In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record another decent gain. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 0.6% to 7,465.8 points.
Four ASX shares that are rising more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are climbing:
4DMedical Ltd (ASX: 4DX)
The 4DMedical share price is up 4% to 64.5 cents. This morning, the respiratory imaging technology company announced a commercial agreement with leading global healthcare company, Koninklijke Philips N.V. (NYSE: PHG). The two parties will establish a strategic collaboration to advance solutions to evaluate Veterans with deployment-related respiratory disease (DRRD), interstitial lung disease (ILD), and other respiratory illnesses in North America.
A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M)
The A2 Milk share price is up 4% to $4.50. This appears to have been driven by a positive broker note out of Citi this morning. Its analysts are feeling positive about the infant formula company's upcoming half-year results. So much so, it sees upside risk to sales expectations. Citi has a buy rating and $4.81 price target on its shares.
QBE Insurance Group Ltd (ASX: QBE)
The QBE share price is up 2% to $15.60. This morning, Goldman Sachs retained its buy rating and $18.52 price target on this insurance giant's shares. The broker highlights that industry peer Travelers Companies Inc (NYSE: TRV) smashed expectations during the fourth quarter. It believes this bodes well for QBE's performance during the quarter.
Zip Co Ltd (ASX: ZIP)
The Zip share price is up 13% to 71.7 cents. Investors have been buying this buy now pay later provider's shares after it delivered a strong quarterly update. Zip reported an 8.5% lift in transaction value over the prior corresponding period to $2.8 billion. And thanks to an improvement in its revenue margin to 8.2%, Zip's revenue was up 26.1% to $225.6 million for the quarter. Management also revealed that first half group cash EBTDA is expected to be between $29 million and $33 million.
