Tech Week That Was: Where the Magnificent Seven go from here, and this week’s ASX Tech

An ASX stock has managed to top this week’s tech performances, despite its revenue falling and its costs rising. Meanwhile global guns are firing.

Tech stock fans have had plenty to think about this week. Picture: Getty Images

Wealth management software company Bravura Solutions (ASX:BVS) was the best tech performer over the past week, despite reporting lower revenue and higher operating costs in FY23.

The company told the market that this trading performance had driven the requirement and urgency for change, which had resulted in a new CEO, chair and refreshed board joining Bravura in the second half.

---

For the latest tech news, sign up here for free Stockhead daily newsletters

---

The market was also impressed after independent non-executive chairman, Matthew Quinn, recently bough $US127,000 worth of BVS stock.

Mixed feelings on giants’ future

The Nasdaq Composite, often considered the bellwether for global tech stocks, is up 35 per cent this year, driven by gains from the so-called ‘Magnificent Seven” – Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Tesla, Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta Platforms.

Nvidia alone has more than tripled, up 244 per cent YTD at the time of writing.

The other six have also posted insane gains in 2023 – Tesla by 139 per cent, Meta 137 per cent, Amazon 60 per cent, Alphabet 52 per cent, Apple 50 per cent, and Microsoft by 37 per cent.

Looking ahead, experts such as TV personality Jim Cramer believe that tech companies offering hardware and software solutions for AI (artificial intelligence) tools are likely to witness further rally.

“It’s so aggravating to stand here and tell you to just stick with the ‘Magnificent Seven’ and friends,” Cramer told his CNBC’s audience.

---

MORE FROM STOCKHEAD: ASX stocks additive manufacturing leaders | Nvidia, 4DS steal show | AI tool streamlines recruitment

---

“It’s just so darned easy to bet on the Magnificent Seven, because everything always seems to go right with them.”

But for every Cramer there are naysayers who believe that AI is a bubble story in the making.

“We see second-half trouble rather than an era of new AI rules,” said BofA strategists led by Michael Hartnett.

Another sceptic, Société Générale’s Albert Edwards, said “the US tech sector has surged on the back of what may prove to be nothing but hope — mainly AI related.”

“Actual earnings are poor in absolute and relative terms,” Edwards added.

ASX tech stocks news

ENERGY ONE (ASX:EOL)

The energy sector focused tech company jumped after announcing that it has received a non-binding proposal from global investment firm STG.

STG wants to buy EOL at $5.85 per share, in cash. The stock was trading at $5.62 at 1.30pm (AEST) Friday.

4DS MEMORY (ASX:4DS)

4DS continued its run up on the back of last week’s breakthrough, where it announced it had successfully incorporated its ReRAM memory cells into the imec megabit array.

The company has validated that 4DS interface switching ReRAM technology is transferable from fab to fab, and demonstrated a fully functional megabit array with 4DS interface switching ReRAM memory cells.

SPACETALK (ASX:SPA)

Spacetalk announced strong full year results which include a 33 per cent increase in annual recurring revenue to $8.3 million.

During the year, Spacetalk wound down its loss-making UK, EU, and US operations. This has resulted in significant cost savings, generated cash and freed up space for new products.

---

Visit Stockhead, where ASX small caps are big deals

---

ROCKETDNA (ASX:RKT)

Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) approval has been received to operate RocketDNA’s autonomous drone product (‘drone-in-a-box’) in Australia.

The approval was given for two autonomous drone systems (DJI Dock System and Hextronics Global Drone Station), which includes Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) and Remote Operations.

RocketDNA has now become the first company in Australia to receive approval for DJI’s new-to-market Dock System.

JAXSTA (ASX:JXT)

Jaxsta, the world’s largest database of official music credits, announced a landmark agreement with the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC).

MLC is a non-profit organisation created to issue blanket mechanical licences for qualified streaming services in the US, such as Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and Tidal.

In 2022, the MLC announced it had paid out more than $US700 million in royalties to songwriters and publishers in the first 18 months of operation.

APPEN (ASX:APN)

Appen tumbled after reporting statutory net loss after tax of $43.3 million, compared to loss of $9.4 million on pcp.

Appen’s CEO and president, Armughan Ahmad, said the first half result reflected a challenging external environment.

Looking forward, Appen says it continues to face headwinds from the broader technology market slowdown and as customers evaluate their AI strategies.

KNOSYS (ASX:KNO)

The SaaS company fell despite announcing that recurring revenue was up 16 per cent on pcp, while full year total revenue was up 12 per cent to $9.9 million.

The company’s bottom line was a net loss after tax of $2.2 million, an improvement of 28 per cent on the pcp.

This content first appeared on stockhead.com.au

SUBSCRIBE

Get the latest Stockhead news delivered free to your inbox. Click here