ASX today, Cleanaway jumps 20% on EQT takeover deal
Updated: 21 minutes ago
Samso Market Update | Monday, 19 October 2026 | Market close 4:30pm AEDT
The S&P/ASX 200 closed up 39.0 points or 0.44% at 8,845.7 on the ASX today. Cleanaway Waste Management rose 20.2% and Challenger 19.3%, each on a takeover proposal announced before the open. The All Ordinaries, which tracks the 500 largest listed companies, rose 0.39% to 8,975.7. The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries, an index of the companies ranked 101 to 300 by size, fell 0.35% to 3,177.9. This morning's pre-market edition is below, and Friday's editions are at ASX today, Friday 16 October 2026.
ASX today: Key Highlights
The ASX 200 rose 0.44% to 8,845.7. Energy was the best sector, up 2.21%, and information technology the worst, down 1.31%.
Cleanaway (ASX: CWY) rose 20.2% to A$2.97 on the day it agreed to a A$3.095 a share cash takeover by EQT Infrastructure.
Challenger (ASX: CGF) rose 19.3% to A$11.75 on the day it announced a non-binding A$11.80 a share proposal from Daiichi Life.
Coal miners rose. Yancoal gained 5.7%, Whitehaven Coal 5.2% and New Hope 5.8%, which announced it will buy Malabar Resources.
More shares fell than rose. Of the 1,500 companies that traded and have a market value on the ASX, 490 rose, 639 fell and 371 were unchanged.
China's economy grew 4.5% in the September quarter from a year earlier, against a 4.4% forecast, the ABC reported.
Takeovers, sectors and Bendigo Bank
Five takeover and acquisition announcements were made before the open. A scheme of arrangement is a takeover that shareholders vote on and a court must approve. Cleanaway, FleetPartners and RAS Technology signed binding schemes. Challenger received a non-binding proposal, which is an offer that is not yet a firm deal. New Hope agreed to buy the 74% of unlisted Malabar Resources it does not own. At 12:28pm the ABC reported that energy, banks and takeover activity, naming Challenger and Cleanaway, were lifting the market.
Energy rose 2.21%, the best of the 11 sectors (Yahoo Finance data). Market Index reported at 2:00pm that coal miners were "sharply higher". Separately, it reported at 1:48pm that China's coal output fell 6.8% from a year earlier in September.
Information technology fell 1.31%. Market Index reported at 11:43am that the sector fell 2.5% following the Nasdaq's 2.1% fall on Friday. NextDC (ASX: NXT) entered a trading halt at 9:33am AEDT. It said it needs to give a material update on the impact of a delay to power supply at its M3 Melbourne data centre, including on FY27 guidance.
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank (ASX: BEN) fell 4.0% to A$10.13 on the day of its first quarter trading update. The ABC quoted J.P. Morgan's Andrew Triggs, a bank analyst, who wrote that the result "looks a little soft on NIM/revenue".
Blue Chips (above A$1 billion)
Samso's four size bands use market value at Friday's close. They are not the S&P/ASX indices of the same names.
Gainers. Cleanaway Waste Management (ASX: CWY) rose 20.24% to A$2.97 on turnover of A$625 million. It signed a scheme with Sedum Group, owned by funds managed or advised by EQT, at A$3.095 cash a share less any dividends paid. Cleanaway said that implies an enterprise value of about A$9.3 billion. The shares closed 12.5 cents below the A$3.095 offer price. Benz Mining (ASX: BNZ) rose 19.46% to A$4.85 on the day it reported more drill results from its Icon gold project, including 46 metres downhole at 6.5 grams of gold a tonne from 454 metres. Challenger (ASX: CGF) rose 19.29% to A$11.75. Daiichi Life, which owns 20.5% of Challenger, proposed to buy the rest at A$11.80 a share. The proposal is subject to due diligence and other conditions, and Challenger's board is considering it. FleetPartners Group (ASX: FPR) rose 7.13% to A$5.11 on the day it signed a A$5.30 cash a share scheme with SG Fleet. Ingenia Communities (ASX: INA) rose 7.07% to A$4.24, with no ASX announcement since Friday afternoon. New Hope Corporation (ASX: NHC) rose 5.82% to A$6.18. It will issue 0.5 of its shares for each Malabar share, under a scheme that Malabar shareholders vote on.
