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

Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG)

The Macquarie share price is down 5% to $174.28. Investors have been selling this investment bank's shares after it provided a first-quarter update ahead of its annual general meeting. That update revealed that the company has had a tough start to FY 2024. This has led to profits that were "substantially down" on the prior corresponding period.

Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN)

The Panoramic Resources share price is down 39% to 5.6 cents. This follows news that the base metals developer has received commitments for a $40 million institutional placement. The company is raising the funds at a deep discount of 5 cents per new share. The proceeds will be used to support its balance sheet following delays in revenue generation.

Regis Resources Ltd (ASX: RRL)

The Regis Resources share price is down 11% to $1.86. Investors appear disappointed with this gold miner's fourth-quarter update which revealed a sharp increase in costs per ounce in FY 2023. Unfortunately, management expects costs to increase further in FY 2024.

Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO)

The Rio Tinto share price is down 2.5% to $117.89. This follows the release of the miner's half-year results. Rio Tinto reported a 10% decline in revenue to US$26.67 billion and a 25% decline in underlying EBITDA to US$11.73 billion. The latter and its US$1.77 per share interim dividend were short of consensus expectations.

The post Why Macquarie, Panoramic, Regis Resources, and Rio Tinto shares are falling appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The ASX mining share crashed as much as 45% to a 52-week low of 5 cents this morning.

The base metals developer has recovered a touch since then but remains down by 37% at 5.8 cents.

Why is this ASX mining share being sold off?

The catalyst for this share price weakness has been news that the company has completed an institutional placement.

According to the release, Panoramic has completed the bookbuild for a fully underwritten two-tranche placement of new fully-paid ordinary shares. This will see it raise $40 million (before costs) at a fixed offer price of $0.05 per new share.

That's a massive 45% discount from where the ASX mining share was trading prior to its halt.

Given this discount, it will come as no surprise to learn that the placement received strong support from both new and existing shareholders. This includes a number of new high-quality institutional investors joining the Panoramic share register. In addition, several Panoramic directors have committed to participate in tranche two of the placement.

Why is it raising funds?

The release explains that the proceeds from the placement will be used to strengthen the company's balance sheet and remove the short-term working capital pressure caused by the delay of revenue.

The latter has been caused by a filter press head plate failure and disruptions caused by a one-off, severe weather event. The broken filter press head plate has been replaced and was fully operational again on 9 July.

Panoramic Managing Director and CEO, Victor Rajasooriar, commented:

The new funding relieves the short-term pressure that was placed on our balance sheet and we're determined to repay the faith of shareholders by delivering to plan for the next 12 months and beyond. While we're disappointed to have needed additional equity funding at this time, we're also encouraged by the support of existing and new investors. We're also pleased that all of our eligible current shareholders can participate through the Share Purchase Plan.

The post Why did this ASX mining share just crash 45%? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Commodities across the board have seen their prices plunge. Iron ore is down, lithium is down, oil is down.

And accordingly, the stock prices for the companies that mine those minerals have plummeted.

So does this mean that we're now at a great time to buy these resources shares for cheap? Or are they a trap, with further falls to come?

Morgans senior analyst Adrian Prendergast had some ideas this week.

Why are resources down at the moment?

Firstly, let's take a look at why commodity prices are so depressed at the moment.

In the Western world, the answer is obvious. Steep interest rate rises over the past year have strangled economies, so the demand has simply cooled.

The surprise, for the Morgans team, is that China's much-anticipated post-COVID rejuvenation hasn't quite happened.

"The current selloff follows a late 2022 surge in share prices across the resources sector, driven by what we saw at the time as over optimism towards the prospects of a China recovery," Prendergast said on the Morgans blog.

"Not that we are China bears, we just do not like paying upfront for a demand recovery without being able to see it."

The Morgans team remains "cautious" on the prospects of a Chinese economic revival.

"But equally we believe this is priced into resource equities, leaving us confident that we see value in the sector but preferring safety over upside potential."

In fact, after Prendergast made his comments, the Chinese Communist Party surprisingly cut a bunch of different policy rates on Tuesday. Bloomberg reported that this could be a precursor to reducing the main lending rate on Thursday.

Which mining stocks have the brightest long-term prospects?

As a "contrarian call", Prendergast is bullish on iron ore.

"While China's property market is a critical demand driver for steel, and still depressed, we see enough demand from peaking infrastructure activity and other base load consumption to see demand near balance against supply."

Copper is also a mineral that has a strong future, he added.

"While the short term might remain volatile, we remain robustly bullish on copper's long-term fundamentals — declining average grades mined and limited new supply, against a backdrop of rising copper intensity that is likely to be supercharged by the electrification mega trend."

And, believe it or not, coal is the third commodity that's "in solid long-term shape".

"The recent selloff across thermal and met coal prices has been sharp, and in the case of thermal coal we see some further short-term downside to prices," said Prendergast.

"This remains a stark contrast to long-term fundamentals for the coals, where ESG pressures and other sector headwinds [have] seen supply increasingly constrained."

So which are the specific ASX mining shares the Morgans team loves at the moment?

"Amongst large caps our top preferences include BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) (most preferred), Mineral Resources Ltd (ASX: MIN) and Santos Ltd (ASX: STO)," he said.

