Four ASX shares that are falling more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are dropping:

29Metals Ltd (ASX: 29M)

The 29Metals share price is down 32% to 25.2 cents. Investors have been selling this copper producer's shares following the release of an update on its progress to reestablish mining at the Xantho Extended orebody at the Golden Grove operation in Western Australia. It advised that based on a new assessment, additional works to further reduce the risk of future potential production interruptions will be needed prior to recommencement of mining. And while there is no change to its copper production guidance for FY 2026, it has downgraded its guidance for zinc, gold, and silver materially.

DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL)

The DGL Group share price is down 25% to 40 cents. This has been driven by the release of the chemicals logistics and services supplier's half-year update. DGL Group reported a 5.8% decline in sales revenue to $225 million, a 5% decline in underlying EBITDA to $24.7 million, and a statutory loss after tax of $12.8 million. It notes that its revenue was impacted by ongoing scarcity in used lead acid batteries due to illegal exports.

Fletcher Building Ltd (ASX: FBU)

The Fletcher Building share price is down 1% to $2.44. This morning, the building products company released a quarterly sales update and revealed improvements in volumes. Fletcher Building's CEO, Andrew Reding, said: "Quarterly volumes for the March quarter continued to show early signs of improvement across the portfolio, with the important caveat that this quarter largely preceded the current geopolitical escalation." One negative was the company warning that the "overall impact of the Middle East crisis on the Group's financial performance, including for the FY26 year, cannot be ascertained with certainty at this time."

Newmont Corporation (ASX: NEM)

The Newmont share price is down 5% to $156.82. This is despite there being no news out of the gold miner today. However, it is worth noting that most ASX gold stocks are under pressure today. This has led to S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Gold index falling 2.15% this afternoon.

The post Why 29Metals, DGL, Fletcher Building, and Newmont shares are falling today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

In this article, we look at some recent transactions involving company insiders.

All of these stocks have fallen in value substantially in 2024.

Some of these buy-ups are significant in size, with the largest new investment worth $1.765 million.

Are these 5 ASX shares going cheap?

Could all these buy-ups among company insiders indicate that these ASX shares are now going cheap?

Ultimately, this is open to interpretation.

But it's almost always a good sign when company directors choose to invest more of their own money into the businesses they run.

Here are the details.

DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL)

DGL Group is a materials sector business. It manufactures, transports, stores, and manages the processing of chemicals and hazardous waste. 

DGL was founded by CEO and executive director Simon Henry, who is also the largest shareholder.

The ASX materials share closed on Thursday for 61 cents, down 1.6%. It has fallen 28.2% in the year to date and has a 52-week high of $1.10.

Judging by a series of trades between October and November totalling $1.765 million in new investment, perhaps Henry feels the shares in his ASX company are going cheap.

Henry conducted three large trades between October and December.

Firstly, Henry purchased 276,000 shares on-market between 22 November and 27 November. The deal cost him $155,325.69, equating to an average share price of 56.27 cents.

He then made a much bigger purchase, snapping up 1,646,461 shares worth $969,142.51 on-market between 28 November and 3 December. This averages out to 58.86 cents per share.

These purchases followed another buy-up in October.

Henry bought 1,063,000 shares on-market between 24 October and 28 October. The outlay was $641,237.54, which translates to an average share price of just over 60 cents.

According to the ASX, DGL Group has 285,225,261 shares on issue. Henry owns 154,333,690 of them, which gives him a 54% stake in the company.

Tabcorp Holdings Ltd (ASX: TAH)

The Tabcorp share price was trading at 56.5 cents, down 0.88% at the close on Thursday and down 31.9% in the year to date.

Brett Chenoweth is the non-executive chair at the gaming and lottery services company.

Chenoweth bought 178,571 Tabcorp shares on-market on 6 December. He purchased the stock through his superannuation fund and paid 56 cents per share.

The $100,000 purchase raised his personal holdings in Tabcorp shares by 41%.

Worley Ltd (ASX: WOR)

Worley is a global supplier of engineering and construction management services, mainly for the energy, chemicals, and mining industries.

The ASX industrial share closed at $13.22, down 0.97% yesterday and down 24.2% in the year to date.

Non-executive director Joseph Chafic Geagea purchased 4,000 Worley shares for a bit over $53,000 on 4 December.

This increased his personal holdings by 40%.

Geagea paid $13.345 per share in the on-market trade.

Martin Parkinson AC also bought more Worley stock in his first personal trade in more than two years.

Parkinson is also a non-executive director at Worley.

He bought 505 shares on-market at an average price of $13.800139.

He now holds 17,505 shares in the company.

Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR)

This ASX lithium share was up 1.6% to 61 cents yesterday and has fallen 63.9% in the year to date.

Company insider Adrienne Parker more than doubled her stake in the lithium producer by purchasing 15,000 Liontown shares on-market on 5 December for $10,110.

Fellow director Shane McLeay bought 100,000 Liontowns shares on-market on 3 December. The outlay was $72,000, which equates to an average share price of 72 cents.

The purchase increased his personal holdings in Liontown by 55%.

Sonic Healthcare Ltd (ASX: SHL)

Sonic Healthcare is a global company specialising in pathology, laboratory services, and radiology.

This ASX healthcare share was trading for $28.10, down 0.64% at yesterday's close and down 12.7% in the year to date.

Three company directors recently made new investments in the company.

Kate Spargo purchased 1,500 Sonic Healthcare shares on-market on 10 December for $28.52 per share.

Mark Compton bought 1,000 shares on-market on the same day for $28.46 per share.

