At lunch on Friday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to finish the week on a very positive note. The benchmark index is currently up 0.9% to 5,989.5 points.
Here's what has been happening on the market today:
Big four banks back on form.
The big four banks are back on form and are helping drive the ASX 200 higher. All four banks are pushing higher today, but the Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price is the best performer with a 1.5% gain. Incidentally, earlier this week Citi put a buy rating and $26.00 price target on the bank's shares. This could be lending some support to the buy side.
Orora goes ex-dividend.
The Orora Ltd (ASX: ORA) share price has failed to follow the market higher and crashed 16% lower today. The majority of this decline is due to the packaging company's shares trading ex-dividend this morning for its massive special dividend. Eligible shareholders can look forward to receiving the 37.3 cents per share dividend in their bank accounts in 10 days on 29 June 2020. This was the equivalent of a 15% yield based on its last close price.
Appen hits record high.
A number of shares have been hitting record highs this week. One that has achieved this feat on Friday has been the Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) share price. This morning the artificial intelligence company's shares rose over 3% to $33.49. This latest gain means that Appen's shares are now up over 50% since the start of the year. Earlier this week analysts at Macquarie initiated coverage on Appen with an outperform rating and $38.00 price target.
Best and worst ASX 200 shares.
The best performer on the ASX 200 on Friday has been the Estia Health Ltd (ASX: EHE) share price with an 8.5% gain. This is despite there being no news out of the aged care operator. The worst performer by some distance today has been the Orora share price with its 16% decline. This was triggered by its shares going ex-dividend this morning.