"While in small caps some of our key picks include Karoon Energy Ltd (ASX: KAR), Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC), Strandline Resources Ltd (ASX: STA) and Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN)."

The Morgans team expects that shareholder returns would remain a priority for the larger players.

"Driven by earnings or cash flow, these dividends could be volatile, but we expect them to remain comfortably above the market."

The post Are ASX mining shares cheap now or are they value traps? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

In afternoon trade, the ASX nickel share is up 15% to 15.5 cents.

Investors have been scrambling to buy its shares after it was the subject of a bullish broker note.

Who is bullish on this ASX nickel share?

The team at Morgans is bullish on Panoramic Resources and is tipping major upside for its shares over the next 12 months.

According to a note, the broker has retained its add rating with a 25 cents price target.

Based on the current Panoramic Resources share price, this implies potential upside of 61% for this ASX nickel share between now and this time next year.

Why is Morgans bullish?

The broker notes that Panoramic Resources has just released an updated mine plan for the Savannah Nickel Operation, which underlines a 12+ year operating life, with strong upside to extend.

In addition, it highlights that its operations are steadily ramping up and design production levels are forecast to achieve its target mine rate of 960ktpa in early FY 2024.

Morgans believes this leaves it well-placed to deliver strong earnings growth in the coming years. In fact, it is forecasting a net profit of $5.8 million this year. After which, it forecasts $22.2 million in FY 2024 and $43.4 million in FY 2025.

In light of this, the company is the broker's preferred nickel exposure on the ASX right now. It commented:

PAN is our preferred nickel exposure on the ASX with a 12+ year mine life, on track to reach nameplate production this year, and significant exploration at both Savannah, Savannah North and regional targets.

While our DCF valuation is built on PAN's published study operating life only, based on recent positive drilling results beneath Savannah workings, and open-ended mineralisation at Savannah North, we see strong potential to increase the mine life through upcoming exploration and Resource definition drilling to re-classify Inferred and Indicated Resources into mineable Reserves.

PAN also produces copper and cobalt in concentrate, giving significant by-product credits and additional revenue over the life of mine.

The post Buy this ASX nickel share for 60%+ upside: Morgans appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

In today's session, the small-cap nickel and gold explorer once again closed higher, up 6.25% to 25.5 cents.

The company's wild run of late includes two separate share price spikes over the past four weeks.

Let's examine.

What's pushing the Panoramic Resources share price?

The first share price surge occurred on 1 August. That's when Panoramic Resources reported further positive drilling results at its Savannah Nickel Project in Western Australia.

The company reported "mineralisation thicknesses continue to be significantly better than predicted".

In its statement, the company said:

Results from the first two drill fans above the 900 Fault have the potential to significantly increase the Savannah Mineral Resource in this area of the mine and support the development of a second mining front to support mining operations at Savannah North.

On the same day, Panoramic delivered a presentation at the Diggers & Dealers Mining Forum.

Investors bid up the Panoramic Resources share price to 22 cents that day, a 10% gain.

How BHP's offer to buy OZ Minerals helped Panoramic

The biggest news out of the resources space this month is the takeover offer made by BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) to OZ Minerals Limited (ASX: OZL).

OZ Minerals is a significant player in the copper and nickel segments. BHP offered to buy OZ Minerals for $25 per share, which was a 32% premium on the share price at the time.

BHP is the biggest company on the ASX, with a whopping market cap of $197 billion. To put that into perspective, it single-handedly accounts for 11% of the value of the ASX 200.

When a company of this significance offers a premium price to buy you out, you must have something it seriously wants. And in the case of OZ Minerals, that's copper and nickel.

These two minerals are expected to play a large role in the decarbonisation era, and the takeover attempt reinforced their importance. This had a flow-on effect to many smaller ASX mining shares. It benefitted Panoramic Resources because the company derives most of its revenue from nickel mining activities.

OZ Minerals announced the rejected offer on 8 August, sparking massive media and investor attention.

Since then, the Panoramic Resources share price has ascended 20%.

The future of nickel and electric vehicles

Rising demand for nickel has also helped the Panoramic Resources share price trajectory of late.

The price of the commodity has increased by 6.5% over the past month, according to Trading Economics.

Nickel is now one of the world's most in-demand metals, according to reporting on abc.net.au.

Right now, nickel is primarily used to make stainless steel. But it's also needed in the lithium-ion batteries that make electric vehicles (EVs) run. In fact, those batteries need more nickel than lithium to function.

The article cited a CSIRO report that shows "about five times as much nickel (48,006 kilotonnes) will be needed to meet global demand by 2050 as lithium (8,990 kilotonnes)".

The article quoted Jessica Farrell, who is the president of the BHP Nickel West operations:

If we look out to 2030, we see a 60% increase in electric vehicles and then out to 2040 we see that going up another 30%, to 90%.

So, we see an incredibly good trajectory for demand — and that's globally.

We'll also see that transition locally, I think, a lot faster than we expect.

Panoramic Resources share price snapshot

The Panoramic share price is up 48% over the past 12 months and down 14% year to date.

