as high on the ASX as its Australian counterpart today. It’s doing well in the long haul though. 

It has broke even year to date, and is up 43.78% over the last 12 months. 

Auckland International has a market capitalisation of around $10 billion, with approximately 1.47 billion shares outstanding.

More reading

• Air New Zealand (ASX:AIZ) share price takes off on Trans-Tasman travel bubble news
• Top broker picks the best ASX shares to buy for the new quarter
• Are ASX 200 value shares still good value? Why these experts are at loggerheads
• Qantas (ASX:QAN) share price takes off after latest COVID updates
• What’s driving the Sydney Airport (ASX:SYD) share price today?

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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The Exopharm Ltd (ASX: EX1) share price rocketed today after the company announced positive clinical trial results for its regenerative medical product, Plexaris.

At market close, the Exopharm share price is up by 12.93% today to 65 cents per share.

Exopharm is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing regenerative medicine. It’s currently investigating the therapeutic potential of two products, Plexaris and Cevaris, in treating osteoarthritis.

The company was undergoing clinical trials to see if the medicine can restore arthritic cell tissue in rats. These clinical trials showed that the drugs had no adverse affects and were safe to trial on humans, however they also showed that drugs’ efficacy was limited to milder cases, which led to a sharp drop in the Exopharm share price last week.

Exopharm moves to human trials with safe results

The Exopharm share price has recovered some of last week’s losses after the company reported that its human trials with 11 participants showed no adverse effects so far. The study resulted in no untoward or unexpected safety events reported, with all 11 enrolled participants remaining healthy throughout and after their 30-day follow-up period.

Moreover, all induced wounds successfully healed without skin defects, abnormal scarring or abnormal cosmetic appearance. However, due to the small numbers involved in the study there are no significant efficacy signals. 

What Exopharm management said

Exopharm founder Ian Dixon was nonetheless very bullish about the results, especially about the scalability of the company’s linked engineering and production (LEAP) process, which involves total control over each step from engineering to manufacturing. 

These results confirm Exopharm as a leader in extracellular (EV) medicine manufacture and further validate our LEAP manufacturing technology. 40 clinical-grade doses of Plexaris were made within eight hours by two staff. If the study had been 100 times larger, it still would have taken the same amount of time and labour, only larger equipment.

This is what we mean when we say LEAP is the only fully scalable process for exosome purification that has been developed. This manufacturing capability is fully applicable to our engineered EV program, as this manufacturing process and the safety of product coming out of it is applicable to all EV medicines processed with LEAP.

Exopharm share price snapshot

Despite these gains, the Exopharm share price has still fallen 9% this month. The Exopharm share price has entered a corrective period, after it rose from 33 cents in December 2020 to 94 cents in February this year.

Overall, the Exopharm share price is up 247% this past year.

More reading

• Exopharm (ASX:EX1) share price plunges 17% after animal testing results

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 GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME) share price fell 2.4% yesterday (overnight Aussie time).

While the ASX was shuttered for the long Easter weekend, US stock exchanges remained open. GameStop closed the day at US$186.95 per share. That gives the video game retailer a market cap of US$13.1billion.

Despite some recent selling action, GameStop shares are still up an eye-popping 984% so far in 2021.

What drove GameStop’s meteoric rise?

As you most likely know, GameStop has the so-called Reddit army to thank for its skyrocketing shares. That’s the loosely connected group of retail investors employing social media apps like WallStreetBets to synchronise their investment plans.

Not that every Reddit army recruit has banked those kinds of gains. Anyone who bought GameStop shares at the 27 January highs is currently nursing a 46% loss on their investment.

But that could be just the beginning of a longer, harder slide for GameStop and other ‘meme stocks’.

How COVID vaccines could torpedo the GameStop share price

GameStop and other so-called meme stocks are widely believed to have benefited from the global pandemic. That’s because the virus saw people forced to remain at home. This gave them extra time to explore the share market opportunities right when many found their bank accounts flush with government stimulus cheques even as they were unable to spend money on their normal pursuits.

