0506 GMT - Aristocrat Leisure's bulls at UBS stay positive on the stock despite the slots maker's first-half profit miss. Analysts Andre Fromyhr and Bradley Beckett tell clients in a note that Aristocrat's 1H profit was 7% lower than they had anticipated, but that they cut their full-year forecast by just 6% due to what they see as relative 2H tailwinds. The stock fell almost 9% on the 1H result announcement, which the UBS pair says is the market pricing in worries that 2H growth will be more challenged. They don't think that the fundamentals have changed and keep a buy rating on the stock. Target price falls by 2.8% to A$72.40. Shares are up 2.6% at A$63.71. ([email protected])

0502 GMT - Commonwealth Bank of Australia's steady 3Q revenue growth and discipline on costs does nothing to shift UBS analyst John Storey's view that the stock is significantly overpriced. Storey tells clients in a note that Australia's largest lender looks likely to hit consensus forecasts for its fiscal year. He thinks that retail profitability is probably supported by growth in proprietary channels, and points out that business banking is growing at a faster rate than the industry as a whole. However, the stock--which is trading at record levels despite cyclical and macro headwinds--offers a dividend yield of less than 2.9%. He keeps a sell rating on the stock and sees better value elsewhere. UBS has a A$115.00 target price on the stock. Shares are up 0.8% at A$168.80. ([email protected])

0020 GMT - Xero's annual earnings have something for both bulls and bears to get their teeth into, RBC Capital Markets analyst Garry Sherriff says. Sherriff, who has an outperform rating on the stock, points to stronger-than-expected free cashflow and earnings as key positives in the cloud-accounting software provider's fiscal 2025 result. For the bears, he tells clients in a note that Xero's expense-ratio guidance is higher than the average analyst forecast. RBC has a A$185.00 target price on the stock, which is down 1.8% at A$170.71. ([email protected])

2359 GMT - The implications of Xero's higher-than-expected expense guidance for market expectations aren't immediately clear to E&P analyst Paul Mason. He tells clients in a note that, while Xero's fiscal 2026 expense-ratio guidance is higher than analysts had forecast, he simply doesn't think that forecasts had been updated for additional one-off executive remuneration costs. Mason thinks that Xero is gearing up to significantly lift U.S. marketing, but says that any clarification from management will be key to how analysts process the outlook. E&P has a neutral rating and A$156.00 target price on the stock, which is at A$173.86 ahead of the open. ([email protected])

2349 GMT - Xero's expense-ratio guidance will probably move analysts to lower their fiscal 2026 Ebitda forecasts, Barrenjoey analyst Eric Choi says. He points out in a note to clients that the average analyst forecast for the cloud-accounting software provider's fiscal 2026 expense ratio was 69%. Xero's guidance is for 71.5%. However, he adds that the miss is linked to one-off executive remuneration expenses that won't repeat in fiscal 2027. Stripping those out, the underlying picture looks a lot closer to analysts' expectations. Barrenjoey has an overweight rating and A$180.00 target price on the stock, which is at A$173.86 ahead of the open. ([email protected])

(END) Dow Jones Newswires