The post Why has the Panoramic Resources share price surged 40% in a month? 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 charging higher:

Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO)

The Core Lithium share price is up over 3% to $1.19. Investors have been buying this lithium developer's shares after it released positive drilling results. Core reported "world-class high-grade lithium intersections" with one hole returning 66.88 metres at 1.78% Li2O. Management also suspects that thickness and grade could improve with depth.

Deterra Royalties Ltd (ASX: DRR)

The Deterra Royalties share price is up 3.5% to $4.47. This follows the release of an update on the company's quarterly royalty revenue. Deterra revealed that royalty receipts reached $113.1 million during the fourth quarter. This brought its full year royalties to $265,2 million. The highlight was Mining Area C, which generated iron ore revenue royalties of $67 million during the quarter.

Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN)

The Panoramic share price is up 10% to 21.5 cents. This morning Panoramic provided an update on its definition drilling at the Savannah Nickel Project in Western Australia. Results from the first two drill fans above the 900 Fault have the potential to significantly increase the Savannah Mineral Resource in this area of the mine. They also support the development of a second mining front to support mining operations at Savannah North.

Qualitas Ltd (ASX: QAL)

The Qualitas share price has jumped 24% to $2.08. Investors have been scrambling to buy this alternative real estate investment manager's shares after it secured commitments for a mandate to invest $700 million on behalf of a new fully discretionary investment vehicle. The mandate is from a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

The post Why Core Lithium, Deterra, Panoramic, and Qualitas shares are racing higher appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Nickel explorers in the red today include Nickel Mines Ltd (ASX: NIC), Mincor Resources NL (ASX: MCR), Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN), and IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO). By comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) is down 0.91% at the time of writing.

Let's take a look at why nickel shares are having such a tough day on Wednesday.

Nickel outlook

The IGO share price is down 13% at the time of writing with Nickel Mines 4.12% lower. Meanwhile, Mincor Resources is down 4.69% while Panoramic Resources is 6.78% in the red.

ASX nickel shares appear to be falling in response to nickel price pressure and a note out of Goldman Sachs.

The nickel price has fallen 3% today to $28,343 per tonne, Trading Economics data shows.

But it seems the Goldman Sachs Group may have had the most impact. The broker has predicted key battery metals, including nickel, cobalt, and lithium, could drop over the next two years, Bloomberg reported.

Analysts Nick Snowdon and Aditi Rai predicted nickel will rise 20% this year before being driven down by "fundamental pressures".

Nickel is a crucial component in electric vehicle batteries. 

The analysts also expressed overall concern the battery metals bull market is over. They said:

Investors are fully aware that battery metals will play a crucial role in the 21st century global economy.

Yet despite this exponential demand profile, we see the battery metals bull market as over for now.

Nickel Mines held its annual general meeting yesterday. In a presentation titled "Building a Nickel Empire", the company highlighted it plans to become among the top 10 nickel producers in the world.

Share price recap

While these four ASX nickel shares may be down today, overall they have surged over the past year.

Mincor shares have exploded 133% in the past 12 months while Panoramic shares have soared 67%. The Nickel Mines share price has jumped 21% and IGO shares are 44% higher.

In comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has returned around 1% in the past year.

The post Why are ASX nickel shares tumbling today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Nickel shares on the ASX include Nickel Mines Ltd (ASX: NIC), Mincor Resources NL (ASX: MCR), Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN), and IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO). The S&P/ASX 200 Resources Index (ASX: XJR) is 5.14% lower at the time of writing.

Let's take a look at why these shares are suffering today.

Nickel prices fall

The Nickel Mines share price is down 3.8% today and, at the time of writing, Mincor is trading 4.12% lower. Meanwhile, IGO is 6.45% in the red while Panoramic Resources is down 4.48%.

It seems volatility in world nickel markets is returning with the price of nickel on the London Metal Exchange "moving erratically", Trading Economics reported.

The nickel price fell 1.4% in a day on global markets to US$32,607 per tonne. Shanghai's most active nickel contract also dropped more than 3%, according to a report cited by NAB trade.

This is in stark contrast to early March when the nickel price briefly hit more than US$100,000 per tonne. This led to the London Metal Exchange (LME) freezing trading of the commodity for a few days. In the past year, the nickel price has skyrocketed 96%.

On Friday, Mincor Resources reported it is on the verge of reaching nickel producer status. The company's first nickel concentrate is expected in the June quarter. Mincor has cash in the bank of $84.4 million.

Meantime, Nickel Mines will release its quarterly results on Thursday 28 April.

Share price recap

The Nickel Mines share price has dropped more than 11% in the past year while Mincor has surged 136%. The Panoramic share price has also soared. It's 117% higher in the past year while IGO has rocketed 77%.

In contrast, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has returned 4% in the past year.

The post What's happening to ASX nickel shares today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The ASX nickel share finished the day at 36.5 cents, a 10.61% gain. In contrast, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) climbed 0.19% today.

Let's take a look at why this ASX nickel share had such a stellar day.

'Standout' drill results

Panoramic reported promising drill results from the company's Savannah Nickel Project in Western Australia.

The company said the "standout" drill result was drill hole KUD1891. This returned an upper and lower mineralisation lens intersection of 40.55m at 1.96% Nickel, 0.75% copper, and 0.15% cobalt.

