Why Austal, Boss Energy, Harvey Norman, and NextDC shares are charging higher today

These shares are ending the week with a bang. But why?

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In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to end the week with a small decline. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down slightly to 8,973.9 points.

Four ASX shares that are not letting that hold them back are listed below. Here's why they are rising:

Austal Ltd (ASX: ASB)

The Austal share price is up 15% to $7.78. This follows the release of the shipbuilder's FY 2025 results. Austal posted a 24% increase in revenue to $1,823.3 million and a 503% jump in net profit after tax to $89.7 million. Austal's CEO, Patrick Gregg, said: "Austal delivered a significantly improved financial result in FY2025 in what has been a transformational year for the company. We have seen important inflection points on earnings performance, the balance sheet repositioned for a major expansion in manufacturing capacity, and further growth potential in our near record order book following the recent approval of Austal as Australia's Strategic Shipbuilder."

Boss Energy Ltd (ASX: BOE)

The Boss Energy share price is up 7% to $1.94. This morning, this uranium producer released its full year results and revealed positive net cash from operating activities of $17.4 million. This saw the company end the period with $224.3 million of cash and liquid assets and zero debt. The company's managing director, Duncan Craib, said: "Boss is in a very strong financial position with $224.3 million in cash and liquid assets and no debt. The Company generated positive free cashflow of $17.4m from the first year of production at Honeymoon. This is an outstanding result which reflects Boss' potential to grow cash as we deliver on our increased production guidance for FY26."

Harvey Norman Holdings Ltd (ASX: HVN)

The Harvey Norman share price is up 12% to $6.94. The catalyst for this has been the release of the retail giant's FY 2025 results. Harvey Norman posted a profit before tax of $753.1 million. This is up $211.4 million or 39% on the prior corresponding period. Harvey Norman chair, Gerry Harvey, said: "The FY25 result is a testament to the strength of our diversified business model and the disciplined execution of our long-term strategy. We've delivered solid growth across all core segments, driven by strong franchisee performance, the resilience of our property portfolio, our measured global expansion, and continued investment in digital transformation and in-store innovation."

Nextdc Ltd (ASX: NXT)

The Nextdc share price is up 17% to $16.50. Investors have been buying the data centre operator's shares after it released its FY 2025 results. It reported a 14% increase in net revenue to $350.2 million, which was a ahead of its guidance range of $340 million to $350 million. Underlying EBITDA was up 6% to $216.7 million, which was at the upper end of its guidance range of $210 million to $220 million. And looking ahead, NextDC is guiding to underlying EBITDA growth of approximately 6% to 11% in FY 2026.

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Nextdc. The Motley Fool Australia's parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Austal. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Harvey Norman. 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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