Here's why the broker currently rates them as buys:

Airtasker Ltd (ASX: ART)

Morgans was pleased with this small jobs marketplace provider's performance in the first half of FY 2026. It notes that the company delivered double-digit revenue growth thanks to solid performances at home and overseas.

In response, the broker has retained its buy rating with a trimmed price target of 51 cents. It said:

It was a resilient 1H26 result for Airtasker, delivering ~13.5% group revenue growth to ~A$29m. Its established marketplaces saw EBITDA growth of ~11% to ~A$15m. Domestic metrics appear sound (e.g. uptick in booked tasks and brand salience), and we remain pleased with the momentum seen in ART's offshore marketplace build-out (UK/US revenue +85% and 380% on the pcp respectively).

We make minor adjustments to our topline forecasts (details below), we also include the additional $5m cash marketing costs into our 2H numbers along with the recent capital raise. Our price target is lowered to A$0.51. Buy maintained.

Epiminder Ltd (ASX: EPI)

Another small-cap ASX share that has been given the thumbs up by Morgans is Epiminder.

Morgans notes that there were no surprises with its half-year results, with everything in line with expectations. As a result, the broker has reaffirmed its speculative buy rating and $2.33 price target on its shares. It said:

Debut 1HFY26 results held no material surprises relative to IPO disclosures, and are more strategically important than financially complex. Since listing, EPI has secured a favourable Medicare reimbursement ruling, completed the first US Minder implant and signed nine Tier-1 US centres for DETECT, albeit enrolment remains early (3 patients to date).

Cash runway is confirmed through DETECT completion and G1 development into CY28, with execution on enrolment cadence now the key swing factor for sentiment. We make no changes to our FY26-28 forecasts or A$2.33 DCF-based target price. SPECULATIVE BUY rating maintained.

SomnoMed Ltd (ASX: SOM)

A third small-cap ASX share that is being tipped as a buy by Morgans is SomnoMed.

It highlights that the sleep disorder treatment company has started FY 2026 positively and is in a good position to achieve its full-year guidance.

As a result, it has retained its speculative buy rating and 99 cents price target on its shares. It commented:

SOM's 1H26 result places the company in a strong position to deliver at least the low end of its FY26 guidance, with clear upside potential. The half delivered solid double-digit revenue growth, meaningful operating leverage and significantly improved manufacturing efficiency, giving SOM a structurally strong base heading into 2H.

With around half of revenue and the majority of EBITDA already achieved in 1H, the 2H requirements to meet both the low and high ends of guidance appear modest and achievable. Continued momentum across Europe and North America, combined with expanded capacity and improved turnaround times, provides a credible pathway for SOM to finish the year toward the upper end of its range if current trends persist. No change to valuation or positive outlook but note upside risk as 2H progresses.

The post Morgans names 3 small-cap ASX shares to buy appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Here are three of the best-performing ASX healthcare shares and why they are rising on Friday.

3 ASX healthcare shares zooming higher on positive news

4DMedical Ltd (ASX: 4DX)

The 4DMedical share price is up 7.9% at 61 cents per share at the time of writing.

The respiratory imaging technology company's shares are lifting on news of a commercial agreement with Qscan Radiology Clinics (QScan).

The contract follows a successful pilot of 4DMedical's products with Qscan, which is a leading provider of diagnostic imaging services in Queensland.

Under the deal, Qscan will offer 4DMedical's respiratory imaging solutions at select practices in Brisbane.

This is the first Australian contract for 4DMedical that incorporates products from both its pulmonary function and pulmonary structure suites, including CT LVAS.

4DMedical CEO and founder Andreas Fouras said:

Momentum continues to build with the commercialisation of our technology across the US and Australia.

Paradigm Biopharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: PAR)

The Paradigm Biopharmaceuticals share price is 5.7% higher at 47 cents per share.

Paradigm is an ASX biotech that is focused on repurposing Pentosan Polysulfate Sodium (PPS) for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis.

The company announced today that it has received a $6,300,438 research and development (R&D) tax incentive refund from the Australian Government for the 2024 financial year.

This raises the company's current cash balance to approximately $31 million.