Drill hole KUD1871 returned upper mineralisation lens intersection of 16 metres at 2.08% nickel, 0.8% copper, and 0.16% cobalt. Meanwhile, drill hole 1874 delivered an intersection of 1.93% nickel, 1.01% copper, and 0.14% cobalt.

The company said these intersections were both thicker and higher grade than predicted.

Managing director and CEO Victor Rajasooriar said the results provide strong confidence in the company's life of the mine plan and the future of the Savannah Nickel Operation. He added:

The continued success of drilling in the new Upper Splay in the Eastern Zone of Savannah North may also add to our mining inventory which is also very pleasing.

We look forward to announcing more drill results from both areas in due course.

Share price snapshot

The Panoramic share price has soared 170% in the past year while it is up 35% year to date.

In contrast, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has returned about 10% in the past year.

Panoramic has a market capitalisation of about $748.6 million based on its current share price

The post Why did this ASX nickel share surge 11% today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Four ASX nickel shares that finished in the green include Mincor Resources NL (ASX: MCR), Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN), IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO) and Western Areas Ltd (ASX: WSA).

Let's take a closer look at their performance today.

Nickel buying frenzy shoots price to record highs

ASX nickel shares jumped today after nickel prices continued to explode in international markets overnight.

By the close of trade on Wednesday, Mincor shares had climbed 2.93%, Panoramic shares were up 3.23%, the IGO share price jumped 2.19% and Western Areas finished 1.73% higher.

Nickel prices hit record highs above US$100,000 a tonne overnight. The metal surged 400% compared to Friday's close, according to a report on NAB trade.

In response to these unprecedented prices, the London Metal Exchange suspended nickel trading until at least Friday.

Nickel prices have rocketed 104.49% in a month and 200.57% in a year, trading economics data reveals.

In a report from Thomson Reuters cited by NAB, ING analysts said Nickel is clearly trading in crisis mode.

Fundamentals, though supportive of stronger prices, do not justify this frenzy. The market has long faced structural issues.

Nickel is a crucial component in electric batteries. In a company presentation reported to the market yesterday, Mincor noted electric vehicle sales could hit 20 million by 2025 and more than 70 million by 2040. The company added:

High nickel content batteries are the key to longer range, more efficient electric vehicles.

One ASX nickel share that wasn't so lucky today was Nickel Mines Ltd (ASX: NIC). As my Foolish colleagues reported, the company's share price plummeted today, sinking 23% before recovering to finish 4.75% in the red at market close.

ASX nickel share recap

Despite some experts calling it out today as a market frenzy, it's been a big 12 months for ASX nickel shares. Mincor shares have rocketed 115% in the past year, Panoramic is up a whopping 146%, the IGO share price has seen gains of 108% and Western Areas shares surged 50% in this period.

In comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has returned around 4.16% in the past year.

The post Four ASX nickel shares are in the green today. Here's why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

"G'day Fools. If you're like us, you're dismayed by the events taking place in Ukraine. It is an unnecessary humanitarian tragedy. Times like these remind us that money is important, but other things are far more valuable. And yet the financial markets remain open, shares are trading, and our readers and members are looking to us for guidance. So, we'll do our best to continue to serve you, while also hoping for a swift and peaceful end to war in Ukraine."

____________________ 

ASX mining shares with an interest in nickel are rising today amid a surge in the price of the key commodity. The nickel price is booming on global markets amid supply concerns over the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Four ASX nickel shares include Nickel Mines Ltd (ASX: NIC), Mincor Resources NL (ASX: MCR), Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN), and IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO).

Let's take a look at how these nickel shares are performing.

Nickel prices explode

The Nickel Mines share price has surged 18% since market close on 24 February. Over the same period, Mincor shares have gained 19%, Panoramic Resources has rocketed 37%, and IGO Resources has soared 24%.

These ASX mining shares are seeing steep climbs amid skyrocketing nickel prices. Nickel rocketed 90% to all-time highs on commodity markets on Monday, according to reports on NABtrade.

The nickel price is surging amid supply concerns due to economic sanctions being imposed on Russia. A report from Reuters, cited by NAB, said:

Russia supplies around 10% of the world's nickel, and investors fear that Western sanctions against Russia could disrupt air and sea shipments of commodities produced and exported by Russia.

The nickel price hit $55,000 a tonne earlier in the trading session on the London Metal Exchange. At the time of writing, it is up nearly 73% to $50,300 a tonne.

Panoramic recently provided an update on its drilling at the company's Savannah Nickel Project in Western Australia. Drilling at the mine identified a new zone of semi-massive mineralisation. Commenting on the news, CEO Victor Rajasooriar said:

Pleasingly, in our first hole, we have intersected an unexpected splay which has the potential to add additional metal to our mining inventory

This morning, Mincor Resources released a copy of a company presentation at the Euroz Hartleys Conference on Rottnest Island. Mincor described its Cassini mine as Australia's "newest high-grade underground nickel operation" on the cusp of production.

The company said demand for clean nickel will rise with the increasing electric vehicle uptake. Mincor presented figures showing annual passenger EV sales could hit 20 million by 2025 and more than 70 million by 2040.

Share price snapshot

The Nickel Mines share price has surged 29% in the past year while Mincor has gained 124%. Panoramic has rocketed 146%, while IGO has shot up 110%.

