The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on track to record a small gain on Wednesday. In afternoon trade, the benchmark index is up 0.2% to 8,629.7 points.
Four ASX shares that are rising more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are climbing:
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Electro Optic Systems Holdings Ltd (ASX: EOS)
The EOS share price is up 7% to $9.52. Investors have been buying this defence and space company's shares after a major sell-off on Tuesday. That sell-off was triggered by news that the company's CEO, Dr Andreas Schwer, was given approval to sell 2.5 million EOS shares on-market following the exercise of options that were granted under a long-term incentive plan. Some investors may believe the selling was an overreaction, especially after its CEO committed to retain a shareholding well above the minimum levels required under its recently announced shareholding policy.
Humm Group Ltd (ASX: HUM)
The Humm share price is up 5.5% to 69.2 cents. This is despite the financial services company revealing that the Takeovers Panel made a declaration of unacceptable circumstances. It said: "[T]he Panel considered that the following statements in Humm's 17 December 2025 announcement of the conditional, non-binding indicative offer from Credit Corp Group Limited (Credit Corp) to acquire control of Humm (Credit Corp Proposal) were misleading and contrary to an efficient, competitive and informed market." The Panel advised that it is still considering whether it should make final orders.
New Hope Corporation Ltd (ASX: NHC)
The New Hope share price is up 6% to $5.27. This may have been driven by a broker note out of Bell Potter this morning. In response to its half-year results, Bell Potter has upgraded the coal miner's shares to a hold rating with a $4.50 price target. It said: "We upgrade to a Hold recommendation and apply a 5% premium to our sum of the parts valuation with energy security concerns exacerbated by recent geopolitical issues. NHC's low-cost operations will continue to underpin margins through the coal price cycle, funding capital expenditure commitments and supporting shareholder returns."
Sims Ltd (ASX: SGM)
The Sims share price is up 8% to $20.37. This morning, this global leader in metal recycling and the provision of circular solutions for technology released a trading update. Sims revealed that it expects FY 2026 underlying EBIT to be in the range of $350 million to $400 million. This will be at least double the underlying EBIT of $174.9 million that the company reported in FY 2025.