Paradigm managing director Paul Rennie commented:

With our cash position further boosted with this incentive refund, we are well-positioned to progress our Phase 3 clinical trial activities and subject recruitment in Australia.

The R&D tax incentive program is designed to encourage innovation through R&D activities in
Australia. Eligible companies can receive refundable cash offsets of 43.5% for qualifying R&D costs.

Somnomed Ltd (ASX: SOM)

The Somnomed share price is 6.7% higher at 64 cents per share.

Somnomed designs and manufactures oral treatments for sleep-related breathing disorders and obstructive sleep apnea.

The company released its December quarter activities report and FY25 guidance update today.

Somnomed reported 2Q FY25 revenue of $28.5 million, up 19.8% on the prior corresponding period (pcp).

Net cash inflow from operating activities was positive at $1.5 million.

The cash balance at the end of the quarter was $18.5 million, with a $1 million unsecured loan facility in Europe fully drawn.

For FY25, the company now expects revenue of approximately $105 million and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) of between $7 million and $9 million.

It expects capex costs of between $3 million to $4 million.

The post 3 ASX healthcare stocks soaring on positive company updates appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

At the smaller end of town, two healthcare players have come in with solid results on Wednesday. These are Pacific Smiles Group Ltd (ASX: PSQ) and SomnoMed Ltd (ASX: SOM).

Both stocks are now in the green after their annual numbers. Let's take a look at what they posted.

ASX healthcare shares post FY24 numbers

Pacific Smiles reported a strong performance for FY24, with patient fees rising 7.9% to $291.8 million.

The ASX healthcare share's revenue grew by 8.7% to around $180 million, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) surged by 17% over the year.

The company also repaid all borrowings during the year, ending the period debt-free and with $17.7 million in net cash.

This prompted the Board to declare a final fully franked dividend of 3.25 cents per share, bringing the total payout to 5.35 cents.

CEO Andrew Vidler expressed satisfaction with the company's performance:

We are exceptionally pleased with this year's result, which is a real testament to the team's commitment. Our focus on the utilisation of existing centres and to drive growth in patient fees has underpinned this performance.

Utilisation has improved across the business, especially among our newer cohorts. Our revenue growth and ongoing efficiency improvements drove margin improvement, offsetting the impact of inflationary cost pressures.

Looking ahead, Pacific Smiles remains focused on extending the benefits of its service model to more dentists and patients across Australia.

This performance also underscores the increasing importance patients place on preventive dental care and long-term oral health management. As more individuals commit to routine examinations, timely treatments, and structured care plans, practices are able to strengthen both clinical outcomes and operational stability.

Consistency in service delivery, efficient use of facilities, and a clear patient-focused approach remain critical drivers of sustainable growth. Desert Springs Dental Care las vegas illustrates how disciplined operations combined with strong patient engagement can support improved access to quality dentistry while maintaining financial resilience.

By continuing to align clinical excellence with efficient service models, the sector is well positioned to expand its reach and elevate oral health standards across communities.

The ASX healthcare share's FY25 performance is off to a strong start. Patient fees were up 10.9% year over year as of late August, totalling $50 million.

SomnoMed posts steady growth

SomnoMed also delivered a positive performance for FY24, with revenues reaching $91 million, up 9.6% from the previous year.

Despite this, gross margins tightened 300 basis points year over year to 69%. Whereas EBITDA came in line with expectations at $0.6 million.

Sales in its North American market were up 9% on the prior year, driven by "productivity optimisation, with record revenues in Q4…".

Meanwhile, in Europe, revenues were up nearly 11% at $52 million.

SomnoMed also incurred one-off restructuring costs of $3 million, which are expected to yield annualised savings of $5 million from the first quarter of FY25.

The ASX healthcare share's global patient base now exceeds 910,000, demonstrating its broad reach and impact in the sleep apnea treatment market.

Looking forward to FY25, SomnoMed has set ambitious targets, aiming for revenue of approximately $100 million and EBITDA of more than $5 million.

And it's already off to a decent start, according to the company:

Trading in the first 8 weeks of FY25 has seen revenue up approximately 20% year on year, on the back of the reduction of backlog and strong sales results. There is an expectation that growth will slow in the remaining quarters as the backlog is cleared. We have factored these dynamics into the FY25 guidance.