Year to date, the Nickel Mines share price is up 19%. Meanwhile, Mincor has gained 28%, Panoramic is 20% higher, and IGO has increased by 17%.

For perspective, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has returned around 5% over the past year.

The post The price of nickel is soaring and these ASX mining shares are cashing in 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 sinking:

AVZ Minerals Ltd (ASX: AVZ)

The AVZ share price is down 7.5% to 80 cents. This is despite there being no news out of the lithium explorer. However, it is worth noting that the AVZ share price has more than quadrupled in value over the last 12 months. This could have led to some investors taking a bit of profit off the table on Tuesday.

Kogan.com Ltd (ASX: KGN)

The Kogan share price is down a further 6.5% to $7.47. Investors have been selling this ecommerce company's shares following another disappointing update from a peer (more on that below). This follows an update from the Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) owned Catch business on Monday which revealed sales growth of just 1% during the first half.

Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN)

The Panoramic Resources share price is down 2% to 27 cents. This morning analysts at Morgans downgraded this miner's shares to a hold rating with a 28 cents price target. The broker doesn't see enough value in its shares following a strong gain over the last 12 months.

Redbubble Ltd (ASX: RBL)

The Redbubble share price has crashed 21% to $2.36. Investors have been selling this ecommerce company's shares following the release of a disappointing trading update. The heavily shorted company reported gross transaction value (GTV) of $381 million, down 14% decline over the prior corresponding period. Things got worse for its earnings, with EBITDA crashing 84% to just $8 million. Increased competition in the second quarter weighed heavily on its margins.

The post Why AVZ, Kogan, Panoramic, and Redbubble shares are sinking appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Tech shares led Friday's sell off, which saw the ASX 200 lose close to 1%, and erase the mild gains it had built up on Wednesday and Thursday.

Friday's downward move set the tone for the whole week. ASX tech shares dragged the ASX 200 down for the five trading days, with companies like Xero Limited (ASX: XRO), Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT), Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) and WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) all lost value to varying degrees. Afterpay fared rather well, only dipping 0.66%. In contrast, Appen was one of the worst ASX tech performers, shedding a nasty 9%.

ASX tech shares lead market sell off, blue chips close behind

But it wasn't only ASX tech shares feeling the pain. All four of the major ASX banks lost value as well, with Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ) copping the worst of it with a 1.7% loss for the week. Other ASX blue chips weren't helping. Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) was also down 1.7% over the week, as was Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG). Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) also lost a touch more than 1%.

In contrast, Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW), its recent spin-off Endeavour Group Ltd (ASX: EDV) and Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) all had a positive week, putting a stopper in the ASX 200's overall losses. The big ASX miners also helped. BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) firmed close to 2% over the week, while Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) put on 1.2%. Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) managed a 2.14% gain as well.

Some other ASX winners included Sydney Airport Holdings Pty Ltd (ASX: SYD), which jumped 35% at one point on Monday after a takeover bid was lobbed its way (more on that later). Challenger Ltd (ASX: CGF) also benefitted similarly, rising 14% at one point. Except the news that got investors hot under the collar with the latter was a group of institutional investors fighting over a large stake of its shares.

How did the markets end the week?

As we've flagged, it wasn't a great week for ASX shares.

Monday started things off with a mild gain of 0.09%. Tuesday saw the ASX go into reverse, with a loss of 0.73%. But Wednesday and Thursday saw the strongest days for the share market, with back to back gains of 0.9% and 0.2% respectively.

But it was Friday's loss of 0.93% that really set the tone for the week, and sealed the loss.  Overall, the index started the week out at 7,308.6 points and ended it at 7,273.3 points – a fall of 0.48%.

Meanwhile, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) also had a rather disappointing week. The All Ords started out at 7,587.1 points and finished up at 7,545.3 points – meaning it fared even worse than the ASX 200 with a loss of 0.55%.

Which ASX 200 shares were the biggest winners and losers?

It's now time for our salacious Foolish gossip pages section, where we look at the ASX 200's best winners and poorest losers of the week gone by. So get the coffee brewing as we, as always, start with the losers:

Healthcare company Polynovo was the ASX 200 wooden spooner last week, with a hefty 13.4% slide in value. Despite the size of this drop, there really wasn't too much to report on for Polynovo last week. Looking at it another way though, and Polynovo has been on a downwards slide for a few months now. So perhaps this is just the latest chapter in that story.

Media company Nine also had a week to forget. There wasn't any major news out of Nine last week either. But perhaps the fine that the Australian consumer watchdog levied against Nine last Friday was still bumming investors out here.

Close behind Nine was pharma company Clinuvel. Again there wasn't much to report from the company last week. However, as my Fool colleague James noted on Monday, Clinuvel's CEO Philippe Wolgen has been selling some shares lately, which may have gotten investors a little pessimistic on this one.

And finally, ASX tech company Appen was another poor performer. This may have been caused by the general market distaste for ASX tech shares last week. Another thing that might have been at play here was news of a major shareholder selling out of its position in recent weeks, not too long after the investor started buying into Appen. Not exactly confidence-building stuff.

