Founded in 1993 by brothers Tom and David Gardner, The Motley Fool helps millions of people attain financial freedom through our website, podcasts, books, newspaper column, radio show, and premium investing services.
Author bio
Laura Stewart is a Finance Editor at The Motley Fool, where she covers Australian and international equity markets. She joined the company in 2022, following a career transition from legal advisory work in Southeast Asia into the investment industry.
Prior to her current editorial role, Laura spent three years as an Equity Analyst and Writer, producing investment research across the ASX, NYSE, and NASDAQ. Her coverage included small-cap growth companies, thematic investment ideas, and high-quality U.S.-listed businesses.
Laura holds a Master of Applied Finance and brings additional expertise in accounting, taxation, and estate and wealth planning from her postgraduate studies. She also has a background in law and communications, which supports her analytical and reporting work in financial markets.
Outside of work, she enjoys spending time in the Adelaide Hills with her flock of sheep.
Education
Laura holds a Bachelor of Laws, a Bachelor of Communication (Journalism), and a Bachelor of Commerce with majors in Accounting and Corporate Finance. In 2025, she completed a Master of Applied Finance at the University of Adelaide, receiving postgraduate awards in Accounting Concepts & Methods, Ethical Principles in Accounting & Finance, Real Estate Valuation & Investment, and Tax, Estate & Wealth Planning.
Social media
LinkedInFYI – I am taking a break from social media at the moment, so this account isn’t active at the moment, but I will let you know when I rejoin.
Favorite investment quote
"Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it... he who doesn't... pays it."
— Albert Einstein
Published
It's been a rocky month for the Australian data centre sector.
Over the past couple of weeks, two ASX-listed stocks have grabbed investors' attention.
In a matter of weeks, Maas Group Ltd (ASX: MGH) went from being a relatively unknown small-cap industrials stock to dominating financial news headlines. As a major investor in Firmus Technologies, Maas' share price rode the wave surrounding Firmus' proposed IPO before spectacularly crashing when it failed to list.
Shortly after, it was NextDC Ltd (ASX: NXT)'s turn to command the spotlight. Unlike Maas Group, NextDC was already a widely recognisable stock. It had long been seen as one of the few ways to gain exposure to artificial intelligence on the ASX, and is consistently assigned a buy rating from many experts.
In fact, up until last week, every analyst covering the company had a buy rating on NextDC shares, with an average price target of $20.54.
However, that narrative came crashing down to earth when the ASX-listed data centre operator released an earnings downgrade late last week, sending its share price down 42% in a single session.
Image source: Getty Images
Buying the dip: Ingrained behaviour
Buying the dip has become firmly ingrained behaviour among Australian retail investors.
For S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) investors, this strategy has generally worked out very well in recent times.
Since 2009, the index has been on an upward trajectory.
The ASX's steep decline during COVID gave many retail investors the opportunity to buy cheap shares for the first time and make a significant profit.
According to ASIC, approximately one in five Australian investors began their market journey during the pandemic era. With the ASX rallying strongly in 2021, their first experience buying the dip on ASX shares was generally very positive.
This behaviour has continued in more recent downturns. When the ASX fell in March 2026, a record number of Australian investors added to their portfolios, according to the Australian Financial Review.
However, while the ASX 200 has endured upward momentum over the past 15 years, this has not applied to all individual shares.
Rather, certain individual stocks have not been so fortunate.
For example, after peaking at more than $160 in 2021, Domino's Pizza Enterprises (ASX: DMP) remains down more than 80%. Similarly, Magellan Financial Group (ASX: MFG) and Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) remain down more than 80% from their peaks.
Safe to say, buying the dip does not always work out.
So, what about Maas Group and NextDC? Will they bounce back and double your money, or keep deteriorating?
Here's a few things to consider before you jump in and buy shares.
Znnf Tebhc
Znnf Tebhc funerf unir raqherq n erprag ebyyre pbnfgre.&aofc;
Znnf Tebhc bjaf n 3.2% fgnxr va Svezhf naq unf $1.1 ovyyvba va pbagenpgf sbe ryrpgevpny ratvarrevat jbex erdhverq sbe Svezhf' cynaarq qngn prager argjbex npebff Nhfgenyvn.
Nf ercbegrq ol gur Nhfgenyvna Svanapvny Erivrj, FT Uvfpbpx cbegsbyvb znantre Cuvyyvc Yv cebivqrq gur sbyybjvat nanylfvf ba jurgure Znff' fgnghf nf n 'purnc' fgbpx znqr vg n ohl pnaqvqngr:
Purnc vfa'g n gurfvf ba vgf bja…Gur ovt dhrfgvba vf jurer gur arkg yrt bs beqref pbzrf sebz, naq gung qrcraqf ba Svezhf shaqvat vgf cvcryvar. Hagvy jr trg gubfr nafjref, jr'er abg ohlref.
Va bgure jbeqf, gur evfxf pheeragyl bhgjrvtu gur cbgragvny orarsvgf nppbeqvat gb frireny rkcregf.
ArkgQP
Gura vg jnf ArkgQP'f ghea gb raqher n fgrrc qrpyvar.
Nf na rfgnoyvfurq qngn prager cynlre, ArkgQP unf ybat orra n cbchyne pubvpr sbe Nhfgenyvna vairfgbef frrxvat rkcbfher gb NV ba gur ybpny rkpunatr. Onfrq ba guvf cbfvgvbavat, znal ergnvy vairfgbef znl ivrj ArkgQP funerf nf n 'dhnyvgl fgbpx ba fnyr' sbyybjvat vgf funec snyy.
Ubjrire, orsber whzcvat va, gurer ner n srj erq syntf gb pbafvqre.