Suzanne Crowe bought 348 shares on-market on 9 December for $28.71 per share.

The post 5 beaten-up ASX shares being bought by insiders appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

DGL stock climbed as high as $1.10 back in February, but it quickly nosedived after the company released underwhelming financial results for the first half of FY24. However, I think investors unfairly punished DGL, and its shares could be due for a rebound as market conditions improve.

If I'm right, it means this underappreciated ASX penny stock is currently going for a steal.

What does DGL do?

DGL is an industrial chemicals company operating in Australia and New Zealand. It has three core divisions: manufacturing, logistics, and environmental.

Manufacturing produces chemicals and industrial products, mainly for customers in the mining, automotive and agricultural sectors.

Logistics ensures the safe transport, storage and delivery of hazardous materials like toxic and corrosive chemicals. DGL serves clients across a diverse range of industries – think any company that needs chemicals at any point in its supply chain, from airlines and miners to cosmetics and pharmaceutical companies (and even pet food producers!).

Finally, the environmental division helps clients safely dispose of chemical and industrial waste. DGL works with environmental regulators to develop sustainable, environmentally friendly waste management solutions.

What caused the massive drop in the DGL share price?

DGL shares really fell off a cliff back in February after the company released its first-half FY24 results (for the six months ended 31 December 2023). Sales revenues were roughly on par with first-half FY23, but significantly higher expenses caused net profit to drop a staggering 43% to $5.9 million.

Almost 41% of the company's market cap was wiped out on the day of its results, and DGL shares have never recovered. In fact, the DGL stock price has only slid lower in the intervening months, with a stronger financial performance in the second half of FY24 doing little to win back investors.

Why DGL shares could be a bargain right now

I think FY25 will be a return to form for DGL, which could also signal a swift rebound in its share price. This means that lucky investors who snap up DGL shares at current prices could be laughing all the way to the bank this time next year.

To start with, expenses should be less of a concern for DGL in FY25.

Due to wage inflation and higher headcount, 'people costs' were a significant contributor to DGL's expense uplift in FY24.

However, both these impacts might only be transitory.

As inflation cools and labour markets soften, the negative impacts from wage uplifts should start to ease.

The higher headcount was driven by a series of acquisitions DGL has made over the past few years. The company has been on something of a buying spree recently – in FY23, it snapped up 11 companies and then added a further five to its stable in FY24.

These acquisitions added $90 million to DGL's FY24 revenues, but they also added significant people and property costs. However, these should decline as DGL generates efficiencies by fully integrating these businesses into its operating model.

Not only should cost pressures decline, but sales volumes should increase, too.

In the trading update that accompanied its FY24 financial results, DGL said it was seeing higher sales of pesticides (a significant part of its manufacturing division) as agricultural growing conditions improved in Australia.

The combined effect of higher revenues and lower costs is higher profits – and possibly a higher share price.

Should you invest in DGL?

As with any penny stock, an investment in DGL comes with heightened risks. Its share price is likely to be much more volatile than a mature blue chip and will also be much more sensitive to a bad piece of market news, which can compound your losses in a bear market.

And while I might be feeling bullish about DGL, the future remains very uncertain.

Unfortunately, global geopolitical tensions show no signs of abating, and DGL relies on international supply chains for much of its business.

If you're thinking about investing in DGL, make sure to fully consider all the potential risks involved – and don't invest more than you can afford to lose.

The post Why I think this ASX penny stock is a bargain at its 52-week low appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Four ASX shares that are falling more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are dropping:

Brainchip Holdings Ltd (ASX: BRN)

The Brainchip share price is down 26% to 36 cents. Investors have been selling the semiconductor company's shares after it released its FY 2023 results. They appear disappointed that Brainchip continues to generate almost no revenue and burn through cash like kindling. Brainchip reported revenue of US$232,000 and a loss after tax of US$28.9 million.

DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL)

The DGL share price is down 42% to 60 cents. This follows the release of the industrial solutions company's half-year results. DGL reported a 3% increase in revenue to $217 million but a 43% reduction in statutory net profit after tax to $5.9 million. Unreliable weather forecasts and supply chain disruptions impacted first-half results.

Weebit Nano Ltd (ASX: WBT)

The Weebit Nano share price is down 10% to $4.01. This has been driven by the release of the semiconductor company's half-year results. The heavily shorted company reported a grand total of $153,000 in revenue for the six months with a loss of $25.2 million. Weebit Nano currently has a market capitalisation of $750 million.

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: ZIP)

The Zip share price is down 9.5% to 84.5 cents. This is despite the buy now pay later provider delivering a strong half-year result this morning. Zip reported a 28.9% increase in revenue to $430 million and group cash EBTDA of $30.8 million. The latter is up from negative $33.2 million a year earlier. It appears that investors were pricing in even stronger growth.

The post Why Brainchip, DGL, Weebit Nano, and Zip shares are dropping today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Among the ASX All Ords stocks reporting earnings results today is chemicals business DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL), whose share price dived 45.6% to a new 52-week low of 56 cents this morning.

This followed news of a 43% nosedive in profit in 1H FY24.

The DGL share price is currently 60 cents, down 41.75%.

Let's look at DGL's report as well as the earnings performances of two other ASX All Ords stocks today.

ASX All Ords materials stock DGL plummets 46%

DGL reported revenue of $217 million in 1H FY24, in line with 1H FY23, along with a 3% increase in underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) to $30.4 million.

However, its statutory net profit after tax (NPAT) came in at $5.9 million, representing a 43% dive.

