• The FAR share price has jumped more than 70% in the last week
• The price movement comes amid a takeover offer from an investment company
• A decision on the takeover is pending

The FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR) share price is having a stellar week, jumping by 71%.

The oil and gas company's shares have been climbing since FAR received a takeover offer earlier this week.

At the time of writing, the FAR share price is up 16.5% today to 60 cents.

Let's take a closer look at what's going on with the ASX energy share.

FAR responds to takeover offer

Earlier this week, the energy explorer received a conditional takeover offer from Samuel Terry Asset Management (STAM), a Sydney-based investment management company.

STAM proposed to acquire all FAR shares, offering 45 cents cash per share, with conditions including a 50.01% acceptance level.

However, on the same day, FAR advised its shareholders to take no action as the offer was not yet open.

The company said the offer recognised its shares were undervalued given the company's cash reserves and a potential $55 million payment from the sale of its interest in an oil project in the West African nation of Senegal.

FAR advised it has appointed legal advisors and said it would consider the offer and advise shareholders in due course.

FAR proud of strong cash position

Prior to the acquisition offer, FAR released its activities and cash flow report for the quarter ending 31 December 2021.

In it, the explorer revealed cash holdings of US$55.6 million and said it allowed the company to "consider its options for the future, not limited to its current portfolio of oil assets".

FAR also reported its efforts to decrease costs. It estimated employment, administration, and corporate costs to be $820,000 for the upcoming quarter.

It paid 80 cents a share of capital return in late September. In October, the company announced the Australian Taxation Office had issued a class ruling that no part of the payment would be assessable as a dividend.

FAR share price snapshot

Over the last 6 months, the FAR share price has dropped by 45%. In the days leading up to its September business snapshot presentation, it dived 48%.

However, year to date, the company's shares have gained almost 56%.

The company has a market capitalisation of almost $60 million with 99 million shares on offer.

The post This ASX energy share is rocketing 71% so far this week. Here's why 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:

Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT)

The Afterpay share price is down 2.5% to $85.26. This follows a pullback by the Square/Block share price overnight despite solid gains in the tech sector. As Afterpay has agreed to be acquired by Square in an all-scrip deal, the value of the takeover will rise and fall with its share price.

Bega Cheese Ltd (ASX: BGA)

The Bega share price has sunk 10% to $5.05. Investors have been selling the diversified food company's shares after the release of underwhelming FY 2022 guidance. Bega has provided guidance for normalised EBITDA in the range of $195 million to $215 million. While this will be an increase of 37% to 51% year on year, it was well short of the market's expectations.

FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR)

The FAR share price is down a massive 51% to 36.5 cents. Investors have been selling this energy explorer's shares after its search for oil was fruitless. According to its update, the company has been drilling the Bambo-1ST1 well offshore The Gambia. However, after drilling to a depth of 3317 metres, no live oil columns were found to be present.

WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC)

The WiseTech share price is down 2.5% to $58.70. This morning the logistics solutions company announced that its founder and CEO, Richard White, has entered into a transaction involving the sale of 4.3 million WiseTech shares. This equates to approximately 1.3% of the total issued capital of WiseTech.

The post Why Afterpay, Bega, FAR, and WiseTech shares are falling appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

At the time of writing, the energy explorer's shares are down a whopping 51% to a new record low of 36 cents.

This means the FAR share price is now down approximately 72% since the start of the year.

Why is the FAR share price crashing?

Investors have been heading to the exits in their droves this morning after the company's search for oil ended in failure.

According to the release, the company has been drilling the Bambo-1ST1 well offshore The Gambia. However, after drilling to a depth of 3317 metres, no live oil columns were found to be present.

And while the company suggested that its drilling results indicate that there is potential for oil to be found in the area, many shareholders are not sticking around to find out if that is the case.

Management commentary

FAR's Managing Director, Cath Norman, remains upbeat on the company's prospects despite this major setback.

Ms. Norman said, "Although no moveable oil was interpreted, FAR is encouraged to have encountered good oil shows and potential reservoirs in the Bambo-1 well and Bambo-1ST1 side-track."