ASX healthcare shares snapshot

Investors in these ASX healthcare shares will likely be smiling after the companies produced reasonably strong FY24 earnings results.

In the last 12 months, Pacific Smiles shares are up 33%, whereas SonoMed shares have slipped 32% into the red.

The post 2 small ASX healthcare shares sprouting green after FY24 results 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:

Cardno Ltd (ASX: CDD)

The Cardno share price is down 46% to 33 cents. This has been driven by the professional infrastructure and environmental services company's shares going ex-dividend this morning. Last week, the company announced plans to distribute an unfranked dividend of 27.6 cents per share to shareholders. This equates to a total return of $10.8 million. This reflects the repatriation of US$5.9 million of collections related to three positive legal claims and $1.5 million from the sale of Cardno International Development to DT Global Australia. This dividend will be paid to eligible shareholders later this month on 29 April.

Mesoblast Ltd (ASX: MSB)

The Mesoblast share price is down 2.5% to 88.7 cents. This is despite there being no news from the allogeneic cellular medicines developer. However, it is worth noting that its shares have been on fire in recent weeks, so profit-taking could be happening today. For example, Mesoblast's shares remain up approximately 175% since this time last month. This has been driven by excitement over recent correspondence from the US Food and Drug Administration. Investors appear optimistic that one of the company's stem cell therapies could be approved at long last in the near future.

Perseus Mining Ltd (ASX: PRU)

The Perseus Mining share price is down 2.5% to $2.27. This morning, the gold miner announced that its takeover offer for Orecorp Ltd (ASX: ORR) has been given a boost. Perseus revealed that Silvercorp Metals has accepted the company's offer. This is a big win as Silvercorp's holding represents 15.61% of OreCorp shares on issue. This means that Perseus now has a relevant interest of 74.98% of OreCorp shares on issue. However, it seems that investors don't appear overly keen on the proposed takeover.

Somnomed Ltd (ASX: SOM)

The Somnomed share price is down 47% to 20.5 cents. Investors have been hitting the sell button in response to an earnings downgrade and capital raising. Somnomed downgraded its revenue guidance to 6%-9% growth and EBITDA guidance to negative $1 million to $0 million. This compares to previous revenue guidance of 12%+ and EBITDA guidance of $3 million+ for FY 2024. Management blamed manufacturing constraints and delayed implementation of cost initiatives. It also raised approximately $5.8 million at a deep discount of 21 cents per new share.

The post Why Cardno, Mesoblast, Perseus, and Somnomed shares are dropping today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

While the SomnoMed share price has bounced back 67.5% over the past half year, it still remains more than 11% down on this time last year. We take a closer look at what's been impacting the healthcare equipment company's share price.

2020 financial year highlights

The Somnomed AGM presentation from November 2020 draws attention to strong growth in the US and new sales leadership heading up Canada. New key appointments were also announced in Sydney.

Somnomed continued to promote the company's continuous open airway therapy (COAT) technology as a best-in-class treatment for sleep apnea. The company did not offer FY 2021 guidance in its latest report, due to uncertainties created by COVID-19.

Comparing FY19  to FY20, revenue was down 3% and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) took a 5% hit.

Commenting on the company's previous 12-month performance, CEO Neil Verdal-Austin said, "The past 12-months have been a mixed bag of, on the one side an incredible overall performance to March but on the other side, a dramatic and almost reverse of those fortunes in Q4 due to COVID-19."

Why did COVID-19 serve such a harsh blow to the Somnomed share price?

Unfortunately, there are a few middle-men between Somnomed and its customer base. A doctor needs to diagnose a condition, a dentist is then required to fit the COAT device.

During times of lockdowns caused by a global pandemic, people simply can't accommodate these types of services. That means sales go down. 

From a $2.95 close on 20 February 2020 to 91 cents on 06 April 2020, it's very clear that the coronavirus had a fierce impact on the company's shares. 

However, in more positive news, as we move into 2021 Morgans has retained a positive recommendation for Somnomed shares and has increased the target price to $2.55, up from $2.02.

