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Every Monday I like to look at ASIC’s short position report to find out which shares are being targeted by short sellers.

This is because I believe it is well worth keeping a close eye on short interest levels as high levels can sometimes be a sign that something isn’t quite right with a company.

With that in mind, here are the 10 most shorted shares on the ASX this week according to ASIC:

• Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) continues to be the most shorted share on the ASX despite another reduction in short interest to 13.2%. Short sellers will be disappointed to learn that COVID-19 vaccine optimism has led to Webjet’s shares surging 50% higher month to date.
• Western Areas Ltd (ASX: WSA) has seen its short interest jump to 11.3%. Short sellers have been increasing their positions in this nickel producer following production issues at its Flying Fox operation.
• Myer Holdings Ltd (ASX: MYR) has seen its short interest rise to 9.7%. Last week US department store operator, Macy’s, reported a 20% decline in same store sales. Investors may be concerned that Myer will be experiencing similarly tough trading conditions.
• Speedcast International Ltd (ASX: SDA) has short interest of 9.4%. The communications satellite technology provider’s shares are still suspended while it undertakes a recapitalisation.
• InvoCare Limited (ASX: IVC) has short interest of 9.2%, which is down week on week. Short sellers may have been closing positions after the funerals company’s shares pushed higher following the announcement of acquisitions in the pet cremation industry.
• Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) is back in the top ten with short interest of 8.6%. Although the travel market outlook is improving greatly, some short sellers aren’t giving up on this travel agent.
• Inghams Group Ltd (ASX: ING) has 8.3% of its shares held short, which is down week on week. Short sellers continue to close positions after the poultry company revealed an improvement in its performance in FY 2021.
• Mesoblast Limited (ASX: MSB) has seen its short interest fall to 8.1%. Unfortunately for short sellers, the Mesoblast share price surged higher last week after announcing a major deal with pharma giant Novartis.
• A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M) has seen its short interest rise slightly to 7.8%. Weakness in the daigou channel is weighing heavily on the infant formula company’s performance and has many suggesting it could fail to achieve its guidance.
• Metcash Limited (ASX: MTS) is back in the top ten with 7.8% of its shares held short. It remains unclear why short sellers are targeting this wholesale distributor.

More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy next week
• These were the best performing ASX 200 shares last week
• ASX 200 ends flat on Friday
• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy right now

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended A2 Milk and Webjet Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Flight Centre Travel Group Limited and InvoCare Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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 some very reliable ASX dividend share available to Aussie investors that are consistently growing their payouts for shareholders.

These two businesses are rated as buys by the Motley Fool Dividend Investor service:

Sonic Healthcare Ltd (ASX: SHL)

Sonic Healthcare is a global medical laboratory company. It has operations across many countries including the USA, Australia, Germany, Switzerland, UK, Ireland, Belgium and New Zealand.

It’s playing an important role in the fight against COVID-19. It has performed over 11 million COVID-19 tests to date.

The healthcare company has been awarded a number of contracts in the US, UK and Australia for testing.

Despite COVID-19 severely impacting volumes in the early stages of the pandemic, there has been a recovery and it grew revenue by 11% in FY20, which helped underlying net profit increase by 7%.

In FY20 the ASX dividend share maintained its final dividend, but there had been a 3% increase of its interim dividend, which meant the total FY20 dividend was increased by 1.2% to $0.85 per share.

Due to COVID-19, Sonic wasn’t able to give any FY21 guidance. However, it did say that in general, COVID-19 related falls in its base business saw an associated increase in COVID-19 testing volumes. Base laboratory business revenue (excluding COVID-19 testing) is up on prior year levels in most countries, with negative but improving growth in the US and UK.

Strong COVID-19 testing volumes is currently augmenting growth for Sonic.

In the first quarter of FY21 it saw revenue growth of 29% and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) growth of 71%.