"The project has provided significant geological information, including new play types, that reaffirms the potential of further hydrocarbon prospects in the A2 and A5 blocks in the Gambia. Bambo-1 and the side-track have confirmed that all of the requisite petroleum system elements are present in the area and the technical team is already busy integrating the new data and high-grading future prospects."

"FAR looks forward to working with its co-venturer Petronas and the Government of The Gambia on the next steps in realising the exploration potential in country," she concluded.

The post Here's why the FAR (ASX:FAR) share price is sinking 51% to an all-time low appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

In afternoon trade, the oil and gas explorer's shares are down a massive 50% to 75 cents.

Why is the FAR share price crashing today?

The good news for shareholders is that the decline in the FAR share price has nothing to do with its performance or commodity prices.

Instead, this decline has been driven by the company's shares trading ex-capital return this morning. This follows shareholders voting to approve a capital return last month at a general meeting.

What's happening?

Last month the company's shareholders gave the thumbs up to an $80 million return via a cash capital return of 80 cents per share.

This capital return was proposed following the completion of the sale of its interest in the RSSD Project to Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) for US$126 million.

Management advised that the $80 million return represents surplus capital and leaves the company with sufficient funding for its drilling offshore The Gambia and for ongoing purposes.

Eligible shareholders can now look forward to receiving this capital return next week on 28 September.

What now?

If you were to take this capital return out of the equation, the FAR share price would actually be trading 6 cents higher today.

For example, the FAR share price is down 74 cents or 50% to 75 cents. Whereas the capital return is for 80 cents.

This appears to be an indication that some investors are confident in the direction the company is taking with its drilling campaign off the coast of The Gambia. This includes the Bambo-1 well which is targeting a combined best estimate of 1.118 billion barrels of oil.

This could make FAR one to watch in the energy sector in FY 2022.

The post Why the FAR (ASX:FAR) share price is crashing 50% on Monday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

This morning, trading platforms show that the oil and gas explorer's shares are up a whopping 12,000% to $1.32.

To put that in context, if you invested $10,000 into an ASX share and it gained 12,000%, your investment would be worth a cool $1.2 million.

Is the FAR share price actually minting millionaires today?

The answer to this question, unfortunately, is a resounding no.

The reason the FAR share price is showing as being up 12,000% on Friday is that it has now completed its share consolidation.

Share consolidations are not very common on the Australian share market. In fact, share splits are far more common.

A share split is often undertaken by a company when they want to boost share liquidity or make share prices more attractive. For example, Berkshire Hathaway has resisted calls for years to undertake a share split. As a result, you need a massive US$417,800 to buy a single Berkshire Hathaway Class A share. This is unattainable for most investors.

Pushpay Holdings Ltd (ASX: PPH) is an example of a company that has split its shares recently. It did this to boost liquidity.

It is important to note that although the share price may change during a split, the value of a holding does not. If you had 1,000 shares at $1 per share (total value of $1,000), you would have 2,000 shares at 50 cents per share (still with a total value of $1,000) following a 2-1 split.

What is FAR doing?

FAR has undertaken a share consolidation or reverse share split to bring its share price up to a more tradable level.

Prior to the consolidation, the FAR share price was trading at 1.1 cents. This means that a move to 1.2 cents would result in a 9% gain and vice versa if it went the other way. These sorts of swings are not ideal for investors and it appears as though management felt the same way.

As a result, it has consolidated the issued capital of FAR on the basis of one share for every one hundred shares.

This means that if you owned 100 shares yesterday, you would now own a single share at the current FAR share price. And except for intra-day movements, the value of your holding would have remained the same.

The post Is the FAR (ASX:FAR) share price really up 12,000% today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

At the time of writing, the energy giant's shares are up 0.85% at $22.51.

Quick take on the Sangomar project

Woodside's recently acquired Sangomar project contains both oil and gas, and is located 100km south of Dakar, Senegal. The project covers a combined area of 7,490sq km within the Senegalese portion of the Mauritania-Senegal-Guinea Bissau Basin. It is said to be one of the world's largest oilfields discovered in the last decade.