The post What's behind the sleepy Somnomed (ASX:SOM) share price? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The Rhinomed share price rallied 84% ahead of the market close to $0.14 after management said it was developing a COVID-19 nasal swab.

In contrast, the All Ordinaries (Index:^AORD) (ASX:XAO) and the S&P/ASX 200 Index (Index:^AXJO) are flip flopping on both sides of breakeven.

Rhinomed share price charges higher on COVID test

Any company involved in a coronavirus test or treatment have seen their share price rocket. The Starpharama share price has also been on a tear after it revealed plans for a nasal spray that works against the virus that causes COVID-19.

Rhinomed's "high yielding" swab that can collect samples from the nose to test for the presence of upper respiratory tract diseases, including influenza and coronavirus strains.

While there are plenty of swabs that are currently available on the market, Rhinomed believes its expertise in making anti-snoring and sleep improvement nasal devices will help it create a superior product.

A better mousetrap?

The company is designing a swab that will be more comfortable to use than standard swabs and can be self-administered.

The new swab will also collect samples from both nostrils at the same time and over a greater surface area.

"The vast majority of existing nasal swabs require a healthcare worker to collect the sample, which places the healthcare worker at a real risk of infection," said the company in its ASX statement.

"The use of healthcare workers and the requisite personal protection equipment (PPE) also comes with significant cost."

Next steps

Rhinomed is exploring manufacturing options. This could include 3D printing solutions, existing offshore manufacturing resources and local manufacturing alternatives.

The swab will be registered in Australia, US and in the European Union as a Class 1 medical device. The company has begun defining the protocol for a clinical trial to be carried out at a leading Melbourne hospital.

RNO share price up investors' nose

But even with the big gain in the stock today, the stock is still nursing a 40% loss in value over the past year.

In contrast, other medical device stocks have performed much better. The RESMED/IDR UNRESTR (ASX:RMD) share price gained 23% while the Somnomed Limited (ASX: SOM) and Nanosonics Ltd. (ASX: NAN) share price dipped around 8% each.

The post Rhinomed (ASX:RNO) share price tries following Starpharma's path to COVID glory appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Somnomed is a medical company specialising in the treatment of patients suffering from sleep-related disorders such as obstructive sleep apnoea, which the company notes affects up to 9% of women and 25% of men globally. It has over 545,000 patients worldwide and a market capitalisation of $211 million on current prices.

SOM shares closed at $3.30 yesterday but opened at $3.33 this morning and is trending higher since, going for $3.36 at the time of writing – a rise of 2.13%. Earlier this morning, Somnomed's share price touched $3.37, which was a new 52-week high for the company. The Somnomed share price has now risen 106% in the past year.

What did SomnoMed announce today?

Pleasingly for the company, Somnomed announced a 15% increase in revenues to $33.256 million for 1H20, up from 1H19's $28.815 million.

Revenue growth was strongest in the North America region, which saw a 26% increase. European sales saw a 10% rise while the APAC (Asia Pacific, including Australia) region saw an 11% bump.

Earnings before Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Amortisation (EBITDA) came in at $3 million, which is a 130% increase on 1H19's $1.3 million.

Compared with the previous six months (to June 30, 2019), the company has seen its Total Assets rise from $34.8 million to $42.7 million, while Total Liabilities has also increased from $16.9 million to $22.6 million – translating into Net Assets of $20.1 million (up from $17.8 million).

The company (in continuing with its policy in prior years) did not pay a dividend during the period.

Outlook for 2020

Somnomed has reiterated its guidance for FY20, for which it estimates revenues to come in the $67-$69 million range and earnings in the $6.3-$6.7 million range. There is no notice nor indication the payment of a dividend in FY20 will occur.

The company notes that it has nearly 550,000 patients and yet the global addressable market for obstructive sleep apnoea is estimated at roughly 1.36 billion people, with 54 million in the United States of America alone and a further 49 million across France and Germany.

Somnomed is hoping that this large addressable market will provide fertile ground for its new SomnoDent Avant product, which it hopes will prove to be a more comfortable and effective treatment solution for obstructive sleep apnoea.

The post SomnoMed share price rises after reporting positive earnings appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

What does SomnoMed do?