DGL Founder and CEO Simon Henry said unreliable weather forecasts and supply chain disruptions impacted first-half results.

Henry said:

We have taken corrective actions, and these disruptions are normalising, giving us confidence in the outlook.

DGL expects a stronger second-half performance, in line with typical annual seasonal trends.

The company said it has an intensified focus on managing costs and maximising efficiencies.

DGL is continuing to invest in growing its network and assets and improving its systems and warned this would lead to lower full-year net profit due to higher finance and depreciation costs.

However, the underlying FY24 EBITDA for the ASX All Ords stock "should be broadly in line with FY23".

The company reported an underlying operating cash flow conversion of 93%. Its net assets are worth $339.2 million, up 2% since 30 June 2023, and its net debt was $117.2 million as of 31 December 2023.

No interim dividend for City Chic shareholders

The City Chic Collective Ltd (ASX: CCX) share price tumbled 12.5% to 49 cents after the ASX All Ords plus-size clothing retailer reported sales revenue of $105.8 million in 1H FY24, down 29% on 1H FY23.

City Chic also reported an underlying EBITDA loss of $7.5 million.

The company said it expects to return to profitable trading in 2H FY24.

Phil Ryan, CEO and Managing Director, said the company had been focusing on rightsizing its cost base,
optimising its inventory position, and introducing new products to drive demand.

He said:

I am pleased to report that the revitalisation of our product assortment is delivering improving margin and sellthrough rates, particularly in stores.

Our cost reduction measures will deliver approximately $25m in annualised savings and mitigation, exceeding our initial targets.

While cost of living pressures are impacting transaction volumes, the feedback and sell-through on our new ranges has been encouraging and our new product is expected to support our return to profitable trading.

The ASX All Ords company will not pay an interim dividend "in light of continued market uncertainty and the Group's capital management priorities".

Alumina reports on a "difficult year"

The Alumina Ltd (ASX: AWC) share price is down 7.6% to $1.01 after the company released its full-year FY23 results.

Alumina owns 40% of Alcoa World Alumina and Chemicals (AWAC), which form part of Alcoa Corp's bauxite and alumina business segments.

Alumina reported a net loss after tax of US$150 million in FY23 compared to a US$104 million profit in FY22.

This follows AWAC reporting an EBITDA of US$165 million for FY23 compared to US$817 million in FY22.

AWAC's alumina production fell to 10.3Mt, down from 11.8Mt in FY22. The realised alumina price for FY23 was US$352 per tonne, with the cash cost of production very close to it at US$308 per tonne.

Once again, Alumina shares will not pay a dividend to shareholders. The ASX All Ords materials share hasn't paid a dividend since September 2022.

The company said 2023 was a "difficult year" due to lower production and higher costs.

However, progress on several fronts has been made in recent months, including confirmation of long-awaited mine plan approvals in Western Australia (WA).

AWAC has also chosen to fully curtail operations at the Kwinana refinery in WA and partially curtail operations at its San Ciprian refinery in Spain.

Alumina said:

Together with the ongoing focus on profitability improvement across all aspects of the portfolio, these initiatives provide AWAC with a strong foundation to create a significantly higher quality refinery portfolio.

As we reported yesterday, Alcoa has made a takeover bid for its minority joint venture partner. The Alumina board is currently recommending the proposal to shareholders.

The post Guess which ASX All Ords stock just crashed 46% on half-year earnings appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

One area of the ASX that the broker has been looking at is the small cap space.

The good news for investors that dabble with the small side of town is that its analysts believe that the tide is turning for small cap ASX shares, making now a great time to make some investments.

The broker commented:

Small-caps continue to look constructive. Small-caps have historically bounced hardest upon confirmation of a flattening-out in the rates cycle. Several ingredients remain in place supporting a rebound in this space (rates, trading/fundamentals, sentiment/positioning). We think the tide is turning for small-caps, and now is an opportune time to build exposure to forgotten small-caps.

Which small cap ASX shares?

Morgans has named a total of seven forgotten small cap ASX shares that it likes for earnings season. They are as follows:

Clinuvel Pharmaceuticals Limited (ASX: CUV)

Morgans has an add rating and $22.00 price target on this biopharmaceutical company's shares.

Credit Corp Group Limited (ASX: CCP)

The broker has an add rating and $18.75 price target on this debt collector's shares.

DGL Group (ASX: DGL)

This industrial solutions company's shares have an add rating and $1.05 price target on them.

Helloworld Travel Ltd (ASX: HLO)

Its analysts have an add rating and $4.26 price target on this travel company's shares.

IPH Ltd (ASX: IPH)

This intellectual property services company's shares have an add rating and $8.15 price target on them.

Veem Ltd (ASX: VEE)

Veem is a designer and manufacturer of disruptive, high-technology marine propulsion and stabilisation systems for the global luxury motor yacht, fast ferry, commercial workboat, and defence industries. Morgans' last rating on the company was an add rating and $1.00 price target.

Vulcan Steel Ltd (ASX: VSL)

Morgans has an add rating and $9.00 price target on this steel manufacturer's shares.

The post Morgans names 7 small-cap ASX shares to buy for earnings season appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

One ASX company may have reported bumper results while another could have disappointed the market.

But, counterintuitively, they might both be considered must-buys.

Here is precisely such a situation with two ASX small-cap stocks that the team at Morgans rated as buys this week:

'A high quality result'

Superloop Ltd (ASX: SLC) is the easy one.

