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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a small gain. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 0.15% to 7,043.8 points.

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

Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Ltd (ASX: BEN)

The Bendigo and Adelaide Bank share price is down 2.5% to $8.54. Investors have been selling this regional bank’s shares following the release of a broker note out of UBS. Its analysts have downgraded the bank’s shares to a sell rating and slashed their price target to $8.00. It expects rising funding costs, higher than expected bad debts, and intense competition for deposits to weigh on its performance.

Jervois Global Ltd (ASX: JRV)

The Jervois Global share price has crashed 40% to 6.9 cents. This has been driven by news that the company has suspended the construction of its cobalt operation in the United States. Management made the move in response to low cobalt prices and inflationary pressures. The company has already spent US$130 million on its construction. It aims to resume work once prices recover.

Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1)

The Megaport share price is down 5% to $4.00. This means the network services provider’s shares have given back all of yesterday’s gains and some more. Although it named its new CEO on Tuesday, it also revealed the exit of its CFO with immediate effect. Investors may be concerned that all is not well behind the scenes at Megaport. Its previous CEO quit abruptly earlier this month.

National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB)

The NAB share price is down 2% to $27.11. This also appears to have been driven by a broker note out of UBS. Its analysts have become bearish on NAB for the same reasons and have downgraded its shares to a sell rating. They have also slashed their price target by $8 to $25.00.

The post Why Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, Jervois Global, Megaport, and NAB are dropping today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why did this ASX All Ords mining share just crash 30%?
• If I buy NAB shares today, what could my returns be in a year’s time?
• Megaport share price jumps on CEO news
• Is right now a once-in-a-decade opportunity to buy ASX 200 bank shares?
• Investing in ASX 200 banks for dividends? Read this

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Megaport. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Bendigo And Adelaide Bank. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Megaport. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on form again on Wednesday. In afternoon trade, the benchmark index is up 0.15% to 7,045.3 points.

Four ASX shares that are climbing more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are rising:

ALS Ltd (ASX: ALQ)

The ALS share price is up almost 5% to $12.09. Investors have been buying this testing services company’s shares after it released a trading update. ALS advised that it has continued to successfully execute its strategic growth agenda, delivering strong growth. So much so, it has upgraded its FY 2023 underlying net profit after tax guidance range to between $312 million and $322 million. Its previous guidance was $300 million to $320 million.

Centaurus Metals Limited (ASX: CTM)

The Centaurus Metals share price is up 5.5% to 95 cents. This morning, this nickel explorer announced outstanding high-grade results from stepout drilling at its Jaguar operation. Management believes these results reinforce the world-class nature of the Jaguar Deposit, supporting its expectations for further resource growth.

Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS)

The Pilbara Minerals share price is up almost 3% to $3.96. Investors have been buying this lithium miner’s shares after it announced that its board has approved the capital investment for the P1000 Project. This will ultimately see the Pilgangoora Project increase its spodumene production capacity by 320,000 tonnes to 1 million dry metric tonnes (dmt) per annum.

Westgold Resources Ltd (ASX: WGX)

The Westgold share price is up 4% to $1.25. This follows the release of an update on the gold miner’s Big Bell mine. According to the release, Westgold’s drilling has identified high grade potential beyond current pre-feasibility study limits.

The post Why ALS, Centaurus Metals, Pilbara Minerals, and Westgold shares are rising today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Is the lithium price now on the way back up?
• Broker says buy Pilbara Minerals shares now for 44% upside
• Pilbara Minerals share price races higher on ‘important milestone’
• Why the outlook for these ASX 200 lithium shares could be ‘very favourable’
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Zip Co Ltd (ASX: ZIP) share price is sliding on Wednesday. It comes as Aussie investors get the chance to react to the United States launch of Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL)’s buy now, pay later (BNPL) offering overnight.

The Zip share price is currently trading at 52.5 cents – a 0.94% fall on its previous close.

For comparison, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is up 0.17% at the time of writing. Meanwhile, shares in Afterpay owner Block Inc (ASX: SQ2) are gaining 0.06%.

That’s a far better performance than industry peer Affirm Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: AFRM) put on overnight. Its share price plunged 7% while that of Apple dipped 0.4%.

So, what exactly went down in the BNPL arena last night? Let’s take a look.

Apple launches Pay Later in US

The Zip share price is in the red today amid the launch of Apple Pay Later in the world’s biggest economy.

Right now, a pre-release version of the BNPL product has been made available to select users, with plans to roll the product out to all eligible users in place.

The BNPL offering will work a lot like those we already know. Purchases can be split into four payments and spread over six weeks, with no interest or fees charged.