Sonic has a steadily growing dividend and FY20 was another year in that long streak. At the current Sonic share price it offers a grossed-up dividend yield of 2.9%.

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

Soul Patts is an investment conglomerate which has been listed since 1903 when it started out as a pharmacy business.

It has a diversified portfolio of different assets.

Soul Patts has large stakes in listed businesses spread across many sectors like building products, telecommunications, resources, listed investment companies (LICs), banks, fund managers and pharmacies.

The actual shares the ASX dividend share owns in its portfolio includes TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPG), Brickworks Limited (ASX: BKW), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), Milton Corporation Limited (ASX: MLT), Bki Investment Co Ltd (ASX: BKI), Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX: MFG) and Pengana Capital Group Ltd (ASX: PCG).

It also owns unlisted businesses, either wholly or with sizeable stakes. Some of the unlisted businesses include resources, financial services, swimming schools, agriculture and Ampcontrol.

The investment house recently made a takeover bid for aged care operator Regis Healthcare Ltd (ASX: REG), though the public bid was knocked back because the Regis board believed it materially undervalued the company.

There has also been reports that Soul Patts is investing in regional data centres, though this hasn’t been properly outlined by the company in an ASX announcement yet.

In terms of the dividend, Soul Patts has paid a dividend every year since it listed 1903. It has also increased its dividend every year since 2000, which is the best consecutive dividend growth record on the ASX.

The Soul Patts dividend is funded by the investment income it receives, largely being the dividends from its holdings.

At the current Soul Patts share price it has a trailing grossed-up dividend yield of 3.1%. If a 2 cents per share annual increase of the dividend is paid in FY21 then it offers a forward 3.2% grossed-up dividend yield.

More reading

• 3 leading ASX dividend shares to buy for income
• ASX 200 ends flat on Friday
• ASX stock of the day: Japara Healthcare (ASX:JHC) share price soars 23%
• Why the Oil Search (ASX:OSH) share price is the worst performer today
• Why Kogan, Oil Search, Orica, & Soul Pattinson shares are dropping lower

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 Brickworks and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Sonic Healthcare Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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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It certainly is a tough time to be an income investor.

At present, Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) is offering investors interest rates of 0.6% per annum on five-year term deposits.

This means that even if you put $100,000 into them, you would earn interest of just $600 each year.

The good news is that there are countless dividend shares on the Australian share market that offer significantly better yields.

Two ASX dividend shares with yields greater than 4% are listed below:

Aventus Group (ASX: AVN)

Aventus is the owner and operator of 20 large format retail parks across Australia. Among its retail parks you will find major retailers such as ALDI, Bunnings, Officeworks, and The Good Guys as tenants.

This high weighting to national retailers and every day needs has allowed Aventus to perform much stronger than other property companies during 2020. In fact, the company was largely able to collect the majority of its rent as normal in FY 2020.

Last week analysts at Goldman Sachs reiterated their buy rating and $2.76 price target on its shares. It notes that Aventus has a quality portfolio with opportunities to create value with its land bank. Based on the latest Aventus share price, the broker estimates that it offers a forward 6.1% dividend yield.

Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF)

Rural Funds is a real estate investment trust (REIT) which owns a diversified portfolio of high quality Australian agricultural assets that are leased to experienced agricultural operators such as wine giant Treasury Wine Estates Ltd (ASX: TWE).

At the end of FY 2020, the company owned 61 properties with a combined value of $1 billion and a weighted average lease expiry (WALE) of 10.9 years. From this, it was generating adjusted funds from operations (AFFO) of 11.7 cents per share. This allowed the Rural Funds board to declare a full year distribution of 10.8 cents per share.

Thanks to rental increases, the company intends to grow this distribution by its 4% per annum target growth rate in FY 2021 to 11.28 cents per share. Based on the current Rural Funds share price, this works out to be a 4.3% yield.

