Hot Stocks: IperionX, Catapult Group International, Australian Gold and Copper

US markets ended Wednesday on an uncertain note, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipping 91 points to 42,427.74 – its first decline in five sessions – while the S&P 500 was essentially flat, and the Nasdaq rose 0.32% to 19,460.49. Investor sentiment wavered after ADP’s private payrolls report showed just 37,000 jobs were added in May, well below expectations of 110,000 and the weakest reading in over two years. The data added to jitters ahead of Friday’s official jobs report and prompted renewed political pressure, with former President Trump using the opportunity to call for immediate rate cuts, again criticising Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Despite this, Fed officials have indicated they’re likely to keep rates on hold at their next meeting.

The mood was further dampened by the Congressional Budget Office’s assessment of Trump’s proposed economic bill, which forecasts a US$2.4 trillion rise in deficits over the next decade and nearly 11 million more uninsured Americans. That analysis, combined with internal Republican divisions, cast doubt on the bill’s future in the Senate. In commodities, oil prices edged lower—Brent crude fell 1.16% to US$64.87 a barrel—while gold was mixed, with spot prices flat and futures up 0.58%. One Australian dollar is buying 64.95 US cents.

The SPI futures are pointing to a modest 1-point decline at the open.

IperionX (NASDAQ:IPX / ASX:IPX) has secured a US Department of Defense Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase III contract worth up to US$99 million to supply low-cost, domestically produced titanium components. The five-year IDIQ (Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity) contract enables US DoD agencies to issue task orders without further competition. Initial projects will focus on manufacturing titanium fasteners using IperionX’s patented technology at its Virginia facility, with potential expansion into aerospace components. This marks a major step in commercialising IperionX’s tech and aligns with US goals to reshore critical materials. The company sees this as a pivotal validation of its titanium supply chain strategy and a key commercial inflection point.

Catapult Group International (ASX:CAT) has acquired Perch (Catalyft Labs, Inc), a Massachusetts-based AI-driven weight training monitoring firm, for US$18 million, with potential earn-outs of up to US$10 million. The acquisition strengthens Catapult’s Performance & Health vertical by integrating gym-based data with on-field performance tracking, advancing its end-to-end athlete monitoring ecosystem. Perch, developed at MIT, uses 3D cameras and AI to provide real-time feedback in weight rooms and is already used by elite sports teams. The deal requires no capital raise, is cash- and debt-neutral at closing, and is expected to be accretive to Catapult’s Rule of 40 profile. Catapult expects the acquisition to accelerate growth and AI capability in global sports analytics.

Australian Gold and Copper (ASX:AGC) has completed its largest-ever aircore drilling program at the South Cobar Project in NSW, uncovering a regionally significant multi-kilometre gold-silver trend. Two major targets emerged: a 1.2km southern extension of the Achilles trend and a new 2.0km gold-silver anomaly, both showing strong multi-element geochemical signatures. The 312-hole, 11,137m program mapped key mineralised host rocks over a 5km corridor, identifying further copper-zinc and copper-bismuth targets with promising chargeability anomalies. Reverse circulation drilling has now resumed to test deeper beneath the most promising anomalies, potentially expanding the Achilles deposit and supporting further discoveries in this underexplored mineral province.