Users can apply to receive loans of between US$50 and US$1,000. They can then use Apple Pay Later to pay for online and in-app purchases with any merchant that accepts Apple Pay.

The BNPL product is enabled through the Mastercard Instillments program. Goldman Sachs is the issuer of the Mastercard payment credential used to complete purchases.  

Zip share price snapshot

The Zip share price has continued to tumble in 2023.

The stock is currently down 5% year to date. It’s also fallen 66% since this time last year.

Comparatively, the All Ords has risen 1% since the start of the year and has fallen 7% over the last 12 months.

The post Zip share price dips amid Apple’s BNPL US launch appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Here are the 10 most shorted ASX shares this week
• Why is the Zip share price soaring 7% today?
• Why New Hope, Pilbara Minerals, Westpac, and Zip shares are pushing higher
• Here are the 10 most shorted ASX shares this week
• ‘Very strong platform to accelerate’: Has the Zip share price been oversold?

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Affirm, Apple, Block, Goldman Sachs Group, Mastercard, and Zip Co. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended the following options: long January 2025 $370 calls on Mastercard, long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple, short January 2025 $380 calls on Mastercard, and short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Block. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Apple and Mastercard. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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There are three ASX lithium shares among the top 10 ASX shares with the biggest short positions today.

To clarify, short selling is where professional traders try to profit from a fall in the share price. They borrow the shares and sell them with the intention of buying them back later, when they fall, to make a profit.

As my Fool colleague James reports, these three ASX lithium shares are likely shorted due to high valuations and highly volatile lithium prices, which have fallen dramatically since November 2022.

And the outlook for lithium prices is very mixed.

But falling lithium prices are a problem for every lithium start-up and producer, so that’s not a unique concern for these three particular ASX lithium shares.

Another common theme is they’re not producing any lithium yet, or they’ve only just started.

In other words, they’re young players among ASX lithium shares.

That means they’re riskier than the established producers in terms of valuation.

Totus Capital portfolio manager Ben McGarry says this is why many funds, including his own, are short-selling several ASX lithium shares today.

McGarry says (courtesy smh.com.au):

So from an outsider’s or short seller’s point of view, you’re looking at a company that has got no real business and is priced as if everything is going to work out best for the long term.

Which ASX lithium shares are the most shorted?

The three ASX lithium shares in the top 10 most shorted stocks are as follows.

Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO) shares have a short interest of 10%, up from 1.7% this time last year. This is the greatest level of short interest among the three ASX lithium shares in the top 10.

The company’s share price has fallen by 32% over the past 12 months to 87 cents at the time of writing.

Core Lithium is a small-cap ASX lithium share with a market capitalisation of $1.63 billion.

The company sent its first shipment of lithium to China in January. This was Core Lithium’s first revenue event.

In its 1H FY23 results released this month, the company reported a $9.2 million loss for the period.

Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR) has a short interest of 8.7%, up from, 1.1% this time last year.

At the close of trade on Monday, the Liontown share price was down 20% over the previous 12 months at $1.52. But everything changed yesterday on news of a takeover bid by US lithium giant, Albemarle (NYSE: ALB).

Liontown shares are now trading at $2.60, up 1.2% today, after an astonishing 68.5% surge yesterday. This took its market valuation to $5.65 billion.

First production at Liontown’s flagship Kathleen Valley project is slated for mid-2024.

In its 1H FY23 results released this month, the company reported a $6.9 million loss for the period.

Lithium and graphite producer Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA) also has 8.7% of its shares shorted, up from 0.9% this time last year.

The Sayona share price has fallen by 12% over the past year. It’s trading at 21 cents at the time of writing today.

Sayona is also a small-cap ASX lithium share with a $1.82 billion market cap.

The miner produced its first saleable commercial-grade spodumene lithium concentrate at its North American project just this month.

In its 1H FY23 results released this month, the company reported an $18.7 million loss for the period.

Why do the share prices fluctuate so much?

The prices of younger ASX lithium shares are more prone to major fluctuations as both traders and investors take a punt on how the future will pan out for these small and currently non-profitable players.

If you get the bet right, there could be big rewards. That’s the draw. So, this element of speculation can push share prices northwards.

And lithium prices going gangbusters in 2021 and 2020 added to it.

Those massive commodity price gains, which were prompted by the rapidly increasing global uptake of electric vehicles (EVs), got the market very excited, providing buying momentum for ASX lithium shares.

This pushed many of them into the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO). That means they are automatically bought by the index funds, which gave them more support and pushed their valuations further.