Now with the losers out of the way, let's check out some of last week's ASX 200 winners:

As we discussed earlier, Sydney Airport was the winning ASX 200 share last week. This dramatic boost in valuation came after a consortium of infrastructure investors approached Sydney Airport with an $8.25 per share all-cash takeover offer. The Airport hasn't announced a final position on the offer, but has noted that its valuation has been 'temporarily' affected by the pandemic.

Gold miner Resolute was another winner last week. Gold prices have recently climbed back above US$1,800 per ounce, so this might be why investors were bidding up Resolute, despite no other major news out of the company.

Engineering company Perenti was also in demand. We can probably point to a new contract Perenti has signed with nickel company Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN) here. It will be worth around $280 million over four years for Perenti.

And finally, we have what is turning into a bit of a recovery story with A2 Milk. This embattled dairy company was up 10.4% last week to $7.20 per share. Since bottoming out at $5.04 back in May, A2 is now up more than 40%. Saying that, it remains down more than 38% year to date. The catalyst for this latest move appears to be a proposed acquisition of 75% of New Zealand's Mataura Valley Milk which the company flagged last week.

A wrap of the ASX 200 blue-chip shares

Just before we go, here is a look at how the major ASX 200 blue-chip shares are faring as we commence yet another week in paradise:

And finally, here is the lay of the land for some leading market indicators:

• S&P/ASX 200 Index (XJO) at 7,273.6 points.
• All Ordinaries Index (XAO) at 7,545.3 points.
• Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) at 34,870 points after rising 1.3% on Friday night (our time).
• Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) going for US$33,931 per coin.
• Gold (spot) swapping hands for US$1,808 per troy ounce.
• Iron ore asking US$214 per tonne.
• Crude oil (Brent) trading at US$75.55 per barrel.
• Australian dollar buying 74.85 US cents.
• 10-year Australian Government bonds yielding 1.36% per annum.

That's all folks. See you next week!

The post ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: COVID wobbles ASX as shares retreat appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

These are ASX nickel miners as the broker lifted its price forecast for the commodity due to growing demand from battery makers.

Nickel is a key ingredient in batteries that are used by electric car manufacturers, such as Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA).

The nickel price on supercharge

Traditional car makers are also joining the electrification rush. The world's largest car maker, Volkswagen (VW), is on track to become a market leader, reported CNN.

VW sold 231,600 battery electric vehicles in 2020. While that's less than half of what Tesla sold, it still represents a 214% increase over the previous year.

The price of electric cars are also dropping fast. Even Tesla is committing to building budget models that will narrow the gap between combustion engine and electric vehicles. Falling prices will be a major catalyst for mass adoption.

ASX nickel miners with the biggest upgrades

Macquarie boosted its FY21 and FY22 nickel price forecast by 7% and 8%, respectively. It also upgraded its medium-term assumptions with price increases of 11% to 13% for each of the following three years to FY25, when the nickel is tipped to fetch US$8.28 a pound.

This means significant valuation upgrades for ASX nickel producers. The Western Areas Ltd (ASX: WSA) share price sees the biggest uplift to its FY21 earnings forecast due to its large leverage to the nickel price.

Macquarie increased its earnings estimates on the miner by 106% for the current financial year and 182% in FY22.

Best ASX nickel stocks to buy

The broker's price target on the WSA share price is boosted by 18% to $3.30 a share and it's one of Macquarie's favourite buys in the sector.

The other is the Nickel Mines Ltd (ASX: NIC) share price with Macquarie lifting its FY22 earnings forecast by 44% and FY23 forecast by 65%.

This sees the NIC share price target improve by 17% to $1.40 a share.

ASX nickel explorers to watch

But the stock that got the biggest valuation boost is the yet-to-turn-a-profit Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN) share price.

Its price target got a 23% supercharge to 16 cents, although Macquarie prefers the Mincor Resources NL (ASX: MCR) share price among explorers. The broker would pick Mincor over Panoramic for the former's development and exploration upside.

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Nickel makes batteries more energy dense, so they can last longer between charges, increasing the range of electric vehicles. The nickel price fell from around US$14,000 a tonne at the start of the year to around US$11,000 a tonne in March on virus fears. Covid-19 subsequently disrupted mines and refineries globally, with a shortage of supply pushing the price back up to around US$13,500 a tonne currently. 

So, if you want to get on the nickel bandwagon, here are 2 ASX shares with exposure to the metal. 

Western Areas Ltd (ASX: WSA)

Western Areas is a leading nickel producer with 2 of the highest grade nickel mines in the world. The company has operations located 400km east of Perth in Western Australia (WA). It is currently developing a third mine 30km north of Leinster in WA. 

Western Areas released its quarterly activities report last week. The company produced 20,926 nickel tonnes in concentrate, which was 99.7% of guidance. According to the company, unplanned downtime throughout June relating to power supply accounted for the shortfall. Western Areas reports that it finished the FY20 financial year with $144.8 million cash at bank and no debt. The most significant cashflow item for the quarter was the $28.6 million paid for a 19.9% investment in Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN). 

Panoramic Resources 

Panoramic Resources is a mining and exploration company with expertise in nickel, copper, and cobalt sulphide projects. It operates a nickel sulphide mine and processing plant in the East Kimberley region of WA, the Savannah Nickel Project. Panoramic decided to suspend operations at Savannah on 15 April. The decision was based on the combination of significant operational uncertainty, disruptions, and cost escalation caused by COVID-19 restrictions. Prior to the suspension, 16,459 tonnes of ore were mined.