More reading

• 2 ASX blue chip dividend shares to buy this month
• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy right now
• What would it take for the ASX 200 to hit 7,000 again?
• 2 high quality ASX dividend shares to buy today
• Why ASX bank share dividends might be surging soon

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of Westpac Banking. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended RURALFUNDS STAPLED and Treasury Wine Estates Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended AVENTUS RE UNIT. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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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On Friday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) finished a very positive week in a subdued manner. The benchmark index fell 0.2% to 6,405.2 points.

Will the market be able to bounce back from this on Monday? Here are five things to watch:

ASX 200 poised to rise.

The Australian share market looks set to start the week on a positive note despite declines on Wall Street on Friday. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 34 points or 0.5% higher this morning. On Friday the Dow Jones fell 0.75%, the S&P 500 dropped 0.7%, and the Nasdaq fell 0.4% lower. Rising COVID-19 cases in the United States weighed on investor sentiment.

NSW-Victoria border reopens.

Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) and Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) shares could be on the rise today after the NSW government announced the opening of its border with Victoria today after being closed for 137 days. This is expected to lead to hundreds of flights between Melbourne and Sydney from this week.

Oil prices push higher.

Energy producers including Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) could start the week on a positive note after oil prices pushed higher on Friday. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price rose 1.4% to US$42.17 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price climbed 1.7% to US$44.96 a barrel. Oil prices recorded their third successive weekly gain thanks to COVID-19 vaccine optimism.

Gold price pushes higher.

Gold miners such as Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX: NCM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) could be on the rise today after the gold price pushed higher on Friday night. According to CNBC, the spot gold price climbed 0.45% to US$1,869.60 an ounce. This was driven by optimism over U.S. COVID stimulus.

Lendlease given conviction buy rating.

Goldman Sachs has maintained its conviction buy rating on the Lendlease Group (ASX: LLC) share price. The broker notes that the company is targeting over A$10 billion of project commencements over the next 18 months. It expects this to underpin solid earnings growth over the coming years. Goldman has a $16.65 price target on Lendlease’s shares.

More reading

• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 next week
• These were the worst performing ASX 200 shares last week
• These were the best performing ASX 200 shares last week
• ASX 200 ends flat on Friday
• This broker reckons Woodside Petroleum (ASX:WPL) shares are a screaming buy today

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Webjet Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Flight Centre Travel Group Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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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Some investors may avoid buying cheap shares at the present time due to the potential for a second stock market crash. Risks such as Brexit and coronavirus could realistically prompt weaker financial performances from businesses that translate into falling share prices.

However, the past performance of the stock market shows that it has always experienced challenging periods. The key takeaway for investors is that it has always recovered from them to post new record highs.

Furthermore, today’s cheap share prices may factor in many of the risks facing the economy. This could mean there are buying opportunities available.

The threat of a stock market crash

The potential for a stock market crash may be elevated at the present time. Investors often become increasingly bearish during periods of major change when they find it more difficult to accurately forecast the outlook for businesses. With political uncertainty present across many of the world’s major economies and coronavirus continuing to cause disruption, it would be unsurprising for investor sentiment to weaken to some extent in the coming months.

However, many bear markets have been impossible to predict. This year’s stock market decline took place over a very short period of time, with very few investors accurately predicting that it would happen. It’s a similar story with previous market declines. Therefore, a downturn can take place at any time and without prior warning. This means that all investors must accept that their holdings may be in loss-making territory at times.

Long-term growth potential

Despite the constant threat of a stock market crash, indexes such as the FTSE 100 Index (FTSE: UKX) and S&P 500 Index (SP: .INX) have produced relatively impressive returns over recent decades. In fact, their annual total returns have been in the high single-digits even though they have experienced severe bear markets such as the global financial crisis and dot com bubble.

Their returns may have been more volatile than those of other assets such as cash and bonds. However, they have also been higher over the long term. As such, investors who are able to live with the potential for short-term paper losses may be better off investing money in a portfolio of stocks instead of holding lower-risk assets. Over time, they may deliver significantly higher returns.