Fallers. Mesoblast (ASX: MSB) fell 11.06% to A$1.77 on turnover of A$17.9 million, with no ASX announcement since Friday afternoon. Tasmea (ASX: TEA) fell 6.90% to A$9.31. Market Index reported at 1:01pm that engineering stocks were lower, naming Tasmea. Its annual report was released at 3:38pm. 4DMedical (ASX: 4DX) fell 5.38% to A$3.87 and Infratil (ASX: IFT) 5.28% to A$9.87. 4DMedical's only ASX announcement since Friday afternoon was a share quotation notice. Infratil had none. Stockland (ASX: SGP) fell 4.02% to A$4.06 on the day of its first quarter operational update and annual meeting.
Mid Caps (A$500 million to A$1 billion)
Gainers. Tuas (ASX: TUA) rose 5.18% to A$1.725, with no ASX announcement since Friday afternoon. Amplitude Energy (ASX: AEL) rose 3.88% to A$1.875 on the day it released its first quarter report. Nanosonics (ASX: NAN) rose 3.85% to A$2.97 and St Barbara (ASX: SBM) 3.77% to A$0.825. Neither had an ASX announcement since Friday afternoon other than a buy-back update from Nanosonics.
Fallers. Weebit Nano (ASX: WBT) fell 7.64% to A$2.66 on the day it released an investor update. Market Index named it among the technology fallers. Deep Yellow (ASX: DYL) fell 6.10% to A$0.77, Alpha HPA (ASX: A4N) 5.56% to A$0.425 and Elevra Lithium (ASX: ELV) 5.49% to A$3.79. SKS Technologies Group (ASX: SKS) fell 5.07% to A$6.56. None of the four had a price-sensitive ASX announcement since Friday afternoon.
Small Caps (A$150 million to A$500 million)
Gainers. Wrkr (ASX: WRK) rose 12.5% to A$0.09 on turnover of A$146,000. Astron (ASX: ATR) rose 9.48% to A$0.635 on turnover of A$54,000, and Sky Metals (ASX: SKY) 9.38% to A$0.175. Dateline Resources (ASX: DTR) rose 9.21% to A$0.083 on turnover of A$1.0 million. None of the four had an ASX announcement since Friday afternoon.
Fallers. Stakk (ASX: SKK) fell 20.83% to A$0.019, from A$0.024, on turnover of A$2.3 million. It announced that its agreement with Chime Financial, a material client, was extended to 31 December 2027 on unchanged terms. Tetratherix (ASX: TTX) fell 11.55% to A$5.36 and Nova Minerals (ASX: NVA) 11.24% to A$0.395. Cobre (ASX: CBE) fell 10.53% to A$0.255 on the day it named a new chair. Terra Metals (ASX: TM1) fell 10.0% to A$0.135, with no ASX announcement since Friday afternoon. Samso covered Terra Metals and its Southwest discovery in September.
Micro Caps (below A$150 million)
Gainers. RAS Technology Holdings (ASX: RTH) rose 85.19% to A$1.00. It signed a scheme with The Press Association, part of the UK's PA Media Group, at A$1.04 cash a share, a 93% premium to Friday's close of A$0.54. AXP Energy (ASX: AXP) rose 66.67% to A$0.005, from A$0.003, on turnover of A$149,000. In reply to an ASX price query, a letter asking a company to explain an unusual price move, AXP said it was not aware of any information that could explain the trading. Skylark Minerals (ASX: SKM) rose 19.51% to A$0.245. It reported that the Mineral Resource Estimate at its Zaranou gold project in Côte d'Ivoire rose 228% to 1.20 million ounces. A Mineral Resource Estimate is a company's measure of how much metal it believes is in the ground. Eminence Minerals (ASX: EMA) rose 15.56% to A$0.052 on the day it secured exclusivity over a Côte d'Ivoire gold portfolio. Alvo Minerals (ASX: ALV) rose 12.79% to A$0.097 on turnover of A$4.9 million, with no ASX announcement since Friday afternoon.