So, their valuations went up based on speculation and momentum, not necessarily business fundamentals.

You see, all three ASX lithium shares listed above are non-profitable, yet they’re among Australia’s biggest 200 companies by market capitalisation.

Doesn’t sound quite right, does it?

This sort of thing gets short sellers into a bit of a lather because they see an opportunity to profit from the market’s exuberance and mispricing.

Which ASX lithium shares are the least short-sold?

There is far less short selling among the established ASX lithium shares.

Matthew Frydman, a senior research analyst specialising in metals and mining at MST Financial, says there are four “globally significant” lithium producers on the ASX 200.

They are Mineral Resources Ltd (ASX: MIN), IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO), Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS), and Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE).

According to figures from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), these four companies have very little capital shorted at 1.15%, 1.8%, 4.1%, and 1.9% respectively.

The post Which ASX lithium shares could be at risk of a short attack? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• 2 ASX 200 stocks smashing new 52-week highs on Wednesday
• Is the lithium price now on the way back up?
• Broker says buy Pilbara Minerals shares now for 44% upside
• Takeover offer ‘reasonable but not full’: Broker says Liontown shares are worth more

Motley Fool contributor Bronwyn Allen has positions in Allkem and Core Lithium. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO) share price is on a roller coaster ride today.

IGO shares are currently down 0.08% and fetching $12.81. However, in earlier trade IGO shares lifted nearly 0.6% to $12.87. For perspective, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is up 0.11% today.

Let’s take a look at what could be weighing on the IGO share price.

What’s happening?

IGO is a nickel, copper and cobalt explorer and is also invested in lithium via joint venture projects.

ASX lithium shares are having a mixed day on the market today, but multiple lithium explorers are rising.

For example, Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) shares are 3% in the green and Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR) shares are up 1%. However, Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO) shares are 1.44% in the red.

In today’s news, an IGO joint venture partner has released a drilling update.

St George Mining Limited (ASX: SGQ) announced a “very wide interval of pegmatite” has been intersected in the first drill hole testing the ‘Manta’ seismic reflector.

This is located within exploration licence 29/638 within the Mt Alexander lithium project in Western Australia.

IGO has a 25% interest in E29/638 until there is a decision to mine, with St George holding the remaining 75%.

A continuous 120.8m interval of pegmatite from 631.2m to 752m downhole was intersected at diamond hole MAD213.

Broker UBS has recently maintained a “buy” rating on the IGO share price. However, analysts are predicting new lithium supply could double between 2022 and 2025.

IGO share price snapshot

The IGO share price has slid nearly 9% in the last year. However, in the past month, it has fallen by 1.2%.

IGO has a market capitalisation of about $9.7 billion based on the current share price

The post What’s with the IGO share price on Wednesday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why the outlook for these ASX 200 lithium shares could be ‘very favourable’
• Investing in ASX 200 lithium shares? You’ll want to read this
• The Mincor Resources share price is skyrocketing 42%, what could be next for this ASX mining share?
• These ASX lithium shares are a buy despite explosive supply forecast: UBS
• What’s happening with the IGO share price on Thursday?

Motley Fool contributor Monica O’Shea has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://www.fool.com.au/2023/03/29/whats-with-the-igo-share-price-on-wednesday/

Many of Australia’s top brokers have been busy adjusting their financial models again, leading to the release of a number of broker notes this week.

Three ASX shares brokers have named as buys this week are listed below. Here’s why they are bullish on them:

Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE)

According to a note out of Macquarie, its analysts have retained their outperform rating and $17.00 price target on this lithium miner’s shares. This follows the release of a mineral resource estimate upgrade for its Olaroz operation. Macquarie was pleased with the news and remains bullish on the company’s outlook. The Allkem share price is trading at $11.82.

Ingenia Communities Group (ASX: INA)

A note out of Citi reveals that its analysts have initiated coverage on this land lease and holiday park company’s shares with a buy rating and $4.40 price target. Citi likes Ingenia due to its land lease exposure. This is due to its secure CPI-linked income stream, with strong medium-term growth potential from an ageing population and an attractive product versus other retirement alternatives. The Ingenia share price is fetching $3.59 this afternoon.

Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR)

Analysts at Bell Potter have retained their speculative buy rating on this lithium developer’s shares with an improved price target of $3.35. This follows news that industry giant Albemarle has made a non-binding takeover offer of $2.50 per share. Bell Potter believes this speaks to the quality of Kathleen Valley and the scarcity of growth opportunities in the sector. And while its analysts believe the offer is reasonable, they don’t believe it is full and support management’s decision to reject it. The Liontown share price is trading at $2.61 today.