While work has already started earlier this year, first oil production is being targeted by 2023. Phase one is expected to be around 100,000 barrels of oil per day. In total, it is estimated that the Sangomar offshore oil project is worth around $6 billion.

What did Woodside announce?

In today's release, Woodside advised that it has completed the acquisition of the entire participating interest of Capricorn Senegal Limited (Cairn) in the Rufisque Offshore, Sangomar Offshore and Sangomar Deep Offshore (RSSD) joint venture.

Woodside spent US$300 million plus a working capital adjustment of US$225 million to complete the transaction. In addition, the company is expecting up to US$100 million of further payments depending on the price and timing of first oil production.

With the deal all wrapped up, Woodside's equity interest lifted to 68.33% in the Sangomar exploitation area and to 75% for the remaining RSSD evaluation area. However, the company's stake could further increase should the FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR) acquisition also be finalised. This would bring Woodside control of 82% for the Sangomar region and 90% of the RSSD area.

What did management say

Commenting on the acquisition, Woodside CEO Peter Coleman said:

The development of Sangomar is being executed according to schedule. The Senegal team recently achieved another milestone, with the award of the contract for the operations and maintenance of the floating production storage and offloading vessel which is targeted for delivery and first oil production in 2023.

The completion of the transaction with Cairn has simplified the structure of the joint venture ahead of our planned equity sell-down in 2021. The Sangomar development is an attractive, de-risked asset that offers near-term production to potential buyers.

Woodside share price performance

The Woodside share price is down 35% from the past 12 months, which could be seen as an attractive discount for shareholders. While energy companies have been battered from COVID-19, the industry is slowly on the mend. From March lows, the Woodside share price has gained more than 50%.

Woodside has a market capitalisation of $21.4 billion.

The post Why the Woodside (ASX:WPL) share price is edging higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Woodside shareholders have 2 new developments to analyse today.

First, Woodside has opted to pre-empt independent oil and gas explorer Far Ltd's (ASX: FAR) sale of its stake in the Sangomar asset in Senegal. (Note, FAR shares have been suspended since 14 September.)

Second, OPEC+ has reached an interim decision on its 2021 output levels.

We'll look at both below. But first…

What does Woodside do?

Woodside Petroleum is the largest operator of oil and gas production in Australia and also Australia's largest independent dedicated oil and gas company.

Founded in 1954 and headquartered in Perth, Woodside also has a portfolio of offshore platforms, oil floating production storage and off-loading vessels. It holds operating assets both in Australia and internationally. Woodside shares first listed on the Australian exchange in 1971.

What did Woodside announce about FAR's Sangomar transaction?

In an announcement to the ASX this morning, Woodside revealed it is exercising its right to pre-empt the sale of FAR's entire participating interest in the Rufisque, Sangomar and Sangomar Deep (RSSD) joint venture in Senegal to India's ONGC Videsh Vankorneft Pte Ltd.

FAR has a 13.67% interest in the Sangomar exploitation area and a 15% interest in the remaining RSSD evaluation area.

Woodside will match the terms of the pre-empted transaction. That includes a payment of $45 million and the reimbursement of FAR's share of working capital from 1 January 2020 through to completion. FAR may also be entitled to certain contingent payments, with those payments capped at US$55 million.

Woodside is funding the acquisition from its current cash reserves.

Commenting on the transaction, Woodside CEO Peter Coleman said:

Sangomar is an attractive, de-risked asset in execute phase, offering near-term production. The acquisition is value accretive for Woodside shareholders and results in a streamlined joint venture which will assist in our targeted sell-down in 2021.

We plan to commence development drilling next year as we progress the project to targeted first oil in 2023.

FAR shareholders and the Senegal government still need to approve the acquisition before it's finalised.

OPEC+ opts for small increase

In other developments with the potential to impact Woodside's share price, OPEC+ reached a belated decision yesterday (overnight Aussie time) on its production levels for 2021.

The group, which includes Russia, agreed to up total crude production by 500,000 barrel per day commencing in January. Acknowledging the crimp in demand from the ongoing pandemic, OPEC will meet monthly to determine future production levels.

Brent crude edged higher overnight and is up 2.7% since 1 December, trading for US$48.71 per barrel.