On Tuesday, the internet service provider reported excellent performance for the 2023 financial year, so it's a no-brainer for Morgans.

Investors need to get on it.

"Superloop's result was a beat on guidance from earlier in the year and saw the company generate positive free cash flow and NPATA in the 2H23," senior analyst Nick Harris said on the Morgans blog.

"It was a high quality result with Underlying EBITDA up 82% YoY on a reported basis and up 46% YoY on an organic basis. Cash flow conversion was strong at 116% conversion."

Superloop is executing its sales and marketing with aplomb, and Harris sees no reason why this can't continue into 2024.

"Annualising 2H23 EBITDA sees SLC start FY24 year with $50 million of EBITDA and leaves plenty of upside vs consensus."

Other professionals agree with Harris and the Morgans team.

According to CMC Markets, the $340 million company is rated a buy by all three analysts that cover it.

That's enough punishment

Industrial chemicals maker DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL) is the more nuanced buy recommendation.

Monday's annual results were certainly down on last year, bringing the stock price down 6.25% on the day.

"DGL's FY23 result (EBITDA: $64.1 million) was within the guidance range, whilst reflecting a slight decline on the pcp — arguably a reflection of the unprecedented earnings achieved during FY22, which management flagged as delivering circa $15 million of extra profit in FY22," analyst Andrew Tang said on the Morgans blog.

However, the Morgans team is still bullish on its thesis, which relies on "the aggregation of sub-scale chemical formulation businesses (and ancillary services), to deliver an end-to-end solution for the manufacturing, and recycling of specialty chemicals".

Investors have alarmingly abandoned the stock in 2023, painfully sending the share price 40.75% year to date.

If you go back to April last year, it's a 79% fall from grace.

That sell-off is now overdone, reckons Tang.

"Whilst acknowledging that management missteps leave investors approaching the company with trepidation, we believe at the current share price there is sufficient margin of safety."

The post 79% drop in 16 months: 2 small-cap ASX shares now priced right to buy appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Four ASX shares that have failed to follow the market higher today are listed below. Here's why they are falling:

DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL)

The DGL share price has continued its slide and is down a further 7% to 77.5 cents. This diversified industrial company's shares have now lost a third of their value since it downgraded its earnings guidance for FY 2023. Cost pressures means DGL now expects EBITDA of $64 million to $66 million in FY 2023. This compares to its previous guidance of $71.5 million to $73.5 million.

Iluka Resources Limited (ASX: ILU)

The Iluka Resources share price is down almost 4% to $11.51. This appears to have been driven by a broker note out of UBS. Its analysts have downgraded the mineral sands company's shares to a sell rating with a reduced price target of $10.90. Its analysts suspect that mineral sands prices could weaken in the near term and weigh on its earnings.

Lake Resources N.L. (ASX: LKE)

The Lake Resources share price is down 17% to 39.5 cents. Investors have been hitting the sell button after the lithium developer released an update on its production plans. Instead of delivering 50,000tpa of lithium carbonate production by 2024, it now expects 25,000tpa by 2027. The company is also guiding to significantly higher costs than previously planned.

Predictive Discovery Ltd (ASX: PDI)

The Predictive Discovery share price is down 16% to 16 cents. This follows the release of the latest assay results from its ongoing drilling programs at NE Bankan, Bankan Creek, and nearby targets within the Bankan Gold Project in Guinea. Some investors may have been expecting stronger results.

The post Why DGL, Iluka, Lake Resources, and Predictive Discovery shares are falling appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Four ASX shares that have failed to follow the market higher today are listed below. Here's why they are falling:

Australian Ethical Investment Ltd (ASX: AEF)

The Australian Ethical share price is down 11% to $3.22. This means the fund manager's shares have given back almost all of yesterday's strong gains. Investors may believe that its business update wasn't as impressive as it first appeared after factoring in acquisitions.

Collins Foods Ltd (ASX: CKF)

The Collins Foods share price is down 3% to $7.70. This is despite there being no news out of the quick service restaurant operator today. However, with its results release coming later this month, some investors may be nervous following a poor update from one of its rivals this week.

DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL)

The DGL share price is down a further 12% to 84.5 cents. This diversified industrial company's shares have come under pressure this week after it downgraded its earnings guidance for FY 2023. Cost pressures means DGL now expects ETBIDA of $64 million to $66 million in FY 2023. This compares to its previous guidance of $71.5 million to $73.5 million.

Sigma Healthcare Ltd (ASX: SIG)

The Sigma Healthcare share price is down almost 3% to 83.2 cents. This morning, this pharmacy chain operator and supplier revealed that its CFO has resigned and will leave on 31 August. Nigel Simonsz is pursuing an external opportunity within a large private enterprise as group CFO and CEO of an international business unit.

The post Why Australian Ethical, Collins Foods, DGL, and Sigma shares are falling appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Four ASX shares that have failed to follow the market higher today are listed below. Here's why they are falling:

Appen Ltd (ASX: APX)

The Appen share price is down a further 9% to $2.57. This decline could have been driven by investors selling the shares they received in its recent entitlement offer. Those shares were issued at $1.85 per new share, which was a huge discount to recent levels.

DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL)

The DGL share price is down 15.5% to 98 cents. Investors have been selling this diversified industrial company's shares after it downgraded its earnings guidance for FY 2023. Cost pressures means DGL now expects ETBIDA of $64 million to $66 million in FY 2023. This compares to its previous guidance of $71.5 million to $73.5 million.