But all that looks set to change. And the implications for shares like GameStop could be dire.

According to Bloomberg:

An index that tracks 37 of the most popular meme stocks – 37 of the 50 that Robinhood Markets banned clients from trading during the height of the frenzy – is essentially unchanged over the past two months after soaring nearly 150% in January.

As vaccines begin to take the teeth out of the coronavirus and the world reopens, this trend could well accelerate as people turn away from their day trading apps and towards the activities and work places they were accustomed to.

Edward Moya is a senior market analyst at Oanda. According to Moya:

The stimulus check impact on retail trading is waning. Many Americans are looking to go big on attending sporting events, traveling across the country, vacationing, visiting family and friends, and revamping wardrobes before going out to restaurants, pubs and returning to the office.

While Moya’s forecast could prove bad news for the share price of meme stocks like GameStop, it could open new opportunities in areas like ASX travel and retail shares.

Happy investing.

More reading

• GameStop appoints former Amazon and Chewy Execs in turnaround bid
• Here are the US shares ASX investors have been buying
• Airtasker (ASX:ART) share price insanity: Is this the ASX’s GameStop?
• ASX investors still can’t get enough of GameStop (NYSE:GME) shares
• Is the cashed up Reddit army forming for a new charge?

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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Earlier today I looked at a couple of mid cap ASX shares that could have bright futures ahead of them. On this occasion, I’m going to move higher up on the risk scale to small cap shares.

If your risk profile allows for it, here’s why these small cap ASX shares could be worth considering:

Booktopia Group Ltd (ASX: BKG)

Booktopia is the largest Australian-owned online book retailer based on market share. During the 12 months ended June 2020, the company was selling one item approximately every 4.7 seconds.

Positively, since then, its growth has gone up a level. This has been driven by a combination of the shift to online shopping and its investment in a new distribution centre.

In February, Booktopia reported a 40% increase in first half shipments to 4.2 million units. This underpinned a 51.1% increase in revenue to $112.6 million and a 502.3% jump in underlying EBITDA to $8 million.

This went down well with analysts at Morgans. In response to its half year result, the broker retained its add rating and increased its price target to $3.53.

Whispir (ASX: WSP)

Whispir is a technology company that provides a communications workflow platform automating interactions between organisations and people.

The company notes that its products allow organisations to improve their communications through automated workflows to ensure stakeholders receive accurate, timely, useful and actionable insights. Furthermore, these are received in a manner that is sensitive to individual contexts and preferences.

Demand has been strong for its offering over the last couple of years and this has continued in FY 2021. In February, Whispir reported a 29.2% increase in its annualised recurring revenue to $47.4 million.

Positively, more of the same is expected in the second half. This should be supported by its recent $45.3 million capital raising, which was undertaken to support its growth plans.

Analysts at Ord Minnett are positive on the company’s future. They currently have a buy rating and $4.25 price target on its shares.

More reading

• These ASX tech shares are all trading near their lowest prices in months
• 3 exciting small cap ASX shares to watch
• 2 of the best small cap ASX shares to buy
• Airtasker (ASX:ART) share price cools after explosive IPO
• 3 exciting small cap ASX shares to watch

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 Whispir Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Booktopia Group Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Whispir 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 Cobre Ltd (ASX: CBE) share price is rocketing today after the company announced its acquisition of a large portion of the Kalahari Copper Belt in Botswana.

The Cobre share price has risen 17.5% today to 23.5 cents per share.

Cobre is an exploration and mining company in Western Australia. Its projects include the Perrinvale project in Kalgoorlie and the Sandiman project in the Carnarvon Basin. The Kalahari Copper Belt presents a potentially lucrative opportunity for the company to expand its exploration outreach into Africa.