Buying cheap shares today

At the present time, many cheap shares appear to account for elevated risks that could cause a stock market crash. Therefore, even though risks are higher at the present time, now could be an opportune moment to purchase a wide range of companies for the long term.

Their wide margins of safety may provide some support should there be another market downturn. Meanwhile, their low valuations may also mean they can offer impressive returns in the coming years that have a positive impact on your financial prospects.

More reading

• 2 ASX small cap shares tipped for big things
• 3 reasons why I’d buy the best dividend shares today
• 2 ETFs that ASX investors need to know about
• Top fund manager Dalio warns investors to stay away from cash
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell next week

Motley Fool contributor Peter Stephens has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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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It’s worth remembering that all companies start somewhere and don’t become Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) overnight.

Two ASX shares that are still at the start of their journeys and have been tipped to have bright futures are listed below. Here’s what you need to know about them:

Mach7 Technologies Ltd (ASX: M7T)

Mach7 is a $286 million developer of enterprise imaging and informatics solutions for image viewing, storage, and workflow management. These solutions can be implemented individually or as a comprehensive end-to-end image management and diagnostic viewing platform. They have been designed to assist healthcare organisations with removing technology limitations to ensure patient information flows easily and can be accessed instantly.

Earlier this month the company announced a seven-year contract with Trinity Health for the license and associated support services for its eUnity enterprise viewer. The total value of this contract is A$5.26 million. Trinity Health is the fifth largest healthcare Integrated Delivery Network (IDN) in the United States and will be installing it across multiple facilities within its 92 hospitals located across 22 US states.

This news went down well with Morgans, which has reiterated its add rating and $1.49 price target on the company’s shares. It notes this could be the first of many deals due to its material tender pipeline. The Mach7 share price ended the week at $1.22.

MyDeal.com.au Limited (ASX: MYD)

MyDeal.com.au is an online retail marketplace provider with a market capitalisation of $300 million. The company has a focus on furniture, homewares, appliances, technology, baby products, and hardware. This focus has delivered strong results so far in FY 2021, with the company recently revealing first quarter gross sales growth of 317% to $56.67 million. This strong growth was driven by the accelerating shift to online shopping and a 268% increase in active customers to 669,897 compared to the prior corresponding period.

Another positive is the company has $40 million from its recent initial public offering (IPO) that can be used to drive future growth. This includes growing its private label business, investing in its proprietary technology, and investing in advertising to grow its customer base and brand.

One broker that likes what it sees here is RBC Capital Markets. It has just initiated coverage on MyDeal with a buy rating and $1.60 price target. It thinks the company is at an inflection point as annualised gross transaction value exceeds $200 million and customer numbers approach 700,000. The MyDeal share price last traded at $1.16.

More reading

• Are these the new paths for growth of the Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price?
• I have too many tech shares: Do I sell, buy or hold?
• Is the Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price a buy today?
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price under pressure by US BNPL giant

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 MACH7 FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended MACH7 FPO. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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 best dividend shares could offer more than just a relatively high passive income. The stock market crash has caused a wide range of high-quality businesses to trade at low prices that do not account for their recovery prospects.

As such, undervalued companies with impressive shareholder payouts could become more popular in a low interest rate environment. This may boost their prices and lead to impressive total returns in the coming years.

The passive income potential of dividend shares

Of course, the most obvious reason to buy the best dividend shares today is their passive income prospects. The stock market crash has caused many income stocks to trade at lower prices than at the start of the year – even after the recent market rebound. Therefore, it is possible to obtain high yields from high-quality income shares that may not be available permanently in many cases.

A large proportion of the stock market’s past total returns have been derived from the reinvestment of dividends. Therefore, income shares may be of interest to a wider range of investors than those who are purely interested in a passive income. Over time, many companies may also be able to increase their dividend payouts as the economic outlook improves. This may further improve their total return potential over the coming years.