Any further rises in the price of oil should add a welcome tailwind to the Woodside share price.

The post Why the Woodside (ASX:WPL) share price is edging higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

However, here are 3 ASX shares that haven't fared so well. Let's dig into what might be behind their share price falls.

TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPM)

TPG shares surged yesterday after the Federal Court announced its judgment in relation to the proposed merger between telco companies Vodafone Australia and TPG. The court decided to overturn the ACCC's initial decision it made in last May and approved the merger.

The new entity will now potentially be in a strong position to compete with the two current largest telcos in Australia, Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) and Optus, in both the fixed broadband and mobile segments of the market. In particular, the merger will place Vodafone in a much stronger position to roll out a competitive 5G offering.

However, TPG's are sinking lower today, down by 3.4% at the time of writing to be trading at $7.87. I believe that today's falls are most likely due to investors taking some profit off the table on the back of yesterday's 10% gain.

Southern Cross Media Group Ltd (ASX: SXL)

The Southern Cross share price is down by 4.3% so far today and is currently trading at $0.775. The fall doesn't seem to be linked to any recent announcement, but rather appears to be part of a recent downhill share price trend.

Southern Cross Media's share price dropped to a 5-year low in October last year, triggered by a downgrade in guidance. Management revealed that weak media markets had seen revenue in 1QFY20 down 8.5% compared to the prior year, with both audio and television segments declining.

The company is focused on maximising its market share while maintaining cost control across all divisions. Advertising markets, however, remain very challenging in Australia.

According to CommSec, Southern Cross shares are currently trading on a low price-to-earnings ratio of 9.64 and offer a very high dividend yield of 8.6%, fully franked.

The company is set to announce its interim group results on 20 February 2020. It will be interesting to see if Southern Cross will still be positioned to offer this high yield.

FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR)

FAR is an Australian oil and gas producer with assets in East Africa, West Africa, and Australia; and interests in Senegal, Guinea Bissau, and Kenya.

FAR has had a poor run on the ASX since early July last year when its share price reached a 52-week high of $0.081. Since then, FAR shares have tumbled a massive 61% to be currently trading at $0.0315. So far today, its share price is down by 7.4%.

Today's decline appears to be linked to an ASX announcement that was released this morning. In the release, it was stated that the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce had rejected FAR's pre-emption claims related to a case back in 2019.

The post Why TPG, FAR and Southern Cross shares are lower today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR)

FAR is an Australian oil and gas producer with assets in East Africa, West Africa, and Australia; and interests in Senegal, Guinea Bissau, and Kenya.

The FAR share price was in the red today, ending the day 5.56% lower. FAR has had a poor run on the ASX since early July last year when its share price reached a 52-week high of $0.081. Since then, FAR shares have tumbled a massive 58% to be currently trading at $0.034.

On 12 December 2019, the company announced a conditional placement to raise $146 million at 4.25 cents per share. This represented a 21.3% discount to FAR's last closing price at that time. As a result, shares dropped sharply by 24% on the day and have been on a downward trend ever since.

Amcor PLC (ASX: AMC)

The Amcor share price closed lower yesterday after the company reported its results for the six months to December 2019. Yesterday's downward momentum has extended into today, with Amcor shares ending the day 3.36% lower.

However, despite this fall, Amcor has had a solid run on the ASX since mid-October last year, up by 12% in this time.

Amcor actually announced a fairly solid set of financial results yesterday. Net sales rose 36% during the period to US$6.18 billion, while adjusted earnings increased 4.4% in currency-adjusted terms to US$699 million. On the dividend front, the company announced a quarterly payout of A$17.1 cents per share payout for ASX investors.

Medadvisor Ltd (ASX: MDR)

MedAdvisor is an Australian software systems developer that was established to help people make the best possible use of medication. The company has a free app that connects to pharmacy dispensing systems to automatically retrieve medication records and reduce the need for manual configuration by pharmacists or individuals.

The MedAdvisor share price closed 5.46% lower today. However, this share price weakness doesn't appear to be linked to any recent announcement.

