Afterpay surges, Pro Medicus rockets on $40m contract, Whitehaven rises

At lunch on Thursday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a decent gain. The benchmark index is currently up 0.3% to 6,708.3 points.

Here’s what is happening on the market today:

Afterpay surges higher.

The Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) share price is back on form on Thursday and is surging higher. Improving sentiment in the tech sector and a positive broker note appear to be the drivers of this gain. In respect to the latter, this morning Morgan Stanley retained its overweight rating and lifted its price target on the payments company’s shares to $136.00. The broker notes that app downloads have been increasing strongly in the US and UK.

Pro Medicus $40 million contract win.

The Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME)…