Lynas Rare Earths Ltd (ASX: LYC)

The Lynas share price is down 4% to $7.35. This appears to have been driven by a broker note out of UBS this morning. According to the note, the broker has downgraded this rare earths producer's shares to a neutral rating with a trimmed price target of $8.30. The broker believes NdPr prices will now be meaningfully softer than it was originally forecasting.

Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS)

The Pilbara Minerals share price is down over 4% to $4.67. This follows broad weakness in the lithium industry today after a poor night for peers on Wall Street. This may have been driven by news that Chile and the European Union are set to sign a memorandum of understanding to develop value-added lithium projects in the South American nation.

The post Why Appen, DGL, Lynas, and Pilbara Minerals shares are falling today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The All Ords is up 0.06% at the time of writing, having earlier posted gains of 0.5%, buoyed in part by the US Fed's overnight decision not to raise interest rates.

Running at the back of the pack today is diversified industrial company DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL).

At the time of writing, the DGL share price is down 15.95% at 98 cents per share.

Why is the ASX All Ords share tumbling today?

The ASX All Ords share is under heavy selling pressure after the company released a trading update and revised earnings guidance for the 2023 financial year (FY23).

DGL said it has achieved its forecast revenues to date and expects FY23 revenue of at least $450 million for the full year.

Of concern to All Ords investors today, the company also reported that increased costs – especially within its environmental division – have eroded margins. This led management to downgrade its full-year earnings guidance.

DGL revised earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for FY23 downwards from the previous $71.5 million to $73.5 million to the new estimate of $64 million to $66 million.

Commenting on the downgrade that's sending the ASX All Ords share tumbling today, DGL CEO Simon Henry said:

The management team has further intensified its focus on all controllable costs. Notwithstanding the challenges caused by these cost increases, the company continues to experience strong demand for its products and services.

On a positive front, the company noted that its cash conversion remained above guidance at close to 100%. Inventory levels have also normalised from the highs reached in FY22.

An all-time low for the DGL share price

This ASX All Ords share began trading on the ASX on 24 May 2021, following a successful initial public offering (IPO).

The IPO, underwritten by Bell Potter and Canaccord Genuity, was oversubscribed.

DGL raised $100 million by issuing 100 million new shares at $1.00 per share.

The ASX All Ords share had a good run for the next year, closing at $4.09 on 22 April 2022.

At the current 98 cents per share, DGL stock is now below its IPO level and trading at an all-time low.

The post Guess which ASX All Ords share just crashed 16% to an all-time low after an earnings downgrade? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Unlike a typical recap of the standout winners and losers, I wanted to do something a little different — maybe more valuable — than other reporting season post-mortems.

While it can be useful to know which companies smoked expectations and which left their shareholders bitterly disappointed, often those exceptional reports are met with similarly exceptional moves in the share price (either positive or negative).

I'm more interested in the ASX shares with solid numbers that were maybe underappreciated. In my eyes, these could be companies that the broader market is disregarding for reasons outside of the fundamentals. But, in the long run, those fundamentals become rather hard to ignore.

So, here are the companies that failed to attract the level of attention I believe would be commensurate with their results.

The ASX shares working hard when no one is watching

Netwealth Group Ltd (ASX: NWL)

Netwealth brings wealth management to the twenty-first century with its cloud-based software platform. As its management attests, it is the fastest-growing financial services platform with $11.9 billion of net fund inflows for the 12 months to September 2022.

In my opinion, the Netwealth team delivered on all key objectives in the first half. Funds under administration (FUA) and funds under management (FUM) grew by 12.2% and 10.4% respectively. In turn, the company was able to increase its total revenue by 18.9% to $102.8 million and deliver a statutory net profit after tax (NPAT) of $30.6 million — up 12.9%.

Netwealth is executing its mission to provide a better platform than the big wealth-managing incumbents, as demonstrated by the image above. The company continues to nibble away at the market share of competitors.

How did investors react to the release? The Netwealth share price finished 2.7% higher on 15 February… hardly a move to write home about. Although the ASX share trades on a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 56 times, I think there is a level of underappreciation for the extent of growth that could still lie ahead for Netwealth.

DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL)

The next company I believe the market could be sleeping on is chemicals manufacturer, transporter, storer, and processor, DGL Group. Shares in this ASX small-cap share finished flat after the company released its first-half results to the market on 28 February.

After a string of acquisitions during the half, DGL reported a 52% increase in sales revenue compared to the prior corresponding period. Impressively, the company notched up its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) by 35%.

I have a suspicion that the market may have written off DGL's growth as purely a byproduct of acquisitions. However, as noted in the presentation, 69% of EBITDA growth was organic. Morgans also highlighted that the result showed an ability to grow organically. The broker currently has a buy rating on the ASX share.

What I find enticing about this company, that I think others are overlooking, is the moat it is building through its geographic footprint. Its operations are widely spread across Australia and New Zealand through its network of warehouses (see here). Such a network is difficult to replicate without significant capital.

In my opinion, the expanded network could give DGL an edge in terms of beating competitors on price for transport and product (due to scale) and time for delivery fulfilment (due to proximity).

Supply Network Limited (ASX: SNL)

The last ASX share that I think the market snubbed upon the release of its results during the earnings season is Supply Network. This company sells after-market parts primarily for trucks and buses within Australia and New Zealand.

Simply put, Supply Network's results were extremely strong. Shares lifted a dismal 0.3% on the day of the company's reporting. The half-year filing left a bit to be desired in terms of commentary and added details.

However, the numbers speak to a period of continued demand for parts. In quantifiable terms, revenue increased by 23.6% to $119.2 million, while net profits surged 34.1% to $12.7 million. These figures add to a consistent growth trend over the past five years, as depicted below.

