In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a small decline. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down slightly to 7,727.5 points.
Four ASX shares that are falling more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are dropping:
Appen Ltd (ASX: APX)
The Appen share price is down 20% to 78 cents. Investors have been hitting the sell button today after the artificial intelligence data services company revealed that its takeover talks are over. Its suitor, Innodata Inc (NASDAQ: INOD), appears upset that news of its offer was leaked to the investment community. It told Appen that it was withdrawing the indicative proposal on the basis that it was intended to remain confidential.
Aussie Broadband Ltd (ASX: ABB)
The Aussie Broadband share price is down 17% to $3.58. This has been driven by news that its white label agreement with Origin Energy Ltd (ASX: ORG) has been terminated. Aussie Broadband revealed that the terms that Origin was seeking were not workable and wouldn't have delivered value for shareholders.
Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO)
The Core Lithium share price is down 4% to 19.2 cents. Investors have been selling the lithium miner's shares since the release of its half-year results. Core Lithium reported revenue of $134.8 million and a loss after tax of $167.6 million. In response to the result, Citi has reaffirmed its sell rating with a reduced price target of just 11 cents.
Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC)
The Westpac share price is down 3% to $26.57. This appears to have been driven by a broker note out of Macquarie this morning. Its analysts have called time on the banking sector rally and put the equivalent of sell ratings on all of the big four banks. Westpac is now rated as underperform with a $26.00 price target.