Cobre’s Kalahari Copper project

Cobre’s shareholders voted today to acquire Kalahari Metals Limited (KML), a UK company that’s the second-largest tenement holder in the highly prospective Kalahari Copper Belt. Cobre is acquiring a 51% stake in the company, funded by the issue of 21.4 million Cobre shares.

The US Geological Survey regards the Copper Belt as one of the world’s most prospective areas for yet-to-be-discovered sediment-hosted copper deposits. Cobre is impressed that KML’s recent discoveries have targeted high-grade structurally controlled mineralisation in the areas it has a licence to explore.

KML holds 8,100 square kilometres in proximity to, and along strike from, known deposits in the Kalahari Copper Belt. Cobre considers Botswana to be a “stable jurisdiction investing heavily in power transmission”.

What did Cobre management say?

Cobre CEO Martin Holland said that the Kalahari Copper Belt acquisition could lead to a large copper discovery for the company.

The board believes that this acquisition of a large portion of the prolific Kalahari Copper Belt (KCB) will create a stronger and more diversified company poised for domestic and international growth.

By adding a stake in the prospective and under-explored KCB in Botswana, we have broadened our project portfolio and increased our exposure to copper, a metal in high global demand.

The board is very excited about the opportunity this represents for the company and following completion of the transaction, which is expected to occur shortly, the Kalahari Metals Limited (KML) team is ready to hit the ground with the next exploration program which includes a drilling campaign.

In a series of resolutions passed today, Cobre shareholders voted for the acquisition.

Cobre share price snapshot

With the Cobre share price jumping 17% today on the acquisition announcement, shares in the company have risen 6.8% in the past month and 46.8% over the past 12 months. The Cobre share price is down 9.6% in 2021, but it’s scraped above the basic materials sector, returning 5% above over the past 12 months.

More reading

• Insiders have been buying Nearmap (ASX:NEA) and this ASX share
• Goldman Sachs: “Massive opportunity” in ASX 200 alternative real estate shares
• Seek (ASX:SEK) share price lifts as jobs ads reach 12-year high
• What’s stopping the wheels turning on electric cars in Australia?
• The ASX shares brokers think you should be watching

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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Every so often, I like to take a look to see which shares have experienced meaningful insider buying. This is because insider buying is often regarded as a bullish indicator, as few people know a company and its intrinsic value better than its own directors.

A number of shares have reported meaningful insider recently. Here are a couple which have caught my eye:

Nearmap Ltd (ASX: NEA)

According to a change of director’s interest notice, one of this aerial imagery technology and location data company’s directors has been taking advantage of recent weakness in its share price to top up his position.

The notice reveals that non-executive director and former chair, Ross Norgard, picked up 500,000 shares through an on-market trade on 31 March. Mr Norgard paid an average of $2.042 per share, which equates to a total consideration of just over $1 million. This purchase lifted its holding to a total of almost 24.1 million shares.

With the Nearmap share price down over 21% from its February high, it appears as though Mr Norgard sees value in them at this level.

Netwealth Group Ltd (ASX: NWL)

A couple of change of director’s interest notices reveal that this wealth management platform provider’s directors have been buying shares. This appears to have been driven by a significant pullback in the Netwealth share price recently following an update on its deposit arrangement with Australia and New Zealand Banking GrpLtd (ASX: ANZ).

The notice reveals that independent director Sally Freeman picked up 9,000 shares for $126,000 on 29 March and Chairman Tim Antonie purchased 5,000 shares for $70,350 on 26 March. This represents purchase prices of $14.00 and $14.07, respectively. Both purchases were made on-market.

The good news for investors is that the Netwealth share price is currently fetching $13.98. This means you could invest at an even cheaper price than what these directors paid.

More reading

• 2 fast-growth ASX tech shares that have been sold off
• 2 stellar mid cap ASX shares to buy in April
• ASX 200 down 0.1%: Computershare raises $500m, REA Group announces acquisition
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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 Nearmap Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Netwealth. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Nearmap 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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