Furthermore, analysts at Ord Minnet think the outlook is still solid for Supply Network with the broker holding an accumulate rating on the ASX share.

Personally, I share a similar perspective. Cost pressures could linger for a year or two, nudging the average tenure of truck ownership higher. As a result, replacement parts could be in higher demand.

Aside from this, the company's balance sheet is in the strongest position its been in years, opening the door to additional growth avenues.

The post Underappreciated: 3 ASX shares I believe were the quiet achievers of earnings season appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Four ASX shares that are climbing more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are rising:

Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE)

The Allkem share price is up almost 3% to $12.59. This follows a positive response to the lithium miner's quarterly update from brokers. For example, Bell Potter has retained its buy rating with a $19.36 price target. It was pleased with the record performance of the company's Olaroz operation and notes that costs were lower than it was forecasting.

DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL)

The DGL share price is up 6% to $1.57. This morning, this diversified industrial company announced the acquisition of Nightingale Transport. Management believes the $18.2 million acquisition represents a strategic growth opportunity by expanding the company's national logistics reach and enhancing its offerings to key industries in Australia.

Nanosonics Ltd (ASX: NAN)

The Nanosonics share price is up 9% to $5.16. This follows the release of a trading update by the infection prevention company. Thanks to a strong first half, management has upgraded its FY 2023 revenue growth guidance to between 36% and 41% from 20% to 25%. It has, however, also lifted its operating costs growth guidance to 22% to 27% in FY 2023 instead of 15% to 18%.

Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO)

The Rio Tinto share price is up 3% to $125.44. This morning, Credit Suisse responded to Rio Tinto's quarterly update by retaining its outperform rating with a $140.00 price target. Rio Tinto is the broker's top pick among the giants due partly to the Oyu Tolgoi operation.

The post Why Allkem, DGL, Nanosonics, and Rio Tinto shares are pushing higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The Motley Fool chats with the best in the industry so that you can get an insight into how the professionals think. In this edition, 1851 Capital portfolio manager Martin Hickson analyses what he would do right now with four small-cap ASX shares.

Cut or keep?

The Motley Fool: Let's take a look at three ASX shares that have plunged this year, and see if you think they're a bargain to buy now or if you'd stay away like the plague.

First up is Frontier Digital Ventures Ltd (ASX: FDV).

Martin Hickson: FDV, share price down just over 50% so far this calendar year. What they do is they own a number of real estate portals through southeast Asia, Latin America, and Pakistan… They're basically the realestate.com of a lot of those emerging markets. They've got a number of portals in emerging markets.

The reason why the share price has been so weak is it's been caught up in that overall [slide of] technology stocks. We like it. We've been buying more recently. 

They've recently announced to the ASX that they plan to list both their Pakistan asset, which is Zameen, and their Latin American assets they plan to list on the NASDAQ. Our valuation for those two assets alone gives a valuation north of $1. Their shares are trading at 70 cents, and you've got those catalysts in terms of potentially listing or spinning out those assets and IPOing them separately, which should provide a strong readthrough for the overall valuation of Frontier Digital. 

Again, it's trading at a very cheap price, and with catalysts, it could potentially rerate the current share price.

MF: Let's get your thoughts on DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL), which has also roughly halved this year?

MH: It's gone from $4.50 to $1.50 over the last six months. 

Despite that strong share price fall, we're still not a buyer of DGL. We think that since listing, they've grown too quickly, they've made too many acquisitions too fast. From the outside, it's hard to understand how much integration has gone on with a lot of those acquisitions. 

If you look at their FY22 results, as well, there's a couple of big one-offs that drove their earnings. They were a big beneficiary of the higher AdBlue prices around Christmas time. They were also a big beneficiary of the lead price through FY22. We think some of those things won't repeat this financial year. 

The most recent result, they delivered a very poor cash flow outcome. There's been high staff turnover. They've been through three CFOs since listing 18 months ago. There's a few reasons there that's really keeping us on the sidelines at this point.

MF: The third one is familiar to a lot of people, Beacon Lighting Group Ltd (ASX: BLX), which is down about a third this year.

MH: Yeah. As the name suggests, they're a retail lighting company. The share price has been weaker around fears of a potential slowdown or a recession in Australia. That will obviously impact their retail lighting business. 

The reason why we like it is they've also got two other parts of the business, which we think can support their earnings in a potentially overall weaker consumer environment. 

They've got a trade business which represents around a quarter of the company's earnings, and that's growing very strongly. What they're doing there is they're selling lighting but also electrical products to electricians in that trade space, and they've got offers like free three-hour delivery for tradies. 

That's a point of difference, something that can take share in that trade space. They've also said that, in three years' time, they're targeting that trade business being half their earnings. If they can get to that outcome, from 25% today to 50% in three years, that will be a very strong tailwind for the overall earnings of the company. 

They've also got an international business where they're selling products internationally, particularly into the US, and again, that's growing quite strongly. They're taking share in the American market. Again, that will support the company's earnings in a potentially weaker consumer environment.

MF: Fantastic. Is that one you hold?

MH: We do. We hold Frontier Digital and Beacon.

The ASX share for a comfortable night's sleep

MF: If the market closed tomorrow for four years, which stock would you want to hold?

MH: It has to be something with defensive earnings, given the current volatility and uncertainty across the world, so something like an insurance broker, like PSC Insurance Group Ltd (ASX: PSI), that's very well-managed, high levels of insider ownership, and they're obviously benefiting from the higher insurance premium rates cycle that we're seeing. 