Relative income appeal

At the same time as dividend shares offer a generous passive income, many other assets currently fail to provide a worthwhile income opportunity. Low interest rates mean that the returns on cash savings accounts have fallen to historic lows. Similarly, the returns on investment grade bonds may struggle to keep pace with inflation over the long run. This may reduce an investor’s spending power and make it more difficult to obtain a worthwhile passive income over the coming years.

Meanwhile, high house prices mean that the yields available on property may be relatively unattractive. Investors must also pay various fees when owning investment property, while it is likely to be more difficult to diversify when owning property directly. This may increase overall risk, and could lead to a less stable passive income than that on offer via a portfolio of dividend shares.

Capital return prospects

Dividend shares also offer scope for impressive capital returns. As mentioned, their prices have fallen in many cases due to the stock market crash. This could mean that their financial prospects are currently undervalued by investors. As the world economic outlook improves and investor sentiment strengthens, income shares could make capital gains that have a positive impact on investor portfolios.

Therefore, building a diverse portfolio of income shares could be a logical approach. Their low prices, passive income potential and relative appeal could make them a profitable investment for a wide range of investors over the coming years.

More reading

• 2 ETFs that ASX investors need to know about
• Top fund manager Dalio warns investors to stay away from cash
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell next week
• Is National Storage (ASX:NSR) a dividend share to buy?
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy next week

Motley Fool contributor Peter Stephens has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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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Exchange traded funds (ETFs) are becoming increasingly popular with Australian investors and it isn’t hard to see why.

ETFs give investors the opportunity to invest in a large number of shares through just a single investment. This includes themes, countries, or whole indices.

Two ETFs that are popular with investors right now are listed below. Here’s what you need to know about them:

BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF (ASX: ASIA)

The BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF gives investors exposure to a collection of tech shares that are revolutionising the lives of billions of people in the Asia market. Among its holdings you will find the likes of Samsung, Alibaba, JD.com, Tencent, and Baidu.

In respect to Baidu, it is widely regarded as the Chinese version of Google. As well as being the dominant search engine in China, Baidu has a keen focus on artificial intelligence and is aiming to be an autonomous vehicle powerhouse. In 2019, the company ranked number one in the amount of AI-related patent applications in China for the second consecutive year. This demonstrates just how active in the space it is.

Another key holding in the fund is Tencent. It is one of the world’s largest tech companies with a focus on video games and social media. It is best known as the company behind the WeChat app, which is used by over 1.2 billion people for messaging, e-commerce, digital payments, and entertainment.

BetaShares Global Cybersecurity ETF (ASX: HACK)

Another ETF that is popular with investors is the BetaShares Global Cybersecurity ETF. This ETF aims to track the performance of an index that provides exposure to the leading companies in the global cybersecurity sector.

BetaShares notes that with cybercrime on the rise, demand for cybersecurity services is expected to grow strongly for the foreseeable future. This is a side of the market which is heavily under-represented on the ASX at present.

Included in the fund are both global cybersecurity giants and emerging players from a range of global locations. Among its holdings you’ll find Crowdstrike, Okta, Accenture, Cisco, and Cloudflare.

More reading

• 2 ASX tech ETFs analysts rate as a ‘buy’ today
• 10 hottest (and coldest) Aussie ETFs right now
• 2 quality ETFs that are popular with ASX investors
• Best performing Aussie ETFs right now
• 2 tech ETFs generating big returns

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 BETA CYBER ETF UNITS. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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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Billionaire Ray Dalio is a world-famous investor that many look to for advice, wisdom or just good old-fashioned market commentary. Dalio founded one of the world’s largest hedge funds – Bridgewater Associates – back in 1973. It is perhaps most well known for its performance during the global financial crisis a decade ago. While global markets were tanking, Bridgewater’s Pure Alpha Fund managed to make a motza back then. Today, Bridgewater has more than US$140 billion in assets under management, although Mr. Dalio is no longer playing an active role at the fund.