The post Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 2 ASX 200 stocks smashing new 52-week highs on Wednesday
• Broker says buy Pilbara Minerals shares now for 44% upside
• Takeover offer ‘reasonable but not full’: Broker says Liontown shares are worth more
• Why the outlook for these ASX 200 lithium shares could be ‘very favourable’
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Allkem. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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Well, it’s been an interesting day for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) so far this Wednesday, to say the least. The ASX 200 started off on a fairly negative footing this morning. 

The Index closed at 7,034.1 points yesterday but quickly fell as low as 7,011 points soon after market open this morning. In fact, the ASX 200 was in red territory until about midday today.

But as it currently stands, the Index has gained 0.11% and has risen up to 7,042 points at the time of writing:

So why this dramatic change of heart from investors today?

Well, the ASX’s pivot from red to green territory almost perfectly coincides with the latest inflation data out of the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). So that could have something to do with it.

This morning (just before midday), the ABS released its latest consumer price index (CPI) figures. And they make for some interesting reading. Over the 12 months to 28 February, the Australian economy endured inflation of 6.8%.

That might seem like a lot (and it is, historically). But over the 12 months to January 2023, inflation was running at 7.4%. That means running annual inflation has slowed from 7.4% to 6.8% in just one month.

Now cooling inflation usually means a cooling economy. This is exactly what the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) wants, considering the ten interest rate rises in a row we have just had.

So why might investors be excited over this latest inflation data, considering it might be reflecting a slowing economy?

Why might lower inflation lead to higher ASX shares?

Well, this turnaround in sentiment we have seen on the ASX probably isn’t about inflation itself, but what lower inflation might mean for interest rates. If inflation is slowing (which it seems to be), the RBA might consider pausing its ten-month streak of raising interest rates. 

Interest rates are bad for almost every asset outside cash. They slow the economy down and make growth assets like shares less attractive to investors compared with ‘safer’ alternatives like term deposits.

Over 2020 and 2021, interest rates were effectively zero. This meant that a term deposit or savings account would have yielded you 1% if you were lucky. So if you wanted to chase a better return than that, the share market was one of the only options.

But today, you can get a term deposit at a 5% interest rate or even higher. That makes the prospect of investing in shares a lot less appealing for many investors.

So that’s why investors hate high interest rates. Thus, it’s understandable why today’s inflation data is giving investors confidence in the share market.

The post ASX 200 turns green on softer-than-expected inflation data appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Tuesday
• 3 ASX 200 shares cracking multi-year highs on Tuesday
• The whopper Wesfarmers dividend is being paid today. Here’s what you need to know

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) may be trading over 7% lower than its 52-week high, but that hasn’t stopped a couple of stocks from reaching this milestone today.

Two ASX 200 stocks that have hit new 52-week highs are listed below. Here’s why they are scaling new heights:

Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR)

The Liontown share price has built on yesterday’s sensational gain and risen to a 52-week high of $2.64 on Wednesday. This has been driven by the lithium developer receiving and rejecting a takeover approach this week.

Analysts at Bell Potter believe that Albemarle’s $2.50 per share takeover proposal was “reasonable but not full.”

In response to the news, the broker has reiterated its speculative buy rating with an improved price target of $3.35. This suggests that this ASX 200 lithium stock could rise a further 27% from its current 52-week high of $2.64.

Its analysts commented:

The corporate interest in LTR from a high-profile US-based industry participant speaks to the quality of Kathleen Valley and the scarcity of growth opportunities in the sector.

Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL)

The Soul Patts share price hit a 52-week high of $29.66 on Wednesday. Investors have been buying the investment house’s shares since the release of its half-year results release last week.

For the six months ended 31 January, the ASX 200 investment stock reported a regular profit of $475.7 million. This was a sizeable 38.4% increase on the prior corresponding period.

Management advised that this reflects strong performances from its strategic portfolio investments, helped by high commodity prices and contributions from Brickworks Limited (ASX: BKW), Apex Healthcare, and New Hope Corporation Limited (ASX: NHC).

This ultimately allowed the Soul Patts board to increase its interim dividend by 24.1% to a fully franked 36 cent per share.

The post 2 ASX 200 stocks smashing new 52-week highs on Wednesday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why I continue buying shares of this magnificent ASX dividend stock hand over fist
• Broker says buy Pilbara Minerals shares now for 44% upside
• Takeover offer ‘reasonable but not full’: Broker says Liontown shares are worth more
• How to make passive income for life with just $5 a day
• Is time running out to buy high-yield ASX dividend shares?