Fallers. Infinity Mining (ASX: IMI) fell 28.57% to A$0.005 on turnover of A$70,000, with no ASX announcement since Friday afternoon. At prices this low, a move of a fraction of a cent is a large percentage. Albion Resources (ASX: ALB) fell 14.52% to A$0.053 on the day it announced a A$1.8 million placement to fund gold exploration at Gidgee. Vertex Minerals (ASX: VTX) fell 11.82% to A$0.097 on the day of an operational update on its Reward gold mine. Black Bear Minerals (ASX: BKB) fell 11.24% to A$0.395 and Australian Vanadium (ASX: AVL) 10.53% to A$0.17, with no price-sensitive ASX announcement since Friday afternoon.
Commodities and Currency
Prices between 4:21pm and 4:33pm AEDT (Yahoo Finance data), compared with the figures in this morning's edition.
Front-month gold futures were at US$4,196.40 an ounce, up from US$4,181.10.
Front-month copper futures were at US$6.61 a pound, up from US$6.57.
Brent crude futures were at US$108.00 a barrel, down from US$109.86.
Iron ore was last reported at US$91.20 a tonne on Friday, up 1.5% (ABC News). Samso found no Monday price by the close.
The Australian dollar was buying 69.76 US cents at 4:32pm AEDT, up from 69.63 US cents at 8:44am AEDT.
Samso Concluding Comments
The ASX 200 rose 0.44% to 8,845.7. Five takeover and acquisition announcements were made before the open, and Cleanaway and Challenger each rose about 20%. Energy led the sectors, technology fell, and 639 companies fell against 490 that rose. Cleanaway, Challenger and energy shares rose while most shares and the Small Ordinaries fell. NextDC remains in a trading halt until its update on the M3 power delay, due by Wednesday's open at the latest.
General information only. This is not financial advice.
Samso Market Update | Monday, 19 October 2026 | Pre-market 9:45am AEDT
Futures point to a slightly lower open on the ASX today. ASX 200 futures were down 0.1% at 8,826 points at about 7:00am AEDT, according to the ABC News market snapshot. A futures contract is an agreement to buy or sell at a set price on a later date, and its price is used as a guide to where the index will open. The 0.1% fall is measured on the futures contract, not against Friday's index close.
The S&P/ASX 200 closed on Friday at 8,806.7, up 87.0 points or 1.00%. The All Ordinaries, which tracks the 500 largest listed companies, rose 1.13% to 8,940.4. The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries, an index of the companies ranked 101 to 300 by size, rose 2.20% to 3,189.2. Friday's editions are at ASX today, Friday 16 October 2026, and Thursday's are at ASX today, Thursday 15 October 2026.
ASX today: Key Highlights
ASX 200 futures were down 0.1% at 8,826 at about 7:00am AEDT (ABC News).
The Nasdaq Composite fell 2.15% and the S&P 500 fell 1.09% on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.34%.
Brent crude futures settled at US$109.86 a barrel, up 3.7%, the highest settlement since May according to FinanceFeeds.
The Nikkei 225 rose 1.39% on Friday but fell 5.37% over the week, according to Trading Economics.
China releases its third-quarter growth figures today, according to the ABC. The market forecast is 4.4% (Seoul Economic Daily).
Wall Street overnight
Wall Street finished lower on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 175.28 points or 0.34% to 52,002.41. The S&P 500 fell 84.62 points or 1.09% to 7,659.44. The Nasdaq Composite fell 573.00 points or 2.15% to 26,140.03. The Russell 2000, an index of smaller US companies, fell 1.66% to 2,721.37.