SomonMed is a leading provider of treatment solutions for sleep-related breathing disorders. The company's products and technology address various disorders including obstructive sleep apnoea, snoring and bruxism.

Traditional treatment of Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA) involves either surgery or through devices that offer Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP). Somnomed has pioneered a wide range of clinically proven and researched oral appliances that treat OSA with Continuous Open Airway Therapy (COAT). This therapy is an alternative to other treatment options and has the competitive advantage of being more comfortable and less invasive.

According to SomnoMed, the global addressable market for OSA is approximately $7- $8 billion dollars and growing at a rate of 6% – 8% per annum. SomnoMed currently has operations in the Asia Pacifica Region, North America and Europe.

How SomnoMed performed in the past 12 months?

After struggling in recent years SomnoMed has begun a new journey in the past 12 months with the company overhauling its distribution and sales channels. This turnaround was reflected in the company's share price which has surged nearly 92% in the past 12 months. Signs of recovery were also seen when SomnoMed reported earnings for the full year of FY19.

For the full year SomnoMed saw core business revenues grow 12% to $59 million for the year, whilst underlying EBITDA closed the year 27% higher with a profit of $5 million. For the full year, SomnoMed also saw good progress in overseas markets with sales growth in North America and a 13% revenue growth in Europe.

Outlook

Earlier this week SomnoMed reported its quarterly report for FY20. The report was highlighted by core revenue growth of 19% for the second quarter of $18.7 million. In addition, the company reported record revenue growth of 34% for its core business in Northern America for the three-month period. The European market also saw a 12% growth in revenue, whilst the Asia Pacific Region saw revenue growth of 9% for the second quarter.

SomnoMed recently launched a new signature product called SomnoDent Avant which acts as a digital device. Management is optimistic that this device will be a 'game changer' and allows the company to expand the digital segment and grow its market share as a leading oral appliance company.

For the full year of FY20, SomnoMed provided revenue guidance of between $67 and $69 million, equating to growth between 14% – 17%. EBITDA is also expected to grow between 26% and 34% for the full year to a range between $6.3 and $6.7 million.

The post Why the SomnoMed share price is at a 52-week-high appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Here's a short recap of the Australian market:

• S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) higher 0.50% to 6,724.60
• ALL ORDINARIES (Index: ^AXAO) (ASX: XAO) higher 0.46% to 6,812.50
• AUD/USD at US 70 cents
• Gold at US$1,417.56 an ounce
• Brent Oil at US$63.61 a barrel

The best-performing ASX 200 share today was the share price of Bellamy's Australia Ltd (ASX: BAL) which went up 4.9%.

The Afterpay Touch Group Ltd (ASX: APT) share price increased by 4.3% today, in a strong day for the buy now, pay later sector. Indeed, the Splitit Ltd (ASX: SPT) share price increased by 15.5% after yesterday's new agreement news.

The share price of OZ Minerals Limited (ASX: OZL) grew by 1.2% after releasing its June 2019 quarter report.

The Kogan.Com Ltd (ASX: KGN) share price has gone up 4.8% after giving a business update for the final quarter of FY19.

The share price SDI Limited (ASX: SDI) fell almost 3% due to its trading update for June 2019.

Healthcare business Somnomed Limited (ASX: SOM) saw its share price soar by 16% as it released its June 2019 update.

Finally, the share price of Regis Resources Limited (ASX: RRL) dropped 1.2% as the gold miner issued its quarterly activities report.

Here are some of today's top stories:    

• 3 ASX income shares raising their dividends like clockwork
• Rio Tinto to become world's largest iron ore exporter, time to buy shares?
• Warning: These 5 shares are being heavily shorted
• Sydney and Melbourne house prices are going higher again

The post ALL ORDINARIES finishes higher Tuesday: 8 shares you missed appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The company has been through something of a 'reset' or 'turnaround' year that involved it scrapping some of its third party distribution sales channels to focus on direct sales, with the worse side effects of that decision now starting to cycle out of its accounts. 

The post Is the Somnomed share price a turnaround story? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

For the period it reported an operating cash loss of $2.7 million on operating revenue of $15.9 million, as the business still manages the fallout from its decision to close its Renew Sleep Solutions (RSS) operations in the U.S.

