The S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) is on course to bounce back strongly from yesterday's decline. In afternoon trade the benchmark index is up a solid 0.65% to 5,855.4 points.
Four shares that have failed to follow the market higher today are listed below. Here's why they are sinking lower:
The Altura Mining Ltd (ASX: AJM) share price is down over 4% to 18.2 cents. This morning the lithium miner was the subject of a bearish broker note out of the Macquarie equities desk. Its analysts have retained their underperform rating and cut the price target on its shares to 19 cents. The broker has concerns that a capital raising may be necessary due to the slower than expected ramp up of its Altura operation in Western Australia and its shrinking cash balance.
The Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) share price is down 3.5% to $10.34. Most of Australia's leading tech shares have dropped into the red today after the Nasdaq sank lower overnight. Appen's shares have now shed 22% of their value since this time last month. While I think they are very attractive at this level, I don't believe the volatility has ended yet.
The Ausdrill Limited (ASX: ASL) share price is down a further 3.5% to $1.40. The diversified mining services company's shares have fallen heavily this month following the completion of its acquisition of leading underground hard-rock mining contractor, Barminco. This is despite management also reiterating its FY 2019 earnings growth guidance of between 20% and 30%.
The Australian Mines Limited (ASX: AUZ) share price is down 7.5% to 4.9 cents. The cobalt, nickel, and scandium miner's shares have been on fire lately after the announcement of its second major scandium research partnership and improving investor sentiment amongst battery materials shares. I suspect that today's decline is a case of profit taking from day traders after its share price rally ran out of steam.
