ASX standouts: Monday's movers & gainers

The ASX opened 0.25% higher on Monday after Wall Street rallied on Friday with the S&P 500 closing at a fresh all-time high. 

The market shrugged off inflation concerns, even after the US Labor Department reported 6.8% year-over-year inflation in November, the highest figure since 1982. 

ASX gainers 

ASX energy stocks are posting broad-based gains following a slight uptick in oil prices. Oil prices fluctuated last week ahead of US inflation figures, with concerns that  a higher-than-expected result could prompt the Federal Reserve to accelerate its bond-taper program, lifting the US dollar and weighing on oil prices. 

Woodside Petroleum (ASX: WPL) is up 1.7%, Beach Energy (ASX: BPT) gained 2.9% and Santos (ASX: STO) is trading 1% higher. 

On the smaller end of town, AVZ Minerals (ASX: AVZ) is making a V-shaped recovery following a successful $75m capital raising on Friday. AVZ shares initially plunged 15.5% on Friday morning. The placement was held at a generous 22% discount to its last closing price. The company’s shares jumped 13.5% higher on Monday. 

Johns Lyng Group (ASX: JLG) has popped 9% to all-time highs following the successful completion of a $221m institutional placement. Last Thursday, Johns Lyng announced plans to acquire US-based insurance repair services company, Reconstruction Experts for US$144m. The acquisition is expected to be ‘immediately and significantly earnings accretive’.

Emerging graphite anode producer Talga Group (ASX: TLG) jumped 9% this morning after  announcing an extended memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Mitsui & Co, one of the largest global trading and investment companies.

Both parties have continued advanced discussions about co-developing Talga’s Vittangi Anode Project. 

Residential mortgage lender Resimac Group (ASX: RMC) bounced 8.2% after announcing plans to undertake an on-market buy-back.

The Board said that the company’s current share price “does not accurately reflect the underlying value of the company’s assets and the Share Buy-Back represents an opportunity to add value to the remaining shares on issue.”

Neometals (ASX: NMT) rallied 4.8% after announcing a binding co-operation agreement with Portugal's largest chemical producer, Bondalti Chemicals SA. The agreement proposes a 25,000 tonnes per annum lithium refinery in Portugal to produce battery quality lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate.

The process will leverage Neometal’s ELi lithium process which replace conventional, carbon-intensive chemical conversion methods. 

ASX fallers

Emerging lithium producer Firefinch (ASX: FFX) is down 8% after successfully raising $100m at a 11.3% discount to its last closing price.

The company said that the funds will provide funding certainty for its growth plans at the Morila Gold Project and Goulamina Lithium Project, and remove reliance on debt funding. 

Audio visual networking solutions company Audinate (ASX: AD8) has tanked 5% after announcing the acquisition of video business Silex Insight SA.

The US$6.5m acquisition is unlikely to do anything meaningful for the $805m company any time soon.