logo-loader

Telstra, Westpac, Kidman Resources, Artemis Resources, XJO and the day's other hot stocks

Published: 15:24 13 Jul 2017 AEST

telstra phone box
Telstra held up well under the weight of yet more negative commentary

The ASX 200 was up 63 points at 5,737.10 following the more dovish commentary by US Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen, which pushed the Dow Jones to a record close overnight. Nearer to home, Chinese imports and exports increased at a faster than anticipated pace last month.

Telstra Corp (ASX:TEL) held firm in the face of negative commentary from a leading investment bank. Citi expects the telco to cut its dividend by 6 cents a share from 31 cents.

Westpac Banking Corp (ASX:WBC) was up 1.7% mid-afternoon after Goldman Sachs upgraded to the shares to ‘buy’. The Wall Street bank predicts Westpac will outperform its peers.

Disappointing market reaction.....

The disappointing market reaction to Kidman Resources Ltd’s (ASX:KDR) lithium joint-venture continued as the shares slid a further 2.4% Thursday, following a 12% drop the day before. There was dissatisfaction with the financial terms tabled by Chilean chemicals giant SQM and worries over the development timeline. SQM is taking 50% of the Mt Holland Lithium Project in Western Australia for US$30 million in cash, staged payments of US$80 million and a US$21.5 million convertible loan note.

The day’s pocket rocket stock was Artemis Resources Ltd (ASX:ARV), which shot up  60% following the discovery of gold nuggets up to four centimetres long in the bulk sample from the Purdy’s Reward property in the West Pilbara, Western Australia. The finds were made by partner Novo Resources Corp (CVE:NVO), a Canadian digger. Artemis, which is chaired by serial entrepreneur David Lenigas, is earning into the exciting gold play.

Shares in Graphex Mining Ltd (ASX:GPX) advanced 35% by midday. The reason? Well, its Chinese joint-venture partners said it remains committed to the Chilalo Graphite Project. Both sides have agreed to rejig the initial agreement a little to accommodate the Tanzanian government, which will receive a free-carried 16% interest in the asset. Reflecting this, CN Docking is investing slightly less into the deal - US$15-17 million compared with US$18-20 million originally.

Global Petroleum Ltd (ASX:GBP) was one of the market’s main casualties as the shares succumbed to a round of profit-taking following the completion of a 2D seismic survey on of its offshore Namibia licence. Initial examination of the raw data confirmed the significant potential of the Gemsbok prospect in the south-east of the block. The shares, off around 20% on Thursday, have advanced 60% in the year to date.

Among the large-caps, Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX:WHC) was held firm after a production update that undershot market expectations – though only slightly.

Australian Strategic Materials signs US$600 million LoI

Rowena Smith, CEO and managing director of Australian Strategic Materials Ltd (ASX:ASM, OTC:ASMMF), joins Jonathan Jackson in the Proactive studio to discuss the company’ s Dubbo Project, in Central West New South Wales. This project aims to extract and process critical minerals and rare earth...

12 hours, 53 minutes ago