In mid-January, MedAdvisor announced it had signed its second agreement in the United States. This agreement will see MedAdvisor provide medication education programs for a top 10 global pharmaceutical company through its strategic US partner Adheris Health.

MedAdvisor shares notched a 23% one-day gain in response to the announcement but subsequently lost some ground at the end of January following the release of the company's quarterly report. Since then, MedAdvisor's share price movement has been highly volatile.

The post Why these 3 ASX shares slumped lower today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Four shares that have fallen more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are sinking lower:

The FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR) share price has crashed 24% lower to 4.1 cents. This follows the announcement of a conditional placement to raise $146 million at 4.25 cents per share. This was a 21.3% discount to FAR's last closing price. The proceeds from the placement form part of the planned financing package to fund FAR's capital expenditures to first oil for the Sangomar Oil Field development, working capital, and transaction costs.

The Paradigm Biopharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: PAR) share price has fallen 11% to $2.78. This is despite the biopharmaceutical company releasing an end of year update this morning. That update reminded investors of the developments it has made in 2019 and its plans for the new year. Paradigm's shares have now lost 25% of their value since this time last week.

The Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME) share price is down 4% to $20.94 despite there being no news out of the healthcare technology company. A good number of tech shares are tumbling lower today. This has led to the S&P/ASX 200 Info Tech index falling by 1.3% this afternoon.

The Redbubble Ltd (ASX: RBL) share price is down a massive 43% to $1.04. Investors have been hitting the sell button following the release of a trading update. According to the release, Redbubble estimates that Group Marketplace Revenue for the second quarter to date is up 20% on the prior corresponding period. This is below its expectations and has been driven by the underperformance of its Redbubble branded marketplace. Management blamed increased price competition in Redbubble's market leading sticker position.

The post Why FAR, Paradigm, Pro Medicus, & Redbubble shares are sinking lower appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

In afternoon trade the oil and gas producer's shares are down 26% to 4 cents. This makes it the second-worst performer on the All Ordinaries index behind only ecommerce company Redbubble Ltd (ASX: RBL).

Why is the FAR share price sinking lower?

The catalyst for this decline was the announcement of a conditional placement to raise $146 million at 4.25 cents per share. This represents a 21.3% discount to FAR's last closing price.

In addition to this, the company is aiming to raise a further $30 million through a share purchase plan at the same price as the placement.

According to the release, the proceeds from the placement form part of the planned financing package to fund FAR's capital expenditures to first oil for the Sangomar Oil Field development, working capital, and transaction costs.

Why is it conditional?

The release explains that the shares issued under the placement are conditional.

This is upon gaining shareholder approval at a general meeting to be held in January. It also depends upon the receipt of a credit approved term sheet for an underwritten US$350 million senior debt facility by the end of December.

What is the Sangomar Oil Field development?

The world class Sangomar Oil Field is based off the shore in Senegal. It is one of the largest offshore oil discoveries of the last ten years, which post-project delivery in early 2023 is expected to make FAR one of the largest ASX-listed oil producers.

Sangomar is a phased oil development targeting up to 100,000 bpd. It is a low-cost operation with a US$22/bbl breakeven cost. Energy giant Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) is the operator of the Sangomar Field Development.

The post Why the FAR share price crashed 26% lower today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Four shares that have defied the market sell off today are listed below. Here's why they are pushing higher:

The FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR) share price is up 2% to 4.7 cents. This morning the oil and gas producer announced that the final Sangomar Field Development and Exploitation Plan was submitted to the Government of Senegal on December 2. The Development and Exploitation Plan outlines the full field multi-phase development of oil and gas and details how the Sangomar Field will be developed in a series of phases with plans for 645 mmboe to be developed.

The Medical Developments International Ltd (ASX: MVP) share price is up 2.5% to $7.28 despite there being no news out of the healthcare company. However, the Medical Developments International share price has been on fire this year thanks to positive developments in the United States and China for its Penthrox pain management product.

The MGC Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: MXC) share price has jumped 6% higher to 3.5 cents. Investors have been buying the cannabis company's shares after it announced the receipt of formal approval for the sale of CannEpil in Ireland. CannEpil is one of MGC Pharma's Investigational Medicinal Products to treat drug resistant epilepsy. This makes it one of the first cannabinoid-based medicines approved for prescription and sale under the Irish Government's Medical Cannabis Access Programme.

