In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has followed Wall Street's lead and is charging higher. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 1.3% to 7,965.1 points.
Four ASX shares that are rising more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are climbing:
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A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M)
The A2 Milk share price is up almost 5% to $7.05. This follows news that the infant formula company has settled its dispute with dairy processing partner Synlait Milk Ltd (ASX: SM1). Investors appear pleased because the settlement was favourable for A2 Milk. For example, it notes that "Synlait accepts the validity of a2MC's notice dated 15 September 2023 cancelling the exclusive manufacturing and supply rights enjoyed by Synlait in respect of stages 1 to 3 of a2MC's current infant milk formula products." It also agreed that "a2MC owns the intellectual property rights for the Product Specifications of the IMF products."
Fortescue Ltd (ASX: FMG)
The Fortescue share price is up almost 4% to $17.45. This appears to have been driven by a broker note out of Citi. According to the note, the broker has upgraded Fortescue's shares to a buy rating and maintained its $21.00 price target. Citi made the move on valuation grounds following a sharp decline by the iron ore giant's shares this year.
Imdex Ltd (ASX: IMD)
The Imdex share price is down 3.5% to $2.10. This has been driven by news that the mining technology company has resolved its long running intellectual property dispute with Boart Longyear. The two parties have now agreed to settle all of their global disputes and have entered into a binding settlement agreement. This includes the transfer of certain intellectual property to Imdex, new supply agreements between the parties, and a $10 million payment to Imdex. Managing Director, Paul House, said: "We are pleased to bring this long running dispute to an end and look forward to a starting a new chapter in our relationship with Boart Longyear, where we get to provide our market leading technologies with one of the world's pre-eminent drilling companies."
Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX: MFG)
The Magellan share price is up 3% to $10.76. Investors have been buying this fund manager's shares since the release of its full year results on Thursday. The market appears impressed with Magellan's 31% jump in statutory net profit after tax to $238.8 million. This allowed the company to declare a final dividend of 28.6 cents per share. It is also paying a performance fee dividend of 7.1 cents per share.