Panoramic recently undertook a $128 million capital raising to repay debt facilities and provide funds for working capital purposes. This will also fund certain development activities at Savannah and some exploration activities. 

Foolish takeaway

EV producers are looking to reduce the use of cobalt in EVs due to soaring costs. This means they are turning to nickel. ASX nickel shares should see increasing demand as use of electric vehicles increases. 

The post Elon Musk wants more nickel. Here are 2 ASX shares set to charge up on increased demand appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The information technology sector finished the week marginally higher with the S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) up just under 2%. The healthcare sector, however, was down, as were industrials. A number of blue chip shares dropped last week, including both Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL), which fell 2% and Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW), which fell 0.6%. Miners and telecommunications shares were also weak with Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) falling 3.8% and BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) down 2.2%. On that note, let's take a look at the ASX 200's biggest share price fallers last week. 

Alumina Limited (ASX: AWC) 

The Alumina share price fell 7.2% last week to finish the week at $1.67. There was no news out of the aluminium and bauxite miner to prompt the fall in the share price, however the  price had risen strongly the previous week. The previous share price rise was prompted by the announcement Alumina had received more cash than expected from its aluminium joint venture. 

Alumina owns 40% of Alcoa World Alumina & Chemicals (AWAC), the western world's largest alumina business. AWAC achieved record quarterly daily production despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and Alumina received $58.6 million of net cash distributions. The price of alumina has decreased since the start of 2020, but has risen from a low of $225 per tonne in April to $284 per tonne as at 16 July. Escalating political tensions between the United States and China do not bode well for the price, however, as these tensions hurt demand last year. 

Cooper Energy Ltd (ASX: COE) 

The Cooper Energy share price fell 7.1% last week to close the week at 39 cents. Cooper Energy is an oil and gas company supplying customers including AGL Energy Limited (ASX: AGL) and Origin Energy Ltd (ASX: ORG). Cooper Energy dropped its June quarterly report on Thursday which showed record quarterly production and revenue. But the share price dropped sharply on Friday regardless, with the figures disappointing investors given the share's 16% price rise over the preceding month. 

Cooper Energy reported a 118% increase in quarterly production and 61% increase in quarterly revenue, which reached $24.1 million, up from $15 million the previous quarter. This increase was primarily due to higher gas sales thanks to the first full quarter's supply from the Sole gas field which commenced production in March 2020. Full year production increased 19% and full year sales revenue 3% to $78.1 million. Cash at the end of the quarter was $131.2 million, down from $143.3 million at the beginning of the quarter. Net debt was $98.2 million at 30 June, up from $53.9 million at 30 June 2019. 

Western Areas Ltd (ASX: WSA) 

The Western Areas share price dropped 6.6% last week to finish the week at $2.53. Western areas is a nickel producer with two high-grade nickel mines located in Western Australia and also has a third mine in development. Western Areas released its quarterly activities report last week which showed the company produced 20,926 nickel tonnes in concentrate, 99.7% of guidance. Unplanned downtime in June relating to power supply interruptions caused the variance. 

The nickel price is well down from highs seen a year ago but has gained ground from its low in March. The average nickel price in the June quarter was $8.50 per pound, slightly up on the March quarter's $8.40 per pound. Western Areas reports that it finished the FY20 financial year with $144.8 million cash at bank and no debt. The most significant cash flow item for the quarter was the $28.6 million paid for its 19.9% investment in Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN). 

TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPG) 

The TPG share price fell 6.1% last week to close the week at $8.02. The share price fell as low $7.50 on Friday but then bounced back somewhat, perhaps on speculation it had been oversold. There was no news out of the telecommunications provider to prompt the price fall. But the telecommunications sector on the whole was out of favour last week, with the S&P/ASX 200 Communication Index (ASX: XTJ) falling 2.3%. 

TPG is the result of the $15 billion merger with Vodafone, a deal that was first announced in August 2018. It took nearly two years to implement the deal after the ACCC opposed the merger. Approval from the Federal Court in February allowed the two to join forces. Previously, TPG was missing a proper mobile arm and Vodafone missing a fixed line footprint. The merger allows them both to fulfil their ambitions. 

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (ASX: URW)

The Unibail share price dropped 6% last week to finish the week at $3.89. There was no news out of the shopping centre operator to prompt the fall in the share price, however investor concerns around the role of its commercial properties in a post-COVID-19 world may have prompted the sell off. Unibail runs retail properties, convention centres, and office buildings in Europe and North America. The Unibail share price is now down 61% over the past year. 

The fall in Unibail's share price means it was removed from the S&P/ASX 100 (ASX: XTO) in the most recent quarterly rebalance. Although the majority of the company's shopping centres have reopened, performance has been mixed across jurisdictions. With 86% of Unibail's portfolio in retail assets, the ongoing economic downturn is likely to have a significant impact on its tenants. 

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

The Auscann Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: AC8) share price is down 4.5% to 32 cents. This follows the release of the medicinal cannabis company's second quarter update. Some investors may be concerned with the company's cash burn. If it continues at the same rate then AusCann may require some additional funding in 2021. Though, the upcoming launch of its first medicinal cannabis products could push this back.