The Western Areas Ltd (ASX: WSA) share price is up 1% to $2.85. The catalyst for this gain was a broker note out of Morgans this morning. According to the note, the broker has initiated coverage on the nickel producer with an add rating and $3.39 price target. Morgans is positive on nickel due to its use in stainless steel and battery manufacturing.

The post Why FAR, Medical Developments, MGC Pharma, & Western Areas are pushing higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Investors have been selling off energy shares in a hurry this morning following a sharp decline in oil prices overnight. This has led to the S&P/ASX 200 Energy index falling 2.5% in early trade.

Why did oil prices crash lower?

According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price sank 5.2% to US$58.20 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price tumbled 4.3% lower to US$70.83 a barrel.

This was caused by a number of factors including the release of underwhelming U.S. manufacturing data, easing tensions in the Middle East, and concerns over a prolonged trade war between the United States and China.

Tyche Capital Advisors commodity fund manager, Tariq Zahir, told Bloomberg: "It seems like we're going to be entrenched in a trade war, which is really going to hurt demand for crude oil."

This view was echoed by Gene McGillian, the vice-president of research at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut. He said: "If we don't have strong enough demand growth, the market's telling us we can't justify oil in the mid-60s."

Here's the state of play in the energy sector at the time of writing:

The Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) share price is down 4% to $1.96.

The BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price has fallen 0.4% to $37.17.

The Cooper Energy Ltd (ASX: COE) share price is 4.5% lower to 54 cents.

The FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR) share price has fallen over 3% to 5.9 cents.

The Oil Search Limited (ASX: OSH) share price has dropped 2.5% to $7.39.

The Origin Energy Ltd (ASX: ORG) share price is off 2.5% to $7.53.

The Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price is down 3.5% to $6.96.

The Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) share price has dropped 3% to $35.88.

The post Beach, BHP, & Santos shares tumble after oil prices crash lower appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

So let's take a look at three businesses that recently hit 52-week lows and consider what might be behind the share price falls.

FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR) is an oil and gas explorer focused on opportunities in West Africa and Senegal in particular. It has been heavily hyped in the past and boasted of two "world class" oil discoveries in offshore Senegal. It also claims to own offshore blocks in Gambia that contain more than 1 billion barrels of oil according to previous estimates. The excitement around its claims has seen the share price reach as high as 14 cents and a more than $700 million valuation. However, as oil prices and the excitement has faded the stock recently hit a 52-week low of 6.5 cents.

Ainsworth Game Technology Limited (ASX: AGI) shares hit a 52-week low of 74 cents today after the pokie or gaming machine business recently blamed "intense competition" for dragging down its FY 2018 result. In particular it also warned that revenues and profit before tax are expected to be "materially lower" in the first half of FY 2019 compared to the prior corresponding half. The stock is now down around 70% over just 2018.

Donaco International Ltd (ASX: DNA) shares are down 16.4% to a 52-week low of 9.1 cents per share after the Cambodia and Singapore casino and hotel operator warned that trading had been hit in recent months by a number of factors. These include a "Chinese crime syndicate" scaring off punters from its North Vietnam casino and "illegally operating" competing casinos popping up in Cambodia.

These are the kind of risks when it comes to investing in South East Asian casinos as the shares are down around 66% over just the past year.

The post Why FAR Ltd is among 3 ASX shares at 52-week lows appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Four shares falling more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are ending the week in the red:

The Afterpay Touch Group Ltd (ASX: APT) share price has given back some of yesterday's gains and is down 6.5% to $13.49. This decline may be due to a broker note out of Morgans this morning. Although the broker has maintained its add rating, it slashed the price target on the payment solutions company's shares by over 11% to $19.15.

The Corporate Travel Management Ltd (ASX: CTD) share price has given back most of yesterday's gains and is down 8.5% to $21.00. Investors appear concerned after VGI Partners demonstrated that it was not backing down with its short seller attack any time soon. According to the AFR, VGI Partners has told the corporate travel specialist that it will need to release the report put together with EY if it wants to prove it wrong.

The FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR) share price has crashed 36% lower to 8.3 cents after the energy company advised that the Samo-1 well was unsuccessful. According to the release, the drilling result of the Samo-1 well was not in line with its pre-drill expectations. The release explains that wireline logs indicate that the main target horizons are water-bearing.

The Lendlease Group (ASX: LLC) share price has dropped 19% lower to $14.12 after the international property and infrastructure company advised that it has identified further underperformance in the financial position of its Engineering and Services business. Because of this, management expects to take a provision in the order of $350 million after tax for the first half of FY 2019. Lendlease has attributed the underperformance to further deterioration in a small number of projects that it had previously identified.

The post Why these ASX shares are ending the week in the red appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

But waiting in the wings are these emerging small cap stocks, and they should be on your radar.

Praemium Ltd (ASX: PPS)

An emerging fintech company in the financial planning technology space, Praemium Ltd shares have tanked today – down 6.7% to 76c after spending the best part of July falling.

Sector peers HUB24 Ltd (ASX: HUB) and Netwealth Group Ltd (ASX: NWL) are also feeling the pinch lately, with both of their share prices dropping back in the last fortnight.

But does this mean it's buy time in the sector?

My thoughts are, below.

There are plenty of investors trying to time their purchase of fintech shares as best they can, and we may not see sharp drops like these again anytime soon.

Praemium's funds under management (FUM) surged to $8.3 billion earlier this month with gross inflows 50% higher than last year's and a client win with Morgan Stanley providing good momentum.

Carnarvon Petroleum Limited (ASX: CVN)

Investors clambered to jump on the Carnarvon Petroleum Limited bandwagon earlier in July after the emerging oil and gas explorer made a significant oil discovery off the coast of Western Australia.

Carnarvon shares have rocketed up 600% from this time last year to sit at 49c per share at the time of writing, with its find giving peers like Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) a boost, with Woodside saying its explorers were "enthused" by the Bedout Basin find – Woodside has acreage in the same area.

But is it too late to buy in?

Where will Carnarvon's share price go from here?

It's hard to say how much longer Carnarvon will rise off the back of such positive news, but investors seem to be buoyed by drilling updates at present and, for now, its price looks fairly steady.

I would be inclined to wait for the good news to wear off a little before buying in and take some cues from the bigger end of town in the sector.

Oil Search Limited (ASX: OSH), Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) have all seen some declines of late and Carnarvon has much less in the kitty to buffer itself from sector volatility.

A wait and see option.

FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR)

Shares in Australian oil and gas explorer Far Ltd have climbed another 4% in early morning trade, sitting at 13c per share at the time of writing.

Far shares have seen a steady incline in the last 12 months and its second quarter report, released yesterday, updated investors on its Gambia and Senegal projects, with the company meeting deliverables and making progress.

Far seems to have its fundamentals well sorted, and Credit Suisse agrees, labelling it as a favourite pick in the oil and gas sector back in May.

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FAR shares have climbed 71% in the last 12 months with its Friday trading volume of 22.6 million the third highest volume in a year and its share registry showing regular buy-ins from Meridian Capital International Fund – which now owns a 14.55% stake in FAR.

There must be something in the wind for the emerging $710 million market cap company, which made Credit Suisse's list of favourite picks in the oil and gas sector back in May.

FAR has a strong pipeline of project prospects, particularly its giant Samo prospect offshore The Gambia, with drilling scheduled for late 2018.

One thing is for sure, FAR is worth keeping an eye on.

Elsewhere in the oil and gas space Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) has had a strong run of late with peer Oil Search Limited (ASX: OSH) also not far off its 52-week high.

The post Why FAR Ltd (ASX:FAR) is flying appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The taxi payment solutions provider fell 2.2% to $2.23 in afternoon trade when the S&P/ASX 200 (Index:^AXJO) (ASX:XJO) index slipped 0.5%, although Cabcharge is still 30% ahead in the last three months compared to a 6% gain by the broader market.

This puts the stock on par with other small cap stars like oil explorer FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR), sterilisation equipment maker Nanosonics Ltd. (ASX: NAN) and apparel retailer Noni B Limited (ASX: NBL).