The cyberattacks that we've seen here in Australia in recent times [are] only going to be a further tailwind for insurance premiums, and PSC Insurance are likely to be a beneficiary of that. That's one that I'd be comfortable holding over that four-year period.

The post 3 small-cap ASX shares to add to your portfolio right now: fundie appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

It wasn't bad news across the board though, with four sector indices finishing in the red and seven glowing green.

The S&P/ASX Real Estate Index (ASX: XRE) was the biggest weight, falling 1.30%. The S&P/ASX Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ) saw the biggest gains, up 1.68%

Let's take a look at some of the ASX All Ords that defied the drop to post big gains.

DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL)

The DGL Group share price closed 16.67% higher to $1.72.

The specialist chemicals company held its annual general meeting today and announced the results this afternoon.

DGL confirmed it expects to report underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) in the range of $70 million to $72 million in FY23. This will be up from $65.6 million in FY22.

The guidance seems to have gone well with investors, who pushed the DGL share price up from the open.

Among the issues voted on and passed at the meeting included re-electing DGL chairman Peter Lowe and non-executive director Robert Mckinnon.

Lark Distilling Co Ltd (ASX: LRK)

The Lark Distilling share price was another winner on Tuesday, soaring 13.95% to $2.45.

Unlike DGL Group, there was no news from the ASX All Ords share today to make sense of the surge in its share price.

The last announcement the craft spirits company made was on 4 November, appointing Satya Sharma as its CEO. Sharma will take the lead role of the company in May next year and will help lead Lark Distilling into a new phase of growth for the company, the release said. The Lark share price jumped 9% on that news.

Back in July, the business reported its Q4 results for FY22. Highlights included revenue surging 72% from the previous corresponding period to a record $6.8 million and generating a positive cash flow of $1.3 million.

Maas Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: MGH)

The Maas Group share price surged 9.73% to end the day at $2.48.

It might be surprising to see the provider of construction materials and equipment on this list because the company downgraded its earnings guidance for FY23 yesterday.

It now expects its pro forma EBITDA to be in the range of $150 million to $180 million.

That's a significant reduction from the previous guidance it issued for FY23, which came in between $180 million and $200 million.

The reasons for the downgrade were said to be heavy rainfall disrupting its operations and a shunted real estate market from the Reserve Bank of Australia hiking interest rates.

The Maas share price fell 5.44% yesterday but has bounced back strongly today.

Incitec Pivot Ltd (ASX: IPL)

The final ASX All Ords share to look at today is Incitec Pivot, which closed 5.88% higher to $3.96.

The jump came after the chemicals giant posted its full-year results for FY22 this morning.

Highlights from the report included its net profit after tax (NPAT), excluding individually material items (IMIs), growing 186% to $1.02 billion.

A fully franked final dividend of 17 cents per share was also announced, along with a share buyback program of $400 million that will be rolled out over the next 12 months.

The post It's not all bad news for ASX All Ords shares on Tuesday. Here are some major winners appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA)

The CBA share price is up 1.5% to $106.47. This follows the release of the banking giant's first quarter update this morning. For the three months, CBA reported a 2% increase in cash earnings over the second half average to $2.5 billion. Goldman Sachs commented: "Cash profit from continuing operations in 1Q23 of c.A$2.5 bn was up 13% vs 1Q22 and run-rating c.5% ahead of what is implied by our 1H23E forecasts."

DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL)

The DGL share price is up 17% to $1.72. Investors have been buying this industrial chemicals company's shares following the release of its annual general meeting update. DGL confirmed that it expects to report underlying EBITDA of $70 million to $72 million in FY 2023. This will be up from $65.6 million in FY 2022.

Incitec Pivot Ltd (ASX: IPL)

The Incitec Pivot share price has jumped 7% to $4.00. This morning this agricultural chemicals company released its full year results and revealed a 186% increase in net profit after tax excluding individually material items to a record $1,027 million. Incitec Pivot also announced a $400 million share buyback.

Readytech Holdings Ltd (ASX: RDY)

The Readytech share price is up 2.5% to $3.98. This has been driven by an update on its potential takeover by Pacific Equity Partners. According to the release, following recent meetings and the due diligence undertaken to date, Pacific Equity Partners has reconfirmed that it remains willing, on a conditional, non-binding indicative basis, to pursue an acquisition of ReadyTech at an offer price of $4.50 per share.

The post Why CBA, DGL, Incitec Pivot, and Readytech shares are pushing higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

After all, if other investors dislike a stock, why would you risk your own money?

However, if you want your investment to perform better than the average, many financial experts point out that you have to do things differently to everyone else.

"Buy when the crowd is bearish, sell when it is bullish," AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP) chief economist Dr Shane Oliver said last month.

"Extremes of bullishness often signal eventual market tops, and extremes of bearishness often signal bottoms."

The other bonus is that if other investors have abandoned the ship, the stock can be bought at a significant discount.

So with this in mind, let's take a look at two ASX shares that had shockers in August:

Sell-off has been 'overly excessive'

Glenmore Asset Management portfolio manager Robert Gregory, in a memo to clients, lamented the reporting season performance of two of his stocks.

First was industrial chemicals provider DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL).

"DGL Group fell 26.1% in the month," he said.

"DGL's FY22 result was solid, with NPAT of $33.6 million (up +197% vs FY21 NPAT) being in line with guidance given in April. However, commentary from the company around FY23 guidance for earnings growth to 'flatten' spooked investors," Gregory said.