The ABC reported "growing anxiety of the debt financing of the AI boom and whether the massive investment will deliver decent returns." NAB senior FX strategist Rodrigo Catril, quoted by the ABC, called the fall "a reassessment of the economics underpinning the AI investment boom." The ABC reported that CoreWeave, which runs data centres, fell 12% on Friday and about 25% over the week. TheStreet reported that energy shares rose 2.52% with the rise in oil prices.
The US 10-year Treasury yield was at approximately 5.10% late in the New York session, up about 1 basis point from Thursday (Yahoo Finance data). A Treasury is a US government bond. A bond yield is the yearly return from buying a government bond at today's price and holding it until it is repaid, and when yields rise, bond prices fall. A basis point is one hundredth of a percentage point.
Japan
The Nikkei 225 closed on Friday at 65,324.29, up 898.34 points or 1.39%. Trading Economics reported that selling of technology shares eased, after TSMC reported a record third-quarter profit and Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang defended CoreWeave's financial health. It named Lasertec (up 5.1%) and Kioxia (up 3.8%) among the gainers. The index fell 5.37% over the week, its steepest weekly fall since July, according to Trading Economics. The US dollar was buying approximately 157.97 yen at 8:46am AEDT. Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.52% and the Shanghai Composite rose 0.24% on Friday.
London and Europe
London's FTSE 100 closed on Friday at 10,881.90, up 41.50 points or 0.38% (Yahoo Finance data). Germany's DAX rose 0.95% to 25,622.61. France's CAC 40 rose 0.28% to 7,956.70.
Currencies
The Australian dollar was buying approximately 69.6 US cents at 8:44am AEDT, up 0.64% from Friday's session. The ABC quoted Barclays saying it was bullish on the Australian dollar and that "Australia remains a key beneficiary of the AI commodity supercycle." The US dollar index, which measures the US dollar against six major currencies, was at approximately 101.78 late in the New York session on Friday, down 0.22%. The euro was at approximately US$1.119.
Commodities
Brent crude futures for the front month, the contract that falls due soonest, settled on Friday at US$109.86 a barrel, up US$3.94 or 3.7%. Brent briefly touched US$110, its highest since May, according to the ABC. West Texas Intermediate, the US oil benchmark, settled at US$101.41 a barrel for November delivery, up 3.5% (ABC News, FinanceFeeds). FinanceFeeds reported that a Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted a ballistic missile aimed at the Red Sea export port of Yanbu, and that a Ukrainian drone strike shut a main unit at a large Russian refinery.
Gold futures for December settled at US$4,181.10 an ounce, up 0.26% (Yahoo Finance data). Silver futures for December rose 0.82% to US$57.31 an ounce. Copper futures for December rose 0.95% to US$6.5735 a pound. The ABC reported that copper fell over the week as the end of a strike at a large Chilean mine eased supply concerns.
Iron ore rose 1.5% to US$91.20 a tonne on Friday, according to the ABC News market snapshot (prices at about 7:00am AEDT).
Today's diary
All times AEDT.
No Australian Bureau of Statistics releases are scheduled today (ABS release calendar).
Reserve Bank Assistant Governor (Financial Markets) Christopher Kent is due to speak, according to the ABC. No time was given.
1:00pm. China's third-quarter gross domestic product (GDP), the total value of goods and services an economy produces in a period, with September retail sales, industrial production and fixed asset investment (Trading Economics calendar, 02:00 UTC). The market forecast for third-quarter growth is 4.4% (Seoul Economic Daily).
Samso Concluding Comments
ASX 200 futures were down 0.1% at about 7:00am AEDT. On Friday the Nasdaq fell 2.15%, with the ABC and NAB linking the fall to concern over the cost and returns of AI investment, and Brent crude rose 3.7% to US$109.86 a barrel. China's third-quarter growth figures at 1:00pm AEDT are the main scheduled item today.
General information only. This is not financial advice.
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