No large cap stock has managed to rally by more than 30% over the same period with gaming machine maker Aristocrat Leisure Limited (ASX: ALL) coming the closest with a 29% gain and takeover target APA Group (ASX: APA) right behind with a 24% uplift.

Investors have been buying back into Cabcharge on signs that ride-sharing company Uber is losing popularity among users and drivers.

Recent media reports suggested that Uber drivers were getting less than minimum wage after expenses, while customers are increasingly being put off by Uber's surge pricing.

UBS has scrutinised the taxi and ride share market in Australia and believes that Uber's momentum has slowed even though its app still accounted for almost half of the mobile downloads in the month of June (compared to 71% in the 2017 December quarter).

However, Cabcharge only enjoyed a minimal increase in market share and most of its gains came from other taxi-only apps.

It seems that Uber's market share loss is going to other ride-share competitors like Ola and Taxify, while Uber's Chinese rival Didi Chuxing recently launched in Melbourne.

"Momentum appears to have slowed for Uber in both app downloads and share of UBS taxi spend," said UBS, which marked down Cabcharge to "sell" from "neutral".

"However, CAB has only recorded a minimal uplift as a result – with the majority of the benefit going to competitors."

This isn't to say that Cabcharge's earnings momentum won't improve in the near-term, which is why the broker upped its price target to $2.15 from $1.65 a share, although UBS warns that the stock could be cum-downgrade.

UBS believes consensus forecasts are too bullish and will need to be adjusted lower. Based on the broker's estimates, the stock is trading on a FY19 price-earnings (P/E) multiple of around 17 times, and that's too rich for my liking.

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The post UBS warns Cabcharge Australia Limited's (ASX:CAB) Uber advantage is over appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

WorleyParsons today announced it would provide front-end engineering design for the central processing facilities under the contract which would be led by its London office.

The project includes the development of the Ngamia and Amosing fields to produce a projected 60,000 barrels of oil per day with transport via a 900km export pipeline.

WorleyParsons was recently named by Morgan Stanley, alongside Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL), Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR), as the companies most likely to gain upside from a rallying crude oil price.

Woodside shares were up 1.9% to $32.27 at the time of writing, with Beach up 3.4% to $1.63 and FAR also up 3.4% to 9c per share.

The post Why the Worleyparsons Limited share price is zooming higher on a contract win appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Almost all Australia's leading energy producers have sunk lower following heavy declines in oil prices at the end of last week. According to Bloomberg, WTI crude oil fell 4% to US$67.88 a barrel and Brent crude oil fell 3% to US$76.44 a barrel.

Oil prices fell after reports emerged stating that OPEC and Russia planned to increase their production by upwards of 1 million barrels per day to make up for any constraints on Iranian and Venezuelan production.

Prices had been on the rise over recent weeks on the back of supply concerns in a tightening market, but with OPEC and Russia willing to fill the gap, prices have started to give back their gains.

Here is the state of play in early trade in the energy sector:

• The Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) share price is down 5% to $1.63.
• The BHP Billiton Limited (ASX: BHP) share price has fallen 2.3% to $32.31.
• The Cooper Energy Ltd (ASX: COE) share price has dropped almost 3% to 35 cents.
• The FAR Ltd (ASX: FAR) share price is down 2% to 9.2 cents.
• The Oil Search Limited (ASX: OSH) share price is lower by 2% to $8.02.
• The Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price is off 2.5% to $5.74.
• The Senex Energy Ltd (ASX: SXY) share price is down 4.5% to 42 cents.
• The Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) share price has dropped 2.8% to $31.94.

While the declines in oil prices will be a disappointment for energy shares, it is a big positive for those that are negatively impacted by rising oil prices.

It will therefore come as little surprise to learn that Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) shares are on the rise today.

Should you buy the dip?

Whilst I think it would be prudent to wait for oil prices to settle first, I do see a lot of value in BHP Billiton's shares regardless of recent movements in oil prices. This could make it worth considering picking up shares in the diversified mining giant on this weakness.

The post Why energy shares are dragging the market lower today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.