In afternoon trade the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) is on course to finish the day in the red and is down 0.4% to 6,249.9 points.
Four shares that have defied the market and pushed higher today are listed below. Here's why they are surging higher:
The Amaysim Australia Ltd (ASX: AYS) share price has pushed 6% higher to 98.5 cents after the telco company was tipped as a takeover target for Optus owner Singtel. According to the AFR, Singtel is believed to be in the early stages of exploring a takeover. Neither party has commented on the speculation but it seems some investors are betting on an approach coming.
The Macquarie Telecom Group Ltd (ASX: MAQ) share price has surged 14% higher to $24.05 after revealing plans to expand its data centre capacity significantly. In addition to this, management upgraded its guidance for FY 2018. It now expects EBITDA to be in the range of $47 million and $48 million compared to previous guidance of $44 million to $46 million. In FY 2017 Macquarie Telecom posted EBITDA of $40.3 million.
The New Hope Corporation Limited (ASX: NHC) share price has risen almost 10% to $3.50 after agreeing to purchase a 40% stake in the Bengalla coal project owned by Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES). New Hope will pay Wesfarmers a total of $860 million, bringing its stake in the project to 80%. Taipower and Mitsui equally share the remaining 20% stake.
The Reckon Limited (ASX: RKN) share price has zoomed 15% higher to 99 cents after releasing its half-year results. The accounting software company reported underlying EBITDA growth of 3% and underlying net profit after tax growth of 9%. This has allowed the board to approve the re-instatement of its dividend policy. As such, it has declared a fully franked interim dividend of 3 cents per share which will be paid to shareholders on September 4.