The market was specifically worried about comments regarding how the company had earned more than it should have because of one-off opportunities that would not repeat in the next financial year.

"In addition, operating cash flow was weak, which DGL said was due to earlier than normal inventory purchases."

Despite this, Gregory feels like the market overreacted.

"Whilst the FY23 guidance was clearly worse than expected, we have maintained our position in DGL given our view the post result sell-off has been overly excessive."

The DGL share price almost halved in just one week at the end of last month but has since recovered slightly to be 39.4% down year to date.

Remaining positive on real estate trust

Gregory's other August dog was childcare and healthcare real estate trust Arena REIT No 1 (ASX: ARF).

"Arena REIT fell 12.7% in the month," he said.

"ARF's reported FY22 funds from operations (FFO) of 16.3 cents, up +7% vs FY21, which was in line with market expectations."

The result was "quite solid" and the company announced a distribution for financial year 2023 that was more than 5% higher than the previous period.

So why the plunge in share price?

"The stock price weakness was likely driven by expectations around higher interest costs which will dampen distribution growth in the next few years."

Again, Gregory reckons the market has not reacted proportionately.

"We remain positive on ARF given its long term lease profile (weighted average ~20 years) and attractive rent review structure where the majority of assets have annual rent increases linked to changes in consumer price index."

Arena REIT shares are down 17% so far this year while paying out a 3.6% dividend yield.

The post 2 ASX shares to buy for CHEAP after a shocking August: expert appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

After hitting a 52-week low of $1.45 yesterday, the chemical company's shares surged 11.99% to finish at $1.635.

However, the rally hasn't stopped with the share up another 8.26% rise today to $1.77.

This means DGL shares have now risen by 20% over the last couple of days.

DGL founder takes advantage of share price weakness

Investors appear to be in unison with the company's founder, taking advantage of the recent DGL share price weakness.

On 2 September, the company's founder Simon Henry boosted his holdings in DGL after the share tanked around 50% in the days prior.

According to the release, Henry acquired 318,000 DGL shares through an on-market trade at an average price of $1.573 per share.

This equates to just over half a million dollars, with Henry now owning roughly 151.24 million DGL shares.

The last time Henry bought DGL shares was in mid-March of this year, spending $1.4 million to buy 500,000 shares.

It seems that Henry believes that DGL shares are grossly undervalued despite the company delivering a strong full-year result.

Clearly, the market had been expecting more from DGL regardless of booking an underlying net profit after tax (NPAT) of $33.6 million, up 197% on FY2021.

DGL share price snapshot

With DGL shares down 43.5% in 2022, they are now trading at lows not seen since July 2021.

If momentum can hold, the share could reach back up to the $2.50 mark based on the next resistance level.

On valuation grounds, DGL presides a market capitalisation of $458.2 million.

The post DGL share price jumps 20% in 2 days after founder fills his boots appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Shares of the logistics company are currently trading for $1.55. Earlier, they made an intraday high of $1.85 at the market opening.

By comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Industrials Index (ASX: XNJ), which the DGL Group is part of, is only down 0.7%.

The broader market is down more. The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is recording a 1.7% loss at the time of writing. The S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Index is also down 1.8%.

So what could be causing this surge of red in the DGL share price? Let's cover some recent news about the company over the past week.

What's going on with the DGL share price?

No news has been released by the company today, but yesterday, it posted its FY22 earnings card. DGL shares cratered 23% as a result.

Curiously, the company noted that its revenues and underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) beat consensus forecasts. Revenue surged to $369.8 million, up 4% on guidance, and EBITDA rose to $65.6 million, 1% above prospectus guidance.

Higher growth was reported in all of its operating segments. However, no guidance was provided for FY23. Instead, it will be announced at its annual general meeting.

In his reporting, my Foolish colleague Zach pointed out that some bad news from the earnings included "many uncertainties in its operations and operating environment looking ahead," so this may have spooked ASX investors.

DGL shares in review

The DGL Group share price is down 49% year to date.

Meanwhile, the ASX 200 is down 9% over the same period.

The company's market capitalisation is $513.81 million.

The post DGL share price tumbles again, down 45% so far this week appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Four ASX shares that are falling more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are dropping:

DGL Group Ltd (ASX: DGL)

The DGL share price is down 26% to $2.10. This is despite the diversified industrial group reporting strong sales and profit growth for FY 2022 this morning. Investors appear to have been spooked by the company's outlook for the year ahead and its poor cash flow conversion.

PointsBet Holdings Ltd (ASX: PBH)

The PointsBet share price is down 13% to $2.86. Investors have been selling this sports betting company's shares following the release of its full year results for FY 2022. PointsBet reported a 52% increase in revenue to $296.5 million but a loss after tax almost as great at $267 million. Nevertheless, the company finished the year with a sizeable cash balance of $472 million.

Tabcorp Holdings Limited (ASX: TAH)

The Tabcorp share price is down 5.5% to 95.5 cents. The catalyst for this decline has been the gambling company's shares trading ex-dividend this morning for its final dividend of FY 2022. Eligible shareholders can now look forward to receiving this fully franked 6.5 cents per share dividend next month on 23 September.

Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS)

The Woodside share price is down almost 4% to $34.54. This follows a sharp pullback in oil prices overnight and the release of a couple of less-than-bullish broker notes this morning. In respect to the latter, Morgans and UBS have downgraded the energy producer's shares to a neutral rating today.

The post Why DGL, PointsBet, Tabcorp, and Woodside shares are dropping today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.