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Brickworks and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Brickworks and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) shares are down 0.38% in early afternoon trading today.

Shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) travel company are currently changing hands for $18.24 apiece.

While that’s down today, Flight Centre shares remain up a healthy 27% so far in 2023.

But, judging by the high levels of short interest, a fair number of ASX 200 investors believe those gains may be unwarranted.

Do short sellers have this one right?

Flight Centre shares kicked off Monday with the dubious honour of being the most shorted ASX share, with an 11.1% short interest.

Now, the ASX 200 travel stock could certainly slide from today’s levels as consumers tighten their belts and delay some travel plans amid stubbornly high inflation. But I believe the company is in a strong position over the medium and longer term. Meaning many short sellers may be caught, well, short.

Inflation or not, domestic and international travel numbers continue to pick up from the disastrous pandemic lockdowns. In fact, when the company released its half-year results last month, it forecast that international capacity would hit 85% of pre-COVID levels by the end of June.

China’s reopening should help drive demand for the company’s services, helping support Flight Centre shares.

And while the company still reported a $2.4 million underlying post-tax loss for the six months ending 31 December (H1 FY23), that was a huge improvement on the $188 million loss posted in the prior corresponding half year.

Revenue leapt 217% year on year to $1 billion. And underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) leapt to $95 million, up from a $184 million loss in H1 FY22.

Flight Centre ended the half year with a $465 million net cash position.

All told this doesn’t bode well for the large number of short sellers betting against Flight Centre shares.

Especially not when contrasted with the positive investor interest in the company’s massively oversubscribed share purchase plan (SPP).

The SPP was intended to raise $40 million to partly fund the company’s $211 million acquisition of United Kingdom-based luxury travel brand, Scott Dunn. A $180 million institutional capital raise will fund the rest.

The huge amount of retail investor interest saw Flight Centre increase the SPP offer to $60 million.

While some short sellers may make a quick buck on any shorter-term pullback in the Flight Centre share price, I believe this stock is better off in investors’ long-term buy-and-hold portfolios.

How have Flight Centre shares been performing?

As you can see in the chart below, Flight Centre shares have enjoyed a very strong rebound in 2023. Shares are up 27% this year, though they remain down 8% over the past 12 months.

Short sellers may also wish to take note that the ASX 200 travel stock remains down 48% from its pre-COVID levels in early February 2020.

The post Are short sellers wrong about Flight Centre shares? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Here are the 10 most shorted ASX shares this week
• Rising Flight Centre share price delivers 25% gains to SPP investors in a week
• 2 ASX 200 shares to buy for ‘excellent value’: fund manager
• Here are the 10 most shorted ASX shares this week
• Why has the Flight Centre share price tumbled 11% in a week?

Motley Fool contributor Bernd Struben has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Flight Centre Travel Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR) shares have been on fire this week thanks to a takeover approach.

And while they are pulling back by 5% this morning, the lithium developer’s shares are still up over 60% this week.

Where next for Liontown shares?

Despite its meteoric rise, the team at Bell Potter believes that the Liontown share price can keep rising from here.

According to a note this morning, the broker has retained its speculative buy rating with an improved price target of $3.35.

Based on where its shares are currently trading, this suggests potential upside of 38% for investors over the next 12 months.

Albemarle offer ‘reasonable but not full’

Bell Potter has been looking over Albemarle’s $2.50 per share takeover proposal for Liontown and believes it is reasonable. However, it feels the company is worth far more than what has been tabled.

And with management holding a sizeable number of Liontown shares, it doesn’t appear to believe that Albemarle will be able to bully its way into acquiring the lithium developer. The broker commented:

The corporate interest in LTR from a high-profile US-based industry participant speaks to the quality of Kathleen Valley and the scarcity of growth opportunities in the sector. We view the value of ALB’s proposal as reasonable, but not full; with additional value to be argued from LTR’s de-risking of Kathleen Valley, downstream projects and complementary ESG strategy and location. We also believe LTR will ultimately be capable of realising this value in the absence of a corporate tie-up.

In light of this, Bell Potter appears to see Liontown as a great option for investors looking for lithium exposure. Though, it highlights that as an asset development company, its “speculative risk rating recognises this higher level of risk.”

The post Takeover offer ‘reasonable but not full’: Broker says Liontown shares are worth more appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Broker says buy Pilbara Minerals shares now for 44% upside
• Why the outlook for these ASX 200 lithium shares could be ‘very favourable’
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Tuesday

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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