Even so, he is still out and about, sharing his insights on the current economic climate and market conditions.

Reporting in Business Insider this week shed some light on what Dalio has been telling investors in this current climate. Business Insider quoted Dalio speaking at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum this week. First off, he told the forum that diversification is “one of the most important portfolio strategies” in the current environment. But he caveats this statement by saying that investors shouldn’t be owning bonds (also called ‘fixed-interest investments’) or cash right now:

In my opinion, don’t own bonds, and don’t own cash because they’re producing a lot of debt and producing a lot of money to fund it, and so that’s changing the nature of capital flows.

Dalio instead recommended that investors “diversify between currencies, asset classes, and countries as the best way to reduce risk without reducing opportunity”.

Dalio: Cash is trash

This news might not be as relevant for us Aussie investors, who have never had much of a tradition of investing in bonds. However, a common investing practice over in the United States is the ’60/40 portfolio’, which advocates a 60% allocation to shares and a 40% allocation to bonds. Something to keep in mind.

Beyond diversification, Dalio also told investors that “liquidity and differentiation” should be guiding lights for portfolio construction in today’s environment: “liquidity allows an investor flexibility to change as circumstances change” he said.

Whilst Dalio is bullish on shares in general, he does nudge investors to differentiate between companies and countries that are “orderly and will prosper in this environment”, and those that are prone to bankruptcy and disorder. According to Dalio, disorder in a company or country  “depends on the entity’s income relative to its expenses, and its assets to liabilities”. Dalio said differentiation will allow investors to see “radical differences in financial consequences.” 

More reading

• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell next week
• Is National Storage (ASX:NSR) a dividend share to buy?
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy next week
• 3 leading ASX dividend shares to buy for income
• Exciting ASX shares rated as buys by top fundie

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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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Once again, a large number of broker notes hit the wires last week. Some of these notes were positive and some were bearish.

Three sell ratings that caught my eye are summarised below. Here’s why top brokers think investors ought to sell these shares next week:

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA)

According to a note out of Morgan Stanley, its analysts have retained their underweight rating and $68.50 price target on this banking giant’s shares. Although the broker’s overall view of the major banks has improved, it notes that investors have driven their shares higher in recent weeks. This has particularly been the case for Commonwealth Bank, with its shares now trading well above its estimate for fair value. The broker also notes that there are limited cost reduction possibilities for the bank and also a risk from potential credit quality deterioration. The Commonwealth Bank share price ended the week at $80.00.

New Hope Corporation Limited (ASX: NHC)

A note out of Macquarie reveals that its analysts have retained their underperform rating and $1.00 price target on this coal miner’s shares. Although production at its Bengalla operation is currently in line with its expectations, the broker notes that the New Acland operation is ramping down after failing to get its expansion approval. In addition to this, the broker has concerns over potential legal issues relating to the latter mine and the outlook for thermal coal. The New Hope share price last traded at $1.18.

Oil Search Ltd (ASX: OSH)

Analysts at Credit Suisse have downgraded this energy producer’s shares to an underperform rating with a $3.10 price target. The broker made the move after Oil Search released its strategy update. It notes that this update revealed higher capital expenditure at the PNG LNG operation. In addition to this, it has been disappointed with the slow progress being made with the Alaska sell-down. The Oil Search share price was changing hands for $3.54 on Friday.

More reading

• ASX 200 ends flat on Friday
• Why the Oil Search (ASX:OSH) share price is the worst performer today
• Why Kogan, Oil Search, Orica, & Soul Pattinson shares are dropping lower
• What would it take for the ASX 200 to hit 7,000 again?
• ASX 200 up 0.1%: CBA’s APRA update, Mesoblast rockets, Oil Search sinks

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. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. 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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