0225 GMT - Citi analyst Siraj Ahmed wonders whether Xero's cost-ratio guidance can be interpreted with a little flexibility. Xero still expects full-year operating expenses to account for around 73% of operating income, even after reporting a first-half cost ratio of just 71.2%. Ahmed points out that last year's guidance from the cloud-accounting software provider was for a full-year cost ratio of about 75%. Xero ultimately delivered 73%, he reminds clients in a note. He wonders whether this suggests Xero is actually aiming as low as 71%. Factors including Xero's acquisition of Syft complicate things, he admits. Citi has a buy rating and A$185.00 target price on the stock, which is up 6.4% at A$171.84. ([email protected])

0020 GMT - Orica's FY revenue fell short of expectations, but the explosives and chemicals maker notched a small beat on earnings and its dividend, Citi analyst Paul McTaggart says in a note. He calls it a solid result and says Orica's FY2025 outlook is both constructive and in line with growth expectations. Citi has a neutral rating and a A$19.00 target on Orica. The stock is down 3.2% at A$17.00/share. ([email protected]; @RhiannonHoyle)

0014 GMT - Life360 keeps its bull at Jefferies despite analyst Wei Sim's disappointment at the tracking app developer's third-quarter hardware revenue. Hardware revenue fell short of Sim's expectations due to a delayed product launch and inventory destocking, but the issues are seen as temporary and don't have any impact on his forecasts. Sim also tells clients in a note that the longer-term outlook for advertising revenues remains strong despite a slower-than-expected ramp-up in the new initiative. Jefferies keeps a buy rating and A$27.00 target price on the stock, which is up 3.0% at A$23.06. ([email protected])

0005 GMT - The sharp sell-off in Life360 shares following the tracking app provider's 3Q result might reflect disappointment that the company didn't lift its full-year advertising revenue guidance, Ord Minnett analyst Lindsay Bettiol says. He tells clients in a note that he is aware of disquiet among investors over Life360's lack of disclosure and detail on its advertising initiative. Some may have been looking for an improvement on the company's US$5 million-US$10 million guidance for 2024, he says. Bettiol adds that subscription revenue growth remains strong, just not strong enough to hold onto all the stock's 60% gains over the previous three months. Ord Minnett keeps a buy rating on the stock and lifts its target price by 20% to A$23.14. Shares are up 1.8% at A$22.79. ([email protected])

2356 GMT - Xero's lower-than-expected cost-to-revenue ratio makes the cloud-accounting software provider's full-year guidance look conservative, Jefferies analyst Roger Samuel says. Xero is still forecasting a 73% full-year cost ratio despite a fiscal first-half cost ratio of 71% and lower product design and development costs. Samuel suggests that the discrepancy could imply higher earnings expectations across fiscal 2025. Overall, he tells clients in a note that Xero's latest result looks strong. Jefferies has a buy rating and A$175.40 target price on the stock, which is up 6.1% at A$171.42. ([email protected])

2345 GMT - Investors in Flight Centre shrug off what RBC Capital Markets interprets as a modest downgrade to consensus earnings expectations. Flight Centre says it's targeting an underlying pretax profit of A$365 million-A$405 million in FY 2025. That compares to consensus forecasts of A$397.4 million, so the guidance represents a 3.1% miss at the midpoint of the range, analyst Wei-Weng Chen says. "We further note consensus skews for 1H do not appear to take into account Flight Centre's expectations another heavy 2H skew (FY 2024: 34/66) suggesting a potential 1H pretax profit downgrade in the order of -6.6%," RBC says. Still, Flight Centre signaled October trading was strong. The stock is up 2.7% to A$17.08 in early trade, outpacing the broader S&P/ASX 200 index's 0.4% rise. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2345 GMT - Building materials supplier James Hardie's revised FY 2025 guidance was better than many investors feared. But it's still waiting for an inflection point in macro conditions in the U.S., Morgan Stanley says. Repair & Remodel markets remain soft and James Hardie doesn't expect a recovery this year. "While we think there are some green shoots for the housing market with the clearing of the election and also 75 bps of rate cuts, we continue to see a challenging backdrop though to mid 2025," analyst Andrew G. Scott says. It appears that some homeowners are waiting on the sidelines for further certainty and to see a more meaningful reduction in mortgage rates, MS adds. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2337 GMT - Citi came away from Aristocrat Leisure's annual result more confident about its Social Casino business. Aristocrat this week sold its Plarium mobile gaming business for up to $820 million. Stripping Plarium out, analyst Adrian Lemme said the "margin and earnings of Social Casino are significantly higher than we expected (on much lower operating costs)." So, Citi upgrades its Ebita forecast for Digital, excluding Plarium by 8% in FY 2025. That assumes an Ebita margin of 42%. Citi retains a buy call on Aristocrat.([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2328 GMT - Insignia Financial's strategy refresh is a step in the right direction, but restoring investor confidence will take time, says Morgan Stanley. Insignia has indicated it wants operating expenses to be around the high A$800 million mark by FY 2028. That compares with opex guidance for FY 2025 of A$947 million-A$952 million. Analyst Andrei Stadnik says the aspirational target, if achieved, would lift FY 2028 earnings by 30% using consensus forecasts. "While the cost-out plan looks credible at a high level, we think investors will need time to gain confidence given there are no stepping stones and Insignia has struggled to deliver net cost savings in the past," Morgan Stanley says. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2317 GMT - Any Xero bears will likely contend that the cloud-accounting software provider is masking slow subscriber growth with price rises, RBC Capital Markets analyst Garry Sherriff says. He points out in a note to clients that the Australia-listed company's fiscal first-half revenue was broadly in line with expectations, despite subscriber numbers coming in about 2% lower than analysts had forecast. On the flip side, Sherriff says that pricing strength, low customer churn, and stronger-than-expected earnings and free cashflow are all positive. RBC has an outperform rating and A$170.00 target price on the stock, which is at A$161.55 ahead of the open. ([email protected])

2305 GMT - Xero is likely to enhance its investment into growth areas after its better-than-expected cost performance over its fiscal first half, UBS analyst say in a note. They tell clients that the U.S. could be a focus for investment after the cloud-accounting software provider's six-month operating expenses came in at 71.2% of operating income. Xero is still guiding for a full-year ratio of 73%, they say. The Australia-listed company's cost control and free-cashflow generation are seen as the highlights of its fiscal first half, with strong pricing power another positive. UBS has a buy rating and A$175.00 target price on the stock, which is at A$161.55 ahead of the open. ([email protected])

2252 GMT - Xero's first-half cost performance is likely to be well received by investors, E&P analyst Paul Mason says. He says a lot of his recent conversations about the cloud-accounting software provider have been with people worried about its costs. As such, he thinks that stronger-than-expected first-half Ebitda of NZ$311.7 million could lead to support for the stock. However, he tells clients in a note that net profit was slightly lower than analysts had expected. E&P has a neutral rating and A$148.00 target price on the stock, which is at A$161.55 ahead of the open. ([email protected])

(END) Dow Jones Newswires