If we back out the loss of revenue from the RSS closures adjusted revenue grew 9% compared to the prior corresponding quarter, but including the RSS losses it dropped 6%.

The stock is down around 33% over the last year on the back of the poor performance of the RSS business that it has decided to close, with the group "realigning" to focus on its two critical sales channels of dentists and sleep physicians.

SomnoMed shares have previously traded as high as $3.93 in January 2018, but sentiment has turned on the back of its recent problems.

The post Is SomnoMed Limited a turnaround story? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

SomnoMed's management admitted there's a "reasonable likelihood" it cannot recover an amount between US$400,000 and US$805,000 which would represent a significant chunk of its forecasted EBITDA between $5 million to $5.5 million for fiscal 2019.

SomnoMed reported that the Texas-based distributor of its products closed down because the economic viability of its business worsened due to changes in "regulations and reimbursement amounts".

The financial hit to SomnoMed is not the end of the world assuming it is a one-off, but the effective closure of a distributor in the U.S.could signal more trouble ahead for investors.

SomnoMed shares are now down around 45% over the past year as this former small-cap market darling shows how small changes in business performance can produce big share price swings.

Another medical device small cap for investors going the other way is Nanosonics Ltd (ASX: NAN), especially after it just revealed strong revenue and profit growth for the half-year ending December 31 2018.

The post Trading update: Here's why the SomnoMed share price is falling today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

• Net profit after tax of $132,000, up 3.9%
• Earnings before interest and tax $136,000, down 4.9%
• Revenue of $9.52m, up 22%
• Earnings per share of 0.21c
• Fully franked interim dividend of 2 cents per share
• Cash on hand of $32.3m
• Penthrox (green whistle) sales up 37%
• Penthrox sales in Europe and UK up 375%
• Other medical device sales up 6%

So why has the Medical Developments share price collapsed in half over the past year?

Despite some strong looking headline numbers MVP shares have fallen as the company has struggled so far to get its key Penthrox (emergency pain relief product used by ambulance crews, field medics, etc) product approved in the lucrative U.S. healthcare market.

Today Medical Developments' management team told investors it expects to meet with the U.S. healthcare regulator the FDA in the final quarter of fiscal 2019 to discuss the FDA's "Clinical Hold" status issued in August 2018 on the Penthrox product.

MVP's management will attend the meeting armed with plenty of new data (including safety and clinical trial data) presumably in order to try and agree some sort of roadmap to get the product approved in the US.

Outside the U.S. problems, sales continue to perform well and the company has big plans to expand further into Europe, Asia, and China. In total it expects to launch the product in another 31 countries over the next 12 months.

The company has a market value around $261 million based on a $3.99 share price, which means a lot of growth is still baked into the valuation despite the precipitous valuation falls recently.

Others in the up-and-coming healthcare space to consider include Nanosonics Ltd (ASX: NAN) or even SomnoMed Limited (ASX: SOM).

The post The Medical Developments share price is now down 49% over the past year appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Total "core" revenue of $15.7 million was 13% above the prior corresponding quarter, however, when including its Renew Sleep Solutions (RSS) business total revenue actually fell 3% over the quarter.

The group is now closing its loss-making RSS business in North America in response to its poor performance that has seen the share price collapse in half over just the past year.

SomnoMed's European operations delivered 14% revenue growth in the quarter and in total over the first half it delivered revenues of $28.8 million, up 15%, when excluding the disastrous performance of the RSS business.

SomnoMed is in a similar space to sleep treatment disorder market leader ResMed Inc. (ASX: RMD) that has seen its shares slammed around 20% since handing in a weaker-than-expected quarterly profit report last Friday morning.

The post Why the SomnoMed Limited share price is falling today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

The Brickworks Limited (ASX: BKW) share price is up 3.5% to $15.52 on the day of its annual general meeting. Ahead of the meeting the building materials company released a first quarter update and its guidance for the full year. Although its Building Products division has had a poor first quarter, a strong performance from its Property division and the Glen-Gery acquisition are expected to "more than offset a decline in Australian Building Products earnings in 2019."