The Nearmap Ltd (ASX: NEA) share price has crashed 25% lower to $1.82 after being the latest company to downgrade its guidance. This downgrade was made following the loss of a major contract and two churn/downgrade events. Management has reduced its FY 2020 annualised contract value (ACV) guidance to the range of $102 million to $110 million. This compares to its previous guidance of $116 million to $120 million.

The Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN) share price has dropped a massive 23% to 21.5 cents. Investors have been selling the nickel producer's shares after it downgraded its short-term production outlook for the Savannah Nickel Mine. Total FY 2020 nickel production is now expected to be 5.2kt to 5.6kt, compared to its previous guidance of 7kt – 7.5kt. Similar downgrades have also been made to copper and cobalt production.

The Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) share price is down 5.5% to $12.18. This latest decline appears to be due to concerns over the impact of coronavirus on the travel industry. A number of airlines have suspended flights to mainland China amid concerns over the spread of the virus. Webjet isn't the only travel share tumbling lower. Almost all of its industry peers are deep in the red today.

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Today, Independence Group gave an update about its the takeover offer. As a reminder, it dropped the takeover offer because of the breach of certain conditions of the offer.

However, today the company announced that it has decided to grant all Panoramic shareholders who have accepted the offer a right to withdraw their acceptance. That means Panoramic shareholders who exercise their withdrawal right will have the ability to deal with their shares with their withdrawal being processed which could happen before the lapse of the offer on 17 January 2020.

Independence Group's Managing Director and CEO Peter Bradford said: "IGO recognises that under the customary terms of IGO's offer, Panoramic shareholders who have accepted the offer would be unable to trade their Panoramic shares until the offer has lapsed on 17 January 2020. 

"To alleviate the potential disadvantages of this for accepting Panoramic shareholders, IGO determined, in line with its values and standards, to grant Panoramic shareholders who have accepted the offer a right to withdraw their acceptances prior to the offer lapsing. This will provide accepting Panoramic shareholders the opportunity to freely deal with their Panoramic shares earlier than they would be able to in the ordinary course."

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

The ARQ Group Ltd (ASX: ARQ) share price is down 5% to 36 cents. This decline means the IT company's shares have given back all their gains since they charged higher following a strategic review update on Christmas Eve. That update revealed that its lenders have continued to be supportive despite it breaching its debt covenants. Management also reaffirmed its recently downgraded EBITDA guidance for calendar year 2019.

The Australian Ethical Investment Limited (ASX: AEF) share price has fallen 5% to $3.50. This is despite there being no news out of the ethical investment company. However, with its shares up significantly year to date, this decline could be due to profit taking from some investors. Australian Ethical Investment recently provided its half year guidance. It expects an underlying profit after tax of between $4.2 million and $4.6 million. The mid-point of this range represents a 38.7% increase.

The Objective Corporation Limited (ASX: OCL) share price has dropped 4.5% to $6.25. The catalyst for this might be news that independent non-executive director, Nick Kingsbury, recently sold a large number of shares. The director offloaded 120,000 shares for a total consideration of $704,790.

The Panoramic Resources Ltd (ASX: PAN) share price has crashed 19% lower to 32.7 cents. This follows news that Independence Group NL (ASX: IGO) has pulled the plug on its takeover approach for its fellow nickel producer. Independence intends to let its takeover offer lapse on the evening of January 17. According to the release, it made the move after a number of defeating conditions of its offer were breached.

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At the time of writing the Independence Group share price is up 2% to $6.36. Whereas the Panoramic Resources share price is down a sizeable 20%.

What was announced?

Independence Group has advised its shareholders that it plans to let its takeover offer lapse on the evening of January 17.

According to the release, a number of defeating conditions of the offer have been breached. This includes issues relating to its production guidance, financing agreement, and the technical expert's report.

Given the significance of these conditions to the offer, management has determined that it does not intend to waive these breaches or extend the offer period. As a result, the offer will lapse at 7pm Sydney time on January 17.

Investors that have already accepted the offer will have their acceptances cancelled and will now be free to deal with their Panoramic shares as they see fit.

Independence Group's managing director and CEO, Peter Bradford, explained: "Any M&A must deliver a return to our shareholders. At announcement, IGO's off market takeover bid for Panoramic, which was based on the public disclosure of the 2017 Savannah Project feasibility study, represented a potential "win win" for both IGO and Panoramic shareholders."

"The subsequent disclosures by Panoramic, including the operational update and need for additional funding have significantly eroded the value proposition for IGO and its shareholders. Consequently, we have decided to allow the Offer for Panoramic to lapse. This decision reflects our disciplined approach to M&A," Mr Bradford concluded.

Independence Group had offered 1 of its own shares for every 13 Panoramic shares, implying an offer price of 47.6 cents per share.

This offer looked doomed to fail from the very beginning, though. Panoramic warned that the offer was highly conditional, opportunistic, and urged shareholders to reject it. Another issue was that Panoramic's major shareholder, Zeta Resources Ltd (ASX: ZER), advised that it would not accept it.

So it's back to the drawing board for Independence Group. Not that its shareholders seem to mind, judging by its share price rise.

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