0354 GMT - ANZ Group replaces National Australia Bank as Morgan Stanley analysts' top pick among Australia's major banks. Both lenders are rated equal-weight by MS analysts, but they highlight ANZ's wider-than-usual discount to peers following its share-price underperformance through 2024. They tell clients in a note that they also prefer ANZ for its differentiated institutional bank, positive momentum in Australian mortgages, good cost discipline and its much-improved risk profile. They have some concerns about ANZ's relatively low provision coverage and limited flexibility on capital management, but raise their target price 7.7% to A$29.30. Shares are up 1.7% at A$29.22. ([email protected])

0352 GMT - National Australia Bank's senior-management changes raise the lender's execution risk and prompt Morgan Stanley analysts to lower their rating on the stock to equal-weight from overweight. They also worry about pressure on margins from competition in business banking, lower-than-market growth rates in mortgage lending, and less chance of further capital-management initiatives. They tell clients in a note that the factors will likely weigh on near-term share-price performance. However, NAB still has a solid recent track record on costs and healthy levels of provisions, they add. MS cuts its target price 7.0% to A$34.80. Shares are up 1.2% at A$33.05. ([email protected])

0339 GMT - Myer's bull at Canaccord Genuity is positive on the department-store operator even without improvements to the mood among Australian consumers. Analyst Allan Franklin writes in a note that Myer's first-half result was slightly better than he had anticipated, with various trends all heading in the right direction. Franklin points to growth in active loyalty members, new member sign-ups and the proportion of group sales going to members. He says a stronger consumer backdrop is not a core driver of his medium-term forecasts, with any improvement potentially materially additive to earnings growth. Canaccord Genuity keeps a buy rating and A$1.15 target price on the stock, which is down 4.3% at A$0.7175. ([email protected])

0337 GMT - Webjet's bull at Wilsons stays positive on the stock despite the Australian travel agent flagging increased spending on marketing. Analyst Ben Wilson tells clients in a note, that Webjet's ambition to double its annual transaction value by fiscal 2030 comes at a significant cost. In addition to expenditure on a brand relaunch, he points to a gradual moderation in revenue as a proportion of transaction value. However, the stock is still cheap compared to peers, trading at three times Wilsons' fiscal 2026 Ebitda forecast. Wilsons cuts its target price by 7.2% to A$0.90 and keeps an overweight rating on the stock. Shares are flat at A$0.56. ([email protected])

(END) Dow Jones Newswires