The Nufarm Limited (ASX: NUF) share price is up almost 3.5% to $5.85. The catalyst for this gain is likely to be a broker note out of Credit Suisse this morning which gave Nufarm an outperform rating with an increased price target of $10.16. The broker is bullish on Nufarm's omega-3 canola development and believes that omega-3 demand will increase significantly due to a supply gap in fish oil.

The Somnomed Limited (ASX: SOM) share price has rocketed 25% higher to 20 cents. This morning the sleep treatment company released its annual general meeting presentation which revealed that the company has decided to close all operations of its RSS subsidiary January 1. This business has been a major drag on its performance this year and shareholders appear to believe it is the right move by management.

The Vocus Group Ltd (ASX: VOC) share price is 2% higher at $3.37. This morning the telco company released a change of director's interests notice which revealed that non-executive director, Bruce Akhurst, has been buying shares on market this month. According to the notice, Mr Akhurst picked up 50,000 Vocus shares for a total consideration of $164,844.87. It appears as though this insider sees a lot of value in its shares at this level.

The post Why these 4 ASX shares are storming higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Four shares that have climbed more than most today are listed below. Here's why they have started the week with a bang:

The Cann Group Ltd (ASX: CAN) share price is up 3.5% to $2.45 after the cannabis company announced that it has secured a Victorian government tender. According to the release, Cann will supply the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services with cannabis plant extract (resin). This cannabis resin will undergo further purification and processing into a Victorian Government medicinal cannabis product, which will be used to expand its compassionate access scheme for children with severe and intractable epilepsy.

The Mayne Pharma Group Ltd (ASX: MYX) share price has climbed 4.5% to $1.10. The catalyst for this gain is likely to be a positive broker note out of Credit Suisse this morning. According to the note, the broker has retained its outperform rating and lifted the price target on Mayne Pharma's shares to $1.30.

The ResMed Inc (ASX: RMD) share price has continued its positive run and is up a further 3% to $14.68. The sleep treatment company's shares raced higher on Friday following the release of a strong first quarter result. I think this result demonstrated why ResMed is a great buy and hold option for investors.

The Somnomed Limited (ASX: SOM) share price has rebounded 4.5% to $1.65. Unlike ResMed, this sleep treatment company released a disappointing first quarter result on Friday. Unsurprisingly, this led to its shares being heavily sold off. I suspect that investors believe the selling was overdone and has created a buying opportunity today. However, I would suggest investors stick with ResMed for exposure to the growing market.

The post Why these 4 ASX shares have started the week with a bang appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

The Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) share price has tumbled 6.5% lower to $8.72 after a broker note out of Citi revealed that its analysts had downgraded the gold miner's shares to a neutral rating from buy following the release of its quarterly update. The broker has, however, lifted the price target on its shares to $9.25.

The Premier Investments Limited (ASX: PMV) share price has fallen almost 3.5% to $16.30. Almost all of today's decline can be attributed to the retail conglomerate's shares going ex-dividend this morning for its 33 cents per share final dividend. Eligible shareholders can look forward to receiving this dividend in their nominated accounts on November 16.

The Primary Health Care Limited (ASX: PRY) share price is down 5.5% to $2.58 after the company advised that a review of its payroll system found incorrect employee payments. According to the release, the healthcare company's Medical Centres division will compensate certain past and present employees for incorrect payments under the modern awards since July 2011. Total remediation costs of $18 million have been provided for.

The Somnomed Limited (ASX: SOM) share price is down 8.5% to $1.55 following the release of the sleep treatment company's first quarter results. Although Somnomed delivered strong growth from its core business, this was offset slightly by the underperformance of its Renew Sleep Solutions business. The latter saw revenue fall 15% on the prior corresponding period despite a 12% increase in patient numbers.

The post Why these 4 ASX shares are ending the week in the red appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Speculative investors have had their eye on Resapp Health for some time and the company reported strong results from its clinical study into sleep apnoea back in September, with its smartphone app delivering surprising results.

The Smartcough study will evaluate the efficiency of a Resapp Health app to diagnose and manage respiratory diseases, including childhood acute respiratory disease, with 1,470 patients involved in the study.

Resapp is working hard to cement its credibility as a viable healthcare technology company, with breathing disorders company Somnomed Limited (ASX: SOM) and respected sleep disorders product manufacturer, ResMed Inc (ASX: RMD), also attempting to tap into the sleep treatment market, albeit via slightly different avenues.

The post Resapp Health Ltd (ASX:RAP) suspends trade on Smartcough results appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

It sank notably lower in early trade along with the rest of the market but has since clawed its way back and is down just 2% at the time of writing.

What was announced?

This morning the digital health company announced positive results from its prospective, double-blind obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) clinical study.

According to the release, analysis confirmed that ResApp's machine-learning algorithms were able to accurately identify OSA from a patient's overnight breathing and snoring sounds recorded using only a smartphone placed on a bedside table.

The data from the study shows that its algorithms achieved 84% sensitivity and 83% specificity for identifying patients with an apnoea hypopnea index greater than or equal to 5/h (Patients with mild, moderate or severe OSA) compared to simultaneous gold standard in-laboratory polysomnography scored using the current 2012 AASM scoring criteria.

The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, which is a standard measure of how well a test distinguishes between two diagnostic groups, recorded a score of 0.9. A value of 1 represents a perfect test.

The CEO and managing director of ResApp, Tony Keating, sees a major opportunity for the company's technology.

He said: "By using an off-the-shelf smartphone, we have the opportunity to deliver a highly-scalable, accurate and easy-to-use screening test for OSA. This has the potential to improve the health of a large portion of the population and significantly reduce the economic burden that undiagnosed OSA causes."

Before adding that: "These clinical study results confirm that our sleep apnoea solution works very well and we now look forward to comparing the performance of our algorithms with home sleep testing, which is the final step before we make a regulatory submission."

What's next?

Management advised that the company is now recruiting patients undergoing home sleep testing and is targeting a regulatory submission for its sleep apnoea screening product by the end of this calendar year.

Should you invest?

I've been very impressed at the way ResApp has transformed itself from being the laughing stock of the ASX to a credible healthcare technology company.

While it is still too soon for me to invest, I'll be eagerly watching on to see how things progress in the coming months and would suggest fellow investors do likewise.

In the meantime, investors can gain exposure to the booming sleep treatment market through the likes of Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp Ltd (ASX: FPH), ResMed Inc (ASX: RMD) or Somnomed Limited (ASX: SOM). My pick of the three would have to be ResMed.

The post ResApp Health Ltd (ASX:RAP) shares slide lower despite strong obstructive sleep apnoea study results appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Here's a short recap of the Australian market:

• S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) lower 0.29% to 6,247.60
• ALL ORDINARIES (Index: ^AXAO) (ASX: XAO) lower 0.21% to 6,341.70
• AUD/USD at US 74 cents
• Gold at US$1,225.65 an ounce
• Brent Oil at US$74.07 a barrel

The best-performing ASX 200 share today was Cimic Group Ltd (ASX: CIM), the contractor business finished up 4.7%.

At the other end of the performance table, pet business Greencross Limited (ASX: GXL) fell by 6.5%, wiping out the gains it has made over the past month.

The Kogan.Com Ltd (ASX: KGN) share price fell by a further 11% after the company's update yesterday wasn't as good as investors expected.

Medical Developments International Ltd (ASX: MVP) shares plunged 19.5% today after the US FDA delayed the Penthrox clinical program.

The Pinnacle Investment Management Group Ltd (ASX: PNI) share price returned to trade today after going into a trading halt for a capital raising and finished higher by 10.2%.

The share price of Nufarm Limited (ASX: NUF) dropped another 4.4% after its market update on Monday disappointed investors.

Annuity company Challenger Ltd (ASX: CGF) fell by 2.86% today.

Finally, Somnomed Limited (ASX: SOM) shares climbed 13.6% higher after it revealed revenue growth of 30% in FY18.

Here are some of today's top stories:

• Here come cheaper internet plans
• Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX:MFG) CEO warns shares could crash on this one risk
• Is Kogan.com Ltd (ASX:KGN) still a good investment?

The post ALL ORDINARIES finishes lower Wednesday: 8 shares you missed appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.